Untapped Takes First Steps Toward Filling Big Shoes

David Fiske was packing his car Jan. 19 in preparation for the drive to Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots.

Among the many things the Winchell Thoroughbreds manager hopes to see during his time in New Orleans is a definitive sign that their 3-year-old filly Untapped is starting to make some headway on sparking some similarities between herself and her big sister.

While they already share bloodlines, connections, and near identical monikers, Fiske said Untapped is still a far different animal than her full sister, Untapable, the Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) winner and champion 3-year-old filly of 2014. Should Untapped boast half the talent of her sibling, she should be in good stead when she makes her stakes debut Jan. 21 in the Silverbulletday Stakes at Fair Grounds.

Where Untapable could be a notorious diva, Fiske laughs that Untapped "is not nearly as cranky" and has already proven to be a pleasant surprise for owner Ron Winchell's operation. In the early stages of her training, the chestnut daughter of Tapit   didn't exactly signal that she was ready to fill her sister's massive shoes. Since Untapped broke her maiden by  6 1/4 lengths at Keeneland Oct. 26, her connections have happily had to reevaluate what they thought they had on their hands.

"In her case, she wasn't all that well regarded earlier last year," Fiske said. "And it's not as if all of the foals out of that mare (2014 Broodmare of the Year Fun House) have been unqualified successes. So by mid-summer we were thinking, maybe if (Untapped) can break her maiden, maybe we'll breed her or something. All of the sudden, by late summer into the fall (trainer) Steve (Asmussen) said 'Wow, she's really getting good.'"

Untapped doubled down on her maiden triumph by taking an allowance race at Fair Grounds Dec. 23 by 3 1/4 lengths to improve her mark to two wins from three starts. As she readies for her jump into deeper waters this weekend, her sister is also being prepped for her next big career move.

Untapable was shipped to England this winter, where she is slated to be bred to unbeaten champion Frankel both in 2017 and next season. Fiske says the 6-year-old bay mare has adapted very well to her temporary life overseas and that, should all go as expected, she will return stateside in the summer of 2018.

"They tell me she is getting around Newmarket just fine," Fiske said. "She likes her little buddies over there, she gets turned out with a group of maiden mares, and she's been under lights and gotten all her (contagious equine metritis) cultures done. If everything goes right, she'll get bred this year and conceive, and then foal next year and then conceive. And then in summer of 2018, at some point, she'll come home with her Frankel foal."