Texas Red

When The Great Maybe (Upstart) left the blocks at Saratoga and strolled in eight lengths ahead of a lively-met field of fillies, she carried not only the silks of Lael Stables--whose name invokes great nostalgia and respect in the halls of the Thoroughbred community--but also the dreams of a small breeding operation an hour north of Lexington, run by Monica Egger. Now, that farm in Piner, Kentucky, has a 'TDN Rising Star' to add to their list of accomplishments. "I have really enjoyed my short foray into Thoroughbreds and have...

This is the second half of the latest instalment in our ongoing survey of covering options for the new breeding season. The first part can be read here. UPSTART (Flatter--Party Silks, by Touch Gold) was cleverly named and I think him a very plausible type, likely to rise pretty quickly through the ranks. Certainly there were more than enough "nouveaux riches" among his first juveniles--only Not This Time exceeded his 19 winners (from 54 starters)--for him to be pegged at $10,000 by Airdrie. His principal earner was Reinvestment Risk, who...

A Texas Red yearling sold for $18,200 to Roger Spiess to top the Oct. 31 Indiana Thoroughbred Owners' and Breeders' Association (ITOBA) Fall Mixed Sale. The Indiana-bred gelding out of Color Me Special (River Special) was consigned by Dawn Martin. Overall, 69 horses went through the ring. A total of 66 sold for $263,400, giving the sale an average of $3,991 and an RNA rate of only 4%. "While COVID-19 threatened the sale, so many people came together to make it a success," said ITOBA President Bruce Murphy. "The fact...

"Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face." Erich Brehm is quoting Mike Tyson. He knows how it might look, from the outside: this charmed, clockwork progress from one fairytale to the next. Texas Red (Afleet Alex) cost just $17,000 as a yearling and--racing for Brehm, trainer Keith Desormeaux and a bunch of pals--won the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile of 2014 by 6 1/2 lengths. Upon his retirement to stud, Brehm bought Texas Red a mare for $21,000. The resulting foal, My Girl Red, pulverized her opponents...

My Girl Red, who became the first winner from her freshman sire (by Afleet Alex)'s small first crop when she aired by 4 1/4 lengths at Santa Anita June 14, ran to short odds in Friday evening's GII Sorrento S. to become his first stakes and graded stakes winner as well. Campaigned by the same connections who raced the 2014 GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile S. winner and 2015 GII Jim Dandy S. winner, the bay out-footed her five rivals in the early scramble for position to take a narrow advantage...

When signing for a $340,000 Uncle Mo filly at this year's OBS March Sale, Dennis O'Neill, noted bloodstock advisor and brother of trainer Doug O'Neill, told the TDN's Steve Sherack that he "kept telling [owner] Paul [Reddam] that she was my female Nyquist." The April foal, now named Get On the Bus, looks a live chance on debut as she breaks from the rail in Friday's GII Sorrento S. at Del Mar. The April foal, produced by a winning half-sister to G1 Dubai World Cup hero African Story (GB) (Pivotal...

2nd-Santa Anita, $56,200, Msw, 6-14, 2yo, f, 4 1/2f, :52.90, ft. MY GIRL RED (f, 2, Texas Red--Morakami {SP, $145,532}, by Fusaichi Pegasus), sent off at 2-1 for the same connections that campaigned her sire (by Afleet Alex) to victories in the 2014 GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile and 2015 GII Jim Dandy S., became the freshman's first winner with a sharp showing at Santa Anita Sunday. Sharp from the blocks, the bay dueled along the fence with a longshot early  before shaking loose at the top of the stretch. She...

When this whole thing is over, some kind of reset seems inevitable: certain priorities renewed, others revised. And perhaps, with an abrupt end looming to the relentless bull run in the bloodstock market, commercial breeders might begin to dig slightly deeper foundations for their broodmares. In recent times, they have been increasingly prepared to risk a mare's long-term viability by choosing her mates according to short-term market fads. Once that market plunges, however, it's all downside. The far-sighted breeder, as such, will surely seek to ride out the storm by...