Lord Nelson Reaches Milestone with First Foal

First-crop sire Lord Nelson  reached a significant milestone Jan. 28 when his first reported foal arrived, a chestnut colt born at Spendthrift Farm near Lexington.

The milestone is particularly important for the three-time grade 1-winning son of Pulpit because a serious bout of laminitis cast doubt as to whether he'd ever get an opportunity as a stallion. Lord Nelson was supposed to have entered stud in 2017, but he developed laminitis while recovering from a serious infection in his right leg that forced him to be scratched from the TwinSpires Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) and subsequently retired.

"With a lot of luck and high-quality veterinary care and really good day-to-day care by our staff, we have gotten a significant portion of new hoof growth on both feet," Ned Toffey, Spendthrift's general manager told BloodHorse back in September. "Maybe most of all, he is a helluva good patient. One thing that has stood out with all of us is what a mentally tough horse this is. He was a great sprinter but laminitis is a marathon, and he has just never lost his tremendous attitude.

"How he's handled it all makes me that much more excited about breeding to him," Toffey continued. "If he'll pass on those qualities, combined with his race record, his conformation, and his pedigree, then I think we really have got something."

Lord Nelson recovered fully and covered 127 mares last year.

The stallion's first foal, bred by Spendthrift, is out of the young Rockport Harbor mare Harbingerofthings, who was a 2-year-old stakes winner during her racing career.

"This is a tremendous foal and great initial representation of Lord Nelson," Toffey said Jan. 29 about the colt. "This colt has great size, bone, and substance. He has a very nice front end, and he's flashy and athletic. Really, he looks like dad, which alone is a compliment. It just adds to the genuine excitement and expectations we have for Lord Nelson."

On the track, Lord Nelson was one of the fastest sprinters in recent history, capturing three consecutive grade 1 wins in 2016. He turned in a near-record-setting performance in the Bing Crosby Stakes (G1) at Del Mar, running six furlongs in 1:07.65, which was 0.05 seconds off the track record of 1:07.60 set in 1973, when times were recorded in fifths. He also won the seven-furlong Triple Bend Stakes (G1) and the six-furlong Santa Anita Sprint Championship S. (G1)—both at Santa Anita Park, which set him up to be the favorite in the Breeders' Cup Sprint. He ended up being retired with seven wins from 13 starts and earnings of $958,271.

Lord Nelson is set to stand his second season at Spendthrift for a fee of $25,000.