This year’s very strong, exciting Kentucky Derby field was marked, as well, by the supremacy of certain sires to a surprising degree. What were the odds that nearly half of the field would be comprised of the get of three stallions? Scat Daddy, sire of the winner, Curlin, sire of the second placed horse, and Medaglia d’Oro, whose promising offspring failed to impress. What’s no surprise is that these three stallions are leaders in three-year-old earnings as well.
Scat Daddy is the daddy of the year, with four of his sons in the Derby gate, and Justify becoming the easy winner. Mendelssohn, hero of the UAE Derby-G2, had the misfortune to draw post position 14, and suffered the calamitous trip that post position has previously caused. His Derby performance must be tossed, and we will have to wait for the Breeders’ Cup Classic before we see him again.
The other two Scat Daddys in the field, Flameaway and Combatant, finished thirteenth and eighteenth, respectively, but in such a competitive year, just getting into the gate of this Derby was an achievement. The untimely loss of Scat Daddy in 2015 is underscored by this quadruple entry. He has gone from being considered a juvenile and/or turf sire to being number one in the list of leading sires of three-year-olds, with $3,925,208 in earnings, over a million dollars more than his closest rival, Into Mischief.
Number three on that list is Curlin, who also has three colts in the Derby. Two of them had unfortunate draws – Solomini, the other Baffert trainee, in 17, and the Repole color bearer Vino Rosso in 18. But Champion Good Magic drew the six, right next to Justify. These two big, handsome, chestnut colts were a sight to behold leaving the gate together. Though the two-year-old champ was no match for the winner, he did show grit and determination against the juggernaut that is Justify. Curlin, after a slow start at stud, has turned into the real deal, and had three-year-old earnings of $2,305,589 before the Derby.
Third place finisher Audible is by another Storm Cat line stallion, Into Mischief. Fourth place was taken by Instilled Regard, by Arch, fifth by My Boy Jack, by Creative Cause, and sixth was Bravazo, by Awesome again.
What must be noted in these top finishers is the lack of an A.P. Indy line sire. Seventh place was taken by a lightly raced son of rock star sire Tapit, the Juddmonte homebred, Hofburg, who according to trainer Bill Mott is now being pointed toward the Belmont. Does this represent a seismic shift in the tectonic plates of stallion-dom?
From this Derby alone, we will doubtless see at least two top sons of Scat Daddy, Justify and Mendelssohn, standing at stud next year, at Winstar and Ashford. Then history will determine if 2018 changed the thoroughbred business and established Scat Daddy as a sire of sires.
— Roberta Smoodin