On April 16, Tawny Port put in some insurance on securing a guaranteed starting berth in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (USA-G1). While the 40 points he already had for finishing second in the Jeff Ruby Steaks (USA-G3) would have put him in the top 20 Derby candidates anyway after the dust cleared from this month's Derby preps, his win in the Stonestreet Lexington Stakes (USA-G3) added 20 more points to his total, vaulting him up to 11th on the leaderboard. He also proved his ability to handle dirt and further franked the form of Road to the Roses leader Epicenter, having finished fifth in the Risen Star Stakes presented by Lamarque Ford (USA-G2) behind that rival---a race that also included subsequent Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (USA-G1) winner Zandon, Blue Grass runner-up Smile Happy, and Sunland Park Derby (USA-G3) winner Slow Down Andy.
As a son of 2009 Santa Anita Derby (USA-G1) winner and Kentucky Derby runner-up Pioneerof the Nile, Tawny Port figures to get the Derby distance, but the dam's side of his pedigree may make that last furlong a little more open to question. He is a female-line descendant of Hidden Talent, winner of the faster division of the Kentucky Oaks in 1959 and the founder of a family that has inclined toward miler speed, though with the ability to blend successfully with more stamina-oriented mates.
A daughter of 1953 Kentucky Derby winner Dark Star, Hidden Talent won the Oaks when it was contested at 8.5 furlongs. She produced only four foals, but two were both stakes winners and broodmares of substantial merit. One was the Bald Eagle mare Too Bald, whose best distance range proved to be 7-8 furlongs in spite of the stamina of her sire. The 1986 Kentucky Broodmare of the Year, Too Bald was one of those rare gems whose foals tended to inherit both her speed and whatever distance proclivities their sire had and so threw five stakes winners ranging from the staying Exceller (sired by Vaguely Noble, a European champion whose best performances were over 12 furlongs) to American champion juvenile Capote (by Seattle Slew, whose stallion profile---A.P. Indy excepted---tended more toward miler speed than classic stamina).
Hidden Talent's other stakes winner was Turn to Talent (by Turn-to), who took down her biggest win in the 1966 Pageant Handicap over 8.5 furlongs. Bred to Hoist the Flag, Turn to Talent produced 1976 New Castle Stakes winner Hay Patcher, whose son Broad Brush (by 1971 American Horse of the Year Ack Ack, a top-class horse at up to 10 furlongs) could run 10 furlongs with any horse out there when his mind was on running.
A half sister by 1969 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner Majestic Prince to Hay Patcher, What a Queen won one race over a mile and 70 yards but may have tended to pass down some unsoundness bequeathed by her rather heavy-topped sire, for three of her six named foals never raced. Among those was Silver Greta whose sire Silver Buck (by Buckpasser) won the 10-furlong Suburban Handicap (USA-G1) in a rather subpar year for the American older male division.
Silver Greta's opportunities as a broodmare were limited in terms of the quality of the stallions she was put to, and she produced only three winners from nine named foals. The best of them was Trust Greta (by the winning Mr. Prospector horse Centrust), who won five of her 12 starts. She fit the miler profile of her family pretty well, and she was a definite improvement on her dam and granddam as a broodmare. Bred to the Storm Cat horse Sir Cat (a multiple Grade 2 winner on turf and capable of carrying his speed 9 furlongs), she produced multiple Grade 2 winner Surf Cat, who could likewise go 9 furlongs in graded company. Trust Greta also produced Rosie O'Greta, a Fight Over filly who defeated colts in the 1995 Tremont Breeders' Cup Stakes (USA-G3) as a juvenile but failed to train on.
Greta's Joy (by the Grade 1-winning Nureyev horse Joyeux Danseur, who took down his biggest win at 9 furlongs) was far removed from the ability of her half siblings. While she was consistent at her level, winning four races and placing in another six from 15 starts, that level was quite low, and she was strictly a sprinter. She was a much better producer than racer; all five of her foals were winners (including the Purge gelding Clean Up Joy, a stakes winner in Korea), and her best foal was actually a decent race mare. This was Livi Makenzie, a daughter of 2000 American champion 2-year-old male Macho Uno (later a winner of the 9-furlong Massachusetts Handicap, USA-G2). The winner of the 2013 Saylorville Stakes (a listed race over 6 furlongs), Livi Makenzie placed in five other stakes races, including two graded events, at distances up to a mile. Tawny Point is her fourth named foal and third winner, and after producing a dead foal in 2020, she gave birth to a 2021 filly by Always Dreaming.
There seems little reason to doubt that Tawny Port will handle 9 furlongs just fine, but whether that last furlong of the Derby is within his scope will probably depend on Pioneerof the Nile's contribution to his genetic mix. Regardless, he seems to be a nice colt who is improving at the right time, and after his last two starts, his talent is hidden no more.
As a son of 2009 Santa Anita Derby (USA-G1) winner and Kentucky Derby runner-up Pioneerof the Nile, Tawny Port figures to get the Derby distance, but the dam's side of his pedigree may make that last furlong a little more open to question. He is a female-line descendant of Hidden Talent, winner of the faster division of the Kentucky Oaks in 1959 and the founder of a family that has inclined toward miler speed, though with the ability to blend successfully with more stamina-oriented mates.
A daughter of 1953 Kentucky Derby winner Dark Star, Hidden Talent won the Oaks when it was contested at 8.5 furlongs. She produced only four foals, but two were both stakes winners and broodmares of substantial merit. One was the Bald Eagle mare Too Bald, whose best distance range proved to be 7-8 furlongs in spite of the stamina of her sire. The 1986 Kentucky Broodmare of the Year, Too Bald was one of those rare gems whose foals tended to inherit both her speed and whatever distance proclivities their sire had and so threw five stakes winners ranging from the staying Exceller (sired by Vaguely Noble, a European champion whose best performances were over 12 furlongs) to American champion juvenile Capote (by Seattle Slew, whose stallion profile---A.P. Indy excepted---tended more toward miler speed than classic stamina).
Hidden Talent's other stakes winner was Turn to Talent (by Turn-to), who took down her biggest win in the 1966 Pageant Handicap over 8.5 furlongs. Bred to Hoist the Flag, Turn to Talent produced 1976 New Castle Stakes winner Hay Patcher, whose son Broad Brush (by 1971 American Horse of the Year Ack Ack, a top-class horse at up to 10 furlongs) could run 10 furlongs with any horse out there when his mind was on running.
A half sister by 1969 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner Majestic Prince to Hay Patcher, What a Queen won one race over a mile and 70 yards but may have tended to pass down some unsoundness bequeathed by her rather heavy-topped sire, for three of her six named foals never raced. Among those was Silver Greta whose sire Silver Buck (by Buckpasser) won the 10-furlong Suburban Handicap (USA-G1) in a rather subpar year for the American older male division.
Silver Greta's opportunities as a broodmare were limited in terms of the quality of the stallions she was put to, and she produced only three winners from nine named foals. The best of them was Trust Greta (by the winning Mr. Prospector horse Centrust), who won five of her 12 starts. She fit the miler profile of her family pretty well, and she was a definite improvement on her dam and granddam as a broodmare. Bred to the Storm Cat horse Sir Cat (a multiple Grade 2 winner on turf and capable of carrying his speed 9 furlongs), she produced multiple Grade 2 winner Surf Cat, who could likewise go 9 furlongs in graded company. Trust Greta also produced Rosie O'Greta, a Fight Over filly who defeated colts in the 1995 Tremont Breeders' Cup Stakes (USA-G3) as a juvenile but failed to train on.
Greta's Joy (by the Grade 1-winning Nureyev horse Joyeux Danseur, who took down his biggest win at 9 furlongs) was far removed from the ability of her half siblings. While she was consistent at her level, winning four races and placing in another six from 15 starts, that level was quite low, and she was strictly a sprinter. She was a much better producer than racer; all five of her foals were winners (including the Purge gelding Clean Up Joy, a stakes winner in Korea), and her best foal was actually a decent race mare. This was Livi Makenzie, a daughter of 2000 American champion 2-year-old male Macho Uno (later a winner of the 9-furlong Massachusetts Handicap, USA-G2). The winner of the 2013 Saylorville Stakes (a listed race over 6 furlongs), Livi Makenzie placed in five other stakes races, including two graded events, at distances up to a mile. Tawny Point is her fourth named foal and third winner, and after producing a dead foal in 2020, she gave birth to a 2021 filly by Always Dreaming.
There seems little reason to doubt that Tawny Port will handle 9 furlongs just fine, but whether that last furlong of the Derby is within his scope will probably depend on Pioneerof the Nile's contribution to his genetic mix. Regardless, he seems to be a nice colt who is improving at the right time, and after his last two starts, his talent is hidden no more.
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