One of the most successful ownership groups in recent years with a reputation of purchasing high-quality yearlings added another grade 1 winner to their roster May 20, when National Treasure emerged victorious in the 148th Preakness Stakes (G1) over a field of six other 3-year-old colts vying for the middle jewel of the Triple Crown.
The ownership group behind the horse, led by SF Racing's Tom Ryan, celebrated the win and reflected on the path which led them to the classic winner's circle Saturday.
"Yesterday, it just worked out as we hoped; things mostly don't work out as you draw them up, but yesterday it did," Ryan said.
National Treasure, a son of Lane's End sire Quality Road , was bred in Kentucky by esteemed breeder Peter Blum and consigned as Hip 13 to the Fasig-Tipton New York Saratoga Select Yearling Sale by long-time partner Bridie Harrison. Ryan and partners were committed to devoting a sizable portion of their budget to buying the colt, and when the hammer dropped at $500,000, National Treasure became part of their winning program.
"He was Hip 13, one of the first horses we had seen very early in the sale," Ryan said. "It was a unanimous nod of the head, wink, and smile. He fits the profile and is the silhouette of the style of commercial athletic racehorse we look to buy."
"He's a horse that, when we saw him, had all the criteria we need in a horse, but he had extra stuff. He had a presence about him and was a classic horse; it was hands down we all agreed…we were getting this horse, it didn't matter that his Hip was 13, and your'e superstitious or whatever," commented agent Donato Lanni, who signed the ticket for National Treasure. "The fact that he was also already named, so we didn't want to change the name. Peter (Blum) comes up with great names for these horses."
The team, which all agreed on adding the yearling to the roster of future runners, included Ryan, Lanni, John Moynihan, and trainer Bob Baffert.
The colt out of the Medaglia d'Oro mare Treasure races in partnership with SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert Masterson, Stonestreet Stables, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, and Catherine Donovan.
"We narrow the group by specific sires and pedigree but more so by the sire. He's by Quality Road and has been at the top of our list for a long time, and after this reward, he will certainly continue to be," said Ryan. "He had a lot of the good qualities that Quality Road can bring, and you could also see a little bit of Medaglia d'Oro in the horse, so we felt like we were getting the best of both worlds. The horse looked like he had quickness but looked like he was going to be able to carry his speed."
Harrison's Hurricane Place Farm, the nursery which raised 2020 Kentucky Derby (G1) and Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) winner Authentic , sold the then yearling to the partnership of SF Bloodstock and Starlight West for $350,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
Perhaps Lanni and Ryan felt a bit of déjà vu in purchasing National Treasure, but they drew on their knowledge, past experience, and relationship with Bridie Harrison to secure the must-have horse.
"We've now got a Preakness winner and a Derby winner from her consignment," Ryan said. "We went into the Preakness feeling that Authentic was going to be a winner for us, but it turned out we just had to wait a little while, and it was National Treasures, coming from the same draft.
"Bridie raises her horses very naturally; she does a good job. What I love about Bridie is that we have a relationship where either Donato or I can ask her a question she will answer transparently; I love that about her."
The preliminary list is put together by Ryan and funnels through the next step on the sales grounds with Lanni. Further inspection by Baffert and Moynihan culls that list even further. The Hall of Fame trainer plays an imperative role in managing these horses after purchase; yearlings and juveniles go through a systematic program of turnout, pre-training, and getting their feet on the track for the first time, all before they head to Baffert's barn.
"If we find the product, we do our best to buy it," said Ryan. "There is a plan, but it's very flexible. Finding the horses is the hard part, the ones that fit the program. We can put together a long list, but you know, by the time Bob works his way through that list, it becomes very tight, and that's exactly what we want, and that was part of our premise of doing this effectively.
"Typically, we give them a month or six weeks at Margaux Farm just to decompress, to be horses for a little while before we go into the next phase of the system. Then they head down to Ocala to Angela and Eddie Woods—and talk about good people, their style and approach to management is top-class. I never have to worry. Eddie knows what it takes to prepare a horse to move into the next phase, which is over to Los Alamitos to Mike Marlow; they work through Mike's system for sometimes two or three, sometimes five or six works, and then into Bob's program. You know, the cream rises to the top."
The partnership has stood by Baffert through the years of ups and downs, and fittingly, the "Avengers" as they are known, all have a common goal: to win classic races and have fun doing it.
"This is a great group of guys; we nicknamed them the Avengers because we all come together; it's a team effort," said Lanni. "Everybody works together, there is no ego, everyone comes together to be successful, and it works."
Ryan shared a similar feeling: "It's amazing to share this with so many of our partners. I feel so strongly about syndicates, and I take great pride that we have a syndicate put together here. I want to see the development of more and more syndicates going forward. I really feel like it can revitalize the racing in this country."
