Freshman Sire Watch: Knicks Go notches 1st winner
Four freshman sires registered winners in the past week, with Rock Your World adding two victories to his tally and Knicks Go scoring his first winner. Rock Your World's Shake and Rattle broke through at Churchill Downs on Sunday, and Oriole Way captured his maiden at Monmouth Park on Saturday. Knicks Go celebrated his first winner when Ziggity Zag scored at Horseshoe Indiana on Tuesday.
Ziggity Zag is a 2-year-old filly out of the Creative Cause mare Lounge Act. She is owned by Flying Dutchman Stable and trained by Brian Lynch.
2021 horse of the year Knicks Go was a graded-stakes winner from the ages of 2 to 5, with his biggest scores coming in back-to-back Breeders' Cup wins, in the Dirt Mile and Classic, plus the Pegasus World Cup (G1). He stands at Taylor Made Farm for a $12,500 stud fee.
Florida Derby winner Known Agenda also added to his winning total when Pure Eloquence broke her maiden at Gulfstream Park on June 19.
The recent success from Rock Your World has moved him into a tie with Leinster at the top of the standings with four wins each, though Rock Your World has one fewer starter.
Leinster maintains his position atop the standings with four winners from 11 starters. The son of Majestic Warrior holds a solid 36.4% win rate, which continues to set the standard among debut stallions.
Although Leinster and Rock Your World lead in total victories, several stallions continue to post impressive strike rates with limited opportunities. Charlatan maintains a 50.0% win rate with two wins from four starts, and Yaupon matches that rate with two wins from four starters. No Parole remains undefeated with one win from one start.
Freshman sire standings
| Sire | Starts | Wins | Places | Shows | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leinster | 11 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 36.4% |
| Rock Your World | 10 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 40.0% |
| Maxfield | 9 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 22.2% |
| Charlatan | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 50.0% |
| Yaupon | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 50.0% |
| Beau Liam | 9 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 11.1% |
| Code of Honor | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 14.3% |
| Knicks Go | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 14.3% |
| Raging Tiger | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 33.3% |
| Galawi | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 33.3% |
| Known Agenda | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 33.3% |
| Modernist | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 50.0% |
| Listing | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 50.0% |
| No Parole | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Raging Bull | 10 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0.0% |
| Chance It | 9 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0.0% |
| By My Standards | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0% |
| Tacitus | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0% |
| Independence Hall | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Basin | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
This week's entries
The freshman sires have 26 entries in the next three days, with several promising opportunities for additional first-time winners. Thursday's card at Churchill Downs features a competitive third race with multiple freshman-sire runners, and Saturday's action includes the return of Lilies N Paradise, the recent winner for Maxfield at Churchill Downs on June 6.