A.P. Indy Still Has It

How do you begin to define charisma when it is such an intangible quality? The truth is that you've either got it or you don't, as we were reminded a couple of times last week. David Bowie certainly had it and so too does A.P. Indy, the two-time champion sire.

This son of Seattle Slew had it when he appeared as hip no. 249 at Keeneland's 1990 July Yearling Sales, when Tomonori Tsurumaki's team outbid everyone to acquire him for a sale-topping $2.9 million. He had it, too, when he was voted top 3-year-old male and Horse of the Year in 1992. And he clearly still had it when he reportedly ruled the roost at last week's Lane's End's Open House, even though he's 27 and not as sleek as he once was.

Last week was also a pretty good time for A.P. Indy's sons. Honor Code took the Eclipse Award for Older Male to become A.P. Indy's fifth American champion, following Mineshaft (Older Male and Horse of the Year), Bernardini (3yo Male), Rags To Riches (3yo Filly) and Tempera (2yo Filly). We also saw Congrats's daughter Polar River add to her burgeoning reputation when this “TDN Rising Star” took the UAE 1,000 Guineas Trial by nearly five lengths from a Group 2 winner. And Congrats's brother Flatter also made his mark, with his $2.35 million daughter Taris winning the GII La Canada S. to record her seventh victory in 11 starts. Interestingly, Polar River's dam Bayou Tortuga also has a 2-year-old filly by Flatter.

Polar River has yet to earn black-type, but she is being talked of as a potential challenger for the GI Kentucky Oaks. She also serves the useful purpose of focusing attention on Empire Maker's broodmare daughters. Bayou Tortuga's record of one all-weather win from eight starts is a reminder that she wasn't one of the stars sired by the 2003 GI Belmont S. winner. Although Empire Maker can proudly claim to have sired Pioneerof the Nile and Bodemeister, these two were the only males among his 11 Grade I winners, so it is reasonable to expect Empire Maker's daughters to shine as broodmares.

Remember, too, that Empire Maker is by Unbridled, broodmare sire of such as Tapit, Orb, Shackleford, Mr. Speaker and Sky Diva. The sires of these top winners include A.P. Indy's sons Pulpit (2) and Malibu Moon, plus Pulpit's son Sky Mesa, so it is hardly surprising that Empire Maker mares have already produced a potential graded winner to Congrats and a listed winner to Pulpit.

Towards the end of last year, the most popular choice of stallion for Empire Maker mares had been Harlan's Holiday, with 15 foals of racing age. Appropriately this cross produced the first graded winner with a dam by Empire Maker in the shape of Takeover Target, a Grade II and Grade III winner on turf at around a mile and an eighth.

If Mike Repole has his way, the next successful cross for Empire Maker mares will be with champion freshman sire Uncle Mo. As reported in last Wednesday's TDN, Repole bought three daughters of Empire Maker for a total of $710,000, using Three Chimneys' Jacob West as his agent.

As TDN's Christie DeBernardis's report explained, the motivation for these purchases stemmed from a now-3-year-old called Outwork, whose name is well worth remembering:

“Uncle Mo's first winner is out of an Empire Maker mare, a horse by the name of Outwork, who broke his maiden here at Keeneland [Apr 23],” West remarked. “They thought really highly of him. He had some juvenile issues, but he's coming back. He's back with Todd [Pletcher], so he's back up and going and they are really high on him.”

West also explained that Repole's operation is looking to produce two-turn dirt horses with Classic aspirations.

West described the $230,000 Flying Train as “a big, strong Empire Maker mare” and the $300,000 Team as “a good size mare.” Although Empire Maker himself stands 16.1 hands, his sire Unbridled and grandsire Fappiano both stood 16.3 hands, which explains why plenty of Empire Maker's daughters are on the big side. Combining them with Uncle Mo, a good-sized son of the very big Indian Charlie, appears guaranteed to produce runners with the size and strength to cope with the demands of racing on dirt.

I have to admit that, as a European used to producing turf horses, my instinct would be to breed medium-sized mares to Uncle Mo. However, I haven't forgotten that Seth Hancock once said that he wished he had bred more big mares to Unbridled, who seemed to be suited by breeding type to type.

This approach seems to be suiting Uncle Mo, who was represented by his fourth first-crop graded stakes winner when Mo Tom won the GIII LeComte S. three days ago. I don't know whether the colt's dam, the Rubiano mare Caroni, is big, but her grandsires are Fappiano and Caro, both of whom stood just an inch short of 17 hands. Mo Tom's half-sister Beautician (by Dehere) was at her best at two, when she earned a figure of 120 on the Experimental Free H., but Mo Tom–a May foal–appears capable of making further progress, perhaps over longer distances.

Interestingly, another of Uncle Mo's graded winners, the GIII Sanford S. winner Uncle Vinny, is also out of a granddaughter of Unbridled, by the 16.2-hands Untuttable. Then there's the LeComte S. third Uncle Walter and the listed-placed Mo For The Money. These two rank among the three winners from five runners out of daughters of the 17-hands Unbridled's Song. (by Unbridled out of a Caro mare).

If the highly regarded Outwork, with his dam by Empire Maker, proves capable of shining at graded level, Fappiano-line mares will have made a very eye-catching start with Uncle Mo.

It is worth adding that Uncle Mo's highest-priced second-crop yearling, a colt out of Kiss the Lady, has Fappiano's son Quiet American as his broodmare sire, so he too should be well worth waiting for.