The Lieutenant sires first winner at Saratoga

By Tom Law

Vacation Dance, a $90,000 purchase at this year’s Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May 2-year-olds in training sale, won his debut Sunday at Saratoga Race Course to become the first winner for the late New York-based sire The Lieutenant.

The 2-year-old New York-bred colt out of the Zensational mare Matinee Express won Sunday’s first race, a 5 ½-furlong state-bred turf maiden, for owners Sleeping Giant Stables, America’s Pastime Stables and KimDon Racing. Bred by Harry Landry and James Hogan and sold as a yearling by Harry L. Landry Bloodstock for $45,000 at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Eastern fall yearling sale, the colt was later purchased as a 2-year-old by David Doyle/Sleeping Giant Stable in Timonium.

A half brother to Triple Crown winner and Horse of the Year Justify, The Lieutenant stood the 2019 season at Sequel Stallions New York in Hudson before heading to Peru for the Southern Hemisphere breeding season.

The Lieutenant was one of four stallions killed by marauders at a raid on Haras Barlovento in December 2019.

“The Lieutenant will always hold a special place in our hearts,” said Carlos Manresa, Sequel’s director of operations. “Unfortunately, he only had the opportunity to sire one crop but our expectations are high. He was a very talented horse and his half-brother, Justify, is off to an amazing start as a sire.”

The Lieutenant sired 24 foals in his lone Northern Hemisphere crop, including a filly out of the Street Boss mare Sugar Boss that sold for $255,000 at this year’s OBS April sale and a colt out of the Storm Cat mare Janetstickettocats that sold for $135,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May sale.

Vacation Dance, who earned $48,400 for his victory Sunday, was The Lieutenant’s sixth starter.

“We had the opportunity to break, train and sell some exceptional ‘Lieutenants’ in Florida who have yet to make their starts but by all reports, should have exciting careers on the track,” Manresa said. “Vacation Dance ran a terrific race first time out to break his maiden at Saratoga and we couldn’t be happier for the connections. There simply is no better place to win.”

The Lieutenant, a son of Street Sense out of the Ghostzapper mare Stage Magic, won four of 15 starts and $345,882 during his career. He won the Grade 3 All American Stakes at Golden Gate Fields and placed in two other graded stakes including the Grade 2 Suburban in 2018 at Belmont Park.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2022/09/07/the-lieutenant-sires-first-winner-at-saratoga/

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