Shanghai Bobby Pedigree Profile

After a day of fantastic racing, highlighted by the victories of Princess of Sylmar, Laughing, Ron the Greek, Mucho Macho Man and Graydar, the racing world was greeted with a low upon hearing the news of Shanghai Bobby's retirement. Last year's Two Year Old Champ, newly healed from a pelvic fracture, won the 6 ½ furlong Aljamin Stakes just ten days ago. Shanghai Bobby suffered a injury to a suspensory ligament after the race. This dashed the hopes of his owner Starlight Racing and trainer Todd Pletcher to take the brilliant colt back to the Breeders' Cup.

Suspensory ligament injuries are one of the most common injuries to race horses. These ligaments prevent excessive extension of the fetlock joint when a horse runs. When a suspensory ligament is injured, there is usually heat and swelling in the area, sometimes with pain and lameness. This damage takes months to heal. Often, thoroughbreds can race again, but they may not gain the same level of form and run the risk of re-injuring the area or braking down all together.

 

 

So what's next for the Eclipse Award winner? Shanghai Bobby will head to Coolmore's Ashford Stud where he'll be in elite company with former stablemate Uncle Mo, Hansen and Lookin At Lucky. All four earned Eclipse Awards as Juvenile Champs.

SHANGHAI BOBBY(Harlan's Holiday - Steelin', by Orientate)

Race record: 8-6-1-0 ($1,857,000)

1^st – Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G-1) 1 1/16 miles

1^st – Champagne Stakes (G-1) 1 mile

1^st - Hopeful Stakes (G-2) 7F

1^st – Track Barron Stakes 5 ½ F

1^st - Aljamin Stakes 6 ½ F

2^nd – Holy Bull Stakes (G-2) 1 1/16 miles

 

 

Shanghai Bobby is bred to be a precocious miler. He's the most talented runner by Harlan's Holiday on the track and the latest son of the young sire to retire to stud. The stallion's best son at stud is CashCall Futurity hero Into Mischief. The second crop sire has produced two graded stakes winners, the sprinter Goldencents and the miler Vyjack. Harlan's Harlan's Holiday's son Denis of Cork, who was third in the Kentucky Derby behind Big Brown and second in the Belmont Stakes behind D'Tara, is a 2013 first crop sire. So far, he has five starters, two winners and a stakes placed runner from a crop of only 12 foals. Holiday's other notable son, the Grade 1 winning sprinter Majesticperfection, will see his first crop of babies race next year.

Shanghai Bobby is the first foal produced by his dam. Steelin' didn't make her debut until February of her three year old season and needed six starts to win her maiden. She evolved into a versatile allowance class runner in California, winning races up to 1 1/6 miles over dirt, turf and Polytrack. As a four year old, Steelin' won a listed sprint stakes at Fairplex. Steelin is the best foal produced by her dam Steel Band (by Carson City). Steel Band is a full sister to City Band, heroine of the Oak Leaf (G-1) and Golden Rod Stakes (G-3). Shanghai Bobby's third dam Wedding Band (by Mighty Appealing) was a listed stakes winner. There are a few other minor blacktype runners sprinkled throughout this female family.

Orientate (Mt. Livermore - Dream Team, by Cox's Ridge) is Shanghai Bobby's damsire. Although he won up to 1 1/16 miles, Orientate earned Champion Sprinter honors after a victory in the 2002 Breeders' Cup Sprint. He's a young damsire and besides Shanghai Bobby, is represented by only five other stakes winners, including this year's Test Stakes (G-1) heroine, Sweet Lulu (by Mr. Greeley).

 

 

The Harlan's Holiday/Orientate bloodline cross is working well. Only two foals have been produced by this cross, both are winners and one has won over $1 million.

So, what can we expect from Shanghai Bobby? Well, if it looks like a precocious sprinter-miler and runs like one...that's what we'll get. Shanghai Bobby was very fast and precocious. He ran just a tick off of the track records for 4 ½ furlongs at Aqueduct and 5 ½ furlongs at Belmont. Expect his babies to to come out running and make headlines in the sprint/miler division. A few may stretch their speed to 1 1/8 miles. Can Shanghai Bobby sire a classic horse? Anything is possible given the right genes, temperament, competition and race set up, but if he does, it will be the exception, not the norm.

 

Surface wise, Shanghai Bobby's babies will naturally take to the dirt. Both his sire and damsire's offspring are proficient over mud too. Not many of Harlan's Holiday's babies head to the turf or polytrack. He averages around 11% winners over turf and they are average synthetic track runners. 14% of Orientate's babies take to the lawn. We may see some decent runners by Shanghai Bobby over turf or synthetic tracks, especially if the distaff side is turf oriented, but they will be an exception.

Shanghai Bobby has the conformation of a sprinter-miler. He isn't as compact as some sprinters, although he has a slightly upright shoulder. The leggy colt has a thick neck and defined muscular shoulder, balanced by powerful hindquarters. Overall, he resembles his damsire Orientate, rather than the fuller-bodied Harlan's Holiday. While racing, Shanghai Bobby's gait had slightly high knee action, no wasted motion, average reach for his build and no paddling of his forelegs.

 

Shanghai Bobby descends from the line of Northern Dancer through Storm Cat. He carries the blood of Brilliant/Classic Chef-de-race Blushing Groom on his distaff side through Orientate and his second damsire the Brilliant/Intermediate Chef-de-race Carson City, whose damsire is Blushing Groom. Blushing Groom was a Champion Juvenile in France, plus a leading sire and broodmare sire in Europe. The majority of his U.S. offspring inherited speed.

The great thing about milers is that they work with any type of mare, adding a little stamina to the sprinters and some speed to the two-turn types. Below is a list of sire lines that should work well with Shanghai Bobby. It isn't all-inclusive.

Harlan's Holiday and Orientate have been successful with mares from the Mr. Prospector sire line. Carson City (and sons City Zip, Five Star Day), Forty Niner (Distorted Humor, Not For Love) Miswaki, Quiet American, Smart Strike (Curlin, English Channel), Gulch (Thunder Gulch), Gone West (Grand Slam, Speightstown, ), Two Punch, Unbridled, etc.

Mares from Northern Dancer's descendants have also clicked with Harlan's Holiday, his son Into Mischief and Orientate. Deputy Minister (Dehere, French Deputy, etc.), Danzig (Belong to Me, Hard Spun, War Front, War Chant), Dixieland Band (Dixie Union), Nijinsky, Stravinsky, Sadler's Wells (El Prado) etc.

Mares by other sires and their sons that may work with Shanghai Bobby include Tiznow, The Bold Ruler line (A.P. Indy, Glitterman, Pulpit and his sons, etc.), Halo (Saint Ballado), Candy Ride and Wild Again.

Undoubtedly, Shanghai Bobby will be supported by Coolmore and the mares sent to him will have a resume filled with blacktype and accomplished progeny. It's up to Bobby to prove himself in a new career.