Zaftig - Breeders' Cup 25 Contender Page
Source: Thoroughbred Times

Doremifasollatido - Breeders' Cup 25 Contender Page
Source: Thoroughbred Times

2007 September Sale Graduates Sweep Juvenile Stakes on Saturday
Source: Keeneland.Com
Date Posted: September 13, 2008

Charitable Man and Doremifasollatido, both sold at last year’s September Yearling Sale, scored wins in Saturday’s $250,000 Futurity Stakes (G2) and $250,000 Matron Stakes (G2), respectively, at Belmont.

Royal Oath earned his first stakes win on Saturday as he prevailed by a half-length after a stretch-long duel with pacesetter Ice Bear and held back a determined late bid from stablemate Seaside Retreat in the $306,120 King Edward Handicap (Can-G2) at Woodbine.

Zaftig backed up her strong Nassau County win with an even more impressive victory over Indian Blessing in the Acorn. With only four horses in the field, Zaftig kept the front-running Indian Blessing - last year's 2-year-old filly champion - within close proximity through the early stages, before rallying past her in upper stretch.

Zaftig won by 4 1/2 lengths and covered the mile in 1:34.50, earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 113, the highest figure earned by a 3-year-old of any gender this year.

"She looked smoother the other day than I've ever seen her," Jerkens said. "In her other races, she's switching leads and doing other stupid stuff."

Zaftig, a daughter of Gone West, is now 3 for 5 for owners Susan and John Moore.

Meanwhile, Acorn runner-up Indian Blessing will likely be kept at shorter distances than a mile. While the Grade 1 Test at Saratoga at seven furlongs on Aug. 2 is the major goal, there is a chance she could run in the Grade 1 Prioress at six furlongs at Belmont on July 5.

Zaftig Collars Choice in Nassau County
by Blood-Horse Staff
Date Posted: May 3, 2008
Last Updated: May 4, 2008

(from Belmont Park release)

Zaftig took full advantage of a nice set-up and overtook odds-on favorite Carolyn’s Cat in the lane en route to a 5 1/4-length victory in the $208,400 Nassau County Breeders' Cup (gr. III) at Belmont Park May 3.

The Gone West filly, owned by Susan Moore and M and M Thoroughbred, earned her first stakes win in just her fourth race. She rated comfortably under jockey Jorge Chavez in the seven-furlong event for 3-year-old fillies as Carolyn’s Cat and Irish Smoke went at it from the start.

Carolyn’s Cat, who had won three of her last four starts, emerged with the lead entering the stretch. However, her earlier battle, fought through fractions of :22.57, :45.01 and 1:10.08, had taken a toll on both front-runners.

Carolyn's Cat offered no resistance as Zaftig came home the easy winner in 1:22.74.

“On paper, it didn’t look like there was anyone to go with the favorite,” said winning trainer Jimmy Jerkens. “Heading into the turn, I wasn’t feeling too confident. For some reason, she can’t hold her position around the turn. She kind of got sandwiched and was on the wrong lead. But then Jorge kind of pushed Joe Bravo (aboard J Z Warrior) out, and when she hit the straightaway, she got the job done.”

Chavez liked the response he got from Zaftig, who could appear next on Belmont Stakes Day, June 7, in the $250,000 Acorn (gr. I) for 3-year-old fillies at one mile. Sent off as the third choice in a field of seven, she paid $11.60, $4.80 and $4.70

“I knew the favorite was the only speed,” Chavez said of his second winner on the afternoon. “I was hoping someone would go with her, and that’s what happened. She kicked in really well at the end.”

Carolyn’s Cat, who carried high weight of 122, held for the place under Alan Garcia, 4 1/4 lengths ahead of J Z Warrior ($4.70) in third. Ready for Fortune, Dagger, Irish Smoke and Paint Me Red trailed.

Zaftig last raced in Aqueduct's Comely (gr. II) April 12, finishing fourth as the 7-5 favorite on the strength of an 8 3/4-length maiden score at Gulfstream Park in February. She has two victories and earnings of $158,700 after picking up the winner's share of $125,640.

(Chart, Equibase)

Copyright © 2008 The Blood-Horse, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

COURT VISION Rallies To Win Iroquois Stakes
Source: Associated Press
October 28, 2007

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Court Vision rallied to beat Halo Najib by a half-length Sunday in the $171,150 Iroquois Stakes for 2-year-olds at Churchill Downs.

Defending champion Dancing Edie returned $3 and $3, while Memorette was another nose back in third and paid $3.80. Take the Ribbon was fourth and Andrea was last.

Price Tag, the morning-line favorite trained by Hall of Famer Bobby Frankel, was scratched after showing signs of colic on Thursday. The 4-year-old filly was expected to return to training in a few days.

But Frankel still had reason to celebrate since he trains Precious Kitten, who was second to Dancing Edie much of the way until taking the lead in the upper stretch.

The victory, worth $240,000, increased Precious Kitten's career earnings to $889,688, with five wins in 15 starts. The 4-year-old filly was coming off a second-place finish in the $1 million CashCall Mile at Hollywood Park last month. 

Note:  Precious Kitten is a half-sister to Kitten's Joy, winner of $2,075,791.  Precious Kitten's dam, Kitten's First, was purchased for $41,000 at auction by Cecil Seaman for owners Kenneth L. & Sarah K. Ramsey.  To date her progeny have earned $3,390,733.

For yearlings, it's thin to win, study says
August 2006

By GLENYE CAIN - DRF
LEXINGTON, Ky. - Thinking of feeding that small yearling to help him grow? Thinking of buying a 2-year-old that's carrying a little too much fat? You might want to think again, according to results of a long weight study by Cecil Seaman, founder of the Thoroughbred consulting firm Cecil Seaman and Company.

Seaman is best known as "the horse-measurer" who for 30 years has meticulously cataloged horses' physical measurements in a database. Starting with a standard equation that translates key measurements such as barrel length and girth size into weight estimates, Seaman has compared the weights of 44,310 yearlings and 2-year-olds to their ultimate racing performance. He said the study showed that horses who are overweight tend to have shorter and less profitable racing careers.

Seaman's weight study involved horses he has measured from 1970 to 2001, mostly at public yearling and juvenile sales. He divided horses into six groups with weight designations ranging from "underweight" to "obese." Forty-six percent of the horses in the study fell into overweight categories, while 54 percent were underweight to ideal weight.

According to Seaman's data, the 11,142 young horses who measured as "ideal weight" earned an average of $64,339 from 16.32 average lifetime starts. The 4,441 horses who measured as "obese" earned an average of $29,345 from 14.4 starts, while 8,465 horses who measured as "moderately overweight" youngsters earned $49,062, on average, from 15.67 starts. A group of 3,128 "underweight" young horses outperformed the fat group, too, earning an average of $60,205 from 16.06 starts.

To decide on an ideal weight, Seaman started by using the measurements of over 70 Grade 1 winners he had measured within 15 days of their Grade 1 wins. Using a growth-projection formula devised by Ohio State University, he projected the yearlings' and juveniles' likely adult weights, based on their youthful measurements. The percentage of deviation from the Grade 1 winners' optimum racing weights represented the amount the young stock was overweight or underweight. The "ideal weight" designation is 2 percent under or over the optimum weight; "obese" is 13 to 20 percent over; "moderately overweight" is 6 to 8 percent over; and "underweight" is 3 to 10 percent under.

Seaman contends that the fewer starts among heavier horses suggest extra weight contributes to unsoundness.

Interestingly, the average auction price for the ideal-weight young horses was $97,026, whereas the average price for the obese horses was $109,413. Seaman, who also buys horses on behalf of clients, says he believes bigger horses sometimes appear more impressive to buyers.

"People are under the impression that size is speed in horses, but the larger and heavier they are doesn't make them faster," Seaman said. "And if they are too heavy, it just makes them unsound.

"It doesn't mean they can't win," he said. "But if they are overweight as yearlings and 2-year-olds, obese horses only earn 46 percent of what the ideal-weight horses earn. It's not like cattle! The cattle payday comes at the scale per pound, our payday comes on the racetrack in the winner's circle."

Seaman's comparisons also showed that the 9,610 young horses he tabbed as "acceptable weight" - 3 to 5 percent over the ideal for body type - had 7.2 percent stakes winners, the highest percentage of any of the weight groups. The lowest percentage was among the obese horses, which had 5.9 percent stakes winners from 4,441 horses.

Underweight and ideal-weight groups each had 2.2 percent graded stakes winners. That dropped to 2 percent with "acceptable weight" horses and fell below 2 percent for horses ranging from moderately overweight to obese.

After reviewing his data, Seaman's advice to breeder and buyer - don't fall for fat.

"The most important part a breeder can do is to protect that factory, the mare," he said. "In the long run, they'll be better off if they raise horses at the optimum weight, because it will help increase the value of the mares.

"For buyers, the bottom line is, if you're buying a racehorse prospect as a yearling or a 2-year-old, you want to buy a horse that's thinner and keep him that way on the racetrack."

For more information on this Study visit our Studies section and view the information under Weight Study | August 31, 2006

For the published DRF article visit: http://www.drf.com/drfNewsArticle.do?NID=76927&subs=0&arc=1

Five Breeders' Cup Entrants Out Of Cecil Seaman-Selected Mares
October 20, 2004

The Breeders' Cup pre-entries were announced today and five of the runners are out of General Combing A+ mares selected by Cecil Seaman & Co. for our clients. Grade 1 winner NOTHING TO LOSE, out of Cherlindrea (by Clever Trick), is likely to be the favorite for the Mile-G1. His dam was selected by us for Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey, as was Kitten's First (by Lear Fan). The latter produced G1 winner KITTEN'S JOY, the likely favorite in the Turf-G1.

Two mares we selected for Jeff Nielsen also have produced contenders for the Breeders' Cup. They are Danzigs Fashion (by A Native Danzig), dam of G1 winner ISLAND FASHION, who is competing in the Distaff-G1, and Ticket to Houston (by Houston), dam of G2 winner RUNWAY MODEL, who will go to post in the Juvenile Fillies-G1.

Antonia Bin, dam of Juvenile Fillies also eligible Culture Clash, also scored high marks under our system.

Cecil Seaman Has #1 ROI Among Buyers Of Last Decade
July 28, 2004

In the highly competitive yearling sales market, the name of Cecil Seaman & Co. stands alone and atop all buyers as number one by Return on Investment (ROI), one of the most telling and important statistics of a buyer's success. The Thoroughbred Times study completed in 2003 [97Kb] for the decade of 1990-2000 examined all buyers of 100 or more yearlings who averaged $30,000 or more per yearling. With 215 yearlings purchased for $8,837,000 (an average of $41,102), Seaman saw his runners earn $14,954,959, or a ROI of 69%. What makes the number even more impressive is that the vast majority of other buyers had a negative ROI, including some of the most recognizable names in the business. In addition, the Seaman purchases resulted in 19 stakes winners.

Profitable yearlings for Seaman's clients are not limited to the 1990s, however, and have clearly carried the momentum of success into the new decade. For example, in 2003 (the most recent year for which statistics are complete), five of Seaman's clients are among the Leading 100 Owners of 2003. The top owners list is compiled by giving equal weight to total earnings, average earnings per starter, percentage of stakes winners from starters, and percentage of graded stakes winners from starters.

In addition, a February 21, 2004, article in the Thoroughbred Times [350Kb - Adobe Acrobat Reader required] breaks down leading owners in 10 different categories, including average earnings per starter and percentage of stakes winners. At least one Seaman client appears on each of the 10 lists. One of the most successful of 2003 owners (appearing #13 on the list) is the combination of Susan and John Moore. Nearly 85% of their 13 runners were winners, including a phenomenal four graded stakes winners (30.8% GSW from starters).