Kentucky Derby 2015 - Dubai Sky Pedigree Profile

With all eyes on Dubai for the World Cup, what better time to review the pedigree of DUBAI SKY, the latest 2015 Kentucky Derby nominee. The Bill Mott trainee announced his arrival on the Triple Crown scene with a winding 2 ¼ length victory in the Spiral Stakes over the Polytrack. 

Guided expertly by Jose Lezcano, Dubai Sky broke from the outside and flashed speed in the beginning of the race to secure a good stalking position on the outside.  Running three to four wide for much of the race, Lezcano set Dubai Sky down at the top of the stretch and glided home easily with no challenges. They flew under the wire in 1:50.26 for 1 1/8 miles.  Their final time was the fastest since 2010, when Deans Kitten won in 1:50.59.  Ironically, Dubai Sky’s winning time was close to that of another Mott charge, Hold Me Back, who won the 2009 Spiral Stakes in 1:49.53.

DUBAI SKY (Candy Ride (ARG) - House of Danzing, by Chester House) was bred by Besilu Stables, LLC and is owned in partnership with Three Chimneys Farm.  The bay colt was third in his debut last year on the turf at Saratoga. He then won three straight, including a gutsy head decision this year in the one mile Kitten’s Joy Stakes at Gulfstream Park. With his victory in the Spiral Stakes, Dubai Sky now has a 5-4-0-1 ($439,080) race record and 50 Kentucky Derby qualifying points.

Sire:

The Kentucky Derby trail is littered with candy wrappers.  Every year, sons of the popular sire Candy Ride make headlines or have the internet buzzing as they win and place in Kentucky Derby preps, only to fall short a few races later.  Make no mistake, the stallion’s progeny are very talented, but are they Classic caliber horses?

In 2009, as part of Candy Ride’s first crop, Chocolate Candy, a relative of Dubai Sky, got the sweet talk flowing.  After victories in the California and El Camino Real Derbies, Chocolate Candy finished a fast closing second to Pioneerof the Nile after going five wide on the turn in the Santa Anita Derby. Sent off at 10-1 in the Kentucky Derby, the colt was squeezed at the start, but made a strong move from 17 to finish fifth in the mud behind Mine That Bird.  Also in 2009, Capt. Candyman Can was briefly on the Triple Crown trail before his connections wisely determined that the colt would be more competitive as a sprinter/miler.

A year later, Sidney's Candy was the best in the west in 2010, when he captured the San Vicente, San Felipe and Santa Anita Derby. Sent off at 9-1 in the Kentucky Derby, Sidney's Candy pressed the pace for ¾ of a mile, then dropped faster than politician's promise after Election Day, winding up in seventeenth place.   In 2011, Clubhouse Ride placed in the CashCall and Sham Stakes before sustaining an injury.

In 2012, Shared Belief captured national attention for his commanding victory in the CashCall Futurity, but suffered an unfortunate injury and was off of the Derby trail. That same year, Candy Boy finished second to Shared Belief in the Los Alamitos Futurity and third behind California Chrome in the Santa Anita Derby. Candy Boy contested the Kentucky Derby, but never got out of the back of the pack after having to take up sharply.

CANDY RIDE (Ride the Rails - Candy Girl (ARG), by Candy Stripes) is an all-around handy sire.  Dirt, turf, synthetics, Candy Rides babies run over everything and their distance range is sprints to middle distances.  As I mentioned, the stallion won at 1 ¼ miles and set a track record; however, most of Candy Ride’s stakes progeny are distance challenged past 1 1/8 miles.  To date, only Shared Belief and Misremembered have won stakes at 1 ¼ miles, although four other stakes horses have placed at the distance.  Shared Belief is the most accomplished offspring of Candy Ride and the only one of the stallion’s progeny who has won at classic distances as a three year old.

Female family:

Mentioned last June on my series, “The Kiddie List,” Dubai Sky is a full brother to Twirling Candy, winner of the Malibu (G-1), Del Mar Derby, Californian and Strub Stakes. Twirling Candy has been victorious from seven furlongs to 1 1/8 miles and placed twice at 1 ¼ miles, second behind Acclimation in the 2011 Pacific Classic and third behind Game on Dude in the Hollywood Gold Cup.

Dubai Sky is a half brother to Ethnic Dance (Tribal Rule) who also won the Del Mar Derby and finished in third place in both the 1 1/8 mile (turf) Crystal Water Stakes and 1 1/6 mile California Dreamin Stakes over Polytrack.   Dubai Sky has an unnamed two year old half sister by Smart Strike and two older full siblings who never raced.

House of Danzing (Chester House - Danzing Crown, by Danzig) the dam of Dubai Sky, raced only twice and finished second in her second start before retiring with an injury.  She’s proven to be yet another top broodmare in an illustrious female family. As it seems to happen in most Thoroughbred distaff lines, the talent skipped a generation in Dubai Sky’s second dam’s progeny. The unraced Danzig Crown (Danzig - Crownette, by Seattle Slew) bore only one stakes winner of a non-qualified race (under $15,000), Danzing Tribal (Tribal Rule). Another daughter, Champion Ride (Candy Ride) bore Charlie Thomas (Seeking the Dia) a stakes placed miler.

Dubai Sky’s third generation is where we pick up with the notable blacktype.  His third dam, the royally bred Crownette, was a daughter of the fabulous Seattle Slew out of In Memory, who was the result of mating Alydar to his rival Affirmed’s dam, Won’t Tell You. Crownette wasn’t the superstar her pedigree indicated, but she did win the Santa Ysabel Stakes and placed in two other stakes contests in a full 19 race career.  In the breeding shed, Crownette showed the first family affinity to the bloodlines of Candy Ride when she bore the aforementioned Chocolate Candy (Candy Ride).  In addition, Crownette produced graded stakes placed Crowning Storm (Storm Cat), who ironically, placed third in the Affirmed Handicap.

Crownette’s dam In Memory (Alydar – Won’t Tell You, by Crafty Admiral) was a total disappointment on the track (0-3) and in the breeding shed.  Of her eight foals, only Crownette won a race. Dubai Sky’s fifth dam is the blue hen, Won’t Tell You, dam of the last Triple Crown Champion, Affirmed.

What is intriguing about this distaff line and the sires to whom they were bred, is that Won’t Tell You carried the “X-Factor” also known as the large heart gene, as did Alydar.  It’s tough to say whether the gene was passed along to In Memory, however, examining her race and produce record, it’s probable that if she did inherit the gene, it was inactive. Her best daughter, Crownette might have inherited the X-Factor gene from her sire, Seattle Slew, a noted carrier, and passed on a recessive copy to  Dubai Sky’s second dam Danzig Crown.  Her sire Danzig is noted for passing the gene to his daughters.   

Dubai Sky’s dam House of Danzig most likely carries the x-factor gene and is passing it along.  Heart size varies from horse to horse. Other than an EKG, there’s no way to tell without 100% certainty whether a Thoroughbred has a larger than normal heart, although research has shown that the one outward physical characteristic that horses carrying an active large heart gene all have in common is curly leaf-like ears. Secretariat, Zenyatta, Affirmed, Seattle Slew, Shared Belief and California Chrome all have this trait and their race records support this theory.

I mention the large heart gene theory because while I’ve not laid eyes on Dubai Sky, photos indicate that he may carry the large heart gene and his near-perfect race record is also a point in his favor.  Anyway, it’s something to consider when evaluating the Derby hopefuls.

Damsire:

CHESTER HOUSE (Mr. Prospector - Toussaud, by El Gran Senor) was an internationally recognized 1 ¼ mile turf specialist. A winner of three stakes races in England, Chester House had placed in three Grade 1 events before capping off a four year career with a victory in the Arlington Million Handicap (G-1).

Chester House had one of the best pedigrees in the world.  By Mr. Prospector out of the blue hen Toussaud, the large Chestnut stallion was a half brother to four graded stakes winners, three of them Grade 1 winners. All five stakes horses were trained at one point by the late great Bobby Frankel, and include Belmont Stakes hero Empire Maker, Secretariat Stakes (G-1) winner Chiseling and the multiple Grade 1 heroine Honest Lady.  Frankel also trained the multiple Grade 2 winning sire Decarchy.  What was amazing about Chester House’s dam was that all off her stakes winning progeny were by different sires.  

This fabulous breeding set Chester House up to be one of the top stallions in the U. S.  Sadly, in the middle of his third year at stud, Chester House succumbed to cancer.  He left behind a legacy of stars.  From those three crops, Chester House produced an amazing 13% stakes winners, including the incredible Ventura, a Grade 1 winner over dirt, turf and who beat the boys in the Woodbine Mile (a/k/a Atto Mile).

Chester House’s daughters are starting to make an impact in the breeding shed. So far, they have produced 24 blacktype runners over dirt, turf and synthetics. To date, four are stakes winners at 1 1/8 miles, and only one, Twirling Candy, has placed at 1 ¼ miles. Chester House sired five winners at classic distances and he should pass stamina genes to his daughter’s progeny.

Outlook:

Dubai Sky is a powerful looking individual. He has nice leg extension without the high knee action seen in many turf horses.  He runs smoothly without wasted motion such as paddling or drifting.  Physically, he resembles his damsire Chester House.

No doubt, Dubai Sky is the most interesting horse to win a Kentucky Derby prep race. He’s proven over turf and Polytrack.  His pedigree hints that 1 ¼ miles is within his scope.  The colt has demonstrated class in all of his races and gives indication that he could be one of those rare “can run on anything” types. Add in the possibility of a large heart gene carrier, and we could be looking at a very serious Kentucky Derby spoiler. 

Could be are the cautionary words.  While Dubai Sky is a late nominee to the Kentucky Derby, the colt is currently galloping at Churchill Downs. He worked well over the Gulfstream Park dirt and the conservative Bill Mott wants to be sure Dubai Sky handles the Churchill surface in a breeze before confirming him as a definite Derby entrant.