The Sire Lines of Derby Contenders

By Bob Hill, TSV Staff Writer —-

With apologies to Lauren Stitch and Laurie Ross, both of whom have forgotten more about the pedigrees of thoroughbred horse than I’ve ever known, I’m hoping this layman’s look at sire lines of this year’s Kentucky Derby contenders offers some small amount of useful information to fellow handicappers. My analysis is limited, based on a look at what sires have produced recent Derby winners as well as the sire lines of this year’s crop of Derby horses.

A comparison of the recent success of the offspring of Unbridled and A.P. Indy appears near the end of this conversation. My research is not unique. Other writers have explored this topic before me, but in case you may have missed it these two sire lines have produced some very successful horses in the very recent past. Before getting to the Unbridled versus A.P Indy comparisons, however, you will find information on this year’s contenders that are not offspring of these two.

Smart Strike Line: Only one horse in this year’s Derby field (Irap) does not have the prodigious sire Mr. Prospector somewhere in the last five generations of his sire line. Smart Strike is a son of Mr. Prospector that has produced some very good runners, including Curlin, winner of a Triple Crown race and the Breeders’ Cup Classic. There are three entries this year that come from the Smart Strike sire line. Battle of Midway was sired by Smart Strike. Lookin At Lee was sired by Lookin at Lucky, a son of Smart Strike that won the Preakness. Irish War Cry is a son of Curlin.

Street Cry: Line: This is the sire line that produced Kentucky Derby and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner Street Sense. The line consistently produces offspring that can make classic distances. Hence, the winner of the Sunland Derby and a colt attracting the attention of many handicappers this year, is the son of Street Boss who is the son of Street Cry.

Tiznow Line: This sire line is well known for producing horses that fare well at classic distances. Tiznow is sometimes referred to as the sire that saved the In Reality line which is known for producing stamina-strong runners. Bluegrass Stakes winner Irap is a son of Tiznow.

Storm Cat Line: Storm Cat was the dominant sire of his era near the end of the 20th century. He is known as the most prolific sire of the Northern Dancer sire line, one of the most successful lines of all time. Descendants of both Storm Cat and Northern Dancer have excelled on all surfaces and at all distances. Louisiana Derby winner Girvin is the son of Tale of Ekati whose grandsire was Storm Cat. Practical Joke’s second grandsire was Storm Cat. Although not a descendant of Storm Cat, Patch is from the Northern Dancer line, as is Thunder Snow, the European import.

Awesome Again Line: Awesome Again won the Breeders’ Cup Classic and his offspring have done so as well. His son Ghostzapper missed the Triple Crown season before emerging as a terrific four-year-old. McCraken is a son of Ghostzapper which suggests both brilliance and stamina.

Unbridled Line: Triple Crown winner American Pharoah is the son of Empire Maker whose sire was Unbridled. Unbridled, as you know, was a winner of the Kentucky Derby. To add more credibility to this sire line, Unbridled is the grandsire of Arrogate, last year’s best three-year-old and the current top older horse in training. Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird also is from this sire line. The two likely favorites at post time on Derby Day, Classic Empire and Always Dreaming, are descendants of Unbridled. Empire Maker, the grandsire of American Pharoah, is the sire of Classic Empire and the grandsire of Always Dreaming. I’m listing Sonneteer in this section, too, although he is not from this sire line. His second grandsire, Quiet American, and Unbridled both are sons of Fappiano who was a son of Mr. Prospector.

A.P. Indy Line: When A.P. Indy was in his early days as a sire, pedigree expert Lauren Stitch was adamant that a son of A.P.. Indy was destined to win the Kentucky Derby. Seattle Slew was the sire and Secretariat the dam sire of A.P. Indy, so her insistence of the inevitable sure made sense to most of us. Although no son of A.P. Indy has won the Derby, he was the grandsire of Orb and the second grandsire of California Chrome.

There are seven entries in this year’s Derby bred from the A.P. Indy line. Gormley, the winner of the Santa Anita Derby, is the son of Malibu Moon, as was Orb. Malibu Moon was a son of A.P. Indy. Fast and Accurate, Untrapped, and Tapwrit all are descendants of Pulpit, as was Derby winner California Chrome. State of Honor’s grandsire was Bernardini, winner of a Triple Crown race and son of A.P. Indy. Mineshaft, another son of A.P. Indy is the sire of J Boys Echo and the grandsire of Gunnevera.

By sheer numbers alone, it is easy to see the successful impact of the A.P. Indy sire line on the Kentucky Derby. The offspring of Unbridled are the likely post-time favorites, and as is almost always the case the winner of the Derby is likely to come from royal ancestry.

Perhaps this information will serve as a tie-breaker for you as you make your final decisions on horses to bet in the Derby. The sire line information also could help you find a long odds horse to key a big exotics payoff. In any case, good luck on Derby Day.

Cover Photo: Fine Art America