Looking More Than Lucky

The North American-bred grade 1 winners by Ashford Stud's Lookin At Lucky  have performed with laser-like precision, bolstering their sire's reputation over the past six months by winning the two biggest races in the United States.

Country House accomplished the most difficult feat when he was named the winner of the May 4 $3 million Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) following a controversial stewards' review. The colt ran a legitimately outstanding race against a deep field, hitting the wire 1 3/4 lengths behind Maximum Security. His number was put up after Maximum Security was disqualified for interference at the top of the stretch.

Bred by the late Joseph V. "Jerry" Shields Jr., Country House became Lookin At Lucky’s 10th grade/group 1 winner from a total 44 (6% from foals of racing age) black-type winners worldwide year-to-date.

Country House's classic victory comes on the heels of an extraordinary run last year by Accelerate , who capped four consecutive grade 1 wins in the $6 million Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Churchill Downs. Accelerate won five grade 1 stakes in 2018 on his way to earning honors as Eclipse champion older male. For his career, Accelerate won or placed in 16 graded stakes and retired to stud at Lane's End this year with $6,692,480 in earnings.

Lookin At Lucky, who has been shuttled to Chile for six seasons since 2012, is riding his own hot streak that began with seven graded/group winners in 2016, grew to 11 graded/group winners in 2017 that included Chile's champion 2-year-old filly Wow Cat, and carried over to 2018 with another 11 graded/group winners and three more champions.

Wow Cat built her sire's international credentials by winning the 2018 Beldame Stakes (G1) at Belmont Park and finishing runner up in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1). Prior to coming to the U.S., Wow Cat went undefeated during the 2017-18 Southern Hemisphere season and earned honors as Chile's Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old filly.

Country House was broke and trained at Blackwood Training Center near Versailles, Ky., which is co-owned by Guinness McFadden, who is also a partner in the Derby winner and is Shields' nephew.

"Country House was slated to be sold, but Alex (Solis II) and I went to Jerry about keeping him and selling a different horse instead because we just really liked him," McFadden remembered. "You don't get many opportunities to breed a horse like that and to get them at the sale is really expensive.

"Lookin At Lucky was a great racehorse and now he's proving to be super useful stallion," McFadden continued. "He has proven he can get you a top horse and has done it multiple times now."

Country House's Kentucky Derby win put Lookin At Lucky in fifth place on the BloodHorse's general leading sire list by progeny earnings, jumping from from 21st place a week ago. The 12-year-old son of Smart Strike is among 23 North American sires with at least two graded stakes winners this year through May 5 and one of 18 sires with at least one grade 1 winner.