Daredevil makes his mark
The award for themost surprising stallion of 2020 should go to Daredevil, a son of More Than Ready whose initial crop of 73 foals turned out to include this year’s two best 3-year- old fillies, G1 winners Swiss Skydiver and She dares the devil.
As 2-year- olds in 2019, neither filly won beyond the maiden level. As sophomores, the pair has won a remarkable eight graded races. Swiss Skydiver’s five graded victories include the Alabama and the Preakness, while She dares the devil’s biggest win came in the Kentucky Oaks, a race in which Swiss Skydiver was the runner-up.
She dares the devil will not run in the Breeders’ Cup but reportedly will return to race as a 4-year- old. Swiss Skydiver will go in either the Classic or the Distaff where, in addition to a Breeders’ Cup win, she’ll be competing as a top contender for 2020 Horse of the Year.
By the time Swiss Skydiver and She dares the devil began winning major races this spring, Daredevil had already been sold (last November) to the Turkish Jockey Club. In Turkey, Daredevil was part of an American ex-patriot band that also
included Bluegrass Cat, Bodemeister, Tizway, Super Saver, Trappe Shot, Lion Heart, Cuvee and Victory Gallop.
Daredevil didn’t stay long in Turkey. Inspired by the exploits of Swiss Skydiver and She dares the devil, Lane’s End Farm arranged for the 8-yearold stallion to stand the 2021 season back in Kentucky while remaining the property of the Turkish Jockey Club.
“He’s a very well-conformed horse,” Lane’s End’s Bill Farish said at bloodhorse.com, “He’s very strongly made – very typical of his sire, with great bone. For us, it’s a different sire line [the Halo branch of Hail to Reason/ Turn-to], and we’re very happy to secure him. He is one of the few to become a top sire in both hemispheres.”
Daredevil’s sire, More Than Ready, who will turn 24 on Jan 1, has been a highly successful international sire. His 208 stakes winners, most of them in North America and Australia, rank fifth in the world all-time. His seven Breeders’ Cup victories are the most of any stallion.
More Than Ready’s stallion career was a success from the start, even though he didn’t sire his first American G1 winner until 2011, seven years after his first foals hit the track. His best runners, which include multiple G1 winners Roy H, Catholic Boy, Uni and Rushing Fall, have come in recent years. The latter two horses will attempt to add a second Breeders’ Cup win to their resumes when they line up among the favorites in the Mile and Filly & Mare Turf, respectively, on Nov. 7.
Despite the success More Than Ready’s offspring have had on the track, he has to this point failed in one important aspect of his stud career: siring a significant American heir. Prior to this year, only three of his sons had produced graded stakes winners – Ready’s Image, Custom for Carlos and Verrazano – and they sired a grand total of five. Ready’s Image stood the 2020 season in Indiana for a $2,000 fee. Custom for Carlos stood for $3,500 in Louisiana. Multiple G1 winner Verrazano (Haskell, Wood Memorial) was sold to Brazilian interests late last year.
Daredevil’s fee for 2021 has been set at $25,000. Only time will tell if he’s the heir More Than Ready has been waiting for.