Sharp Azteca to Three Chimneys for 2019

Sharp Azteca , winner of the 2017 Cigar Mile Handicap Presented by NYRA Bets (G1) and four other graded stakes, will stand the 2019 season at Three Chimneys Farm, it was announced Oct. 20. 

He will command an advertised fee of $10,000 live foal stands and nurses.

Sharp Azteca is by Freud , a full brother to Giant's Causeway. He is out of the Saint Liam mare So Sharp, who is a half sister to the dam of graded stakes winner Firing Line . The female family traces to Three Chimneys foundation mare and grade 1 winner Gorgeous, as well as to Overbrook farm foundation mare and grade 1 winner Seaside Attraction.

A model of consistency, Sharp Azteca finished on the board 14 times in 17 starts, with earnings of $2,406,740. He won the Cigar Mile by a commanding 5 1/4 lengths over grade 1 winners Practical Joke  and Mind Your Biscuits, and grade 2 winner/grade 1 performer Tom's Ready. In that race, Sharp Azteca ran a minus 2 1/4 Ragozin, which, according to Three Chimneys, was the fastest Ragozin in 2017 at a mile and the co-fastest of the year at any distance, equaling the number awarded Arrogate  in the Dubai World Cup Sponsored By Emirates Airline (G1).

One of the leading sprinter/milers of his generation, Sharp Azteca posted a 115 Beyer Speed Figure in the Cigar Mile. His performance in the Kelso Handicap (G2), also at a mile, earned him a 112 Beyer via a four-length victory over grade 3 winner Divining Rod  and Tom's Ready in 1:34.12.

"Sharp Azteca was brilliantly fast, and when you watch his races, you will see speed, toughness, and tenacity, all three of which are elements we like in a stallion prospect," Three Chimneys Chairman Goncalo Torrealba said. "We believe that Sharp Azteca can be another offshoot branch of the Storm Cat line through Giant Causeway's full brother Freud, similar to what Harlan, Harlan's Holiday, and Into Mischief  did."

As a 3-year-old, Sharp Azteca impressively won the Pat Day Mile Stakes (G3) in 1:34.37, where he defeated grade 1 winners Imperial Hint and Ralis, as well as multiple grade 1-placed American Freedom .

Sharp Azteca's runner-up performance in the Las Vegas Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) to Battle of Midway, who ran a lifetime-best  minus 2 Ragozin, received a 132 Equibase Speed Figure, which, according to Three Chimneys, is the highest of any horse retiring to stud for 2019 thus far.

Sharp Azteca won or placed in nine stakes, including the Malibu Stakes (G1) and the $1 Million Godolphin Mile Sponsored by Meydan Sobha (G2) at Meydan Racecourse. In addition, he posted two of the top three Beyer Speed Figures up to a mile in 2017, according to Three Chimneys.

"When you see Sharp Azteca, he's absolutely striking," said Doug Cauthen of Three Chimneys. "He is big and powerful and is a true conformation stallion. He was a top-class miler who ran superbly in every jurisdiction he competed at—Churchill, Belmont, in the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar, and in Dubai—it didn't matter. He was simply a runner and offers breeders a great value opportunity. Sharp Azteca is the kind that can get them a great-looking sales horse and a proper racehorse down the road."