Curlin Retired.. Now Appears Lane's End bound..
 

just got this email... from Thoroughbred Daily News.

Curlin's Racing Career Concludes
Posted: 10:01 PM ET

Reigning Horse of the Year Curlin (Smart Strike--Sherriff's Deputy, by Deputy Minister) will not race in 2009, according to a report in Sunday's New York Times. Stonestreet Stable's Jess Jackson told the Times he was open to the idea of running Curlin again this year, but said that there weren't any races left in North America rich enough to attract his horse. He also ruled out a start in the Japan Cup Dirt Dec. 7 because of problems with quarantine regulations. Jackson told the newspaper that he felt the big chestnut had little left to prove on the racetrack. "I've been blessed to have him and to have seen him run over 20 some odd months," Jackson said. "I have such warm memories of him. I just don't see how it could get any better." Stud plans for next year have not been finalized, although one option is for the G1 Dubai World Cup hero to stand at Jackson's Stonestreet Farms in Lexington, Kentucky. Jackson told the Times that several major breeding farms in Kentucky have been in touch with him to express their interest in acquiring Curlin as a stallion. "I'm going to breed 20 or so of my very best mares to him, no matter where he stands," Jackson said. "And we have some beauties. I really am eager to see his colts and fillies race and see what he produces."

No cynisism here towards Curlin the horse

i know i'm shocked.

seriously tho, hope everyone enjoyed the show, as we know it's too seldom seen-and i doubt that'll be changing any time soon.

Curlin at Monmouth last year for the Breeders' Cup was the most impressive physical specimen I've ever seen. I wish him nothing but the best.

Great career....Kudos to Jackson for keeping him on the track.

We've landed on the moon!!!!!!:)

Is anyone on here old enough to remember when an owner wasn't given extra praise for keeping a 3yo on the track for his 4yo year because it was just the way things were done? I actually saw a post on another forum with someone saying that IEAH deserves credit for deciding to bring Stardom Bound back next year. Amazing.

Jess Jackson never disappoints in his grandiose lunacy of the importance of this horse.. There are rumors he is not well physically, so I guess there may be excuses, but how about these gems?

"To race merely on dirt for inadequate compensation and to deny his genes to the gene pool of thoroughbreds, that’s not something I wanted to do.”

Inadequate compensation? This guy is too funny. He said he would have raced him in International turf events where they race for the real money, but since Curlin wasn't good enough for that he'll retire him. Huh? And gee Jess, we're sorry that the series of $500,000-$1,000,000 Gr. I races on dirt in the U.S. aren't adequate compensation for your steroid-pumped gene pool specimen that missed his entire juvenile year with physical issues...

“He’s had a stellar racing career,” Jackson said. “I think he’s one of the top 10 horses since 1900. How he rates versus others, it’s not merely about statistics.”

This is so comical as to be barely worthy of a discussion. Curlin doesn't break the Top 50 since 1900.. let alone the Top 10. If you use the very credible Blood-Horse Thoroughbred Champions Top 100 of the 20th century as a guide, (which doesn't even include horses since 2000), Holy Bull is #64. Would you put Curlin ahead of Holy Bull? Exactly.. So call him #65 at best.

Curlin was a very nice horse who had a very good career and it was swell to have him around as a 4yo. One plus of his retirement is it will mean that much less of Jackson to have to endure.

So true . It would be wonderful if Jackson kept Curlin at 20 mares . But you know how these factory farms are . 200 + is no problem for them .

nice post, all valid points. and his genes are in the gene pool already...now, if we could get more crooks to buy more horses and get thrown in jail, we could have more starters at four.

since you mentioned it...this is an excerpt from a bloodhorse article:


The number of stallions bred to 100 or more mares increased from 108 last year to 117 in 2004. First-year stallion Hold That Tiger led all stallions with 199 mares bred, six more than Fusaichi Pegasus. Hold That Tiger, a grade I-winning son of Storm Cat--Beware of the Cat, by Caveat stands at Ashford Stud near Versailles, Ky. A half-brother to Belmont (gr. I) winner Editor's Note, Hold That Tigers's 2004 stud fee was $15,000. Fusaichi Pegasus also stands at Ashford.

In fact, the top five stallions by mares bred all stand at Ashford. Grand Slam (191 mares covered), Van Nistelrooy (186), and Tale of the Cat (185) round out the top five.

It's a marketing ploy for higher stud fees from a guy who made his fortune selling sh!tty wine in a box. Would you expect any less?

#65? More like #165.

does anyone really think curlin will turn out well as a sire? i don't see him being an ap indy or mr p. or even close.

Honestly, the majority of stallions, even champion level runners, don't turn out to be A.P. Indy or Mr. P (who was, by the way, not a champion on the track-he wasn't even a graded SW). He may be, like Point Given and Turkoman and Black Tie Affair and Affirmed, too much of a stayer to sire the kind of runner that the market wants today - hot 2yo, miler who can stretch to 9f at 3; retire to stud and make more of the same.

I guess Stormy Atlantic won the gluttony of mares bred title this year with 199 .
http://breeding.bloodhorse.com/marelistreport.asp

well, no joke. i just tire of jacksons talk about how we need curlin in the gene pool. i don't see him as being anything terribly special.
but then, i tire of much of jackson trash talk.

It was the way things were done when one wanted to be a part of the sport of horse racing. It changed when living creatures were suddenly touted as investments for outsiders.

The 80's permanently changed the horse business, any "horse" business - be it STB & TB racing, hunter-jumpers, Arabs, QH, etc - it all changed forever after a dressed-up pyramid scheme became the business model.

Funny thing is, that has remained a major business model. It's 2008, and the inflow of new money has been gone for some time. Now it's really ugly.

I blame Leslie Combs and Nashua, myself :rolleyes:

They've been more concerned about "the industry" than the sport for a long time .

You put things in bold. I shouldn't have needed further warning to avoid drinking a beverage while reading these quotes. Completely my fault. Of course I think the gag reflex would've kicked in regardless.

i wonder which of the top horses since 1900 (unlike merlinsky, i originally thought he had said since 1990--not quite as laugh and spew-inducing when you read it as such) he would remove to put curlin in there???? i'd have a hard time trying to squeeze him into the top 10 since '90 myself...

oh, wait..you know-i bet i know what jackson really meant. he meant top ten since the turn of the century, and had forgotten we're now in the 20's, not the 19's. what else could it be?