Oppenheim: APEX Leaders in 2016

The APEX ratings cover a seven-year span, which is actually short enough that we were able to quantify when once-great sires like Gone West and Green Desert, in their time, went off the boil, but on the other hand it's still quite a long period of time. So it's handy to be able to take a recent snapshot: what do the numbers look like this year? We do this just by looking at the number of A Runners and ABC Runners a sire has going for him so far this year. Since the beginning of the current seven-year period is 1-1-2010, current APEX ratings will comprise a career summary for any sires whose first foals were born in 2008, or later. One important caveat, though: midyear APEX ratings are calculated on earnings through that time (July 10); at that point in the season, the North American 'A Runner' 2% threshold was $84,050, whereas by the end of 2015 the threshold was $134,280. In other words, horses can be counted as A Runners midway through the season, because they have earned $84,050; but if that horse earned no more before the end of 2016, it would likely end up being a C Runner, not an A Runner. So we do have to keep that in mind; in most cases, Midyear A Runners remain A Runners, but in a few cases they don't. (Click here for list of all sires with six or more A runners of 20+ ABC runners).

A total of 38 North American and European sires with first foals 2013 and earlier have had six or more A Runners and/or 20 or more ABC Runners so far this year (through July 10). Five of those sires are among 42 younger sires (first foals 2011-2012-2013) who lead their respective sire groups. So these are the 'now' sires, the sires who are siring the highest number of 'break-even-or-better' runners in 2016.

Coolmore's Galileo, in Europe, and Gainesway's Tapit, in North America, are the leading (and most expensive) sires on their respective continents. Galileo is the leading NA-EU sire of 2016 A Runners, with 29 (this is all horses by the sire who have achieved the provisional A Runner thresholds in 2016, regardless of whether they have been A Runners before, or not), while Tapit is the leading 2016 sire of ABC Runners, with 53. Tapit is number two in NA-EU by A Runners (16), and Galileo is number two in NA-EU by ABC Runners (48). This isn't surprising when you look at the TDN 2016 General Sire List, by Worldwide Earnings (click here): #1 Galileo, with 32 Black-Type Winners, 24 group winners (GSW), and eight Group 1 winners; #2 by worldwide 2016 progeny earnings (from Northern Hemisphere-sired crops) is Tapit, who has 16 BTW this year.

Coolmore Ashford's Uncle Mo, who really has made the best start of any stallion in North America since A. P. Indy nearly 20 years ago, ranks third by number of 2016 A Runners (15). Darley is quite prominent on this list as well as they stand four of the 12 NA-EU sires to have sired 10 or more A Runners in 2016: Bernardini (14), Dubawi (12), Medaglia D'Oro (11), and Shamardal (10). Former Lane's End sire Smart Strike, who died last year, also has 11 A Runners this year, and runs third to Tapit (53) and Galileo (48), with 38 ABC Runners in 2016. Lane's End's Candy Ride; Ramsey Farm's Kitten's Joy; Coolmore Ashford's Giant's Causeway; and Ireland's Morristown Stud's Dark Angel all also have 10 A Runners to that point in 2016. Spendthrift's Malibu Moon and Lane's End's City Zip each have 30 ABC Runners in 2016 to rank among the leaders in that category; each had eight A Runners so far in 2016.

Among, relatively speaking, younger sires, Gilltown Stud's great Sea The Stars has surged back to the lead this year among sires with their first foals 2011, and first 5-year-olds in 2016. He was a great racehorse, and probably started out with the best book of mares of all time up until then, but neither is a guarantee of sire success. Sea The Stars leads all NA-EU F2011 sires in both categories, with nine A Runners and 21 ABC Runners this year; he's also the leading NA-EU fourth-crop sire by worldwide 2016 progeny earnings (click here), including nine black-type winners–eight of them group winners, including of course G1 English and Irish Derby winner Harzand. WinStar's Pioneerof The Nile (6) is second among F2011 NA-EU sires by number of 2016 A Runners, ahead of a group with five each, comprised of Coolmore's Fastnet Rock; WinStar's Colonel John; Bushranger, who was sold from Ireland to Turkey after a very so-so beginning; and Kodiak Kowboy, a son of Posse who started at Vinery in Kentucky, but was last heard of standing for $1,000 in Brazil. Coolmore's Mastercraftsman (17) and Juddmonte's Champs Elysees (12) are also among the F2011 top six by 2016 ABC Runners.

Lane's End's Quality Road; Ireland's Ballylinch Stud's Lope De Vega; and Coolmore Ashford's Munnings are in the top three among NA-EU F2012 sires (first 4-year-olds 2016) by both 2016 A Runners and ABC Runners. Quality Road leads both categories with seven A Runners and 22 ABC Runners so far this year. Lope De Vega and Munnings are tied for second, with five 2016 A Runners each. Lope De Vega is a clear second by number of 2016 ABC Runners (19), while Munnings is one of five sires, each with 16 ABC Runners in 2016, and also including: Darley's Midshipman; Claiborne's Blame; ex-Taylor Made's Eskendereya, now in Japan; and Spendthrift's Warrior's Reward. Along with Midshipman, Coolmore Ashford's Lookin At Lucky; France's Haras de Bonneval's Siyouni; and Spendthrift's Temple City have four 2016 A Runners each.

Among F2013 sires, just halfway through their first 3-year-olds' year, Uncle Mo is miles clear, his 15 A Runners actually ranking third among all NA-EU sires, as noted above, in 2016. He is also of course streets ahead by 2016 ABC Runners among second-crop sires, with 26. Lane's End's Twirling Candy is second in both categories, with six A Runners and 13 ABC Runners this year, while Coolmore's Zoffany, Europe's #1, ranks third with four 2016 A Runners and 12 ABC Runners. Spendthrift's Tizway and Claiborne's Trappe Shot each have three A Runners this year; Tizway has eight ABC Runners, one behind Archarcharch (9), another Spendthrift stallion; and equal with First Dude (8), who stands at Double Diamond Farm in Florida. (Click here for leading F2011-F2013 sires by number of 2016 A Runners & ABC Runners).

We do keep pointing out these are the best figures among North American and European sires, because we also do APEX ratings for Japanese sires. But we have learned over the years the circumstances of Japanese racing are so different–a massive proportion of the money is earned by 4-year-olds and up compared to North America and Europe, plus there is huge dominance by the Shadai group of the Yoshida family–that the numbers don't really 'translate'. In 2016, by way of illustration, Deep Impact is the sire of 39 A Runners among 93 ABC Runners, and King Kamehameha, Japan's #2 sire, has 25 A Runners among 87 ABC runners this year. Hugely impressive, but in a different context. Pulpit: Claiborne's late, great sire, by A. P. Indy and himself sire of Tapit, is exiting the stage with a flourish, ably assisted by trainer Bob Baffert. Since being bought by Spendthrift the 4-year-old Lord Nelson, by Pulpit, has won the GI Triple Bend at seven furlongs and, last weekend, the GI Bing Crosby at Del Mar, at six furlongs. Baffert also trains the 3-year-old American Freedom, a $500,000 yearling for Gary and Mary West from Pulpit's last crop. He went into the GI Betfair.com Haskell Invitational S. three-for-four, hassled Nyquist (Uncle Mo) all the way, and wound up second to Exaggerator (Curlin). The Wests previously raced GI Frontrunner S. (formerly the Norfolk) winner Power Broker, also by Pulpit, and stand him in Kentucky at Hill 'n' Dale.

Contact Bill Oppenheim at bopp@erb.com (cc suefinley@thetdn.com).