A tough racehorse who won six consecutive races, led by the Metropolitan Handicap (G1), SILVER STATE was a popular first season sire last year with 171 mares visiting his court and it’s no surprise he’s earned Gold status in the Thoroughbred Daily News Value Sires – First Foals Due piece.
“All the Classic branding in SILVER STATE’s pedigree, moreover, boiled down into plenty of commercial speed–this is the author of five triple-digit Beyers, remember, who launched his big spree with a seven-length romp in a sprint–and he is a thing of beauty. As a $450,000 yearling, he was the fourth most expensive Hard Spun of his crop but has since matured into his big frame as a real prince. He’s 16.3 but so buoyant and smooth that you would barely know it,” said author Chris McGrath.
It’s the second year in a row SILVER STATE earns a spot on the podium after taking the Silver position last year but McGrath admits his popularity with breeders earns him a rise in the ratings this year.
“The silver medal was too obvious a magnet for a horse bearing this name last year, but in the circumstances, it feels imperative to move him up a step,” he said. “If his first book has a surprisingly modern size, the horse himself is a throwback– from his pedigree, to that invincible sequence wrought from resilience as well as class–and he feels a beautiful fit at his grandsire’s home farm.”
Read more of McGrath’s assessment about SILVER STATE on Thoroughbred Daily News here.