Better Talk Now, winner of 2004 BC Turf, dies at 18

Breeders’ Cup Turf winner Better Talk Now was euthanized Tuesday evening at New Bolton Center in Pennsylvania due to complications following colic surgery. The Talkin Man gelding was 18.

Better Talk Now had been at New Bolton since June 7, when he underwent an initial colic surgery. On June 15, it was announced that complications had required a second surgery.

“He displayed the same toughness fighting his final battle as he did when showing his special talents on the track that won him so many fans in the racing world,” co-owner Brent Johnson said in a statement.

Better Talk Now was trained for the majority of his career by Graham Motion and, after being retired from racing in 2009, continued to reside at the Fair Hill Training Center in Maryland, where Motion’s Herringswell Stable is based. The gelding, known affectionately as “Blackie,” shared a paddock with 29-year-old Gala Spinaway, Motion’s first stakes winner.

Herringswell’s Maggie Kimmitt wrote a blog post on Better Talk Now’s death, saying that a group from the stable spent his final evening with him, including his regular exercise riders, Fenella O’Flynn and Lisa Davison. Regular jockey Ramon Dominguez and his wife, Sharon, joined the group remotely via Facetime.

“So many stories were shared,” Kimmitt wrote. “There were a great many tears shed, but just as many smiles. What a character he was – willful, opinionated, often cantankerous. But always a star, and he knew it. It was Blackie’s way or the highway. He mellowed a bit in retirement and never failed to realize when visitors had come especially to see him. And come they did; his following was huge and fiercely loyal.”

Better Talk Now compiled a record of 51-14-8-5 and bankrolled $4,356,664 while racing at 18 different tracks in four countries. He made his first five starts for his breeder, Wimborne Farm, and trainer Diane Perkins before being privately purchased following his nine-length maiden victory in July 2002 and transferred to Motion.

Carrying the blue-and-white silks of Johnson, Karl Barth, and Chris Dwyer’s Bushwood Stables, Better Talk Now competed in five consecutive editions of the Breeders’ Cup Turf, winning the race in 2004 at Lone Star Park over champion Kitten’s Joy. He also finished second, beaten half a length by Red Rocks, in the 2006 edition at Churchill Downs, with 2007 turf champion English Channel in third.

Better Talk Now’s other Grade 1 victories came in the 2004 Sword Dancer Invitational at Saratoga, the 2005 United Nations Stakes at Monmouth, the 2005 Man o’ War Stakes at Belmont, and the 2007 Manhattan Handicap at Belmont. He also won the Grade 2 Knickerbocker Handicap in 2003 at Belmont, the Grade 2 Dixie Stakes in 2006 at Pimlico, the Grade 2 Sky Classic Stakes in 2006 at Woodbine, and the Grade 3 Fort Marcy Handicap in 2005 at Belmont. In total, he recorded 20 stakes wins or placings.

Tizway, Archarcharch to Korea

Grade 1 winners Tizway and Archarcharch have been sold to stand in Korea and will debut there for the 2018 breeding season.

Both stallions previously resided at Spendthrift Farm in Lexington, Ky., with Tizway standing for an advertised fee of $7,500 in 2017 and Archarcharch for $6,000. They both debuted at stud in 2012.

Ned Toffey, Spendthrift Farm’s general manager, said the terms of the sale allow Spendthrift the right of first refusal if the new owners wish to sell either of the stallions in the future. The contract also includes provisions to return the horses to the U.S. upon being pensioned from stud duty.

“We sold Tiz Wonderful to the [Korean Racing Authority] several years ago, and they have communicated with us each year on the horse, and they take their horse care very seriously,” Toffey said. “We have taken steps to ensure that the horses have a good retirement. When they’re done, it’s all provided for them to come back to Kentucky.”

Tizway, a 12-year-old son of Tiznow, has sired three crops of racing age, with 85 winners and progeny earnings of more than $4.3 million. His best runner is Coasted, a stakes winner who finished second in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf. He is also the sire of Grade 3-placed stakes winners Our Way and Bear’sway and stakes winners Tiz Imaginary, The Critical Way, Prados Way, Tiz a Melody, and Away We Go.

Tizway won seven of 20 starts for earnings of $1,359,274. His biggest wins came in the Grade 1 Whitney, Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap, and Grade 2 Kelso Handicap.

Bred in Kentucky by Whisper Hill Farm, Tizway is out of the unraced Dayjur mare Bethany, whose five winners from eight starters also include Grade 3-placed stakes winner Ticket to Seattle. The family features Grade 1 winners Will’s Way and Willa On the Move.

Archarcharch, a 9-year-old by Arch, also has three crops of racing age, with 108 winners and progeny earnings surpassing $5.9 million. His most successful runner is Grade 3 winner Toews On Ice, who finished second in the Grade 1 Los Alamitos Futurity. Other runners of note by Archarcharch include stakes winners Go No Go, Dreamarcher, Arcature, Honeymoon Cruise, and Joan of Arch.

Archarcharch won three of seven starts for $832,744, including scores in the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby and Grade 3 Southwest Stakes.

Bred in Kentucky by Grapestock LLC, Archarcharch is out of the Grade 3-placed Woodman mare Woodman’s Dancer, whose seven winners from nine runners also include Grade 3 winner Balance of Power and stakes winner Run Sully Run. He is from the family of Grade 1 winner Pattern Step and Grade/Group 2 winners Karibu Gardens and Motley.

The deal was brokered by bloodstock agent Jun Park.

“Korea is always looking for opportunities to improve the country’s breeding program,” Park said. “These stallions are a wonderful addition to Korea’s stallion roster, and we are excited to be able to offer them to Korean breeders.”