Silver State

2nd-MTH, $45k, Msw, 2yo, 4 1/2f, post time: 1:19 p.m. ET A $1.4-million graduate of the 2024 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Yearling Sale, REGENT'S PARK (Bolt d'Oro) kicked off his career from the rail at the Jersey Shore. The bay colt is a son of the three-times stakes-placed Spark (Speightstown), also the dam of SW and Irish Group 3 placegetter Launch (Omaha Beach). The colt's second dam Mon Belle (Maria's Mon), a full-sister to 2001 GI Kentucky Derby hero Monarchos, dropped six winners, including SW & GSP Supreme (Empire Maker),  whose son...

8th-KEE, $120k, Msw, 3yo, 7f, post time: 4:44 p.m. ET A $900,000 Keeneland September yearling, ICONOCLAST (Into Mischief) faces the starter for the first time in this elongated sprint. The Feb. 3 foal is a daughter of Grade III winner Devil By Design (Medaglia d'Oro), whose four winners from five to the races includes Competitionofideas (Speightstown), who took the 2018 GI American Oaks on the turf before selling to Japanese interests for $1.3 million at Fasig-Tipton in November 2020. Symbol (Silver State) is set to become the latest runner for...

He faced pressure right from the jump, but Knock It Off (Vekoma) found plenty in the stretch to claim 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' honors in his second lifetime victory at Fair Grounds. Unveiled at this venue against local maidens Jan. 17, the Steve Asmussen trainee set similarly brisk fractions while facing pressure from a rival, and kicked on to win by 1 1/4 lengths in a final time of 1:09.47 for six panels. Trouble Calling (Dialed In), defeated in that race, returned Feb. 14 over this same track...

Swing Vote (Constitution) went off as the favorite on debut in Hallandale Dec. 28. The late juvenile was slow out of the blocks and on hold approaching the stretch, but she offered a determined run at the rail and a strong gallop out after finishing third. Serving as the chalk once again here, the 9-5 choice raced behind the speed in the two path as a scramble ensued on the engine up the backstretch. The filly moved right past the 'Insighted' Beneficence (Into Mischief) around the far turn and began...

7th-Parx Racing, $50,820, Msw, 9-2, 2yo, f, 5 1/2f, 1:07.31, ft, 6 1/4 lengths. FLOYNESS (f, 2, Silver State--Getupbabygetup, by First Defence), sent off at 2-1 for this unveiling, pressed longshot Mariah's Big Girl (Rowayton) through an opening quarter in :23.02. Overtaking that rival nearing the quarter pole, Floyness ran clear to score by an eye-catching 6 1/4-length winner over Savor It (Vino Rosso). The filly is the third winner for her freshman sire (by Hard Spun). Getupbabygetup, who sold for $24,000 in foal to Army Mule at Keeneland last...

Like an everlasting gobstopper, Swamp King (Silver State--El Piba, by Lookin At Lucky) kept going to best his opponents at second asking in a Pea Patch maiden on Sunday. Getting his picture taken was the signal that his freshman sire celebrated his first winner. Owned by Claiborne Farm, the dark bay made his first start over the grass at Ellis and was well-beaten July 21. Fitted with blinkers and off as a 5-1 shot here, the 2-year-old bided his time along the rail as a scramble for supremacy between longshots...

This is a fun category. Priced between $10,001 and $19,999, these stallions remain within reach of many hands-on breeders, yet include quite a few that can be legitimately described as proven. At the younger end of the scale, meanwhile, others remain full of promise. As already emphasized in this series, stallions that have shed their rookie glamor can offer real value to breeders of adequate nerve and imagination. If you're genuinely trying to get ahead of the curve, and not just cynically exploiting a vogue in which you have no...

Every year, the Fasig-Tipton July sale offers the first chance for buyers to get a look at a new crop of yearling sires. Many buyers were seeing these sires' yearlings for the first time this week, and while it's admittedly early, we took a little survey to get their first impressions. The group includes: Basin, Beau Liam, By My Standards, Charlatan, Core Beliefs, Essential Quality, Independence Hall, Knicks Go, Known Agenda, Leinster, Lexitonian, Maxfield, Modernist, Raging Bull, Rock Your World, Silver State, Tacitus, Uncle Chuck, and Yaupon. LIZ CROW: Tacitus...

Old Friends, which will host its 19th Annual Homecoming Event on Sunday, May 5, has opened absentee bidding for a number of halters featured in a live and silent auction. Halters previously worn by Afleet Alex, Candy Ride (Arg), Channel Maker, Feathered, Gun Runner, I'll Have Another, Lava Man, Sea Hero, Serena's Song, Silver Charm, Silver State, Sky Mesa, and Tapit are available, with most accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. To bid, email your name, address, and phone number along with your highest bid to: horses@oldfriendsequine.org. The final deadline...

In our walk of life, nothing succeeds like succession. As with any other form of agriculture, a horse farm is not just a business but a legacy sometimes shaped by several generations of rain-or-shine toil and kitchen-table lore. The balance sheet may happen to be in the black, or in the red--but that's just a moment in time. How does one put a price on the decades of patient nurture that have gone into land and bloodlines? Yet there's never any guarantee about the next generation, whether in terms of...

Today we'll consider some of the sires standing between $10,001 and $19,999. For a long time, I called this the Lookin At Lucky zone. But don't worry, we won't be deploring his neglect yet again: he's staying in Chile, where they evidently appreciate him rather more. Plenty of horses in this bracket have recently relinquished their brief window of commercial opportunity, and are now hanging around to discover whether they might join the very small group whose first runners generate a fresh vogue. Even with the newcomers out of the...

War Front (Danzig) will again lead the way at Claiborne Farm among their nine-stallion roster for 2024, with a fee of $100,000, the same price for which he stood in 2023. In 2023, War Front's yearlings sold for up to $800,000, and he is among the top 10 North American-based sires this season by percentage of black-type winners from starters (6.9%), black-type performers from starters (11.8%) and total graded stakes winners (six). War Front's GI Preakness S.-winning son War of Will will stand for $25,000. His first yearlings sold at...