Three Chimney Farm's veteran Sky Mesa and WinStar Farm's pensioned Tiznow feature prominently this year as broodmare sires among the first winners by this year's freshman sires.
These two broodmare sires have two first winners apiece as of June 13, with Sky Mesa getting his second first winner most recently June 3, when Flameaway 's daughter Scat Lady Crown won her second career start at Hipódromo de Las Américas in Mexico City. The filly is out of the Sky Mesa stakes winner Sky High Lady, who also ran third in the Maple Leaf Stakes (G3) at Woodbine.
Darby Dan Farm's Flameaway is one of 11 North American freshman stallions to have sired a winner. Spendthrift Farm's Omaha Beach , the leader of his sire class to date by progeny earnings, also is the leader by number of winners, with three. Spendthrift's other freshmen Mitole , Maximus Mischief , and Vino Rosso along with Ocean Breeze Ranch's Pavel all have two winners apiece as of June 13. Others with at least one winner include Flameaway, Darley Stallions' Enticed , Lane's End's Catalina Cruiser, A & A Ranch's Sporting Chance, Journeyman Stallions' St Patrick's Day, and Hill 'n' Dale at Xalapa's World of Trouble.
St Patrick's Day sired this year's first winner out of a Sky Mesa mare when his son Jive won at first asking May 19 at Gulfstream Park. The 2-year-old colt is also the first winner out of his dam, Skylarbdancing, who won or placed 18 times out of 46 career starts.
The first winners out of Tiznow mares came 10 days apart in May and each is by a Spendthrift stallion. Laugh Now, a colt by Vino Rosso, won May 15 in his second career start at Horseshoe Indianapolis. The colt is the first winner out of the lightly raced winner Little Pao. Ten days later, Maximus Mischief sired his first winner when his daughter Kristinachrysalis won her second career start at Pimlico Race Course. In keeping with the theme, the filly is the first winner out of the unraced mare Tiz Her Now, who is a full sister to grade 2-placed stakes winner Rush Now and a sibling to seven other winners.
Sky Mesa thrived as a 2-year-old, racing undefeated in 2002 for owner John Oxley and trainer John Ward Jr. His victories included the Hopeful Stakes (G1) and Breeders' Futurity (G2). He did not win at 3 and was second in the Haskell Invitational Handicap (G1) and third in the Dwyer Stakes (G2). As a broodmare sire, Sky Mesa has been represented by 35 black-type winners, which include 10 graded stakes winners.
Tiznow did not race at 2 but won consecutive editions of the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at 3 and 4 in 2000-01. He has sired 18 juvenile stakes winners that include 2005 champion 2-year-old filly Folklore and Hopeful Stakes winners Sporting Chance and Strong Mandate. As a broodmare sire, he's been represented by 66 black-type winners that include 33 graded stakes winners and Puerto Rico's 2021 champion 2-year-old filly Consultora (by Race Day).
Sky Mesa is part of a larger pattern seen among this year's early winners by freshman sires. The freshman class has sired 17 total winners so far, and among these, seven are by mares whose sires trace tail-male to Pulpit (a son of A.P. Indy). These winners are:
- Easy Red, f, Omaha Beach—Blessings Count, by Pulpit (A.P. Indy)
- Omaha Girl, f, Omaha Beach—Anchorage, by Tapit (Pulpit)
- V V's Dream, f, Mitole—Quay, by Tapit
- Khatazhukai, c, Vino Rosso—Differ, by Pulpit
- Untroubled, c, World of Trouble—Rambling Rhonda, by Tapizar (Tapit)
- Jive, c, St Patrick's Day—Skylarbdancing, by Sky Mesa (Pulpit)
- Scat Lady Crown, f, Flameaway—Sky High Lady, by Sky Mesa
These early runners include two by Pavel, whose two winners to date are out of mares by owner/breeder J. Paul Reddam's pensioned sire Square Eddie. Pavel's first winner is Recalcitrant, a Reddam homebred filly out of the multiple winner Hacktivism who won her second start May 20 at Santa Anita Park. She ran second in her debut April 29. Pavel's other winner is a Reddam homebred colt named Refocus, who won his debut May 21 at Santa Anita.
The other broodmare sires represented among the early winners by freshman sires include the late Arch, Australian sire Artie Schiller, Claiborne Farm's War Front , Lane's End's Quality Road , and the late Southwestern Heat.
