EMPIRE MAKER ATTRACTS TOP QUALITY MARES
Article published in the Thoroughbred Times
Dream Books
By John P Sparkman
Six-figure stud fees have always been a rarity on the American
breeding scene. Northern Dancer was the first stallion to earn that
kind of respect from the commercial market during the 1980s
bloodstock boom, and currently only 18 American stallions command
public or private fees of $100,000 or more.
Those include two freshman sires of 2007 whose debuts are among
the most highly anticipated in recent memory. Both Juddmonte Farms’
2003 Belmonte Stakes (G 1) winner EMPIRE
MAKER and Lane’s End’s ’03 Horse of the Year Mineshaft
retired to stud at their respective birthplaces in ’04 at $100,000
initial stud fees.
Because of the current craze for first-year sires, the vast
majority of other recently retired stallions are available at lower
stud fees during their second, third and fourth seasons at stud.
But both EMPIRE MAKER and Mineshaft
have bucked that trend, partly because of enduring strong support
from large broodmare bands of their owners-breeders, and maintained
strong books through what is often the toughest part of a
stallion’s career.
As shown by the accompanying table detailing the composition of
their initial books, however, crops two, three and four will be
pretty spectacular if the quality of their dams match that of these
two horses’ initial crops.
The table includes the total number of foals and the number of
their dams whose best performance was a non-graded stakes win (SW),
Grade 1 win (G 1W), Grade 2 win (G 2W), Grade 3 win (G3W), graded
stakes-placing (Gpl), or non-graded stakes placing (Spl).
In addition, the table shows the number of dams of first-crop
off-spring of Mineshaft and EMPIRE
MAKER who have already produced graded winners (G prod) or
non-graded stakes winners (S prod). Not surprisingly, these last
two categories often overlap with the first six because high-class
runners make the best producers on average.
The distributions of the dams in the two stallions’ first crops
are remarkably similar. EMPIRE MAKER
has 20 more foals in his first crop, so his numbers in most
categories are naturally somewhat higher, but for every Bird Town
(champion three-year-old filly of 2003) in EMPIRE MAKER’s book, there is a Dear Birdie (dam
of Bird Town and ’04 Belmont winner Birdstown) in Mineshaft’s.
While the dams of Mineshaft’s first runners will include Grade 1
winners Twist Afleet, Oh What a Windfall, and Clear Mandate,
EMPIRE MAKER’s first runners can brag on top-level
victors Flute and Tates Creek.
EMPIRE MAKER’s first crop includes
half brothers or half sisters to Medaglia d’Oro, Monarchos, and
Surfside; Mineshaft’s features half siblings to Jazil, More than
Ready, and Volponi. It is impossible to choose between the two
books on quality.
The two stallions present contrasting problems – or perhaps
opportunities – to breeders in terms of pedigree. Mineshaft is a
representative of the highly successful A.P. Indy (by Seattle Slew)
– Mr. Prospector cross. As a result, most breeders are likely to
avoid mares from or with close crosses to two of the three most
common sire lines, Seattle Slew and Mr Prospector.
Thus, it is not surprising that exactly half -36- of the
surviving foals in Mineshaft’s first crop are from mares by
Northern Dancer line stallions. Members of the Danzig male line are
the most numerous of the Northern Dancers in America, and 13 of
those mares descend in male line from the unbeaten three-time
leading sire. Deputy Minister (seven) and Storm Cat (four) are also
well represented among the dams of Mineshaft’s first foals.
EMPIRE MAKER, contrastingly, is by
Mr. Prospector’s grandson Unbridled out of a mare by Northern
Dancer’s son El Gran Senor, so it should be no surprise that the
male-line descendants of Seattle Slew are most common (ten) among
the dams of his first foals.
Since inbreeding to Northern Dancer has become so ubiquitously
successful, it is also not surprising that 37 of the dams are by
male-line descendants of the little giant of Windfields, let by
eight from the Storm Cat male line. Only nine dams descend in male
line from Mr Prospector, who so far has been a somewhat less
successful target of inbreeding than has Northern Dancer.
The breeding industry has invested heavily in the ultimate
success at stud of both Mineshaft and EMPIRE
MAKER. If the quality of the mares in their first books is
any indication – and it usually is- it should turn out to be a
profitable investment.
| |
Mineshaft |
EMPIRE
MAKER |
| Total foals |
72 |
92 |
| SW |
15 |
22 |
| G1W |
4 |
18 |
| G2W |
7 |
11 |
| G3W |
8 |
6 |
| Gpl |
7 |
6 |
| Spl |
8 |
2 |
| G prod |
23 |
33 |
| S prod |
7 |
4 |
Date:
26 January 2007