Posts Tagged ‘ashford stud’

By Ray Paulick
Flanders, the 1994 Eclipse Award-winning juvenile filly who defeated stablemate Serena’s Song in one of the most exciting editions of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies ever run, was euthanized in mid-February after complications arose following a paddock accident in December at Coolmore’s Ashford Stud in Kentucky.

The daughter of Seeking the Gold out of the Storm Bird mare Starlet Storm had been purchased by Coolmore boss John Magnier for $400,000 from the Overbrook Farm dispersal, with Eaton Sales as agent, during the Keeneland November breeding stock sale in 2009. She was 18 at the time of her death.

Bred and owned by the late William T. Young’s Overbrook Farm and trained by D. Wayne Lukas, Flanders finished first in all five of her starts at two, including four Grade 1 races—the Spinaway, Matron, Frizette and Juvenile Fillies. A positive test for the therapeutic medication isoxsuprine, used for circulation problems in a horse’s foot—disqualified Flanders from her victory in the Matron.

While she finished first by a combined margin of 36 1/2 lengths in her first four races (including a 21-length win in the Frizette), it was her duel against Serena’s Song–who went on to win an Eclipse Award the following year and later induction into the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame—that endeared Flanders to so many racing fans and horsemen. Hooked throughout the 1 1/16-mile Juvenile Fillies by Serena’s Song and appearing beaten in the final furlong, Flanders dug down and battled back to win by a head over her stablemate in what proved to be her final race. She pulled up lame under jockey Pat Day after the finish and never made it back to the winner’s circle. Flanders had surgery the following day for a displaced condylar fracture of the cannon bone and an axial fracture of the sesamoid in her right front ankle. She was subsequently retired to Overbrook Farm.

Click here to see a video of the Flanders-Serena’s Song duel in the Breeders’ Cup.

Flanders’ first foal, Surfside, a daughter of Seattle Slew went on to be a multiple Grade 1 winner and champion 3-year-old filly of 2000. She produced several other winners, including Battle Plan, a 5-year-old son of Empire Maker who has won three of four starts for trainer Todd Pletcher and is aiming for the Oaklawn Park Handicap this spring following an impressive allowance win at Gulfstream Park Feb. 18. He is one of a small number of horses bred by Overbrook that were not included in the dispersal.

Flanders produced a Bernardini colt last month, but developed complications from the paddock accident and could not be saved. Thoroughbred Times reported she developed laminitis. The colt has been placed with a nursemare.

“Flanders was a gorgeous mare,” said Chris Young, the grandson of William T. Young who manages the remaining Overbrook horses. “She was one of my absolute favorites—probably had the best personality of any mare I’ve ever been around. I understand she was the one mare John Magnier really wanted from our dispersal, and it’s really a shame they lost her.”

Copyright © 2010, The Paulick Report

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By Ray Paulick
Todd Pletcher isn’t the only who had a big weekend last week, winning three American Graded Stakes races for 3-year-olds on Feb. 20: the Grade 2 Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth at Gulfstream Park with Eskendereya, the Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes at Fair Grounds with Discreetly Mine, and the Grade 3 El Camino Real Derby at Golden Gate Fields with Connemara.

Coolmore Ashford’s Giant’s Causeway sired two of the Pletcher-trained AGS winners, Eskendereya and Connemara, giving the 13-year-old Storm Cat stallion a total of three AGS winners thus far in 2010 (San Pasqual Handicap winner Neko Bay is the other one). For good measure, another top 3-year-old prospect by Giant’s Causeway, Northern Giant, finished a solid third for Pletcher’s mentor, Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, in the Risen Star. Only 16 days earlier, Northern Giant turned in a huge effort winning an Oaklawn Park maiden race by 11 1/4 lengths. He’s obviously a slow developing colt, the win coming in his sixth start.

On the strength of those AGS winners, Giant’s Causeway is atop the general sire list thus far in 2010 after being leading North American sire in 2009 for the first time since his first crop reached the racetrack in 2004. He was a truly outstanding racehorse and it’s no surprise that he’s developed into an elite sire. Giant’s Causeway has yet to sire his first American classic winner, but Eskendereya, who moved to the top of many Kentucky Derby lists with his Fountain of Youth victory, could easily change that.

With his weekend victories, trainer Pletcher now has won eight AGS races of 2010 with seven different horses. That’s 16% of the 50 AGS races run so far this year. Pletcher is on a brief “vacation” now, the result of a suspension stemming from a positive test at the 2008 Breeders’ Cup. His stable is deep in talent, is coming off a very strong 2009, and is ranked as the leading trainer by money won so far in 2010 (with reigning Eclipse Award winner Steven Asmussen in hot pursuit) while winning at a 27% clip. With Quality Road leading the way in the older male division, an incredibly deep roster of 3-year-old talent, and undoubtedly a talented group of 2-year-olds now going through early training, this could be a year to remember for Pletcher.

Four American-based stallions-Cuvee, Yonaguska, Lion Heart and Dehere–and Irish-based Powerscourt are scheduled to arrive in Turkey this week to stand at stud as the property of the Turkish Jockey Club.

According to Kentucky-based bloodstock agent Ric Waldman, who advised and assisted the Turkish Jockey Club in the acquisitions, Dehere is being leased while the other four stallions have been purchased by the Turkish Jockey Club. Dehere and Lion Heart previously stood at Coolmore/Ashford Stud in Kentucky, while Powerscourt was scheduled to stand at Coolmore in Ireland after beginning his career at Ashford. Cuvee was at Gainesway, while Yonaguska stood at Elite Thoroughbreds in Louisiana after previously standing at Vinery in Kentucky. The American-based horses are expected to arrive Wednesday with Powerscourt due later in the week.

"All stallions are already extremely popular with Turkish bfreeders and are expected to stand to full books of mares," Waldman said.

By Ray Paulick
There are a number of ways to look at the just-released World Thoroughbred Rankings, which were compiled by racing officials/handicappers from around the globe and published by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities. Which country had the highest representation? What about the stallions that produced the highest number of world-class runers and the trainers who developed them?

Taylan Karaer
Turkey
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For further details on the World Thoroughbred Rankings (WTR), please contact :

Copyright © 2009, The Paulick Report

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