As a $125,000 listed stakes, the Tropical Park Derby may not have been the headliner of the American racing schedule Dec. 13. But across the pond in London, it was the race that was anxiously awaited by Kevin Doyle and his stable manager, Andy Smith.
Doyle and Smith gathered around the television to watch as their 3-year-old Kentucky homebred, Layabout, surged to the lead in the final sixteenth and just narrowly held off a late challenge by Tiz Dashing to win the 1 1/16-miles race by a nose.
READ: Layabout Holds Off Tiz Dashing in Tropical Park Derby
Once the photo was declared in their favor and the trophy was presented in the Gulfstream Park winner's circle, the two received a phone call from trainer Patrick Biancone.
"We had a laugh," Smith said. "On to the next one. January 24, we're hoping for."
Jan. 24 is the date of the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf (G1T), an ambitious goal for their developing gelding but one they are confident can be used as a launching pad to international targets in the Middle East in the following months. Those targets would be a big deal for the Scotland-based Doyle's Newbyth Stud operation.
Involved for many decades in the entertainment and property business, Doyle has always kept an interest in breeding Thoroughbreds. In Scotland, he keeps a few mares at Floors Castle. However, he also keeps two or three mares in Kentucky under the watchful eye of Peter O'Callaghan at Woods Edge Farm.
"He's quite deep into the business, but he's more an investor than anything else," Smith said of Doyle. "He enjoys it, and we try to make a few dollars when we can. He likes a turnover. We've had quite a bit of breeding stock in America that we turn over all the time."
Doyle's involvement in American bloodstock has included being an original owner of Trolley Song, the dam of 1995 Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) winner and influential sire Unbridled's Song, and breeding grade 3-placed War Plan, whom he sold for $700,000 at the 2004 Fasig-Tipton Florida Select 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale.
Currently, one of the mares he keeps at Woods Edge is Batalla Sindical, a Kentucky-bred daughter of Big Brown who raced in Argentina. Smith was approached with the opportunity to buy the mare. He was keen to do so given the filly is a half sister to 2019 Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) winner Blue Prize as they are both out of the mare Blues For Sale. The pedigree was further bolstered a few years later when another half sister, Blue Stripe, won the 2022 Clement L. Hirsch Stakes (G1) before being beat just a nose in the Distaff by Malathaat.
The mating of Batalla Sindical with Laoban that produced Layabout was one of fate. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she was delayed in reaching the United States and missed her original stallion booking. Looking for alternatives, Smith considered Uncle Mo. With his stud fee over budget, Smith settled on one of his sons, Laoban, at the suggestion of his friend, Omar Trevino.
Batalla Sindical was then entered in the 2021 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale while carrying Layabout. However, a cyst had formed on one of her legs and she RNA'd for $130,000. That turned out to be a stroke of luck when a good-looking horse was born, and Doyle and Smith decided to put them in training themselves.
Layabout proved to be quite perplexing when he first began his training. He made his first three starts on the Gulfstream Park dirt for Brian Lynch and never came close to winning. However, there were a few positives: he had shown that he was fast in the mornings and his maiden races ended up featuring good company—his first two starts being won by future Preakness Stakes (G1) starters River Thames and Gosger.
"He's a bit of a strange horse, he does things he wants to do," Smith said. "When he hits the front, he stops like a stone. He's really an awkward horse. He's awkward going in the gate, he's awkward in the mornings."
When Gulfstream's Championship Meet came to a close and no headway had been made by the time Lynch was ready to move back to Kentucky, the trainer suggested that they keep the horse in Florida. Smith then turned to another friend of his, Biancone.
"I said, 'Would you mind taking this horse? Apparently, he can run a bit, but we can't get him to go,'" Smith recalled. "Patrick treats him like a child and seems to get on very well with him. ... Patrick gave him a lot of tender loving care and found a few tweaks with him, and the rest is history."
Biancone started off hot with Layabout, breaking his maiden on the synthetic before a pair of grass wins, including the Bear's Den Stakes in August.
He then shipped up to Kentucky Downs and ran a closing fourth in the $2 million Gun Runner Stakes. When he returned to Gulfstream Park for the Showing Up Stakes Nov. 1, he took command turning for home and looked as though he'd pull away to win as he pleased. Instead, he just stayed there and was caught late by Souper Forces to lose by a half-length.
"He hit the front and was cruising, and for whatever reason, he sticks his toe in and just eases up," Smith said.
Junior Alvarado was aboard for the Tropical Park Derby and rode him to perfection. By the time Layabout made it to the lead, there was barely any ground left before the wire, allowing him to hold off Tiz Dashing's frantic final charge by a nostril.
"Alvarado said (Dec. 13) he loves the horse, he's a really good horse is what he said. Time will tell," Smith said. "Patrick is very patient. He's not going to hurry him, he spaces his races well. Patrick's a wonderful horsemen. He's a seriously top horseman, from France, to Hong Kong, to the States. Very patient, he knows the game."
With Layabout earning three wins in four starts on the Gulfstream Park grass, the team is hopeful to receive an invitation to the Pegasus Turf. Despite all his quirks, they are confident they have a real talent on their hand that can compete at the highest level and take that form overseas to Saudi Arabia and Dubai.
"We think he's better than his results," Smith said. "He's a 3-year-old gelding who is showing a bit of form. We want him to do well because we have some quite nice stock to come from the mare. We've got quite a lot to come, so we're hoping. We just go experiment, really."
Newbyth Stud still owns Batalla Sindical's 2-year-old Cupid filly, who Smith says is training very well, a Practical Joke yearling filly, and a "beautiful" Gunite foal. The mare is again in foal to Gunite.
