More than meets the eye

Enough with negativity on stallions, you must be thinking, after my post chronicling some of the biggest disappointments in the history of SIM breeding.

Well, you’re in luck. I’m in a particularly good mood today so I have decided, by comparison, to take a look at stallions who I think are the biggest bargains in the SIM. There are a lot of ways to measure success: Total progeny earnings, percentage of stakes winners from foals, average earnings per runner. Those are all pertinent bits of information but what figures prominently in the designation ‘bargain’ is price. Bang for your buck, so to speak. Certain dollar increments may sound steep for a stallion but if he is siring an unreal percentage of stakes winners from foals that is the kind of statistic that makes him a worthy investment.

We’ll start with my favorite sire of the moment, Fighter Jet. A twelve-year-old son of Triple Crown hero Jet Ski, Fighter Jet did not make it to the races until age 3 but by season’s end he had managed to land the Pacific Classic (gr. I) over Chinese Bandit and Enforcer (both of whom would also go on to successful stallion careers). He was even better at four when he annexed the Strub Stakes, Arcadia Handicap and Iselin Handicap (all gr. I). Fighter Jet, now twelve (Hint: Breed to him before he is pensioned!), has also been productive in the shed with a very respectable percentage of 17.5% of stakes winners from runners. His progeny are led by hot young stallion prospects East and Desert Nomad, as well as numerous other grade I winners including Crime Fighter, More and Squadron Leader. Fighter Jet also boasts average progeny earnings of $131,134 – more than triple his fee of $40,000. I also fancy Fighter Jet because he has worked with a variety of bloodlines including Mr. Prospector, Sports Jersey, Sunday Silence, A.P. Indy, Loki Flame, Kentucky Trophy and others.

Super Light, standing at stud in England for $45,000, is one worth a second look. A son of Sadler’s Wells, he is often overlooked –particularly since the retirement of Arc de Triomphe (FR-I) hero Stealth Ninja— even though he sports solid numbers. Now eleven, Super Light began his career in the States before shipping to South Africa where he would plunder nearly every event on the calendar; from the one-mile Bloodstock South African Guineas (SAF-I) to the 1-1/2-mile South African Derby (SAF-I). In all he would claim four grade I’s in South Africa that year which earned him Horse of the Year and Champion Three-Year-Old honors. In the shed Super Light has continued his honest ways with 16.8% stakes winners from runners and a remarkable 72.9% winners from runners. His leading runners have been South African Champion Older Male Light Of The World, a four-time group I winner, and South African Stayer Stakes (SAF-I) victor Creator. Super Light is not picky with his mares; having begotten major stakes winners from lines ranging from Barbaro, Dance In the Dark and Astarabad to A Crown Awaits, Crystal Night and Action This Day.

Out of Kindness is a horse I had been wanting to breed for quite some time but with him standing at $100,000 (although not an outlandish fee for a horse of his quality) and so many other good sons of Ghostzapper at stud I kind of pushed him to the back of my mind. I won’t be doing that any longer. Yes, there are many respectable sons of Ghostzapper out there but, as the venerable and sagely Eric Nalbone once noted, Out of Kindness is exquisite: He is the one son of that stallion to carry that wicked speed a classic distance, demonstrated when he landed 1-1/4-mile Midsummer Classic (gr. I) over such foes as Notorious, Del Mar and Torero. Out of Kindness has been even better as a stallion getting an incredible 21.3% stakes winners from runners; 76.6% winners from runners. His best runner thus far is multiple grade I winner Gift Of The Moon, who defeated colts handily in the Inglewood Futurity (gr. I), though he has sired graded stakes winners in Fives and Tens, Pantala Naga Pampa, Kindly, etc. Out of Kindness has dropped all the way to a tempting $50,000, and like the other stallions mentioned has meshed well with a number of bloodlines including Mighty Big, Battle Cry, Loki Dynasty, Symbol, Saga and Mr. Prospector.

I may be jumping the gun a bit, but on the other end of the spectrum are horses like Patience. The handsome dark bay Steward-bred horse sold for $800,000 at auction, sporting a blue-blooded pedigree as a son of three-time champion and recently pensioned Fleet Afoot out of the mare Soothe – herself the dam of grade I winners Ease, Snuggle, Submissive and Reassure (the former two already off to productive stallion careers). Patience only found the winner’s circle five times in thirteen starts but was able to bag the South African Sprint Championship (SAF-I) and Hitch a Ride Sprint (SAF-I), enough to garner the title of South African Champion Sprinter. Currently standing for $5,000 in France, Patience has sired just over 3% stakes winners from runners with his second crop just hitting the track this season, but I am a big believer in him. He has been fecund –44% winners from runners—thus far despite being bred to very mediocre mares. Throw him a decent stakes-winning mare and he will get you a good horse, as evidenced by the yearling Wait for the Bus who has smoked three furlongs on the turf in an unheard of 0:36.29! Patience is an attractive outcross to most of the sprint population; he has done well with Storm Cat-lined mares (think A Bus, Boot Legger, etc.) but has also gotten winners from King’s Best, Gone West, and Petionville mares as well as the more obscure (try Include and Choisir).