How have Derby winners done as sires?

Ballerina · Fri May 22, 2015 9:12 am

http://www.courier-journal.com/story/ho ... /27644683/

Flanders · Fri May 22, 2015 2:35 pm

You can't judge any of the horses that won after Big Brown. Mine That Bird is a gelding and Super Saver is the only stallion with foals of racing age, his first crop being 3.

This 2013 article is better.

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/ ... s-as-sires

Ballerina · Fri May 22, 2015 5:08 pm

The article does speak of Derby winners prior to Big Brown but points out the better success of also rans in the Derby.

swale1984 · Fri May 22, 2015 11:21 pm

All of that talk makes me wonder what could've been if Swale hadn't died. Slew was a sire of sires, for sure, and it would've been interesting to see how Swale would've done.

Also sad to see how many good horses were too "unfashionable" to stay in Kentucky. Most of my faves (Sunny's Halo, Go for Gin, Alysheba, Silver Charm, and Smarty Jones) fall into that category.

Flanders · Sat May 23, 2015 12:54 am

swale1984 wrote:All of that talk makes me wonder what could've been if Swale hadn't died. Slew was a sire of sires, for sure, and it would've been interesting to see how Swale would've done.

Also sad to see how many good horses were too "unfashionable" to stay in Kentucky. Most of my faves (Sunny's Halo, Go for Gin, Alysheba, Silver Charm, and Smarty Jones) fall into that category.

They were only unfashionable because they couldn't consistently sire good foals. They all got a chance in Kentucky, some longer than others. They all got at least some decent mares during their first couple years at stud. I couldn't name more than a few of each stallions foals though and I've followed racing closely through most of their careers.

swale1984 · Sat May 23, 2015 3:05 pm

Flanders wrote: They were only unfashionable because they couldn't consistently sire good foals. They all got a chance in Kentucky, some longer than others. They all got at least some decent mares during their first couple years at stud. I couldn't name more than a few of each stallions foals though and I've followed racing closely through most of their careers.

i like looking for many of those stallions as broodmare sires. Most of the had the potential to be large heart carriers at the least, so their daughters should be producing some decent offspring. It's a shame they didn't replicate their successes in their foals, though.

BaroqueAgain1 · Sat May 23, 2015 4:08 pm

I also think Swale may have been a loss for the breed. Seattle Slew's legacy now exists mainly through A.P. Indy, and while 'Indy is undoubtedly a great sire, IMHO it would have been beneficial to add Swale's genes to vary/extend the bloodline.