American Supersire Unwanted by Top Breeders in Australia
28-01-2012
ALTHOUGH he had books of 78 and 81 respectively on his two visits to Victoria in1999 and 2000, Distorted Humor, now one of the most consistent high rank sires in America, including being their champion for 2011, wasn’t wanted by top breeders and had restricted opportunity in leading stables. Despite this, the 15.3 hand showy chestnut by the Mr. Prospector sire Forty Niner and from a Danzig Group1 winner, supplied 79 winners from 99 starters from 120 foals who reached racing age.The quality was shown by eight stakes winners, including Group1 winner Rinky Dink, and eleven others stakes placed. Galah, a son of Redoute’s Choice and Rinky Dink is one of the winners produced so far from the small number of Distorted Humor mares who produced foals in Australia.
Like his now giant grandsire influence Mr. Prospector, Distorted Humor did not win at Group1 level, but was still an accomplished racehorse. He won eight of 23 starts in America headed by five stakes.The winning efforts included the Churchill Downs Handicap-Gr.2 (7 fur, by 3.3 lengths in new track record time), Commonwealth Breeders’ Cup-Gr.2 (7 fur., by 2.0 lengths), Salvator Mile-Gr.3 (by 5.5 lengths) and Screen King Stakes (6 fur., by 5.5 lengths). Put to stud in America in January 1999 on an initial fee of $10,000 and now on a $100,000, he was an immediate success with his first crop juvenile runners including four stakes winners and providing him with the champion first season sire title.
One of the first crop, Funny Cide, became the champion American 3-year-old of 2003, including in his wins the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes. Since then Distorted Humor has generated from his American foals according to American statistics approximately 533 winners (106 SWs 12 Gr.1 , nine millionaires) of 1740 races and $78million. He has been runner up for the sire title three times, including 2009 and 2010, and the champion sire by both domestic and northern hemisphere earnings last year, supplying 127 winners,19 SWs, 9 Group winners, of over 200 races and US$10,371,534. There was only one Group1 winner among them, but he was America’s Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Drosselmeyer and he is now poised to extend the Distorted Humor genes as a sire in Kentucky.Winner of the Classic Belmont Stakes at three, Drosselmeyer is one of about ten sons of Distorted Humor at stud at America this year.Two high up on the two crop sire’s list for 2011 were Sharp Humor (Group 2 winner, 73 winners, three SWs, $2,473,876) and Flower Alley (at three Group1 and 2 winner, second Breeders’ Cup Classic; 51 winners, four SWs, $2,319,778).
Another son, Any Given Saturday, a promising first season sire America last year with nine winners, has stirred this review, by having a 2-year-old winner in Perth, Saturday Skies, from his first Australian crop. Headquartered at Darley, Kentucky, he has visited their Northwood Park complex at Seymour in Victoria in each of the past four southern hemisphere seasons and has over 70 potential runners in his first crop. A 16.1 hands bay or brown, Any Given Saturday is eulogised in the Blood-Horse American Stallion Register for 2012 as “The best horse by an outstanding Champion sire. A thrilling racehorse and a gorgeous looker.” He ran eleven times for seven wins and a million dollars, graduating from two wins and a Group 2 second in his three outings at two to be one of the top 3-year-olds of his generation. At this age he won four stakes – 1700-1800m, the million dollar Haskel Invitational-Gr.1 (by 4.5 lengths, trounced American Horse of the Year Curlin), the Brooklyn Handicap-Gr.2 (by 2.5 lengths), Dwyer Stakes-Gr.2 (by 4.0 lengths) and Sam F. Davis (by 2.5 lengths). Any Given Saturday is the result of the mating of Distorted Humor and with Weekend In Indy, a daughter of the American Horse of the Year and two times Champion sire A.P. Indy.
Courtesy of Brian Russell Bloodstock Media Service
