With earthquakes shaking our world recently, perhaps Seismic Beauty took it as a sign that it was time to generate a shockwave of her own. The 4-year-old filly, who races for Peter Leidel and My Racehorse, stepped it up in front-running style in Saturday’s Clement L. Hirsch Stakes (USA-G1) at Del Mar. Her 1½-length score over multiple Grade 1 winner Kopion was her first success at the top level, and it also punched her ticket for a “Win and You’re In” entry to the Breeders’ Cup Distaff (USA-G1)—which, it just so happens, is being run at Del Mar this year. This is also the track where Seismic Beauty broke her maiden at second asking as a 3-year-old, so she will go into the Distaff with a home-court advantage. A big, rather slow-developing type, she will also go into the Breeders’ Cup with ever-increasing maturity after three straight victories.
The fourth Hirsch winner for trainer Bob Baffert, Seismic Beauty was bred by 2500 Determined Stud, which bought the daughter of Uncle Mo in utero when they picked up the mare Knarsdale for US$430,000 at the 2020 Keeneland November sale. Now the sire of 113 stakes winners, Uncle Mo represents the Grey Sovereign branch of the Nasrullah male line, which entered the United States via Uncle Mo’s great-great-grandsire Caro in 1977. The stallion died in December 2024, but his son Nyquist is already a well-established successor, and more Uncle Mo sons have earned trials at stud at some of America’s top stud farms.
Knarsdale, the dam of Seismic Beauty, was not nearly so accomplished during her own racing days, topping out with a minor stakes placing. Nevertheless, she brought a fine pedigree to the mating. A daughter of longtime Darley stalwart Medaglia d’Oro (whose daughters have thus far produced 130 stakes winners), she is out of Grade 3-placed Secret File, whose sire Smart Strike, a two-time leader of the American general sire list, has 206 stakes winners to his credit as a maternal grandsire. Seismic Beauty is her first foal, and Knarsdale is also the dam of the winning Bernardini colt Cincazul and the unraced 2-year-old filly My Steel Magnolia (by Essential Quality). The mare’s most recent foals are a 2024 full sister to Seismic Beauty and a 2025 filly by Charlatan.
This line traces back to the mid-20th century matriarch Your Hostess via the mare’s great-granddaughter White Moon (by Hail to Reason), a product of the Bieber-Jacobs breeding program that never made it to the races. Put to the good sire Delta Judge, she produced the winner Cosmic Law, a half sister to minor stakes winner Silent White (by Silent Screen). From there, the family fortunes began ticking up again as Cosmic Law produced two stakes winners: El Perico (by Drone), a modest stakes winner at Hialeah, and Cosmic Tiger (by Tim the Tiger), a good juvenile whose two stakes wins included the 1985 Tempted Stakes (USA-G3). Cosmic Law also produced Hawaiian Joss (by Hawaii), dam of 1994 Gardenia Breeders’ Cup Handicap (USA-G3) winner Alphabulous (by Alphabatim); Heavenly Storm (by Storm Bird), dam of German listed stakes winner Henessy (by Alkalde); and Codetogo (by Lost Code), dam of stakes winner Cedar Knolls (by Broad Brush).
Cosmic Tiger carried on with three stakes winners of her own: Chillito, a Strawberry Road gelding who won the 1998 Flamingo Stakes (USA-G3); Once a Sailor (by Vice Regent), a multiple listed stakes winner at the Fair Grounds; and Grade 3-placed listed stakes winner Emery Board (by Grindstone), whose daughter Secret File is Seismic Beauty’s granddam. Cosmic Tiger also produced stakes-placed Embraceable (by Dehere), dam of Canadian restricted stakes winners Retraceable (by Medaglia d’Oro; dam of stakes winner Another Miracle, by American Pharoah) and Maritime Passion (by Stormy Atlantic). The last-named mare is the dam of 2016 Highlander Stakes (CAN-G2) winner Passion for Action (by Speightstown).
Generally speaking, Seismic Beauty’s female line has been solid but unspectacular for generations; prior to Seismic Beauty, it had not produced a Grade/Group 1 winner since 1971, when White Moon’s full sister Hippodamia, France’s champion juvenile filly of 1973, first saw the light of day. Nevertheless, good, solid female families of this sort can have an eruption of class at any time, and with Seismic Beauty, this one just did.
The fourth Hirsch winner for trainer Bob Baffert, Seismic Beauty was bred by 2500 Determined Stud, which bought the daughter of Uncle Mo in utero when they picked up the mare Knarsdale for US$430,000 at the 2020 Keeneland November sale. Now the sire of 113 stakes winners, Uncle Mo represents the Grey Sovereign branch of the Nasrullah male line, which entered the United States via Uncle Mo’s great-great-grandsire Caro in 1977. The stallion died in December 2024, but his son Nyquist is already a well-established successor, and more Uncle Mo sons have earned trials at stud at some of America’s top stud farms.
Knarsdale, the dam of Seismic Beauty, was not nearly so accomplished during her own racing days, topping out with a minor stakes placing. Nevertheless, she brought a fine pedigree to the mating. A daughter of longtime Darley stalwart Medaglia d’Oro (whose daughters have thus far produced 130 stakes winners), she is out of Grade 3-placed Secret File, whose sire Smart Strike, a two-time leader of the American general sire list, has 206 stakes winners to his credit as a maternal grandsire. Seismic Beauty is her first foal, and Knarsdale is also the dam of the winning Bernardini colt Cincazul and the unraced 2-year-old filly My Steel Magnolia (by Essential Quality). The mare’s most recent foals are a 2024 full sister to Seismic Beauty and a 2025 filly by Charlatan.
This line traces back to the mid-20th century matriarch Your Hostess via the mare’s great-granddaughter White Moon (by Hail to Reason), a product of the Bieber-Jacobs breeding program that never made it to the races. Put to the good sire Delta Judge, she produced the winner Cosmic Law, a half sister to minor stakes winner Silent White (by Silent Screen). From there, the family fortunes began ticking up again as Cosmic Law produced two stakes winners: El Perico (by Drone), a modest stakes winner at Hialeah, and Cosmic Tiger (by Tim the Tiger), a good juvenile whose two stakes wins included the 1985 Tempted Stakes (USA-G3). Cosmic Law also produced Hawaiian Joss (by Hawaii), dam of 1994 Gardenia Breeders’ Cup Handicap (USA-G3) winner Alphabulous (by Alphabatim); Heavenly Storm (by Storm Bird), dam of German listed stakes winner Henessy (by Alkalde); and Codetogo (by Lost Code), dam of stakes winner Cedar Knolls (by Broad Brush).
Cosmic Tiger carried on with three stakes winners of her own: Chillito, a Strawberry Road gelding who won the 1998 Flamingo Stakes (USA-G3); Once a Sailor (by Vice Regent), a multiple listed stakes winner at the Fair Grounds; and Grade 3-placed listed stakes winner Emery Board (by Grindstone), whose daughter Secret File is Seismic Beauty’s granddam. Cosmic Tiger also produced stakes-placed Embraceable (by Dehere), dam of Canadian restricted stakes winners Retraceable (by Medaglia d’Oro; dam of stakes winner Another Miracle, by American Pharoah) and Maritime Passion (by Stormy Atlantic). The last-named mare is the dam of 2016 Highlander Stakes (CAN-G2) winner Passion for Action (by Speightstown).
Generally speaking, Seismic Beauty’s female line has been solid but unspectacular for generations; prior to Seismic Beauty, it had not produced a Grade/Group 1 winner since 1971, when White Moon’s full sister Hippodamia, France’s champion juvenile filly of 1973, first saw the light of day. Nevertheless, good, solid female families of this sort can have an eruption of class at any time, and with Seismic Beauty, this one just did.
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