Famed for his rivalry with the 1978 Triple Crown winner Affirmed, Alydar, in a truncated stud career, went on to become an extremely successful stallion. From 11 crops, he was responsible for 77 stakes winners, 46 graded and 20 grade 1. Amongst his standouts were 1987 champion 3-year-old male and 1988 champion older horse and Horse of the Year Alysheba; 1990 Horse of the Year and champion older horse Criminal Type; 1988 champion 2-year-old male Easy Goer; 1986 champion older horse Turkoman; and 1983 champion 3-year-old filly Althea.
Given his nine grade 1-winning sons, four of them Eclipse Award champions, one would have thought that, like the similarly bred Mr. Prospector—both by Raise a Native out of mares by sons of Nasrullah—Alydar would have founded a thriving dynasty.
It wasn’t to be, however. Remarkably, only one of his male Eclipse champions succeeded in siring an American grade 1-winning colt, that being Easy Goer, whose son Will's Way captured the 1996 Travers Stakes (G1) and 1997 Whitney Stakes (G1), and who was represented by the 2004 Cigar Mile Handicap (G1) victor, Lion Tamer, who in turn sired just four stakes winners, none of them graded.
Numerically, the most successful stallions of Alydar were Saratoga Six and Benchmark. Saratoga Six was unbeaten in four starts, all at 2, and including the 1984 Del Mar Futurity (G1). He sired 37 stakes winners, of which only the 1997 Santa Monica Handicap (G1) heroine Toga Toga Toga captured an American grade 1. Benchmark didn’t run until he was 3, and didn’t win until the age of 4. He reached his peak as a 6-year-old in 1997, at which age he pulled off a hat trick of graded stakes victories, taking the Goodwood Breeders’ Cup Handicap (G2), Del Mar Breeders’ Cup Handicap (G2), and San Bernardino Handicap (G2). He finally retired to stud at the age of 8, to stand at River Edge Farm near Buellton, Calif. at a fee of $2,000.
Despite his lowly starting point and the fact that he stood his whole career in California, Benchmark has sound claims to be regarded as the best stallion son of Alydar. He sired 29 stakes winners, 10 of whom were graded, including Brother Derek, who gained grade 1 triumphs in the 2006 Santa Anita Derby and 2005 Hollywood Futurity; the 2013 Bing Crosby Stakes (G1) captor Points Offthebench; Idiot Proof, winner of the 2007 Ancient Title Stakes (G1); and Silent Sighs, successful in the 2004 Santa Anita Oaks (G1).
Brother Derek brought the Alydar line back to Kentucky, beginning his stud career at Airdrie Stud, but proved disappointing, getting just one graded stakes winner, Sam's Sister, who took the 2014 La Brea Stakes (G1). Benchmark’s other grade 1-winning entire, Idiot Proof, retired to stud in California and to date is sire of only two stakes winners. Thus the Benchmark branch of Alydar would have rapidly disappeared from relevance had it not been for Grazen.
A foal of 2006, Grazen made just six starts before suffering a career-ending injury in the 2009 California Cup Classic Handicap. Off the board in his only start at 2, at 3 Grazen captured his first three starts, the NTRA Stakes at Hollywood Park, an allowance at Hollywood Park, and the Affirmed Handicap (G3). Second to in Misremembered in the Swaps Stakes (G2), Grazen captured the El Cajon Stakes in his penultimate outing. In terms of raw talent, a deeper look at his pedigree indicates that Grazen was somewhat better than an average grade 3 winner: he ran a 100 Beyer Speed Figure when breaking his maiden—a race he clocked a very rapid 1:13.89 for 6 1/2 furlongs on Hollywood Park's all-weather surface, having led through three-quarters in 1:07.76—and was awarded a 103 Beyer for his Affirmed Handicap victory.
At the end of his racing career, Grazen was retired to stand at Tommy Town Thoroughbreds near Santa Ynez, Calif., moving to Eclipse Thoroughbred Farm near Buellton in 2024, where he stood the most recent season at a fee of $6,000. With 13 crops of runners, including current 2-year-olds, Grazen has sired a very creditable 28 individual stakes winners from 290 starters, 9.7% stakes winners to starters. Five of those have captured graded stakes—Just Grazed Me, S Y Sky, Enola Gray, Lieutenant Dan, and Lovesick Blues, who July 26 became what appears to be the first U.S. grade 1 winner for the Alydar line since Sam’s Sister’s La Brea win in 2014 by upsetting the Bing Crosby Stakes.
Named for a song most generally known via the Hank Williams version, Lovesick Blues is a 7-year-old gelding and was making his 41st start (42nd if you include his maiden-breaking win in a mixed-breed race at Los Alamitos Race Course in 2021). He began his career in the claiming ranks, at one point being beaten in a $12,500 maiden claiming event at Golden Gate Fields. He steadily improved from there and did come within a neck of graded stakes success when third in the 2023 Daytona Stakes (G3T) on his black-type debut. Sold privately by his breeder Nick Alexander to his current connections at the end of 2024, Lovesick Blues has competed solely in stakes events this year, winning the Siren Lure Stakes, taking second in the San Simeon Stakes (G3T), and third in the Sensational Star Stakes. Despite those good efforts the Bing Crosby represented a massive uptick in Lovesick Blues’ level of performance, seeing him earn a 105 Beyer, and a 12-point improvement over his previous best.
Lovesick Blues is the first foal of his dam, the three-time winner Queenofhercastle. She is also dam of Dorie Miller, a winning sister to Lovesick Blues, and Speedy Wilson—by Grazen’s son, Tough Sunday—successful last year in the Golden State Juvenile Stakes. She also has a yearling and a weanling colt by Grazen.
Queenofhercastle is half sister to Queen Bee To You, a California-bred daughter of Old Topper, whose four black-type triumphs included the 2020 La Canada Stakes (G3) and 2019 Bayakoa Stakes (G3). Queenofthecastle’s second dam, French Madam, was a minor stakes-placed daughter of Rahy. Third dam Mme. Mitterand, who was unraced, was a Mr. Prospector half sister to French Deputy, winner of the 1995 Jerome Handicap (G3) and a successful sire in the U.S. and Japan, and the stakes-winning and grade 1-placed Princess Mitterand. Mme. Mitterand was out of California standout in Mitterand, winner of four graded stakes, including the 1985 La Canada Stakes, then a grade 1.
Queenofhercastle was by a son of Deputy Minister (Ministers Wild Cat) out of a mare by a son of Deputy Minister (Touch Gold). Sitting between that inbreeding is Ministers Wild Cat’s dam, the three-time grade 1 winner Hollywood Wildcat. She was by Kris S. out of a Mr. Prospector mare, and notably the dam of Grazen is by Rubiano, a grandson of Mr. Prospector out of a mare by Kris S. We can also observe that the pedigree has three crosses of Mr. Prospector to combine with the similarly bred Alydar.
