Gainesway has every reason to be doubly proud of Anchor Down’s gate-to-wire victory in the $350,000 Kelso Handicap (G2) Oct. 8 at Belmont Park. Gainesway not only stands the winner’s sire, Tapit, but also bred the 5-year-old gray.
The first black-type stakes winner for Gainesway’s freshman sire To Honor and Serve was served up with a Latin flavor when his juvenile son Steps to Heaven won the Oct. 2 Clásico Fernández at Hipódromo Presidente Remón in Panama.
Vai, a 2-year-old filly by first-crop sire Tapizar, found the winner’s circle for the second time in as many starts Oct. 6 when taking a six-furlong allowance race at Santa Anita. Vai’s win gives Tapizar his third repeat winner; no freshman sire has more.
Adding to the mystique of Gainesway’s champion sire Tapit is one of his defining physical characteristics: his striking gray coat. But does the color of Tapit’s foals make them any more or less likely to become elite racehorses?
A pair of Gainesway-sired colts were among the top offerings Oct. 4 at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic fall yearling sale in Timonium, Md.
Leading sire Tapit got two new 2-year-old maiden winners Oct. 2, and both were homebreds making their career debuts for prominent racing stables.
Birdstone’s 5-year-old son Noble Bird has already taken owner John Oxley and trainer Mark Casse to a Grade 1 win at Churchill Downs, and if the handsome chestnut’s performance in the Oct. 1 Lukas Classic is any indication, another victory at the highest level just might be in their future. He took Churchill’s Stephen Foster Handicap last year.
Gainesway invites visitors to explore its new website at Gainesway.com. The website has been completely redesigned with a modern look, improved navigation and functionality, and new photography and video of the farm’s historic 1,500-acre property on Paris Pike in Lexington.
Tapizar, a top-three sire in several categories on the 2016 first-crop sire list, continues to show strong results during the Keeneland September yearling sale, with a filly bringing a winning bid of $165,000 during the Sept. 20 session.
Gekirin, a 2-year-old colt from the first crop of Tapizar, became the ninth winner for his sire Sept. 17 in an 1800m maiden race at Hanshin Racecourse in Japan. Making his career debut under jockey Christophe Lemaire, Gekirin led from gate to wire to win by an authoritative six lengths.