Kentucky Derby 2015 - Dortmund Pedigree Profile

 

The 2014 Los Alamitos Futurity was expected to be a thrilling match up between the experienced, well-traveled Mr. Z and the undefeated, untested Dortmund. The 1 1/16 mile Grade 1 event exceeded many expectations and produced a new track record. 

 

Mr. Z hooked up with the last out maiden winner Firing Line through brutal fractions of :21.98, :45.21, 1:09.64 and 1:34.64. Jockey Martin Garcia kept the eventual winner, Dortmund, three to four wide to keep dirt out of the colt’s face.  Dortmund was content to sit farther back in third, at one point five lengths behind the dueling duo.  After such rapid fractions one would expect Mr. Z or Firing Line to tire, but the two kept up their struggle to the wire, albeit weakening slightly. Dortmund made up ground grudgingly and got the head bob decision on the line. He established a new track record of 1:40.86. Only a nose separated second place finisher Firing Line from the unlucky Mr. Z.   

 

 

The final time was less than an eye blink off of the stakes record of 1:40.74, set in 1994 by Afternoon Delights, and is comparable to the 1:40.82 run by Into Mischief in 2007. 

 

 

Dortmund (Big Brown - Our Josephina, by Tale of the Cat) gave trainer Bob Baffert his seventh Futurity winner. Previously, the race was created as the Hollywood Futurity and run at the now defunct Hollywood Park. The Grade 1 contest for two-year-olds, most recently known as the Cashcall Futurity, moved to  Los Alamitos this year. 

 

 

Dortmund, named for a German soccer team from the city of Dortmund, Germany, was bred by Emilie Gerlinde Fojan. The Chestnut colt is a veteran of the sales ring. He failed to meet his $85,000 reserve at the 2012 Keeneland November sale as a weanling. A year later, Dortmund sold for $90,000 at the Fasig Tipton July yearling auction and this year, was pin hooked to the Fasig Tipton May Midlantic Two-Year-Olds in Training sale. Dortmund caught the eye of Baffert and Kaleem Shah and was purchased for the sales-topping price of $140,000. The undefeated Dortmund has been perfect in all three starts and has earnings of $359,400, plus ten points towards a start in next year’s Kentucky Derby.

 

 

Big Brown exploded onto the racing scene in early September of his two year old season with an 11 ¼ domination over maidens in a  1/16 mile turf contest. Six months later, Big Brown catapulted onto the Triple Crown lists after a 12 ¾ length victory over allowance foes. Twenty five days later, Big Brown destroyed the hopes of eleven other Classic hopefuls with an authoritative 5 length decision in the Florida Derby. The field included eventual Belmont Stakes winner Da’Tara, who finished a dull ninth.

 

The 2008 Triple Crown races were marred by injury and controversy. The undefeated Big Brown kept his win streak alive with a sparkling 4 ¼ length triumph in the Kentucky Derby, but his victory was overshadowed by the tragic breakdown of the gallant filly Eight Belles, who crossed the wire in second, 3 ½ lengths in front of the third place finisher.  Sent off at 1-5 odds in the second Triple Crown leg, Big Brown again made short work of his classmates, galloping to a 5 ¼ length sweep and joining Majestic Prince, Seattle Slew and Smarty Jones as the only undefeated Derby/Preakness winners in history.  Between the Preakness and Belmont Stakes, Big Brown sustained a quarter crack and missed some training time.  In the Belmont Stakes, Big Brown was once again installed the favorite over a group of modest runners.  Shocked, the nation watched as Big Brown, fighting his jockey the entire time, was pulled up at the mile pole and failed to finish the race.  Later it was discovered that he had lost a shoe.   

 

 

Big Brown returned to easily win the Haskell Invitational, but instead of proceeding to the Travers Stakes, the son of Boundary took on older horses in the ungraded Monmouth Stakes over the turf. The colt held of the older German veteran Proudinsky by a determined neck.  Just weeks before the colt’s forthcoming venture to California to face Champion older horse Curlin and the top European runners Raven's Pass, Henrythenavigator, and Duke of Marmalade in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, Big Brown grabbed a quarter, ripping a three-inch piece of flesh off his right front foot after it collided with his right rear foot during a morning breeze. The injury wasn’t life-threatening and would require only a couple of months to heal. Despite his controversial campaign, Big Brown was declared Eclipse Award 2008 Champion 3 Year Old Colt.

 

 

Instead of bringing the lightly raced colt back for a four year old campaign, Big Brown’s connections retired him to stud at Three Chimneys Farm for an initial fee of $65,000. 

 

 

BIG BROWN (Boundary – Mien, by Nureyev)

Race record: 8-7-0-0 ($3,614,500)

Eclipse Award 2008 Champion 3 Year Old Colt

 

Career highlights:

1^st – Kentucky Derby (G-1) 1 ¼ miles

1^st – Preakness Stakes (G-1) 1 3/16 miles

1^st - Haskell Invitational Stakes (G-1) 1 1/8 miles

1^st – Florida Derby (G-1) 1 1/8 miles

1^st - Monmouth Stakes (listed) 1 1/8 miles (T)

 

 

Big Brown went to stud at the same time as Champions Curlin, Midnight Lute and War Pass.  He was eleventh leading money earner as a first crop sire and ninth as a second crop sire, however, only three of his offspring earned stakes victories.  His offspring started to shine this year, as a dozen have won stakes races. Big Brown recently relocated to New York, where he’ll stand for $8,500 stud fee in 2015. 

 

 

The majority of Big Brown’s babies are milers and win over all surfaces. His sole stakes winner beyond 1 1/16 miles is Ground Transport, who determinedly held on to win the 1 ¼ mile Drosselmeyer Stakes at Belmont in the uninspiring time of 2:02.78. 

 

 

Our Josephina is a veteran of fourteen starts.  The bay daughter of Tale of the Cat was a late bloomer and didn’t make her initial start until May of her three year old season.  It took an additional five starts and an entire year for Our Josephina to finally visit the winner’s circle. The mare seemingly found her stride as a race horse, winning her next start in the Ohio Valley Handicap at six furlongs. Our Josephina placed in three more stakes, including the Chicago Breeders' Cup Handicap (G-3). In total, the gallant mare compiled a 14-3-3-2 ($190,584) race record.

 

 

Dortmund has five older half siblings. Four of them have raced.  All have hit the board, and three are winners. All are sprinter/milers and two of the three earned their victories over the lawn. None own blacktype. Dortmund’s most accomplished half sibling is Joseph the Catfish (by Mineshaft), who has a 12-2-0-1 ($32,654) race record.

 

 

Our Josephina is the most accomplished runner in two generations of Dortmund’s distaff line. His second dam Roa Usada is an unraced half sister to Champagne Stakes (G-1) winner Mogambo (by Mr. Prospector) and to Spinaway (G-1) runner-up Sea Breezer (by Gulch). That one bore stakes winning sprinter Shore Breeze (by Dazing). Dortmund’s third dam is 1977 Champion Juvenile Filly, Lakeville Miss, who, in her three year old season, won the CCA Oaks (G-1) when it was contested at 1 ½ miles.

 

 

 

 

Damsire:

Tale of the Cat raced as a three and four year old. In his fourth start, the son of Storm Cat blew away a small, overmatched field in the King’s Bishop Stakes (G-1), which was his sole stakes victory.  Tale of the Cat finished second in the Whitney (G-1) and twice was third in the Vosburgh Stakes.

 

 

TALE OF THE CAT (Storm Cat - Yarn, by Mr. Prospector)

Race record: 9-5-1-2 ($360,900)

 

Career highlights:

1^st - King's Bishop Stakes (G-1)  7F

2^nd - Whitney Handicap (G-1) 1 1/8 miles

3^rd - Vosburgh Stakes (G-1) 7F (twice)

 

 

 

Tale of the Cat is a well-established sire of thirteen crops to race and he’s a strong presence on the national sire list. His progeny win over all surfaces, yet the majority are at their best up to 1 1/16 – 1 1/8 miles. His daughter Stopchargingmaria is his sole winner at 1 ¼ miles over the dirt. Tale of the Cat’s offspring can run farther over the turf, as evidenced by his Champion Turf son Gio Ponti.   

 

 

Tale of the Cat’s daughters have borne over six hundred offspring, 33 of whom are stakes winners.  The majority are sprinter/milers, although Tale of the Cat is the damsire of three stakes winners at 1 1/8 miles over the dirt. None have won at 1 ¼ miles on the dirt, however, Customer Base (by Lemon Drop Kid) was victorious in the listed Lucie Manet Stakes at 1 ¼ miles over the lawn.  

 

 

Big Brown has been bred to two Tale of the Cat mares. Both have started, and one, Dortmund is a winner.

 

 

Dortmund has heavy influences of the legendary Northern Dancer throughout his pedigree.  He carries 3S (sire) x 3D (dam) inbreeding to the Danzig, one of Northern Dancer’s greatest sire sons. Dortmund also carries the bloodlines of the Northern Dancer sires Nureyev (Big Brown’s damsire) and Storm Cat (Tale of the Cat’s sire).  Dortmund carries only one strain of Mr. Prospector blood and two of Bold Ruler, although that can be found five and six generations back.

 

 

 

Dortmund is clearly talented, yet still learning. In the early stages of the Los Alamitos Futurity, he tossed his head for a split second when hit by dirt from the front runners.  Martin Garcia wisely guided Dortmund to race just to the outside of the kickback. He did bear out slightly in the stretch, possibly in response to Mr. Z and Firing Line who were also bearing out badly.  

 

 

Dortmund has an efficient, average stride with no wasted leg movement or paddling.  He’s a medium-sized Chestnut, yet very powerful looking and is built like a miler, with a slightly upright shoulder. He’s not as muscular as a sprinter, yet, is more compact than a true route horse. The conformational influences of Danzig are strong in Dortmund. Dortmund’s shoulder ties into a longish back and is evened out by strong, yet not overly muscular hindquarters.  However, he does appear slightly camped under in front (meaning that his front leg is angled back, with more weight balanced on his front end). 

 

 

Dortmund’s pedigree indicates that 1 1/16 miles to 1 1/8 miles may be as far as he’ll want to run. Dortmund has a ton of turf influences throughout his pedigree, so he could run farther on that surface. The fact that the colt can sit off of the pace helps his chances to run farther.  He could be a major player in some of next year’s Kentucky Derby prep races in California, but as the distances get longer and the competition tougher, Dortmund could find it tough to kick a winning goal in the Kentucky Derby.