SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Ending a 45-day layoff after finishing runner-up by a head last time out, overwhelming 1-to-5 favorite Pentathlon lived up to expectations, cruising home to a three-and-a-half-length victory under newly-elected Hall of Fame jockey Joel Rosario.
In the one-mile maiden special weight race starting in the chute, Pentathlon broke well and dropped from the two-path to the inside, rating just off the pace and saving ground while drafting behind the leader through the first turn, up the backstretch, and through the far turn. He was urged while moving back to the two-path at the top of the stretch, closing in on the leader before going to the front outside of the sixteenth pole and drawing clear for his first victory. The chestnut Speightstown colt finished in 1 minute and 37.06 seconds.
The race was the third of his 3-year-old campaign and fifth of his career. The win brings his career record to one win, one runner-up, and two third-place finishes.
Bred by Phipps Stable and co-owned by the breeder, Vincent Viola’s St. Elias Stables, and the Farish family’s Woodford Racing partnership, he was foaled on February 6, 2021 in Paris, Kentucky at Claiborne Farm. Pentathlon was broken and pre-trained in Ocala, Florida at Niall Brennan Stables and is trained by Hall of Famer Claude R. “Shug” McGaughey.
A sixth-generation Phipps bred out of stakes-placed Tapit mare Parade, Pentathlon is from the Personal Ensign branch of the female family tracing back to imported Argentine-bred Dorine, by British sire Aristophanies, acquired by Ogden Phipps in 1970.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – After knocking on the door of his first trip the winner’ circle earlier this summer, Phipps homebred Pentathlon is ending a 45-day layoff for the third start of his sophomore campaign on Thursday, August 15th in Race 3 at Saratoga Race Course.
The maiden special weight race covering one mile on the dirt for ages three years and older has a purse of $100,000 and a post time of 2:22 pm Eastern. Pentathlon is breaking from post position No. 2 in a field of eight entries for Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey.
The Speightstown colt came up a head short last time out at Aqueduct on June 30th, breaking from the outside post in field of five entries. He stalked the pace from the three-path before nudging ahead for the lead entering the stretch. He dug in for a stretch duel, bumping with a foe as they raced shoulder to shoulder six lengths ahead of the rest of the field before finishing a close second. His runner-up effort came after finishing third in his previous two starts.
He enters the race on Thursday as a 2-to-5 morning-line favorite. Wearing saddle cloth No. 1, Pentathlon is a paired entry with 3-year-old Curlin colt Upstanding, a Todd Pletcher-trainee co-owned by St. Elias Stables who also co-owns Pentathlon with Phipps Stable and Woodford Racing.
Pentathlon has been training well since his last start, putting in three timed workouts on Saratoga’s Oklahoma training track, including a four-furlong bullet on July 24th in 48.25 seconds.
Newly-inducted Hall of Fame jockey Joel Rosario has the mount. He rode Pentathlon two races ago (pictured below) to a third-place finish at Saratoga in which the colt earned his highest career Beyer speed figure of 84. Mr. Rosario has a record of success with the stable, sharing in the connection’s 2013 Kentucky Derby victory after guiding Orb to a memorable two-and-a-half-length win.
Well-bred Pentathlon shares the same sire (Speightstown) and female family as Phipps homebred multiple graded stakes winner Performer who suffered a career-ending ankle injury at the age of 5. Retiring with six wins from nine starts in 2021, he was to stand at Claiborne Farm but tragically died from a ruptured stomach prior to his first season at stud.
A sixth-generation Phipps-bred, Pentathlon is the second foal out of graded stakes-placed Parade, by Tapit. Pentathlon’s second dam is graded stakes-placed On Parade, by Storm Cat, third dam is Breeders’ Cup champion My Flag, by Easy Goer, and fourth dam is undefeated Hall of Famer Personal Ensign, By Private Account, all trained by Shug McGaughey. The family traces back to imported Argentine-bred Dorine, by British sire Aristophanies, acquired in 1970 by Ogden Phipps.
The deep, winning Phipps female family also includes Storm Flag Flying, by Storm Cat, Personal Flag, by Private Account, Miner’s Mark, by Mr. Prospector, Traditionally, by Mr. Prospector, as well as sires Mr Speaker, by Pulpit, Arabian Lion, by Justify, and Seeking the Soul, by Perfect Soul, all of which are grade 1 winners.
(Race replay of Pentathlon’s runner-up finish last time out on June 30, 2024 at Aqueduct.)
The 103rd Saratoga Sale kicks off on Monday, August 5th and Phipps female families are well represented with 17 yearlings in the catalog, including 9 colts and 8 fillies (listed below).
A total of 8 different Phipps families are represented, including four yearlings from the family of Helvetia, three each from the families of Dorine (Arg) and Erin, two each from the families of Baby League and Big Hurry, and one each from the families of Businesslike, Grey Flight, and Marguerite de Valois (Fr).
Some of the great Phipps mares represented include undefeated Hall of Famer Personal Ensign and grade 1 winners Dance Number, Educated Risk, and My Flag.
Seven of the Phipps female families represented include influential reines-de-course or “queens of the turf” mares, identified by the late pedigree expert Ellen Parker for their lasting impact as broodmares. Parker recognized that their influence goes well beyond the few generations found in the sales catalogs. Among the families represented in the Saratoga Sale, the reines mares bred or acquired by the Phippses (grouped by family) include: Numbered Account, Intriguing, Glamour, Striking, and Baby League; Searching and Big Hurry; Personal Ensign, Grecian Banner, and Dorine (Arg); Bold Irish and Erin; Pure Profit, Clear Ceiling, and Grey Flight; Lady Be Good; and, Hostility and Marguerite de Valois (Fr).
In addition to their elite Phipps families, these Saratoga Sale yearlings are sired by top stallions, including Bolt d’Oro, Gun Runner, Into Mischief, Justify, Medaglia d’Oro, Oscar Performance, Quality Road, Speightstown, and War Front, among others.
A reason horses from Phipps families remain so attractive to buyers is the fact that they continue to succeed at the top levels of racing in the U.S. and internationally. Last year, horses from Phipps families won a total of 95 graded or group stakes races in top-tier racing countries (see the full list here). The impressive list includes 21 elite grade 1 or group 1 wins, including 8 in the U.S.
Additionally, Saratoga Sale graduates from Phipps families have been well represented among grade 1 winners in recent years. This elite club includes a half dozen top winners since 2019, including 2024 Preakness Stakes winner Seize the Grey, undefeated 2022 Horse of the Year Flightline, 2023 Shoemaker Mile Stakes winner Exaulted, 2021 Amesrican Oaks winner Queen Goddess, 2021 Churchill Downs Stakes winner Flagstaff, and 2019 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Sharing.
Other Saratoga Sale graduates from Phipps families have gone on to win multiple grade 2 and/or grade 3 stakes races in recent years, including Major Dude, Pink Sands, and Tizamagician.
The Saratoga Sale offers a great deal of promising bloodstock that will be exciting to see go through the sales ring on Monday and Tuesday nights and fun to follow at the track in years to come.
2024 SARATOGA SALE YEARLINGS FROM PHIPPS FAMILIES
Hip #17 – b. f. (KY) War Front – Complicated, by Blame, 1st-6th dams: Complicated / Consequence / Educated Risk / Pure Profit / Clear Ceiling / Grey Flight, Consignor Indian Creek, Barn 6
Hip #25 – b. f. (KY) Gun Runner – Curlina, by Cuvee, 3rd-9th dams: Private Seductress / In Full Cry / In Hot Pursuit / Lady Be Good / Past Eight / Helvetia, Consignor Mulholland Springs, Barn 4
Hip #41 – dkb. c. (KY) Quality Road – Evocative, by Pioneer of the Nile, 5th-7th dams: Leix / Bold Irish / Erin, Consignor Turning Point, Barn 3
Hip #43 – b. c. (KY) Oscar Performance – Fastbridled, by Unbridled’s Song, 2nd-6th dams: Broad Pennant / Pennant Champion / Personal Ensign / Grecian Banner / Dorine (ARG), Consignor Mill Ridge, Barn 5
Hip #60 – b. f. (KY) Quality Road – Grand Prix, by Tale of the Cat, 4th-8th dams: Fiddlesticks / Discipline / Lady Be Good / Past Eight / Helvetia, Consignor Buck Pond, Barn 3
Hip #86 – b. c. (NY) Street Sense – Maximova, by Danehill Dancer (IRE), 8th-10th dams: Boldness / Hostility / Marguerite de Valois (FR), Consignor Denali, Barn 7A
Hip #106 – ch. f. (KY) Justify – Nina Fever, by Borrego, 6th-8th dams: Comic Relief / His Duchess / Businesslike, Consignor Hunter Valley, Barn 2
Hip #110 – dkb. c. (KY) More Than Ready – Off Topic, by Street Sense, 3rd-7th dams: Swinging / Pennant Champion / Personal Ensign / Grecian Banner / Dorine (ARG), Consignor Scott Mallory, Barn 5
Hip #116 – b. f. (KY) Medaglia d’Oro – Piece By Peace, by Declaration Of War, 6th-7th dams: No Fiddling / Big Hurry, Consignor Machmer Hall, Barn 5
Hip #122 – b. f. (KY) Medaglia d’Oro – Princess Julia, by Distorted Humor, 6th-9th dams: Stolen Base / Bases Full / Striking / Baby League, Consignor Taylor Made, Barn 7B
Hip #138 – b. c. (KY) Bolt d’Oro – Sail On, by Into Mischief, 3rd-7th dams: With Flying Colors / My Flag / Personal Ensign / Grecian Banner / Dorine (ARG), Consignor Taylor Made, Barn 7B
Hip #145 – b. c. (KY) Munnings – Secret Jewel, by Bernardini, 5th-7th dams: Leix / Bold Irish / Erin, Consignor Taylor Made, Barn 10
Hip #152 – b. f. (KY) Oscar Performance – Shop Again, by Wild Again, 3rd-6th dams: Impish / Lady Be Good / Past Eight / Helvetia, Consignor Mill Ridge, Barn 5
Hip #153 – b. c. (KY) Into Mischief – Shopit, by Yes It’s True, 4th-7th dams: Impish / Lady Be Good / Past Eight / Helvetia, Consignor Blake-Albina, Barn 7A
Hip #194 – ch. f. (KY) Speightstown – Tooken, by Giant’s Causeway, 3rd-9th dams: Oscillate / Dance Number / Numbered Account / Intriguing / Glamour / Striking / Baby League, Consignor Buckland Sales, Barn 4
Hip #215 – b. c. (KY) Charlatan – All Laced Up, by Bernardini, 6th-8th dams: Leix / Bold Irish / Erin, Consignor Gainesway, Barn 6
Hip #225 – ch. c. (KY) Munnings – Azaelia (FR), by Turtle Bowl (IRE), 7th-8th dams: Searching / Big Hurry, Consignor Elite, Barn 8
Photo: From the Phipps family of Blitey and Lady Pitt, undefeated champion FLIGHTLINE sold for $1 million at the 2019 Saratoga Sale.
Phipps Stable’s co-owned stakes winner Perform is looking to get back to his winning ways in Race 3 on Friday, August 2 at Saratoga.
The allowance optional claiming race for ages three years and older has a purse of $115,000 and will cover a mile and an eight on the dirt. Perform will break from the inside post with jockey Dylan Davis aboard for trainer Shug McGaughey.
Perform enters the five-horse race as the second favorite with odds of 5/2. Post time is 2:18 pm Eastern.
He broke his maiden in his sixth career start and second as a sophomore last March at Tampa. He followed it up with a victory in the Federico Tesio Stakes at Laurel Park in April, a win that qualified him for the grade 1 Preakness. He struggled to become factor in the deeper waters, finishing sixth in a field that included Kentucky Derby winner Mage and, now a three-time grade 1 winner, National Treasure. In his last start as a 3-year-old, he finished off the board in the Curlin Stakes at Saratoga in July.
The colt by Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms stallion Good Magic ended a 10-month layoff in May and has finished second or third in each of his three monthly starts so far this year.
Perform’s granddam is a half-sister to sires Into Mischief and Mendelssohn, as well as four-time champion Beholder. He was purchased for $230,000 at the 2021 Keeneland September sale and is owned in partnership by Woodford Racing LLC, Lane’s End Farm, Phipps Stable, Ken Langone, Lynne Hudson, and Edward Hudson, Jr.
Stuart S. Janney III and Phipps Stable’s homebred Tom Collins is making his 3-year-old debut on Friday, July 12 in Race 3 at Saratoga, a maiden special weight covering a mile and a sixteenth on the turf.
Tom Collins is ending a nine-month layoff after finishing runner-up in his last start, a turf race at Aqueduct. He progressed nicely as a juvenile last summer at Saratoga, taking sixth in his career debut in August and third next time out in September.
He’ll break from the inside post with jockey Joel Rosario aboard for trainer Shug McGaughey, the same connections that won the 2013 Kentucky Derby with Orb.
By Darley stallion Frosted, he’s out of Tiznow mare Party Now, the dam placing in multiple stakes and earning three wins from eight career starts. Tom Collins’ tail-female line is all Janney and Phipps, going back seven generations to La Troienne mare Belle Histoire, acquired in 1946 by Ogden Phipps. The family includes 2003 French champion 3-year-old Bright Sky and U.S. grade 1 winners Carriage Trail and Her Smile.
Phipps Stable’s 4-year-old Into Mischief filly Self Confident followed up her maiden win last time out with a determined allowance victory on Friday at Laurel.
Breaking from the rail in a mile and a sixteenth turf race with jockey Forest Boyce aboard, she broke from the rail and saved ground around the first turn. She stalked the pace from her rail position down the backstretch and far turn before moving to the three path entering the stretch. She made a bid for the lead inside the eighth pole and prevailed to win by a neck.
After sitting out her sophomore campaign, she has progressed nicely this year, taking fourth in two starts at Gulfstream in January and February, followed by a third-place finish at Tampa in April. Her maiden win came in May at Monmouth, getting up at the wire to win by a head.
Self Confident is a half-sister of Phipps Stable’s stakes-placed Speightstown horse Dreams of Tomorrow and her dam Sabbatical, by Medaglia d’Oro is a half-sister to grade 1 winner Imagining, by Giant’s Causeway. A ninth-generation Phipps homebred, Self Confident is from the Get Lucky branch of La Troienne mare Baby League.
Photo: Jockey Forest Boyce aboard Self Confident after her allowance win at Laurel.
One of Phipps Stable’s most promising 3-year-olds this year is Speightstown colt Pentathlon, who moved forward with a runner-up effort over a mile on the dirt at Aqueduct on Sunday, June 30th, the second start of his sophomore campaign.
Breaking from the outside post in field of five with jockey Kendrick Carmouch aboard, Pentathlon patiently stalked the pace from the three path out of the chute, up the backstretch, and into the far turn. He responded to urging in the turn and nudged ahead for the lead before brushing with a foe in a stretch duel, coming up a head short in an exciting finish.
The colt is the second foal out of Parade, a graded stakes-placed Tapit mare and half-sister of multiple graded stakes-winning horse Parading, by Pulpit. His second dam is graded stakes-placed Storm Cat mare On Parade, third dam is Breeders’ Cup champion My Flag, and fourth dam is undefeated Hall of Famer Personal Ensign. This elite family traces back to imported Argentinian mare Dorine, acquired by Ogden Phipps in 1970.
Trained by Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey, Phipps-bred Pentathlon is owned in partnership by Phipps Stable, St. Elias Stable, and Woodford Racing.
Partnership-owned 4-year-old Medaglia d’Oro colt Juan Valdez is seeking his first win on Friday, June 20th in Monmouth Park’s Race 5, a maiden special weight for ages three years and older covering a mile and a sixteenth on the turf. Post time is 3:53 pm Eastern.
After rallying in the stretch to come up a nose short on March 16th at Gulfstream Park, he took a step back last time out on May 10th at Churchill Downs, tiring in the stretch to finish off the board.
Since returning to Belmont after the race to continue training with Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey, he has put in a series of four workouts, including breezing four furlongs over the dirt training track in 48.48 seconds, the third fastest of 37 on June 4th.
Jockey Paco Lopez has the mount. breaking from post No. 5 in a field of 9. Mr. Lopez was aboard Juan Valdez for his runner-up finish in March. Juan Valdez enters the race with morning-line odds of 3-to-1, the second favorite behind fellow Don Alberto-bred Main Beach, a 3-year-old Into Mischief gelding out of sold Cynthia Phipps-bred mare Siren Serenade, by Unbridled’s Song. The dam is a daughter of Phipps’ four-time grade 1-winning millionaire Versailles Treaty. The race also includes 4-year-old Speightstown colt Paxsational, the first foal out of sold stakes-placed Phipps mare Browse, by Medaglia d’Oro. Paxsational’s younger half-sister is Quality Road filly Pipit, winner of the listed 2023 Victoria Stakes at Woodbine.
Juan Valdez is a half-brother of multiple grade 1-winning millionaire and sire Constitution, by Tapit. He was purchased for $900,000 from the Hartley Derenzo Thoroughbreds consignment at the March 2022 Fasig-Tipton Florida Select 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale and is owned in partnership by West Point Thoroughbreds, Inc., Woodford Racing LLC, Lane’s End Farm, #PhippsStable, Ken Langone, Edward Hudson Jr., and Lynne Hudson.
Phipps Stable’s homebred Now and Later is ending a two-month layoff on Friday, June 14th in Race 5 at Churchill Downs. The mile-and-a-half allowance race over the turf is for ages three years and older. Breaking from post 7 in a field of 10, the Candy Ride colt will have Edgar Morales aboard. Post time is 2:45 pm Eastern.
Now and Later broke his maiden three starts back over the turf in July 2023 at Delaware Park, after which he had a seven-month layoff. In his first start of his 4-year-old campaign this February over Turfway Park’s all-weather track, he worked some rust off with an 11th place finish. He significantly moved forward last time out finishing a close fourth over the turf in mid-April at Keeneland and earning a career best 80 Beyer speed figure.
Now and Later is the second foal out of Phipps-bred Arch mare Vagabond and a half-brother of graded stakes-winning mare Surprisingly, by Mastery. Vagabond’s third dam is Phipps foundation mare Our Country Place (a half-sister to champion Sky Beauty), acquired by Ogden Phipps in 1993. This is the family of grade 1 winners Guarana, Pine Island, Pleasant Home, and Point of Entry.
Photo: Now and Later breaking his maiden on July 1, 2023 Delaware Park with jockey Feargal Lynch aboard.
Thoroughbred Daily News-declared “Rising Star” Signator is stepping up in class for the grade 2 Suburban Stakes on Saturday, June 8 at Saratoga. Race 6 on the Belmont Stakes undercard, it will cover a mile and a quarter over the dirt. Signator has the inside post in a field of 8 with Javier Castellano aboard. Post time is 1:51 pm Eastern.
Signator showed promise early on in his career, being declared a “Rising Star” by Thoroughbred Daily News after a dynamic maiden win at Aqueduct in his second juvenile start in October of 2022. Following the win, he had a 10-month layoff and earned two wins among allowance company from six starts as a 3-year-old.
Saturday’s start will be his second graded stakes race. He finishing ninth in the grade 3 Fred W. Hooper in January at Gulfstream Park and then took a 105-day layoff before finishing fourth among allowance company early last month at Aqueduct.
Trained by Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey, he prepared for the Suburban with a four-furlong breeze over a fast Belmont dirt training track on Sunday, June 2nd in 47.64 seconds, the ninth-fastest of 132 workouts that morning. By Gainesway Farm stallion Tapit and out of Phipps-bred Seeking the Gold mare Pension, he shares the same sire and female family as superstar sensation Flightline who stands in Kentucky at Lane’s End Farm.
A win by Signator would be the ninth time a Phipps horse has won the Suburban. The impressive list includes Dynamic One (2022, owned in partnership), Easy Goer (1990), Dancing Spree (1989), Personal Flag (1988), Buckpasser (1967), Bold Ruler (1958), Busanda (1951), and Snark (1938).
A $1.7 million purchase from the Eddie Woods Stables consignment at the April 2022 Ocala Breeders’ Sale, Signator is owned in a partnership that includes West Point Thoroughbreds, Inc., Woodford Racing LLC, Gainesway Farm (his breeder), Phipps Stable, Ken Langone, Edward Hudson Jr., Lynne Hudson, and Lane’s End Farm.
PENTATHLON had a promising 3-year-old debut in the opener on Friday at Saratoga.
Breaking from post № 3 in a 10-horse field with jockey Joel Rosario aboard for the 7-furlong maiden special weight over the dirt, he settled in the two path just off the leader up the backstretch. He then moved to the inside path approaching the far turn and came under coaxing and spun just off the inside into the upper stretch. He kept on under a drive to take show honors.
It was a good effort for Shug McGaughey-trained Speightstown colt who was making his third career start and ending an 8-month layoff.
A sixth-generation Phipps-bred, Pentathlon is from the royal Personal Ensign branch of Phipps foundation mare Dorine (Arg). He is owned in partnership by Phipps Stable, St. Elias Stable and Woodford Racing LLC.
Phipps Stable’s co-owned Perform moved forward on Friday at Saratoga in the second start of his 4-year-old campaign.
With Dylan Davis aboard for the mile-and-a-quarter allowance optional claimer over the dirt, he broke from the 8 hole and bumped with a rival at the start. He settled in on the rail near the back of the field nearing the first turn and remained on the inside up the backstretch. He responded to urging entering in the far turn, picking off foes to hit the top of the stretch on the rail in third. He moved out under a drive, passing another foe to take runner-up honors.
Last time out, he finished third among allowance company at Aqueduct in a race that ended a 10-month layoff. The Good Magic colt won the Frederico Tesio Stakes last year and took sixth in the grade 1 Preakness.
Trained by Shug McGaughey, Perform is owned in partnership by Woodford Racing LLC, Lane’s End Farm, Phipps Stable, Ken Langone, and Edward Hudson, Jr.
Phipps Stable-bred colt Pentathlon is seeking his maiden win on Friday, June 7 in Saratoga Race 1, a seven-furlong maiden special weight on the dirt for ages three years and older.
The Phipps Stable-bred three-year-old colt is ending an eight-month layoff after finishing third at Aqueduct last time out.
He ran a four-furlong bullet on the Belmont dirt training track on May 20 in 47.68 seconds, the fastest of 46 workouts that morning.
In training with Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey, he will be ridden by jockey Joel Rosario who was aboard the family’s Kentucky Derby winner Orb.
Breaking from post № 3 in a field of 10, the well-bred Speightstown filly out of Tapit mare Parade is owned in partnership by Phipps Stable, St. Elias Stable and Woodford Racing LLC.
Stakes winner Perform is seeking his first win of his 4-year-old campaign on Friday, June 7th in Saratoga Race 2, a $115,000 allowance optional claiming race for ages 3 years and older covering a mile and a quarter over the dirt. The Shug McGaughey trainee will have jockey Dylan Davis aboard, breaking from post № 8 in a field of 9. Post time is 12:53 pm Eastern.
He earned black-type last April by winning the Frederico Tesio Stakes at Laurel Park, qualifying him for the grade 1 Preakness Stakes in May in which he finished sixth. He shipped to Saratoga for the summer where he finished a fifth in the Curlin Stakes. After a ten-month layoff, Perform kicked off his 4-year-old campaign on May 19 at Aqueduct, finishing third among allowance company.
By Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms stallion Good Magic and out of Tale of Ekati mare Jane Says, the colt’s granddam is a half-sibling to sires Into Mischief and Mendelssohn and four-time champion Beholder.
Bred by Michael and J.B. Lane Orem, Perform was purchased for $230,000 from the Beau Lane Bloodstock consignment at the Keeneland September 2021 sale. He is owned in partnership by Woodford Racing LLC, Lane’s End Farm, Phipps Stable, Ken Langone, and Edward Hudson, Jr.
After sitting out the year as a three-year old, Phipps Stable’s promising Into Mischief filly Self Confident has rewarded the patience of her connections with an exciting maiden special weight win covering a mile and a sixteenth on the turf at Monmouth on Saturday, May 18th.
Breaking from the outside post in a field of seven, Self Confident raced two wide off of the pace under guiding from jockey Samy Camacho. She stalked in the far turn before rallying three wide into the stretch. She closed steadily in the final furlong before surging approaching the finish to get up and get the win by a head.
The well-bred filly has progressed nicely in her return this year, finishing fourth twice in January and February at Gulfstream, followed by a third-place finish at Tampa in April.
A ninth-generation Phipps homebred, Self Confident is from the Get Lucky branch of La Troienne mare Baby League. The family includes Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver and grade 1 winners Bluegrass Cat, Callback, Dance Number, Frost Giant, Girolamo, Got Lucky, Numbered Account, Private Account, Rhythm, and Phipps-bred sires Imagining, Not for Love, and Polish Numbers.
After missing her entire three-year-old campaign last year, Phipps Stable’s Self Confident continues her return with her third race of the year on Saturday, April 6th.
The Into Mischief filly is entered for Race 7 at Tampa Bay Downs, a maiden special weight covering a mile and a sixteenth on the grass. Breaking from post position № 4 in a field of 11, the Shug McGaughey trainee will have jockey Pablo Morales in the irons for the first time. Post time is 3:25 pm Eastern.
Self Confident showed promise early on in her career, finishing runner-up by a neck in her juvenile debut in a lucrative $150,000 maiden special weight turf race over a mile at Kentucky Downs. After being bumped at the start, she recovered and rallied gamely in the stretch, crossing the wire behind Navy Goat, by Army Mule, who went on to win a stakes race at Gulfstream in her next start.
Remaining on the turf, she stretched out to a mile and a sixteenth for her two remaining juvenile starts, faltering late in her October race at Keeneland to finish fifth, a length and three-quarters behind the winner. At Aqueduct a month later, she brushed with a foe at the start, settled near the back of the pack, and lacked a response in the stretch, crossing the wire eighth.
After taking last year off, Self Confident has faced some minor challenges in her two starts this year, recovering from being bumped in both races to finish on the board at Gulfstream Park. If she can get a clean trip on Saturday, hopefully the Phipps and McGaughey team’s patience will pay off and she can take a nice step forward.
As for her pedigree, she is a half-sister of Phipps Stable’s stakes-placed Speightstown horse Dreams of Tomorrow. Self Confident shares the same Into Mischief-Medaglia d’Oro cross as Qatar Racing’s Everso Mischievous, winner of the grade 2 Forty Niner Stakes last October at Aqueduct.
The Phipps homebred’s dam Sabbatical, by Medaglia d’Oro is from an accomplished family of siblings: the late Maryland sire Imagining, by Giant’s Causeway, winner of the grade 1 Man o’ War Stakes at Belmont in 2015; Snooze, by Forestry, granddam of Chocolate Gelato, by Practical Joke, winner the grade 1 Frizette Stakes at Aqueduct in 2022; full sister Browse is the dam of Pipit, by Quality Road, winner of the Victoria Stakes last year at Woodbine; and, Awakened, by Curlin, a grade 1-winning hurdler.
Self Confident’s multiple graded stakes-winning granddam Daydreaming, by A.P. Indy, is a full sister of grade 1-winning sire Girolamo, as well as Supercharger, dam of 2010 Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver.
Her third dam, graded stakes winner Get Lucky, by Mr. Prospector, is a full sister of champion Rhythm and 15-time leading Maryland stallion Not for Love. Get Lucky and her family are best described by Avalyn Hunter who wrote on her American Classic Pedigrees website (here) that she was “a good race mare by a top sire and from one of the world’s greatest families… Even better, her daughters have bred on in exceptional fashion, making her branch of the La Troienne family one of the hottest of the early 21st century.”
Photo: Self Confident at Gulfstream Park, January 2024
Phipps Stable’s regally-bred Curlin filly Mystifying earned an impressive debut victory at Gulfstream Park on Sunday, January 14th.
She broke from post 4 in a field of 7 with jockey Jose Ortiz aboard for the six-furlong maiden special weight on the dirt. Mystifying dueled from the two path after the start and settled on the rail up the backstretch. After continuing to duel from the rail in the far turn, she took the lead and kicked clear entering the upper stretch. She dug in to fight off a late challenge and crossed the wire for a half-length victory in 1 minute and 11.68 seconds.
A sixth-generation Phipps homebred, the Curlin filly is from the blue-blooded Blitey branch of Phipps foundation mare Lady Pitt, acquired by Ogden Phipps to freshen up his broodmare band in 1969.
Lady Pitt’s descendants include active grade 1-winning sires Flightline, Oscar Performance, and Instilled Regard, as well as nine grade 1-winning Phipps homebreds, including Dancing Forever, Dancing Spree, Fantastic Find, Finder’s Fee, Furlough, Good Reward, Heavenly Prize, Oh What A Windfall, and Persistently.
Phipps bloodlines had another impressive year across the globe in 2023. In addition to Phipps female families being represented in 95 graded or group stakes wins (here), an additional 10 were sired by Phipps-bred stallions.
Eight different horses by Phipps sires won graded or group stakes in 2023. The sires represented include Pure Prize, Point of Entry, Mr Speaker, Reload, Orb, Manipulator, and Fire Away. Geographically, four of the wins were in the U.S., three in Canada, one in Argentina, and two in South Africa.
USA-G1 Man o’ War S. (Belmont 5/13) – RED KNIGHT (USA) by Pure Prize (the sire a fourth-generation Phipps homebred from the Heavenly Prize branch of Lady Pitt; deceased, last stood in Argentina at Haras Carampangue)
USA-G3 Baltimore/Washington International Turf Cup S. (Pimlico 9/16) – HIGHESTDISTINCTION (USA) by Point of Entry (the sire a second-generation Phipps homebred from Matlacha Pass branch of Our Country Place; standing in Ontario, Canada at Adena Springs)
USA-G2 John A. Nerud S. (Belmont 7/1) – THREE TECHNIQUE (USA) by Mr Speaker (the sire a fourth-generation Phipps homebred from the Personal Ensign branch of Dorine {ARG}; standing in Texas at Forks of the Paluxy)
CAN-G3 Bold Venture S. (Woodbine 8/20) – PATCHES O’HOULIHAN (CAN) by Reload (the sire a fourth-generation Phipps homebred from the Pure Profit branch of Grey Flight; standing in Ontario, Canada at Northern Dawn Stables)
CAN-G3 Vigil S. (Woodbine 9/16) – PATCHES O’HOULIHAN (CAN) by Reload
CAN-G3 British Columbia Premiers’ H. (Hastings 10/7) – SUNBIRD (USA) by Orb (the sire a Kentucky Derby-winning seventh-generation Janney & Phipps homebred from the Steel Maiden branch of Erin; standing in Uruguay at Haras Cuatro Piedras)
ARG-G3 Clasico Ocurrencia (San Isidro 8/11) – ELVEDA (ARG) by Manipulator (the sire a fourth-generation Phipps homebred from the Inside Information branch of Grey Flight; deceased, last stood in Argentina at Haras La Pasion)
SAF-G3 Langerman S. (Kenilworth 7/22) – MY GOLLY MOLLY (SAF) by Fire Away (the sire a fourth-generation Phipps homebred from the Personal Ensign branch of Dorine {ARG}; standing in South Africa at Wilgerbosdrift Stud)
SAF-G3 Starling S. (Turffontein 10/28) – EGYPTIAN MAU (SAF) by Fire Away
PURE PRIZE’s Red Knight winning the grade 1 Man o’ War Stakes at Belmont Park for breeder-owner Trinity Farm, trainer Michael J. Maker, and jockey Tyler Gaffalione.
The list below includes country raced, graded/group stakes name (and link to replay), track name, date, horse name, and Phipps dams in tail-female line. Northern Hemisphere countries are listed first. All are top-tier Part I countries or races as identified by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities. (See the 2022 list of 40 graded stakes, including 11 Grade 1s, in the U.S. and Canada won by horses from Phipps families here.)
USA-G1 Acorn S.(Belmont 6/9) – PRETTY MISCHIEVOUS (USA) (3rd – 7th dams: Pretty Special / Snobishness / So Social / His Duchess / Businesslike)
USA-G2 Fountain of Youth S. (Gulfstream 3/4) – FORTE (USA) (6th – 9th dams are Phipps: Stolen Base / Bases Full / Striking / Baby League)
USA-G2 Forty Niner S.(Aqueduct 10/28) – EVERSO MISCHIEVOUS (USA) (3rd – 7th dams are Phipps: Ravish Me / In Conference / Personal Business / Heavenly Match / The Bride)
USA-G2 Jim Dandy S. (Saratoga 7/29) – FORTE (USA) (6th – 9th dams are Phipps: Stolen Base / Bases Full / Striking / Baby League)
USA-G2 Penn Mile S. (Penn National 6/2) – MAJOR DUDE (USA) (2nd – 5th dams: Possibility / Personal Ensign / Grecian Banner / Dorine {ARG})
USA-G2 Rachel Alexandra S. (Fair Grounds 2/18) – PRETTY MISCHIEVOUS (USA) (3rd – 7th dams: Pretty Special / Snobishness / So Social / His Duchess / Businesslike)
USA-G2Santa Monica S. (Santa Anita 2/4) – FUN TO DREAM (USA) (8th – 9th dams: Dark Maiden / Dusky Princess)
USA-G2 Summertime O. (Santa Anita 6/3) – WINDOW SHOPPING (USA) (10th dam Hard Baked)
USA-G3American S. (Santa Anita 4/2) – EXAULTED (USA) (7th – 9th dams: Boldness / Hostility / Marguerite de Valois {FR})
BRZ-G1 Grande Premio Henrique de Toledo Lara (Cidade Jardin 10/8) – SUN OF HILL (BRZ) (5th – 9th dams: Fascinating Trick / Intriguing / Glamour / Striking / Baby League)
BRZ-G2 Grande Premio Julio Capua (Gavea 12/10) – LONDON MOON (BRZ) (6th – 7th dams: Searching / Big Hurry)
BRZ-G2 Grande Premio Nove de Maio (Gavea 5/21) – LIMEIRA (BRZ) (4th – 9th dams: Defer / I Pass / Impish / Lady Be Good / Past Eight / Helvetia)
BRZ-G3 Grande Premio Antenor de Lara Campos (Cidade Jardin 6/24) – QUISAR (BRZ) (8th – 10th dams: Boldness / Hostility / Marguerite De Valois {FR})
Video: Phipps Stable’s homebred Surprisingly winning the grade 3 Endeavour Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs on February 4, 2023 with jockey Paco Lopez aboard for trainer Shug McGaughey.
Fillies from Phipps female families at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale ranked among the highest-priced yearlings sold and significantly outpaced the sale average.
A total of seven fillies from Phipps families sold for a total of $3.4 million for an average of $489,286. This is a substantial 19 percent above the sale’s $410,145 average for the fillies sold from non-Phipps families.
Ranking the third highest-priced filly in the Saratoga Sale, Hip #118 is a May foal by Constitution that fetched $900,000. Bred in Kentucky by Newstead, she was consigned by Hunter Valley Farm and purchased by Mike Wallace for partnership Rocket Ship Racing and Gandharvi Racing. Her dam is half a half sister of grade 1 Frizette Stakes winner Nickname, by Scat Daddy, that sold for $3 million at the 2017 Fasig-Tipton November Sale.
The Constitution yearling is from the family of Phipps foundation mare Businesslike, a daughter of the great French mare La Troienne, acquired by Ogden Phipps in 1946. This is the deep, winning Phipps family of four-time champion and Hall of Famer Buckpasser and top active family members include Godolphin’s multiple grade 1 winners Matareya, by Pioneer of the Nile, and Pretty Mischievous, by Into Mischief.
Recognizing the well-bred yearling’s strong long-term potential on the track and as a producer, Rocket Ship Racing’s Brook Smith stated (here), “[T]his is the type of filly that would be an incredible broodmare, even if she runs mediocre. But we think she’s going to run well. She’s beautiful…”
Ranking the tenth highest-priced filly of the Saratoga Sale was was Hip #24, a $750,000 Kentucky-bred Omaha Beach filly out of Phipps-bred mare Complicated that was consigned by Indian Creek and purchased by Live Oak Plantation. The yearling is a half-sister of four-year-old Army Mule gelding Churchtown, winner of the black-type Gio Ponti Stakes last year, and three-year-old Honor Code filly Honor D Lady, who placed in the Selena Stakes and Mazarine Stakes, both grade 3 races. Phipps-bred mare Complicated, by Blame, was sold at Keeneland November 2016 Breeding Stock Sale for $110,000.
The Omaha Beach yearling hails from the Educated Risk branch of the Phipps foundation mare Grey Flight, by French-bred sire Mahmoud. This family came into the Phipps fold when Glady Mills Phipps purchased Grey Flight at the 1946 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale for a sale-topping $35,000. Grey Flight’s descendants include three top Phipps homebreds, including Kentucky Oaks winner Dispute, Coaching Club American Oaks winner Smuggler, and Britain’s One Thousand Guineas winner Quick As Lightning.
A third notable high-priced filly of the Saratoga Sale is Hip 198, a $675,000 Kentucky-bred Curlin yearling out of unraced Giant’s Causeway mare Tooken, the dam a full sister of grade 1 Suburban Handicap winner Frost Giant. Ranking the 13th highest-priced filly, she was consigned by Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms and purchased by Mike Rutherford.
The Curlin filly’s dam is from the Dance Number branch of Phipps foundation mare Baby League, the latter being another daughter of La Troienne acquired by Ogden Phipps in 1946. One of the top families in the stud book, descendants of Baby League include Kentucky Derby winners Smarty Jones and Super Saver, and grade 1 winners Bluegrass Cat, Boucher, Callback, Dance Number, Girolamo, Got Lucky, Numbered Account, Private Account, and Rhythm. Some of the family’s recent elite winners include champion Forte, by Violence, and Irish-bred Alcohol Free, by No Nay Never, a four-time group 1 winner who sold at the December 2022 Tattersalls Sale for $6.8 million. The family also includes grade 3-winning Include mare Proud Emma, purchased for $1 million by Flightline’s breeder Jane Lions at the 2022 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.
The four other attractive fillies from Phipps families that sold at the sale include: Hip #160, by Quality Road, from the Lady Be Good branch of Helvetia, that was consigned by Taylor Made Sales and purchased for $375,000 by Barcardi Bloodstock for DWF; Hip #153, by Omaha Beach, from the Get Lucky branch of Baby League, that was consigned by Four Star Sales and purchased for $275,000 by agent Elliott/McElroy for Amo Racing; Hip #2, by Maclean’s Music, from the Hopefully branch of White Favor, that was consigned by Warrendale Sales and purchased for $250,000 by Reeves Thoroughbred Racing and Steve Rocco; and, Hip #161, by Authentic, another filly from the Lady Be Good branch of Helvetia, that was consigned by Mulholland Springs and purchased for $200,000 by West Point Thoroughbreds and agent L.E.B.
This crop of yearling fillies from Phipps families did quite well at the boutique Saratoga Sale and will be fun to follow starting next year on the track and for years to come as attractive broodmares. And, given the current success of these families on the track and as producers, one can expect this momentum to carry on into the Keeneland September Yearling Sales.
