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| Staff Writer |
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Dornoch, a son of Good Magic, secured his second Gr.1 victory in the Haskell Stakes on July 20, and has been on Spendthrift Farm's radar as a potential stallion since last fall.
As a full brother to 2023 Kentucky Derby winner Mage, Dornoch caught the attention of numerous stud farms after narrowly winning the Gr.2 Remsen Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack, edging out the highly regarded Sierra Leone.
"The stallion game is very competitive, so you are always looking for the right time to make an offer," said Ned Toffey, general manager at Spendthrift. "Dornoch was certainly one we were interested in from early on, but you want to be sure they carry on their form."
Under trainer Danny Gargan, the colt raised expectations with a 1 3/4-length victory in the Gr.2 Fountain of Youth Stakes.
However, a fourth-place finish in the Gr.1 Blue Grass Stakes and a 10th-place finish in the Kentucky Derby caused some farms to hesitate.
He silenced critics in the Gr.1 Belmont Stakes, winning the American classic (held this year at 1 1/4 miles at Saratoga Racecourse) by half a length, beating Derby winner Mystik Dan, Gr.1 Preakness Stakes winner Seize the Grey, and Derby runner-up Sierra Leone.
Following the Belmont win, Spendthrift secured Dornoch's breeding rights with an offer.
"It is not that you can't stand a horse that does not have that Grade One but, in general, you need it to be commercially viable," said Toffey.
"We are excited to add another high-end, well-bred talented horse. I think he should be one of the most popular prospects because his combination of race record, conformation, and pedigree is strong. There are no weaknesses in him."
Dornoch is campaigned by a partnership including West Paces Racing, R.A. Hill Stable, Belmar Racing and Breeding, Pine Racing Stables, and Two Eight Racing, owned by former MLB all-star outfielder Jayson Werth.
Connor Foley's Oracle Bloodstock, acting as an agent, purchased the colt for US$325,000 from Runnymede Farm's consignment at the 2022 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
Dornoch is out of the Big Brown stakes winner Puca, who also finished second in the Gr.2 Gazelle Stakes. Puca has produced three racing foals, including a Kentucky Derby winner, a Belmont winner, and multiple stakes-placed winner Gunning (by Gun Runner). These three stakes horses were all bred by Robert Clay's Grandview Equine and raised at Runnymede.
If Dornoch enters stud next year, he will join Airdrie Stud's Mage as the first sire-sons of the notable third-crop sire Good Magic. As of July 22, Good Magic ranks second to Ashford Stud's Justify in progeny earnings but leads his sire class with two Grade One winners this year. Besides Dornoch, Good Magic is also the sire of Gr.1 Arkansas Derby winner Muth.
Toffey mentioned that the farm has no reservations about standing the son of a proven sire who is only 9YO. One trait Toffey loves best about Dornoch is his competitive spirit. In both the Belmont and Haskell, he got headed in deep stretch by Mindframe and battled back for the win.
"There are plenty of horses out there that if no one goes with them, they get pretty brave. But what I love about this horse is that I believe he is talented enough to cruise on the front-end kind of half-focused—he has that much talent—but when you go eyeball-to-eyeball with him, all of a sudden he gets focused and competitive. He is tough on the front end. We consider that a great plus. This is what we are looking for, a horse with that natural competitiveness and an overwhelming amount of talent. That makes him very appealing."