Into Mischief

In this continuing series, we take a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. Here are the horses of interest for this Sunday and Monday running at Chukyo and Nakayama Racecourses, with a pair of newly turned 3-year-old fillies taking a step up into Group 3 competition off maiden-breaking victories: Sunday, January 9, 2022 3rd-CKO, ¥9,900,000 ($86k), Maiden, 3yo, 1900m THE KING (JPN) (c, 3,...

Michael Lund Petersen's champion Gamine (Into Mischief--Peggy Jane, by Kafwain), has been retired from racing and will reside at Hill 'n' Dale at Xalapa Farm in Paris, Ky., it was announced Tuesday. Breeding plans for the 5-year-old are still being discussed. Bred by Grace Thoroughbred Holdings, Gamine topped the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale when hammering to Petersen for $1.8 million and was named a 'TDN Rising Star' for her dominant 6 1/4-length debut romp last March at Santa Anita. The bay went on to dominate the GI Acorn S. by...

As a year of unprecedented achievement draws to a close, the distribution of laurels among our champion stallions must first and foremost celebrate their sheer potency. For while we already know Into Mischief to be a phenomenon, he demands fresh admiration in sealing his third consecutive general sires' championship with a prizemoney haul just shy of $25 million, shattering the $22,507,940 record he set in his second; the work of 260 winners, similarly raising the bar giddily on the 221 who compiled his first. As the revelation of the year,...

3rd-FG, $40k, Msw, 2yo, 5 1/2fT, 3:01 p.m. Tom Amoss unveils the latest racing age addition to the Bertie family with pricey BARONNE (Into Mischief) taking to the starting gate in a turf sprint. Out of Bashful Bertie (Quiet American), herself a half to MGSW Hurricane Bertie (Storm Boot) and a full to graded-stakes winner/producer Allamerican Bertie, the colt brought $200,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale from agent AI Pike. A year later, as a 2-year-old going through the Fasig-Tipton Timonium sale (:10 1/5), he RNA'd for $420,000 from...

Center Aisle (Into Mischief) and 'TDN Rising Star' Frank's Rockette (Into Mischief) ran hard every step of the way in Saturday's six-furlong GIII Sugar Swirl S. at Gulfstream, and, after throwing down in the stretch, it was the former coming away with a hard-fought, one-length victory for a career high. Perched four-wide beneath Luis Saez as four of them lined up--including favored MGSW & MGISP Frank's Rockette who was racing under fire in between runners--through an opening quarter in a sharp :21.72, Center Aisle poked a head in front approaching...

Sent off the 1-2 jolly to opening his account at first asking, Doppelganger (Into Mischief) never felt a crack of jockey Flavien Prat's whip and cruised home a 3 1/2-length winner to become yet another 'TDN Rising Star' for his all-conquering sire. Assigned gate one for the unveiling, the blinkered bay played pinball on three occasions with Asphalt Andy (Tapiture) to the outside, costing him any chance to make the lead, but he settled kindly and traveled comfortably while behind horses into the turn. Going well approaching the long stretch...

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency PRICEY NYQUIST DEBUTS AT LOS AL 5th-LRC, $52K, Msw, 2yo, f, 6f, 4:58 p.m. Mick Ruis went to $510,000 at KEESEP to acquire WAITING ON WENDY (Nyquist) and she debuts here for his daughter Shelbe Ruis. The bay is a half to GSW & GISP Divine Miss Grey (Divine Park) and GSP Divine Dawn (Divine Park). Their dam is a hald to MGSW & MGISP Noble Court (Doneraile Court). This is also the family of GISW Complexity (Maclean's Music) and GSW & GISP Valadorna (Curlin)....

Augustin Stable's Send for Me (Into Mischief) led home a $1.5-million-plus exacta for her sire as she became the Spendthrift super stallion's 28th 'TDN Rising Star' when drubbing a fancy group of fillies at Aqueduct Saturday. Acquired for $500,000 at OBS April off a :10 flat breeze, the Jonathan Thomas pupil was let go at 6-1 and made that price look like a bargain. Emerging with the early advantage, the bay doled out splits of :22.99 and :47.42, quickly shut the door on her competition at the head of the...

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency 6th-AQU, $80K, Msw, 2yo, f, 6 1/2f, 2:14 p.m. Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey unveils a pair of well-bred newcomers in this salty-looking test. Courtlandt Farm paid $1,025,000 for Adam's Angel (Into Mischief) as a Keeneland September yearling. Out of stakes-placed Mary Rita (Distorted Humor) and bred on the same cross as Practical Joke and Life Is Good, the bay's third dam is the McGaughey-trained Hall of Famer and blue hen Personal Ensign (Private Account). Gainesway Stable and Andrew Rosen, meanwhile, will be represented by...

Strava, a promising juvenile colt by super sire Into Mischief, topped Friday's 10th and final session of the Keeneland November Sale, bringing $825,000 from legendary University of Louisville basketball Denny Crum. Consignor and part-owner WinStar Farm stayed in for half. There were 435 horses catalogued for Friday's session with the first 148 being broodmares and weanlings and the remaining 287 comprised of active racehorses. This was the first time the horse of racing age portion was consolidated into a single and final session. A total of 231 horses grossed $9,122,400...

As both prototype and paragon for a whole new era in commercial breeding, Into Mischief can increasingly be measured only against himself. Last year, in retaining the general sires' championship he had won for the first time in 2019, the Spendthrift phenomenon became the first North American stallion to break the $20-million barrier in progeny earnings. He ended up on $22,507,940, bulldozing Tapit's 2016 haul of $19,914,317. Now, as an overlooked consequence of Breeders' Cup success for his latest star Life Is Good, Into Mischief has surged past his own...

Multiple graded stakes-winning sprinter Engage (Into Mischief--Nefertiti, by Speightstown) has been retired to Northview Stallion Station in Chesapeake City, Md., for the 2022 season. The bay won graded stakes at two and four, including Keeneland's GII Stoll Keenon Ogden Phoenix S., a Breeders' Cup "Win and You're In" event for the 2019 GI Breeders' Cup Sprint while defeating a field that included eventual Eclipse Award-winning sprinter Whitmore (Pleasantly Perfect). He also captured the GIII Futurity S. as a juvenile and added two more listed stakes wins, retiring with $802,780 in...