Cover image courtesy of Breeders' Cup (Eclipse Sports)
During the Breeders’ Cup meeting on Friday and Saturday, 14 Grade 1 races will be contested, providing exciting pedigree updates. With some of the well-known American stallions getting older, who are the new guard that Australian breeders should be paying attention to as emerging broodmare sires?
There are twelve stallions with four or more individual runners in the 14 Grade 1 races during the Breeders’ Cup meeting.
“Everyone watching the Breeders’ Cup will be wanting fillies and mares off the track by the winning sires at the upcoming breeding sales. It’s the same as how Blame and War Front have been popular, sires like Not This Time, Practical Joke, Good Magic and Gun Runner are the next sires on everyone’s radar,” said Will Johnson.
| Not This Time | 7 |
| Good Magic | 5 |
| Into Mischief | 5 |
| Justify | 5 |
| Curlin | 4 |
| English Channel | 4 |
| Frosted | 4 |
| Gun Runner | 4 |
| Mehmas | 4 |
| Munnings | 4 |
| Practical Joke | 4 |
| Tapit | 4 |
Table: Stallions by Breeders' Cup entrants
Byron Rogers agrees. “The reason American mares succeed in Australia is that they are very quick with good gate speed and it’s a highly inheritable trait. In Europe they fall out of the gates and roll along so European mares don’t necessarily have the hind quarter conformation for gate speed. The shape of American mares often suits Australian stallions which is why they’ve been successful here relative to opportunity.”
“The reason American mares succeed in Australia is that they are very quick with good gate speed and it’s a highly inheritable trait.” - Byron Rogers
But for buyers, there are some traps to avoid. “You need to be careful as some of the black type (in America) isn’t that good,” said Rogers.
“Think carefully about the races (a mare) won. Often a Sydney city-winning filly is a higher class of horse. And you need to be a bit careful on physical type, avoiding the mares who are big and long. The Holy Bull line tends to be very specific to America and generally doesn’t translate, but a lot of the other commercial lines do.”
Byron Rogers
In Saturday’s G1 Coolmore Stud S. both Gatsby’s (Snitzel) and Switzerland (Snitzel) are out of North American mares, being Miss Charming (USA) (Forestry {USA}) and Ms Bad Behavior (Can) (Blame {USA}) respectively. Mayfair (Fastnet Rock) who ran third in the G1 Golden Rose recently is out of Cicatrix (USA) (Violence {USA}).
“The USA breeding industry looks awash with plenty of proven and emerging sires that have the potential to make an impact as broodmare sires in the future in Australia,” said bloodstock agent Craig Rounsefell.
Craig Rounsefell | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“Dirt racing is a major force and many of the leading sires dominate that space although are much less effective on turf. There are plenty of examples of stallions that performed well on the dirt that turned out to be good turf sires and I believe much depends on their conformation and the type of stock they throw.”
Not This Time leading with seven runners
Not This Time (USA) has seven runners across the two days of the Breeders’ Cup meeting with both Dream On (USA) and Tenacious Leader (USA) in the G1 Juvenile Turf S. Abientot (USA) runs in the G1 Juvenile Fillies Turf S. and Shareholder (USA) in the G1 Juvenile Turf Sprint.
Not This Time (USA) | Standing at Taylor Made Stallions, USA
“Having seven Breeders’ Cup runners reaffirms to Australian breeders why Not This Time’s son Cogburn is a great option for Widden Stud next season, particularly that Not This Time is heavily represented in the juvenile races. It shows his early speed, and Not This Time’s rise over the last few seasons has been well documented,” said Will Johnson.
Cogburn (USA), who will shuttle to Widden Stud from 2025, runs in the G1 Turf Sprint as does Arzak (USA), while Next (USA) will contest the G1 Breeders’ Cup Classic.
“From an Aussie perspective, Not This Time was a good racehorse although his brother was better, but he’s turning out to be the better sire of the two,” said Rogers.
Not This Time’s brother is G1 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner Liam’s Map (USA) (Unbridled’s Song {USA}), while Not This Time, a son of Giant’s Causeway (USA), won the G3 Churchill Downs Iroquois S. at two and was second in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.
Cogburn (USA) | Image courtesy of Breeders' Cup (Eclipse Sports)
“Not This Time can leave a turf sprinter like Cogburn who is going to Widden or a longer distance horse like Next. They are good to work with and have easy minds on them. Cogburn is stunningly beautiful.”
Not This Time’s Grade 3-winning dam Miss Macy Sue (USA) (Trippi {USA}) produced four stakes winners, Liam’s Map, Not This Time and two Listed winners Matera (USA) (Tapit {USA}) and Taylor S (USA) (Medaglia d’Oro {USA}).
Giant’s Causeway is the sire of very successful sire Shamardal (USA), and Not This Time’s first crop were born in 2018 and he already has 38 stakes winners with an impressive 17 in his first crop of 114 foals (15 per cent). He’s sired six Grade 1 winners, including Widden’s new shuttler Cogburn, triple Grade 1 winner Up To The Mark (USA), as well as Epicenter (USA), Just One Time (USA), Princess Noor (USA), and Sibeleus (USA). He has no broodmare daughters in Australia yet.
Good Magic keeps lifting
One of three stallions with five runners in the Breeders’ Cup meeting, along with proven horses Into Mischief (USA) and Justify (USA), Good Magic (USA) is a son of Curlin (USA).
“Good Magic has gone to another level this year, siring another Classic winner in Dornoch who was retired in the lead up to the Breeders’ Cup. To end up with five runners after a couple of his key horses retired recently shows how well Good Magic is tracking.
“He’s a flagbearer for Hill N Dale farm, whose sire Curlin has the best track record in the Breeders’ Cup and has several big chances too,” said Johnson. Curlin has four runners at the 2024 Breeders’ Cup meeting.
Will Johnson | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Champion 2YO Colt in USA in 2017, Good Magic won the G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile then went on to add the G1 Haskell Invitational S. As a sire, his oldest crop are only 4-year-olds, and that first crop of 133 foals already counts 12 stakes winners (9 per cent) while he has a further eight stakes winners among his current 3-year-olds.
His five Grade 1 winners include the full brothers G1 Kentucky Derby winner Mage (USA) and dual Grade 1 winner Dornoch (USA). His three others are G1 Arkansas Derby winner Muth (USA), G1 Belmont Champagne S. winner Blazing Sevens (USA), and G1 Del Mar Pacific Classic winner Mixto (USA).
Good Magic (USA) | Standing at Hill N Dale, USA
“Current top dirt sires such as Gun Runner, Curlin and his son Good Magic may not suit Australia as much as leading sires whose progeny have performed well on both turf and dirt, such as Twirling Candy, Not This Time, Into Mischief, Justify, Constitution and Munnings,” said Rounsefell.
“Current top dirt sires such as Gun Runner, Curlin and his son Good Magic may not suit Australia as much as leading sires whose progeny have performed well on both turf and dirt...” - Craig Rounsefell
Rogers has the opposite opinion, saying, “Good Magic is built like an Aussie sprinter, and is one people should take a closer look at. He’s a neat strong bodied horse, not a long lean American dirt style of horse. Yes, he had a derby winner, but generally he gets a nice turf runner. I like the way he started his career.
“Interestingly, I bought Puca, the dam of his Kentucky Derby winner Mage. She was a big mare but well balanced. Mage is more like Good Magic, not that tall, but the full brother Dornoch is massive like the dam.” Mage and Dornoch are out of Listed winner Puca (USA) (Big Brown {USA}) and her other foal to race is stakes placed winner Gunning (USA) (Gun Runner {USA}).
“Good Magic is built like an Aussie sprinter, and is one people should take a closer look at. He’s a neat strong bodied horse, not a long lean American dirt style of horse.” - Byron Rogers
Eight stallions with four Breeders’ Cup runners
There are eight sires with four runners at the 2024 Breeders’ Cup meeting, being Curlin (USA), English Channel (USA), Frosted (USA), Gun Runner (USA), Mehmas (Ire), Munnings (USA), Practical Joke (USA), and Tapit (USA). Curlin, Frosted, Munnings and Tapit are all older and familiar, while Mehmas is Irish-based and English Channel died in 2021.
Gun Runner
Gun Runner is a son of Candy Ride (Arg), and his first crop were born in 2019. He has 33 stakes winners and an impressive ten Grade 1 winners from around 120 foals in each of his first four crops.
“Gun Runners shows you the depth of the American sire ranks. It will be interesting to see his progeny born to Southern Hemisphere time. Cambridge Stud have supported him, buying a couple of mares in America and sending them to Gun Runner to Southern Hemisphere time and now they have two nice foals in Kentucky. It reaffirms the need for a successful outcross, and Gun Runner is incredibly prolific,” said Johnson.
Gun Runner (USA) | Standing at Three Chimneys, USA
Gun Runner’s 10 Grade 1 winners including G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Echo Zulu (USA), and he added a 3-year-old Grade 1 winner this season with Sierra Leone (USA) winning the G1 Keeneland Blue Grass S., while Locked (USA) won the G1 Breeders' Futurity S. at two last year.
“Gun Runner is the premium sire in America,” said Rogers. “He does get a specific type though and that’s not necessarily suited to Australian racing.”
Practical Joke
Triple Grade 1 winner Practical Joke (USA) is by Into Mischief (USA) who is a great-grandson of Storm Cat (USA), and he shuttles between Kentucky and Chile.
“Practical Joke is probably the leading son of Into Mischief at stud. He’s already produced Grade 1 winning 2-year-olds and is a stallion of significant interest to Australians at the upcoming broodmare sales. He’s a young up and coming sire for Coolmore, who already has had colts retire to stud. His name is going to be well read over coming seasons,” said Johnson.
Practical Joke (USA) | Standing at Coolmore, USA
Practical Joke’s first crop were born in 2019 and he finished second on the first season sire table in 2021 to Gun Runner. He has 39 stakes winners, with 17 of those from his Southern Hemisphere ventures in Chile. Sire of 11 Grade 1 winners, Practical Joke’s son Domestic Product (USA) will retire to stand alongside Practical Joke at Coolmore’s Ashford Stud in 2025.
“Practical Joke has really picked up in the last year or so with his runners,” said Rogers. “He’s a very good looking animal, with a nice shape and a lot of speed.”
A couple of other young sires of note
“A young stallion I think is very interesting for Australia is Oscar Performance, a son of Kitten’s Joy, who has started his career exceptionally well with his runners of both surfaces. A first crop sire that has started well with his 2-year-olds on the turf is Tiz The Law, a son of Constitution,” said Rounsefell.
Oscar Performance (USA) | Standing at Mill Ridge, USA
Tiz The Law (USA) has three Breeders’ Cup runners, however G2 Oak Leaf S. winner Non Compliant (USA) was scratched on Wednesday. His remaining runners are Scythian (USA) and Tigerish (USA) who are both in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.
Oscar Performance (USA) has Tumbarumba (USA) in the G1 Dirt Mile.
