Week Holds Plenty of Potential for Spendthrift Farm

Thud, thud, thud—the sound of anxious heartbeats at the start of the Kentucky Derby (G1) ring out starkly against the backdrop of an unusually empty Churchill Downs three years ago.

After the pandemic erupted in early 2020, a world that was familiar promptly turned on its axis as restaurants shuttered doors, people worked from home, and visiting elderly family became a safety concern. In the midst of the chaos, a three-year journey was still well underway for countless horses and their connections who were pointing to what usually is the first leg of the Triple Crown.

To the dismay of many, the spring came and went while the historic Churchill Downs grandstand—which on any other normal first Saturday in May would be swathed with enthusiastic race goers—stayed empty. Some five months later the crowds still would not return but some connections donning masks and attempting to follow the "six feet apart" rule would finally be allowed to gather at the Louisville, Ky. oval to regain a shred of normalcy.

At 7:03 p.m. September 5, things were right with the world if only for less than three minutes, as the field of 15 left the gate. Mere moments later, a new winner was crowned after Authentic   led wire-to-wire under the pale blue hue of a late summer sky to hand owners Spendthrift Farm, MyRaceHorse Stable, Madaket Stables, and Starlight Racing a sweet, long awaited victory.

General manager for Spendthrift, Ned Toffey, recalls the anomalous day which gave the farm its first Derby winner.

"It was really surreal. It was a strange feeling to be at Churchill Downs which if you've ever been in there when it's empty, it's truly cavernous," he said. "It didn't really feel like the Derby at all until the gates opened and then we were suddenly unware that there were not 170,000 people in the house. When you get concentrating on your horse and caught up in that moment, it's a feeling like no other."

Authentic's winning ways surely did not end that fateful day as he went on to a triumph in the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1), ending his career with dual Eclipse Award titles as champion 3-year-old male and Horse of the Year for 2020. He retired to stud at Spendthrift after his 3-year-old year and currently stands the 2023 season for $60,000.

"We made a big investment in Authentic. Obviously we loved his credentials being by Into Mischief and out of a Mr. Greeley mare, a beautiful individual, incredibly accomplished racehorse and we love his running style to make a sire," Toffey said. "The ability to go straight to the lead and have natural speed and carry it for a mile and a quarter, those are all wonderful credentials.

"We've been very excited to see his first foals who are now yearlings. They absolutely look the part and we are so excited, we have been getting great reports from breeders all over the country on how happy they are with their Authentic yearlings."

Now, in 2023, a year which has not been plagued by uncertainty and social distancing, a full field of 20 3-year-old colts are in line to take on the biggest challenge of their short careers May 6. Spendthrift returns to the stage as the sole owner of Todd Pletcher trainee Kingsbarns .

The impressive son of Uncle Mo   has only three starts (all wins) under his belt from this year. Purchased for $800,000 from the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale from Tom McCrockin's consignment, Toffey says Kingsbarns got a late start to the game.

"He was a horse that came out of the sale with a few issues that kept us from going right on with him. He spent about three months at Spendthrift just making sure we had all of those issues behind him and then we started him at a training center in Silver Springs which is on our property that we lease out," Toffey said. "He was there for another four months so it was actually late October before he got to Todd. So for him to make the Derby, there was no room for failure."

Out of the grade 3 placed Tapit   mare Lady Tapit, the colt had not only the pedigree for success, but physicality that practically spelled out a path towards classic races, and for later on, success in the breeding shed.

"When you buy a horse like Kingsbarns at auction, this was a big, scopey, classy looking 2-year-old. He breezed an extremely fast quarter and did it beautifully and within himself. He has a wonderful pedigree and has always had the look of a horse that could be a classic horse.

"You know, this is a tough game and plenty of those don't turn out. It's awfully gratifying when it does. To use a cliche, he ticked all the boxes and had everything we were looking for when buying a young horse. Our goal is not just to win races but it's to win classic-type races and get horses that can eventually make it to our stud barn."

Not only does the farm have a very real chance Saturday with the Louisiana Derby (G1)-winning colt, it can also claim bloodline honors for multiple competitors in the Derby and Kentucky Oaks (G1) as six of the horses are by Spendthrift's own Into Mischief   including Derby contenders Rocket Can  and Sun Thunder , Oaks contenders Pretty Mischievous  and Wonder Wheel , along with Derby also-eligibles Cyclone Mischief , and Oaks also-eligible Hoosier Philly .

Into Mischief himself never got the chance to contest the Triple Crown after an injury at the end of his juvenile year, but it seems that his lucrative career at stud has more than made up for his lack of time on the track. The multiple leading sire stands the 2023 season for $250,000. He is the sire of Authentic and 2021 Derby winner Mandaloun   (pending an ongoing appeal by the connections of the disqualified Medina Spirit.) No sire has had three Derby winners since Bull Lea in 1957 (Citation, 1948; Hill Gail, 1952; Iron Liege, 1957).

"He's been a remarkable horse. It's incredible to think that 16 years ago we bought him at a 2-year-old in training sale and paid $180,000 for him and his stud fee at one point was as low as $6,500," Toffey said. "The way he has taken off from there is just incredible and sort of reinforces that idea that a good horse can come from anywhere.

"We've been very, very fortunate to have him. As his runners have performed, the mare quality has picked up and his results on the track have improved correspondingly. ... He's certainly a horse that's going to leave a really substantial mark on the breed and it's a great thing for us to be associated with him."