Bill Oppenheim: New For November–Weanlings

A total of 26 new sires, three of which stand at Coolmore in Ireland (Australia, War Command and No Nay Never) are represented by a total of 375 weanlings in the upcoming November sales, which is just under 20% of the 1,926 weanlings catalogued, according to statistics compiled by TDN's Heather Anderson for this column (click here for an alphabetical list of all 194 sires with weanlings catalogued). But before discussing the new sires, headed by Coolmore Ashford's Verrazano–he leads all sires, with 50 weanlings catalogued from his first crop–it's worth mentioning that six established big-time sires have 10 or more foals each catalogued between Fasig, which sells on Monday, Nov. 7, and Keeneland Book 1, which is Tuesday-Wednesday, Nov. 8-9.

Coolmore, including their Kentucky arm, Ashford, is pretty famous for topping the lists by number of mares bred, and they're very prominent on these lists, too. Sire sensation Uncle Mo, the leading second-crop sire in North America and Europe by about five miles (considering he is number four NA/EU sire in 2016 by worldwide earnings [click here], behind only Galileo, Tapit, and Dubawi), has a total of 28 of his 49 weanlings (second only to Verrazano) catalogued by close of business Wednesday. He is the only sire with more than two at Fasig-Tipton (he has five), and has 23 in Keeneland Book 1, also the most by any sire. Former barn-mate Scat Daddy has 17, two at Fasig and 15 in Book 1. Darley's Medaglia d'Oro has 13 (one + 12); Claiborne's War Front has 11 (all Book 1); Gainesway's Tapit has 10 catalogued (all Book 1), as does Hill 'n' Dale's Curlin (two Fasig, eight Book 1). That's a total of 104 weanlings by those six top sires by the end of Book 1, which should precipitate some fireworks. Uncle Mo, Scat Daddy, and Curlin have another 37 catalogued total after Book 1, but War Front, Tapit, and Medaglia d'Oro have no weanlings among them catalogued after Book 1.

Overall, a total of 19 sires are represented by 25 or more weanlings catalogued in the entire Kentucky sales, and it's very striking that only one (Into Mischief, first foals 2010, 26 catalogued) has older than first 3-year-olds. Uncle Mo (49) and Lane's End's Twirling Candy (36) have first 3-year-olds. With first 2-year-olds are: Lane's End's The Factor (32) and Union Rags (28); Gainesway's Tapizar (29); and Darby Dan's Shackleford (26). WinStar's pair of Gemologist (23) and Bodemeister (21) also have more than 20 catalogued. Six sires with their first yearlings this year have 25+ foals catalogued from their second crops: Hill 'n' Dale's Violence (40), third among all sires by weanlings catalogued; WinStar's Paynter (35); Spendthrift's Liaison (28); Ashford's Shanghai Bobby (27); and Claiborne's pair of Orb and Data Link (26 each). Spendthrift's Flat Out has 23 catalogued, and three sires have 20 foals catalogued from their second crops: Ashford's Declaration of War; Taylor Made's Graydar; and WinStar's Take Charge Indy. Then six sires have 25+ weanlings catalogued from their first crops. Young sires may not make Book 1 in September, but they are sure a lot more prominent in November.

Originally a $250,000 yearling bought by Let's Go Stable, the Coolmore partners bought into Verrazano in February of his 3-year-old year after two wide-margin wins at Gulfstream Park. He immediately won the GII Tampa Bay Derby and GI Wood Memorial but blew out, as many do, in the GI Kentucky Derby and, indeed, he was unplaced in his other two tries at 10 furlongs, in the GI Travers, and in his final career start, the G1 Eclipse S. in England, in his third and final start for Aidan O'Brien as a 4-year-old. Between the Derby and the Travers he won the GIII Pegasus and scored his second Grade I win in the GI Haskell–both wins by over nine lengths–and he ran an off-the-charts Beyer 116 in the Haskell. He was also placed in the G1 Lockinge S. and the G1 Queen Anne S. at Royal Ascot in his first two starts for Aidan O'Brien as a 4-year-old. When this horse was on his game he was a killer; by More Than Ready out of a Giant's Causeway daughter of Chic Shirine from a top King Ranch family, it's not a big surprise that he's been so popular among breeders that he has 50 first-crop weanlings catalogued at the November sales–the most by any sire. Of those, 43 are at Fasig and in Keeneland Books 1-3.

Airdrie's Cairo Prince has 35 catalogued, of which 21 are at Fasig or in Keeneland Books 1-3. Another $250,000 yearling, from the first crop by Pioneerof the Nile, Cairo Prince won three of his first four starts for trainer Kiaran McLaughlin, dropping a nose decision to Honor Code in the GII Remsen in 2013, then scoring an impressive 5 3/4-length win in the GII Holy Bull at Gulfstream in January, after which Godolphin bought controlling interest in him. Kiaran McLaughlin might start ducking that race, though; Mohaymen won the fourth of his fifth straight wins this year in the Holy Bull, followed up in the GII Fountain of Youth, and hasn't won since. Cairo Prince, for his part, went straight to the GI Florida Derby, ran fourth as a 6-5 shot, and never ran again. That clever team at Airdrie misses nothing, and made a deal to go in partnership with Darley on Cairo Prince. He was so popular at $10,000 in his first season, 2015, that they actually had to raise his price (to $15,000) this year.

Will Take Charge, trained by the legend, Wayne Lukas, for Willis Horton, won the GII Rebel S. at Oaklawn but then was unplaced in all three Triple Crown races. Evidently he just needed to become a second-half 3-year-old, though, because seven weeks after the Belmont he came out and ran second to Palace Malice in the GII Jim Dandy. He then won the GI Travers and GII Pennsylvania Derby; got beat a nose by Mucho Macho Man in the GI Breeders' Cup Classic; and won the GI Clark H. at Churchill Downs to win the Eclipse Award for champion 3-year-old male of 2014. He added one Grade I win and four more Grade I placings at four, and retired to Three Chimneys with the best credentials of any son of Unbridled's Song ever to go to stud. He has 30 first-crop foals catalogued, 28 of them in Keeneland Books 1-3. Also with 30 first-crop foals catalogued (11 in Books 1-3) is WinStar's Fed Biz (Giant's Causeway). In 11 starts as a 4- and 5-year-old for trainer Baffert, he ran in 10 GI/GII races, winning three Grade II's in California, and placing in two Grade I's and two other Grade II's.

Three Chimneys' Strong Mandate (Tiznow), the 2013 GI Hopeful S. winner, also trained by Lukas, has 27 weanlings catalogued, 16 of them at Fasig and in Books 1-3. Also with 27 catalogued (12 in Keeneland Books 2-3) is Spendthrift's Goldencents, winner of the GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile twice, and the horse who first put Into Mischief on the map. With 23 each are Lane's End's Noble Mission (21 in Keeneland 1-3), Frankel's brother who was a triple Group 1 winner in Europe; and WinStar's Revolutionary (just three in Book 3), the GII Louisiana Derby winner by the short-lived War Pass (champion 2-year-old by Cherokee Run). Hill 'n' Dale's Flashback, a son of Tapit who won the GII Robert B. Lewis and ran second in the GII San Felipe and GI Santa Anita Derby (to Goldencents), is the other first-year sire with as many as 20 weanlings catalogued (four in Book 3). Spendthrift has, besides Goldencents, four more first-year sires with nine or more yearlings catalogued: Cross Traffic (Unbridled's Song, 16); Shakin It Up (Midnight Lute, 15); Itsmyluckday (by another short-lived but useful sire, Lawyer Ron, 12); and Can The Man (Into Mischief, 9). Ashford's GI Breeders' Cup Turf and G1 Irish 2000 Guineas winner Magician (Galileo) has 13 catalogued, and Adena Springs' GI Breeders' Cup Classic winner Mucho Macho Man (Macho Uno) has 12.