Multiple Grade 2 hero READ THE FOOTNOTES (Smoke Glacken) got off the mark as a freshman sire
on Thursday when his juvenile son Sapphire Prince landed the 1ST race at Great
Leighs in England. After racing well off the early pace beneath Mohammed Saeed,
the John Best trainee struck top gear late to win going away by 1 1/4 lengths.
The six-furlong maiden on the synthetic surface was hand-timed in 1:15.
Read the Footnotes was himself a precocious two-year-old in 2003. Trained
throughout his brief career by Richard Violette Jr., the bay romped by 9 1/4 lengths in
his debut at Saratoga and followed up with a 2 1/2-length victory in an
entry-level allowance at Belmont Park. He suffered his first loss when sixth in
the Champagne S. (G1), but rebounded with daylight scores in the Nashua S. (G3)
and Remsen S. (G2).
In his sophomore bow, Read the Footnotes engaged in a riveting stretch duel
with Second of June in the Fountain of Youth S. (G2) and, after a titanic
struggle, just prevailed by a neck. He was unable to duplicate that performance
in the Florida Derby (G1) one month later, winding up fourth. Read the Footnotes
raced only once more, finishing seventh in the Kentucky Derby (G1), and retired
with a record of 8-5-0-0, $450,660.
Out of the Al Nasr (Fr) mare Baydon Belle, Read the Footnotes hails from the
family of Stravinsky (Nureyev), an English/Irish highweight and noted stallion.
The seven-year-old Read the Footnotes stands in his home state, at Sequel
Stallions near Hudson, New York, for a fee of $8,500, live foal.