2016 Kentucky Derby - Shagaf Pedigree Profile

Shagaf captured the Gotham Stakes (G3) on Saturday, adding his name to the ever-changing list of 2016 Kentucky Derby contenders. The Chad Brown trainee stalked the pace on the inside under Irad Ortiz, Jr.  Around the far turn, Ortiz piloted the colt to the outside and eroded the lead of the weary warriors, Laoban and Withers Stakes hero Sunny Ridge. Adventist nipped Sunny Ridge late to get the show spot. Shagaf captured the 1 1/16 mile race by 1 ¼ lengths in 1:45.90.  

Shagaf (Bernardini - Muhaawara, by Unbridled's Song) is a Shadwell Farm homebred. The bay colt won his maiden by six lengths, running a mile over the Aqueduct oval last November. Shagaf captured his first start of the year, also at a mile, by two lengths at Gulfstream Park in an allowance/optional claiming race.  Shadwell’s promising young colt has a 3-3-0-0 ($298,800) race record and has 50 Kentucky Derby qualifying points.  

Sire:

Bernardini (A.P. Indy - Cara Rafaela, by Quiet American) was campaigned by Darley Stable. The lightly raced colt competed for only one year and made it count. He had the speed to win the Withers’ Stakes at a mile, the Preakness Stakes at 1 3/16 miles and proved himself to be the top three year old in the country with victories in the Jim Dandy at 1 1/8 miles and Travers Stakes at 1 ¼ miles. In the fall, Bernardini defeated his elders in the Jockey Club Gold Cup.  Media and fan hype followed the dark bay to the Breeders’ Cup. In a much anticipated meetup with South American sensation Invasor in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, Bernardini was unable to hold off his older, more experienced rival and finished second, bested by a narrow length. The colt retired to Darley Stud with an 8-6-1-0 ($3,060,480) race record and a shiny Eclipse Award for 2006 Champion Three Year Old Colt.

Bernardini’s highly anticipated first crop earned the stallion third place honors on the Freshman Sire List of 2010. The young stallion lead the second and third crop sire lists by earnings. Bernardini has remained a popular stallion and has been a top twenty general sire for the last three years, with his stud fee steady at $100,000.

To date, Bernardini has sired 27 graded stakes winners in only seven crops to race. Although he gets the rare super precocious two year old sprinter, the majority of Bernardini babies prefer longer sprints through middle distances and they improve with maturity. 86% of his babies do their best work over the dirt and he’s considered a very good off track sire. Bernardini’s early crops included Stay Thirsty, who also captured the Gotham Stakes, Travers, Cigar Mile, and was second in the Belmont Stakes; Cigar Mile victor To Honor and Serve, and Test Stakes heroine Cavorting. Bernardini has sired turf stakes winners at 1 ¼ miles and beyond, but his only dirt winner at classic distances is Traver’s victor Alpha.

14 of Bernardini’s sons are already standing at stud. His son Wilburn is #11 on the second crop sire list and the first crops by Stay Thirsty, To Honor and Serve, Algorithms, and Biondetti will compete this year.

Besides Shagaf, Bernardini’s 2016 classic contenders include Greenpointcrusader and Zulu runner-ups in the Holy Bull Stakes and Fountain of Youth, respectively. His Kentucky Oaks hopefuls include Lewis Bay, and Rachel’s Valentina, the daughter of Champion Rachel Alexandra, who is breezing steadily at Palm Meadows in anticipation of her first start of the year.

Female Family:

As one would expect from a Shadwell Stable homebred, Shagaf has a classy female family filled with stakes winners, including 1995 Kentucky Oaks heroine Gal in a Ruckus.

Muhaawara (Unbridled's Song - Habibti, by Tabasco Cat) is also a Shadwell homebred. A later maturing filly, Muhaawara hit the board in one of two starts as a juvenile. At three, the third time was the charm and the pretty gray filly won a seven furlong maiden race at Aqueduct. Muhaawara spent her career as an allowance class runner. She showed a distinct preference for Aqueduct, earning all three of her victories there, including her sole stakes victory in the Sky Beauty Stakes at 1 mile 70 yards. Muhaawara retired after two years at the track with a 12-3-3-2 ($131,297) record.

Muhaawara has four foals. Her first, Gharbeya, a pretty gray filly by More Than Ready, has hit the board in all three starts in France.  Muhaawara has a gray two year old daughter of Tapit named Mahasen, and last year foaled a chestnut full sister to Gharbeya.

Muhaawara has eleven half siblings, one owns blacktype.  Her half brother Eldaafer (A.P. Indy) raced 46 times, winning over dirt, turf, mud and Polytrack. The long-winded gelding captured the Brooklyn Handicap (G2, Turfway Park Fall Championship (G3), and Greenwood Cup Stakes, all at 1 ¼ miles, plus the 1 ¾ mile 2010 Breeders’ Cup Marathon and 1 3/16 mile Carl Hanford Memorial. 

Shagaf’s second dam is the popular mare Habibti (Tabasco Cat - Miss Sobriety, by Temperence Hill). The California-based filly was victorious in the Del Mar Debutante and Hollywood Starlet. She finished second in the Las Virgenes Stakes and Santa Anita Oaks, before placing third in the 2002 Kentucky Oaks. None of her siblings own blacktype.

Bernardini has 23 foals of racing age out of Unbridled’s Song mares. 8 have started, half of those have won. Shagaf is the only blacktype winner.

Damsire:

Unbridled’s Song (Unbridled – Trolley Song, by Caro) has made his mark as a popular sire of sires as well as demonstrating his proficiency as a broodmare sire. He is the damsire of 101 stakes winners.

The deceased stallion’s daughters bear offspring that win over all surfaces and distances, however, their progeny that race over dirt are best from sprints to middle distances.  There are a very few that have won stakes races beyond 1 1/8 miles, and they are the exception, rather than the norm.

Unbridled’s Song is the damsire of grade one winners Carpe Diem, General Quarters, The Lumber Guy, Unbridled Command, Rolling Fog, Stonetastic, and J. B.’s Thunder. Of those, only Unbridled Command has won beyond 1 1/8 miles. His grandson Hold Me Back won the Dominion Day (G3) at 1 ¼ miles over the Polytrack.

Shagaf’s second damsire Tabasco Cat (Storm Cat - Barbicue Sauce, by Sauce Boat) won the 1994 Preakness and Belmont Stakes after a disappointing sixth place effort in the Kentucky Derby. He also hit the board in two Breeders’ Cup races, the Juvenile and 1994 Classic. His daughters have produced 32 stakes winners in the U.S., including multiple stakes winner Jackson Bend, Florida Derby hero Ice Box, G2 turf winner Om, and G1 winners Tell a Kelly and Love Theway Youare. For the most part, the progeny of Tabasco Cat’s daughters are sprinters through middle distance runners. A couple have won at classic distances, including the aforementioned Eldaafer. 

Outlook:

Shagaf’s pedigree is borderline for 1 ¼ miles. Could he travel farther? Of course, pedigree is an important component, but not the only variable. Shagaf is a very well-balanced, athletic colt. He has the scope to prefer running two turns and strongly resembles his sire Bernardini. Shagaf is a smooth moving colt. He has average extension and no wasted leg motion. Shagaf is a professional. He’s does everything asked of him.

The drawback is that the colt has very little two year old foundation. Every Kentucky Derby winner since 2000 has raced at least twice at as a two year old. While Shagaf, has an unblemished record, none of the horses that he’s bested in previous races have done anything on the stakes front. He appeared one-paced in the Gotham Stakes and simply passed the struggling Laoban, who is still a maiden and has finished behind the second-tier California runners and Sunny Ridge, a Grade 3 winner. Shagaf performed much the same in previous races, outdistancing over classed rivals, without visibly quacking.  Shagaf will step up to 1 1/8 miles in the Wood Memorial on April 9.

The New York preps for the Triple Crown have declined over the last several years. The last horse to win the Gotham and hit the board in a Triple Crown race was Bernardini’s son Stay Thirsty. Looking forward, contenders exiting the Wood Memorial have done no better than fourth place in Kentucky. Two have hit the board in the Preakness and Belmont Stakes. Shagaf has the pedigree and looks to be a Triple Crown contender, however, he has much to prove vs the likes of Mohaymen, Nyquest and Mor Spirit.

Conformation photo of Shagaf & Muhaawara used by gracious permission of Shadwell Stable.