Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Another top-level winner from American Pharoah
Triple Crown winner American Pharoah recorded his third Grade/Group 1 winner as a sire, and first on dirt, as when Cafe Pharoah won the February Stakes Sunday in Japan. The colt is bred on the same cross as the stallion’s first son to stud, new Japanese resident Four Wheel Drive, and could give that one a bit of added attention early in his career.
This was the fourth career stakes victory, but first at the top level, for Cafe Pharoah, who has raced exclusively on dirt in Japan. The colt, who has won five of seven outings overall, took last year’s Group 3 Sirius Stakes, Group 3 Unicorn Stakes, and the Hyacinth Stakes.
Cafe Pharoah is out of the graded stakes-winning More Than Ready mare Mary’s Follies. He is bred on the same cross as Four Wheel Drive, who is American Pharoah’s first son to stud, privately purchased by the Thoroughbred Breeders Club in Monbetsu, on the island of Hokkaido. Four Wheel Drive, who is out of the stakeswinning More Than Ready mare Funfair, won three stakes as a juvenile, including the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint at Santa Anita, then a Grade 2 event in its second running. He was the top earner for American Pharoah, who stands for the international Coolmore group, as the stallion finished as North America’s leading freshman sire of 2019. American Pharoah continued on to be the leading second-crop sire of 2020.
American Pharoah’s other top-level winners have been Harvey’s Lil Goil in the U.S. and Van Gogh in France, respectively. Harvey’s Lil Goil became the first Grade 1 winner for her sire when she took the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup on Oct. 10 at Keeneland. The versatile filly, also a Grade 1-placed stakes winner on dirt, subsequently finished third in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf.
Two weeks after the Queen Elizabeth, American Pharoah’s son Van Gogh won the Group 1 Criterium International at Saint-Cloud. He was later honored as the Cartier Award European champion 2-year-old male of 2020.
Maclean’s Music’s dam dies
Forest Music, a foundation mare for the successful Stonestreet Farm breeding program and the dam of classic sire Maclean’s Music, has died at age 20. Stonestreet announced the Unbridled’s Song mare’s passing on Feb. 19. She had delivered a Bernardini filly on Jan. 25.
Forest Music originally raced for Michael Gill, who had purchased her as a juvenile. She won four stakes for him, highlighted by the Grade 3 Miss Preakness Stakes in 2004, and was also multiple Grade 1placed in New York. The filly was privately purchased by the fledgling Stonestreet Farm of the late Jess Jackson and his wife, Barbara Banke, in the summer of 2005. She swiftly became the operation’s first graded stakes winner, taking the Grade 2 Honorable Miss at Saratoga.
As a broodmare for Stonestreet, with its stock cultivated by Banke since Jackson’s death in 2011, Forest Music produced five winners from as many starters. Her first foal was the Distorted Humor colt Maclean’s Music, who won his only career start with a Beyer Speed Figure of 114, the highest ever earned in a debut effort. The stallion stands at Hill ‘n’ Dale Farm and was represented by 2017 Preakness Stakes winner Cloud Computing in his first crop. Maclean’s Music is also the sire of Jackie’s Warrior, a multiple Grade 1-winning juvenile last season; Drain the Clock, who is bound for a Kentucky Derby points race after winning the Grade 3 Swale Stakes last out; and graded stakes winners Complexity and Classic Rock.
Forest Music also produced Grade 3 winners Electric Forest and Uncle Chuck for Stonestreet. Electric Forest joined her dam in the Stonestreet broodmare band last year and delivered her first foal, a Medaglia d’Oro filly, in January.
Runhappy topping the charts
Eclipse Award champion sprinter Runhappy recorded his first stakes winner as a sire in February, as Nicky the Vest rolled to an 11 3/4-length score in the Gander Stakes at Aqueduct. With that runner leading a torrid streak for his sire, Runhappy heads toward the close of this month as the leading second-crop sire by individual winners, represented by 10 victors thus far in 2021.
New York-bred Nicky the Vest has won both his starts for Robert LaPenta and trainer Jonathan Thomas. The colt, a May foal, won his debut at Aqueduct in December before stepping up in the Gander.
Like his best runner to date, Claiborne Farm resident Runhappy also was a debut winner in December of his 2-year-old season. Perhaps indicating that more is still to come for his offspring as well, the son of Super Saver truly blossomed in the second half of his 3-year-old campaign, winning four consecutive graded stakes. His three Grade 1 triumphs in that span were highlighted by the 2015 Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Keeneland.
Runhappy was campaigned throughout his career by Jim McIngvale, who has robustly promoted his star as a stallion. While Runhappy is on his current streak, McIngvale has been occupied by his humanitarian efforts as of late, as he has been working to provide shelter, heat, and food for his fellow Houston residents struggling with vicious winter weather. As part of those efforts, McIngvale has opened his flagship Houston furniture store as a community shelter.