Bill Oppenheim: Who Ran Second?

WHO RAN SECOND? 
His 10 crops of racing age thus far have averaged 138 foals, which definitely confers a certain numerical advantage, nonetheless the dominance of Coolmore’s World Number One, Galileo, is impressive in its quantity as well as its quality. Last year Galileo sired 25 Graded/Group winners (GSW) and 50 Graded/Group Stakes Horses (GSH), so no surprise that he was the leading North American or European sire of new 2014 A Runners, with 23, 10 more than Gainesway’s Tapit (13), the 2014 Leading Sire in North America, and the second-leading North American or European sire of new A Runners. 

One of the innumerable impressive statistics about Galileo is his performance as a sire of 2-year-olds. He sired consecutive unbeaten European champion 2-year-olds in Teofilo (2006) and New Approach (2007); Frankel was officially co-champion European 2-year-old of 2010 on his way to an undefeated 14-race career. Last year five of Galileo’s 23 new A Runners were 2-year-olds, making him the leading sire of new 2-year-old A Runners (The Irish National Stud’s Invincible Spirit and new South Korean sire Tiz Wonderful each had four) as well. He also had 11 new 3-year-old A Runners, the most critical category. Tapit and Lane’s End’s Lemon Drop Kid ran second here, with eight each. Two of the top F2011 sires, Galileo’s younger half-brother Sea The Stars (Gilltown Stud, IR) and WinStar’s Pioneerof The Nile, had seven A Runners each from their first crops last year; also with seven new A Runners were Darley Kildangan’s Teofilo and WinStar’s veteran, Tiznow. Incidentally, Galileo also sired five new 5-year-old and up A Runners, tops in that age group, too; Coolmore Ashford’s Giant’s Causeway was second in that department, with four. 
Tapit, as mentioned, was second among NA/EU sires, and tops in North America with 13 new 2014 A Runners, of which eight were 3-year-olds. Juddmonte’s Oasis Dream ranked third, with 12 new A Runners last year. Tied with 11, in alphabetical order, were: Giant’s Causeway; Invincible Spirit; the resurgent Lemon Drop Kid; another veteran Lane’s End sire, Smart Strike; and Teofilo. Darley’s Bernardini, and deceased Airdrie, then WinStar sire Harlan’s Holiday and Walmac’s Successful Appeal–who is standing for just $10,000 this year– each had 10 new A Runners last year. 

Lane’s End’s Curlin, leading third-crop sire by a mile on progeny earnings, had nine new A Runners last year, ahead of former Spendthrift sire Tiz Wonderful (6) and Dutchess Views’s New York import from Three Chimneys, Big Brown (5). Sea The Stars and Pioneerof The Nile, as mentioned, led F2011 sires (first 3-year-olds 2014), with eight new A Runners each; both had one 2-year-old A Runner and seven new 3-year-old A Runners in 2014. France’s Haras de la Cauviniere’s Le Havre was third among F2011 sires, with five new A Runners. Though they aren’t assigned APEX ratings until they have 3-year-olds, Ashford’s Lookin At Lucky topped all 2014 NA/EU Freshman sires, with four A Runners; Ireland’s Ballylinch Stud’s Lope de Vega, the top 2014 freshman sire in Europe, and the Aga Khan’s Haras de Bonneval’s Siyouni, the top freshman sire in France, each had three 2-year-old A Runners from their first crops. 

AND INTRODUCING…TDN International Editor Kelsey Riley has been in Scotland this last week to learn a little bit about what APEX ratings actually are, how it is all put together, and what are some of its applications? She raced through Elementary and Intermediate right into Advanced, so I thought she was ready for a really tough test: go through the 874 APEX sires and see which horses, standing at $15,000 and under, you think are really good value for breeders. How did she do? Let her know on Twitter: twitter.com/kelseynriley. 

AFLEET ALEX (2006, Northern Afleet–Maggy Hawk, by Hawkster), F2007, Gainesway, KY. 
2015 Fee: $12,500 
Afleet Alex churned out nine A Runners in 2010, the year his first crop were 3-year-olds, including GI Travers S. winner Afleet Express and the previous year’s GI Hopeful S. winner Dublin. While that figure gradually dipped and was down to three in 2013, there is reason to believe the Gainesway resident is back on the rise. Afleet Alex sired five A Runners in 2014, four of which were new A Runners. Two of those were 2-year-old stakes winners, including the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner and 2-year-old Eclipse champion runner-up Texas Red. Afleet Alex was also responsible for last year’s dual Grade I winner and GI Breeders’ Cup Distaff third Iotapa (a 4-year-old of 2014). His career A Runner index of 1.77 makes him look like a good bet. 

FIRST SAMURAI (2003, Giant’s Causeway–Freddie Frisson, by Dixieland Band), F2008, Claiborne, KY. 
2015 Fee: $15,000 
First Samurai notched an A Runner Index of 2.25 through 2014, with his three new A Runners last year bringing his total to 24. His 2009 crop yielded 69 foals of racing age and produced the four-time graded winner Last Gunfighter as well as Lea, who won last year’s GI Donn H. and looked capable of defending that title when winning the GIII Hal’s Hope S. Jan. 10 off an 11-month layoff. First Samurai’s 2010 crop of 42 foals of racing age has produced three stakes winners including Carve, who opened his 5-year-old campaign with a 3 1/2-length win in Oaklawn’s Fifth Season S. Jan. 16. Horses like Lea and Carve demonstrate that like his sire Giant’s Causeway, First Samurai’s progeny are effective later as well as earlier. 

ISTAN (2002, Gone West–Ronda {GB}, by Bluebird), F2009, Airdrie, KY. 
2015 Fee: $7,500 
Istan has sired just 76 named foals from four crops of racing age, but that small selection includes graded winners Istanford, Albano and Mr. Bowling, as well as the GI Belmont S. third Atigun. Istan has sired four A Runners for an A Runner Index of 1.52. Like Istan himself–who won the GIII Ack Ack H. at five–his runners improve with age. His 2-year-old A Runner Index is 0.56, a figure that jumps to 1.79 for 3-year-olds, 1.43 for 4-year-olds and 2.27 for horses five years and older. The fact that Istan also has six B Runners (2.27 B Runner Index) further illustrates his ability to sire useful moneymakers with a touch of class. 

HORSE GREELEY (2004, Mr. Greeley–Chile Chatte, by Storm Cat), F2010, Claiborne, KY. 
2015 Fee: $2,500 
Horse Greeley is truly flying under the radar at $2,500. He has sired the same number of A Runners as Istan (4) from 102 starters for an A Runner Index of 1.96. His first crop of 55 named foals featured the triple Grade III winner Clearly Now, while his second crop of 25 foals included the three-time Canadian stakes winner and champion 2-year-old colt Go Greeley. Horse Greeley’s most recent A Runner is Leave The Light On, who won the GII Remsen S. in November after breaking his maiden by 4 1/2 lengths at Belmont and comes from his third crop of 24 foals. 

RUN AWAY AND HIDE (2006, City Zip–Jilted, by Runaway Groom), F2010, Darby Dan, KY. 
2015 Fee: $7,500 
Run Away and Hide emulated his sire when winning the GII Saratoga Special, and he has continued to follow in City Zip’s mold in the breeding shed, churning out talented early runners for a 2-year-old A Runner Index of 2.75. His overall A Runner Index of 2.11 indicates his progeny also possess class, and his first three crops include three 2-year-old stakes winners, including the GIII Best Pal S. winner Albert’s Hope. Run Away and Hide shouldn’t be pigeonholed as a juvenile sire, however. City Zip’s strength lies in his 2-year-old figures but he is also very capable of siring horses that stick around, and Run Away and Hide could follow that trend; his first-crop 4-year-old filly Mico Margarita won three stakes last year. 

SUCCESSFUL APPEAL (1996, Valid Appeal–Successful Dancer, by Fortunate Prospect), F2002, Walmac Farm, KY. 
2015 Fee: $10,000 
Successful Appeal’s 10 new A Runners in 2014 (including two 2-year-olds) brings his total to 36 since 2008, for an A Index of 1.94. His numbers show he is a very solid value sire across the board–his B Index is 2.10 (39 B Runners) and his C Index is 2.00 (74 C Runners). His 2-year-old A Runner Index of 2.52 means he can get a precocious individual, and the fact that he rates 2.09 for 4-year-olds and 5-year-olds and up shows they train on quite effectively. Of the 27 NA/EU sires with seven or more new A Runners in 2014, Successful Appeal, at $10,000, is by a long way the “cheapest” buy of the sires still active on that list. 

SILENT NAME (JPN) (2002, Sunday Silence–Danzigaway, by Danehill), F2009, Adena Springs North, ON. 
2015 Fee: C$7,500 
Silent Name’s A Runner Index of 2.46 is respectable enough for a CAN$7,500 stallion, but the Adena Springs North resident in also the runaway leader by B Runner Index (3.69) for active stallions with 200+ runners. Second on the list by B Index is Niigon (3.15) who also stood in Ontario prior to his death in 2012, reminding us that we need to take into consideration how Ontario’s strong purse structure can skew the ratings; however, Silent Name’s best performer to date has been Silentio (a member of Silent Name’s first and only crop sired in Kentucky), a dual Grade II winner on the turf in California and placed three times in Grade I’s, including a third in the 2013 Breeders’ Cup Mile. Silent Name was sent to New York for two seasons where he covered small books (14 mares in 2011 and 24 mares in 2012), but after returning to Ontario in 2013 he has covered books of 86 and 102. He sired four A Runners last year (three new A Runners) and four stakes winners. His 3-year-old A Runner Index of 2.69 highlights his ability to throw class and the fact that, like himself (Silent Name won graded stakes in the U.S. at four and five) his progeny will progress with age; he has already had the 5-year-old mare Fanticola win this year’s Megahertz S. at Santa Anita. 

TWO STEP SALSA (2005, Petionville–Two To Waltz, by Seattle Slew), F2011, Get Away Farm, FL. 
2015 Fee: $7,500 
Two Step Salsa hit the map with last year’s GI Bluegrass S. winner Dance With Fate from his first crop, but his Apex figures suggest he is unlikely to be a one-hit wonder. His 65 runners from his first two crops have accounted for three A Runners and three B Runners (2.31). His 2-year-old A Runner Index is 1.46 and his first crop kept the momentum going last year, registering a 3-year-old A Runner Index of 1.40. Two Step Salsa himself won the G2 Godolphin Mile at four. 

GREAT NOTION (2000, Elusive Quality–Evening Primrose, by Dayjur), F2006, Northview Stallion Station, MD. 
2015 Fee: $3,500 
A son of Elusive Quality who was second in the 2003 GI King’s Bishop, Great Notion stands in Maryland for $3,500, which appears generous when taking a closer look at his figures. Great Notion has sired just 165 foals from seven crops of racing age, but has produced eight A Runners (1.39) and 42 ABC “break-even-or-better” Runners (1.83). Great Notion’s 2-year-old A Runner Index of 3.36 jumps off the page, and his 5-year-old and older A Runner Index of 3.27 indicates he’s no one-trick pony. Indeed, five of his 11 stakes winners have been 2-year-old stakes winners, while the other six came later. Great Notion sired two new A Runners in 2014, including the 4-year-old Maryland Million Turf S. winner Talk Show Man. 

VRONSKY (1999, Danzig–Words Of War, by Lord At War {Arg}), F2006, Old English Rancho, CA. 
2015 Fee: $6,500 
Vronsky has sired just 138 named foals from seven crops, but has made the most from limited opportunities. He has an A Runner Index of 1.74 and a B Runner Index of 2.62, and his two new A Runners in 2014 were both stakes winners: Rovenna, a 3-year-old filly who won two stakes in California and earned $327,570 on the year; and Acceptance, who went unbeaten and won two stakes as a 2-year-old for earnings of $257,600. Vronsky’s age indices show his progeny hit the ground running (2.53 A Runner Index for 2-year-olds) and stick around (1.94 for 4-year-olds, 3.34 for 5-year-olds and older). Vronsky’s best runner to date has been the 2012 GII San Gabriel S. winner Norvsky. Vronsky is by Danzig out of the influential mare Words of War, making him a half-brother to E Dubai. His shining moment on the racetrack came when he bested Leroidesanimaux in a Santa Anita allowance as a 5-year-old in 2004. 

HEATSEEKER (IRE) (2003, Giant’s Causeway–Rusty Back, by Defensive Play), F2010, Harris Farms, CA. 
2015 Fee: $5,000 
In typical Giant’s Causeway fashion, Heatseeker peaked on the racetrack at age five, the year he won the GI Santa Anita H. and GII Californian S. Like his sire, Heatseeker is producing runners in that mold. His 2-year-old A Runner Index of 0.47 is certainly nothing to write home about, but that figure jumps to 1.70 for his 3-year-olds, and held steady at 1.58 for his first-crop 4-year-olds last year. Two of Heatseeker’s three new A Runners last year were from his first crop. 

SQUARE EDDIE (2006, Smart Strike–Forty Gran, by El Gran Senor), F2011, Vessels Stallion Farm, CA. 
2015 Fee: $10,000 
Square Eddie’s true test will come when his numbers increase (he has 52 year starters from his first two crops), but his early results are encouraging. Square Eddie won the GI Breeders’ Futurity in 2008, and although he never won at that level again he posted some respectable figures through his 5-year-old campaign, and his age indices suggest his progeny will progress as they get older. His 2-year-old A Runner Index is 1.62, and his first-crop 3-year-olds recorded an A Runner Index of 2.32 last year. Two of his three A Runners (2.88) were new A Runners last year as 3-year-olds.

Click here for a table of leading NA/EU sires by new A Runners. Click here for a list of Kelsey’s NA value sires.