Accelerate, West Coast Arrive at Lane's End

Lane's End will launch the careers of three powerful new stallions next year, two of which were welcomed to the farm Nov. 4.

Accelerate , who captured the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) the previous day at Churchill Downs, and 2017 champion 3-year-old male West Coast  arrived at the operation near Versailles, Ky., to be available for inspection by breeders. They will be joined on the roster in 2019 by multiple grade 1 winner City of Light , who wowed racing fans Nov. 3 with a near gate-to-wire victory in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1).

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Accelerate, a 5-year-old son of Lookin At Lucky , will be at the farm four to five days for inspections, then he will return to John Sadler's barn in Southern California, where he'll continue training toward a possible start in the $9 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) at Gulfstream Park.

"We saw what they did last year, and this horse is in good shape, so we had to look at it," Sadler said. "When I get him back home and on the track a couple of weeks, he'll have to tell us, 'I want to go one more.' If he doesn't, then he will just come back here."

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William Warren Jr.'s City of Light is also being aimed for the Pegasus.

Regardless of whether these horses run in the race or not, Bill Farish of Lane's End said the race won't affect the value Accelerate and City of Light have already earned as stallion prospects.

"It is different, and we're all adapting to it," Farish said about having horses race in late January and then transition in a couple of weeks into the breeding season. "The race makes a difference with some horses, but I don't think it does with City of Light because he put on such a great performance in the Breeder's Cup. There is already a strong demand for seasons.

"And the Breeders' Cup is so tough and so competitive, with a horse like Accelerate to have the year he had coming into it, you wondered whether he could ship across the country and do it again. He ran such a powerful race. It was wonderful to see."

Whether multiple grade 1 winner West Coast might also take a shot in the Pegasus is undecided at this time, according to Farish. 

"Nothing has been finalized yet. We still need to talk with the Wests," he said, referring to West Coast's owners, Gary and Mary West. Their son of Flatter  also started in the Classic but finished seventh.

The stud fees for the three new stallions are expected to be announced soon.

Farish said Lane's End pursued all three because they were all standout older horses that showed the ability to carry speed over a distance of ground. In addition, they represented sire lines that have been particularly successful at Lane's End.

Flatter is a son of Lane's End's marquee, pensioned sire A.P. Indy; Lookin At Lucky is a son of Smart Strike, who led the North American sire list in 2007-08 and stood his entire career at Lane's End; and City of Light is a son of the farm's Quality Road , who is the leading sire this year by grade/group 1 stakes winners (five) and is the sixth-leading sire by progeny earnings.

Farish said he is also thrilled to see Accelerate, who has captured five grade 1 stakes this year, at least being considered for Horse of the Year honors.

"There is a debate," he said. "Usually if there is a Triple Crown winner that does it, but when the Triple Crown winner doesn't run again, and then you have an older horse like Accelerate who just keeps winning, five grade 1 wins are hard to beat—especially the ones he won."

Ashford Stud's Justify  electrified the racing world when he became the 13th Triple Crown winner and first undefeated crown holder since Seattle Slew. The son of Scat Daddy did not race again after the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G1).

Accelerate won six of seven starts this year, racing from February through the Breeders' Cup. He won six graded stakes in 2018, including the Classic, the Santa Anita Handicap Presented by San Manuel Indian Bingo and Casino (G1), the Gold Cup at Santa Anita Stakes (G1), the $1 Million TVG Pacific Classic Stakes (G1), and the Awesome Again Stakes (G1). He earned more than $5 million this season.