BILL OPPENHEIM HEADLINE p. 2 NEWS For information about TDN, DELIVERED EACH NIGHT BY FAX AND FREE BY E-MAIL TO SUBSCRIBERS OF call 732-747-8060. www.thoroughbreddailynews.com WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2007 STRONG CONTENDER TO STONEWALL ‘PEGASUS’ MAKES IT A HAPPY NEW YEAR Strong Contender (Maria=s Mon--Kopenhagen, by Following his victory in the G1-HK Hong Kong Classic Dynaformer), winner of last season=s GII Dwyer S. and Mile Jan. 28, there remained some doubt as to whether GII Super Derby, will enter stud at Stonewall Farm in Floral Pegasus (Fusaichi Pegasus) could handle the Versailles, Ky. He will stand for a added distance required to make him a Derby con- $10,000 fee. AStrong Contender tender. Before 85,000 racegoers certainly lived up to his name,@ on the Chinese New Year pro- said Stonewall=s Director of Stal- gram yesterday, the chestnut lion Operations Ken Wilkins. son of the 2000 Kentucky Derby AThere was a buzz about this winner answered in emphatic horse from the time he broke his fashion, defeating Viva Macau (Fr) (Sendawar {Ire}), who also maiden in his two-year-old debut HKJC photo Strong Contender and both his sire and broodmare finished runner-up in the Classic Equi-Photo sire were among the top five on Mile. Camped in fourth and never America=s list of leading sires last far from a sedate pace, Floral Pegasus pounced on the year.@ Purchased for $800,000 by John Oxley at frontrunners nearing the midstretch marker and sprinted Keeneland=s April Two Year Olds in Training Sale in home an easy winner. Viva Macau sat a wide trip off 2005, the chestnut won four of eight career starts and the deliberate tempo and ran with credit to be second. bankrolled $618,000. AHe's a super horse,@ commented winning trainer Tony Cruz. AHe has the conformation of a sprinter, but he has the stamina too. He's out of a Mill Reef mare and his PA DERBY PURSE NOW $1 MILLION father won a Kentucky Derby. He travels great in the This year=s running of Philadelphia Park=s GII Pennsyl- run and I'm looking forward to the Derby with him.@ vania Derby will carry a $1-million purse, it was an- The HK$16 million ($2.1 million) Hong Kong Derby over nounced yesterday. This marks 2000 meters is set for Mar. 18. For a video replay, click the first race to be run at the broadband or modem. Bensalem racetrack that will carry a seven-figure purse. AThere=s Tuesday, Sha Tin, Hong Kong something special about that MERCEDES-BENZ HONG KONG DERBY TRIAL-G2-HK million-dollar plateau,@ Philly Park (Listed), HK$3,000,000, Sha Tin, 2-20, 4yo, 1800mT, CEO Hal Handel commented. 1:48.80, gd. We re excited that we can now 1--FLORAL PEGASUS (AUS), 126, g, 4, by Fusaichi Pegasus Sun King & Tracy Farmer A = offer our fans a race like this.@ 1st Dam: Crown Crest (GB), by Mill Reef following the ‘05 Pa Derby 2nd Dam: Crown Treasure, by Graustark Equi-Photo Following a year=s hiatus, this sea- son=s Derby returns on Labor 3rd Dam: Treasure Chest, by Rough=n Tumble Day, Sept. 3. Tracy Farmer=s Sun King won the 2005 O-Jacky C M Chan & Mr & Mrs Sammy C Y Chan; edition by 4 1/2 lengths over Southern Africa. B-M Sakurai; T-A S Cruz; J-G Mosse; HK$1,710,000. Lifetime Record: 16-9-3-2, HK$11,838,300. *1/2 to Evacuate (Aus) (Giant=s Causeway), GSP-Aus. Missed recent TDN Rising Stars STREET MAGICIAN 2--Viva Macau (Fr), 126, c, 4, Sendawar (Ire)--Diyawara (Street Cry {Ire}), KETCHIKAN (Mr. Greeley), (Ire), by Doyoun (Ire). O-Stanley Ho; B-His Highness CURLIN (Smart Strike) & SPIN MASTER the Aga Khan=s Stud SC; T-J Moore; HK$660,000. (Distorted Humor)? 3--Down Town (Aus), 126, g, 4, Scenic (Ire)--Twain Check out the TDN Rising Stars section on our website (Aus), by Kenvain (Aus). O-Toby K T Lam & John S T and read the write-up! Chan; B-Kentville Pty Ltd; T-C H Yip; HK$345,000. Margins: 1HF, 3/4, HF. Odds: 13-10, 5-2, 13-1. www.taylormadestallions.com TDN P HEADLINE NEWS • 2/21/07 • PAGE 2 of 7 FROM THE DESK OF... Bill Oppenheim SIRES ON ALL-WEATHER TRACKS In today=s racing environment, there can hardly be a more timely line of inquiry than whether certain stal- lions are proving more proficient at siring runners on the new 21st-century all-weather racing surfaces. Through the efforts of Hank Zeitlin at Equibase, and Carl Hamil- ton and Mark Adkins at The Jockey Club Information Systems (TJCIS), we are able to bring you some results of these inquiries, covering racing on all-weather sur- faces in North America and Great Britain through the end of 2006. We=d also like to recognize the encourage- ment, especially, of Keeneland president Nick Nichol- son, and the very able assistance of Darley Flying Start graduate Gary Hadden. The North American information can be explained quite straightforwardly: these statistics cover racing on all recognized >all-weather= surfaces in North America, beginning with the Turfway meet Sept. 7, 2005, and including Keeneland, Woodbine, and Hollywood Park, as well as Turfway in 2006. This includes racing on whichever all-weather surface is in use at the particular racetrack--Polytrack, Cushion Track, Tapeta, or what- ever (Hollywood has installed Cushion Track; (859) 233-4252 Keeneland, Turfway and Woodbine all have Polytrack). www.claibornefarm.com So that includes about 16 months of racing, during which 9,368 individual starters by 1,388 sires included As Equibase and TJCIS continue to develop these 2,086 winners, 94 of them stakes winners. There were figures, we shall have to see whether Southwell, in 22.3-percent winners to starters, and almost exactly Great Britain, and French tracks like Deauville and one-percent stakes winners to starters. The 9,368 Cagnes-sur-Mer should be added. At the British tracks runners earned a total of $67,370,777, an average of covered, there have been a total of 14,391 starters, of $7,192 per starter. Since each racetrack simply re- which 3,118 are winners (21.7 percent, almost exactly places dirt with all-weather, the statistics will therefore the same as North America=s 22.3 percent), represent- reflect the class of horse that runs on that surface at ing 1,053 sires. Reflecting the lower standard of that meeting: so far, generally better horses at Polytrack racing in Britain, as well as its lower purse- Keeneland, Woodbine, and Hollywood; generally lower- money structure, there have been only 32 stakes win- class horses at Turfway. ners (0.22 percent of starters). Total Polytrack earnings In Great Britain, the statistics are a little bit less in Britain were $50,768,144, which is $3,528 per straightforward. True, they reflect the class of racing at starter--just under half the average for North American the racetrack covered, but all-weather racing in Britain all-weather starters. has been geared towards lower-class and winter horses, as the original intent was to provide an alterna- Cum AEI & Top 100... tive to jump racing (especially when frost, snow, or--in With the assistance of TJCIS in what was essentially this era of global warming--waterlogging cancelled a research project, Gary and I first started spinning the racing) so that punters and bookmakers could have dials on the North American sire information action virtually every day of the year. Also, the British (broodmare sire statistics will follow next week), and statistics cover racing on the Polytrack surface only; came up with quite an interesting little index incorporat- these include Lingfield, going all the way back to Nov. ing three categories: percentage of winners to starters; 13, 2001; Wolverhampton, beginning when that sur- average earnings per starter; and percentage of stakes face was relaid with Polytrack, beginning Oct. 2, 2004; winners to starters. However, we realized that since so and Kempton, which reopened with Polytrack instead much of the racing was pretty low class, the percent- of dirt Mar. 25, 2006. age of winners to starters isn=t that significant. TDN P HEADLINE NEWS • 2/21/07 • PAGE 3 of 7 Oppenheim cont. And the miniscule percentage of stakes winners in Britain means no comparison of that statistic with North American racing could be meaningful. Moreover, if you want to be able to look at a sire=s combined runners, the gulf in average earnings means simply combining North American and British earnings would The first major two-year-old sale of the year, at OBS, went not give us a true picture. sideways, like the market has all year so far. But look at Therefore, we turned to the time-honored average- Goffs’ February: up 67% in gross and 56% on average. earnings index, not annualized, but computed on a Ireland must be the only place on the planet where, when cumulative basis since September 2005 in North Amer- people have discretionary capital, the first thing they say to ica, and for the Polytrack dates listed above in Britain. themselves is, “maybe I’ll buy a horse.” Roar on, Celtic Tiger. So if a sire had 10 all-weather starters in North America -- Bill Oppenheim and total earnings of $71,920, his runners= average earnings would be $7,192, and his North American AW cumulative AEI would be 1.00.