Outstanding US sire Storm Cat continues to make his presence felt, despite having passed away in 2013.
His son Giant’s Causeway has enjoyed a massive year thanks to his outstanding sons, Bricks And Mortar and Shamardal – and the latter’s dual French classic winning son, Lope De Vega – while the red-hot sire, No Nay Never, is a son of Storm Cat’s great grandson, Scat Daddy.
Sarah Whitelaw writes that No Nay Never, who will stand for a fee of €150 000 in 2020, has been responsible for eight group/graded stakes winners this year and his dual Gr1 winning son, Ten Sovereigns, will join him at Coolmore in 2020.
Scat Daddy
Scat Daddy’s legacy as a sire of sires looks set to be enhanced in coming years with his sons Justify, Caravaggio and Mendelssohn, in particular, proving very popular and well supported in their early seasons at stud.
Former Breeders’ Cup Mile winner, Karakontie – by the Storm Cat horse Bernstein – has made a bright start with his first two-year-olds this season, including Gr3 Horris Hill Stakes winner, Kenzai Warrior, and he is another promising representative for the Storm Cat male line.
Storm Cat
Storm Cat is also broodmare sire of the very promising young stallion, Gleneagles, and 2019 Gr1 sires, Speightstown and Lord Kanaloa, as well as nine individual group or graded stakes winners in 2019. He is also damsire of two young local sires, Coup De Grace and Global View, who have their first runners in South Africa this season.
However, it is Into Mischief – a great-grandson of Storm Cat – who has largely kept the Storm Cat male line to the fore in North America in 2019.
The former Gr1 CashCall Futurity winner, and son of Harlan’s Holiday, recently became the first North American based stallion to achieve 200 winners in a single calendar year, when his 2yo son, Authentic, scored over 1100m at Del Mar this year. It has been a massive year for Into Mischief, who is currently North America’s Leading Sire by Earnings, and North America’s Leading Sire of 2yo’s, as well as the Leading Sire of individual winners for 2019.
He is, however, only narrowly in front of American Pharoah on the 2yo sire list, and the placings could perhaps still change before the end of the year.
Into Mischief, whose progeny have earned in excess of $16.7 million at the time of writing, has been responsible for 18 individual stakes winners in the Northern Hemisphere this year, with his six individual graded stakes winners in 2019 headed by Gr1 winners Covfefe – Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, Test Stakes – and Mia Mischief, winner of the Humana Distaff Stakes.
To date, Into Mischief has been responsible for 59 black type winners, with 7% of his foals becoming stakes winners thus far. It is a testament to his consistency as a sire that Into Mischief is heading the North American sires list, despite his progeny failing to win either a Triple Crown race or a feature such as the Breeders’ Cup Classic or Pegasus World Cup.
As a Gr1 winning 2yo, Into Mischief has also proved a very efficient source of 2yo winners. At the time of writing, he had been responsible for 32 juvenile winners – from 83 runners – in North America with three black type winning juveniles to his credit in 2019. Having commenced his stud career at a fee of $12,500 – his 2020 fee will be $175,000 – Into Mischief is poised for potentially even greater success when his progeny out of more high profile mares hit the tracks.
Into Mischief’s promising son, Goldencents, has also made a pleasing impression with his first 3yo’s this year. A dual winner of the Gr1 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, Goldencents’ first 3yo’s include five stakes winners, notably the graded stakes winners, Be My Standards (Gr2 Louisiana Derby) and four time graded stakes winner, and Gr1 Pennsylvania Derby runner up, Mr. Money.
Goldencents is North America’s Leading Second Crop Sire by earnings for 2019 with his runners having banked over $4.9 million this year thus far.
With an ever growing list of sons retiring to stud, the Into Mischief impact promises to grow further in time.
Into Mischief’s outstanding dam, Leslie’s Lady, whose sire Tricky Creek is a Clever Trick half-brother to former Cape sire, Parade Leader, has also made waves in 2019. A stakes winner who won five times, Leslie’s Lady (dam also of the Breeders’ Cup winners, Beholder and Mendelssohn) made news this year when her American Pharoah filly was knocked down for $8.2 million at the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
Interestingly, Leslie’s Lady is a descendant of Kildeer, whose descendants include South African standouts, Jackson and Soft Falling Rain, as well as the likes of Kentucky Derby winner, I’ll Have Another (Flower Alley), Kentucky Oaks winner, Gal In A Ruckus (Bold Ruckus), and influential US champion sire, Smart Strike (Mr Prospector).
