by Margaret Ransom
It was a busy weekend for one of the top three stallions battling it out for the crown as the best first-crop sire of 2022 as Justify was represented by a pair of winners and another two to hit the board, leaving Bolt d'Oro (Medaglia d'Oro) and Good Magic (Curlin) winless from just a single runner each.
Justify's two winners on American soil both came on Sunday and started with Don Alberto Stable's homebred Alpha Bella, who graduated with a hard-fought victory by a head at Gulfstream Park, surviving a lengthy steward's inquiry/jockey's objection. She earned $36,000 for the win, which helped her sire close some ground on the top two. Several hundred miles to the north, Prove Right picked up a $32,400 check for his one-length victory in an allowance/optional claiming event at Laurel Park for trainer James Chapman and co-owner Stuart Tsujimoto. And in addition to Lap Star's third at at Nakayama in Japan on Saturday, Justify's daughter, Dona Sweat, also contributed to her sire's totals with her runner-up finish in a maiden event at Hanshin on Sunday.
Good Magic's only runner over the weekend was Delusively, who finished fourth at Golden Gate Fields on Saturday. Chiringo, Bolt d'Oro's runner on Sunday, was fourth behind Prove Right at Laurel.
Despite Justify's big weekend, he still trails Bolt d'Oro in total progeny earnings by $196,361, with Good Magic in second and behind by $92,499 with 20 days left in 2022. All three stallions will be represented by multiple runners this week.
Note that Japanese earnings are added every Sunday night, and there may be delayed reporting from other countries, which could postpone the final results in a very tight race into early January. We will also be providing a preview of 2-year-olds entered the next day in North America and beyond.
Current Earnings Standings through racing of Dec. 7:
1st—Bolt d'Oro, $2,546,116
2nd—Good Magic, $2,446,087
3rd—Justify, $2,349,755
The TDN sire lists contain full-dollar earnings of Northern Hemisphere foals winning anywhere in the world. To view the current standings updated overnight, click here.
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