It was a successful day of racing for WAR FRONT on Saturday when the top stallion’s three stakes placers were led by a new stakes winner in Cinema Stakes victor War at Sea.
Looking for his third straight win, the Ron Ellis-trained War at Sea was making his stakes debut and got off to a top start at the level. Racing over 1 1/8 miles on the turf, the 3-year-old tracked the leading Beef Winslow throughout with jockey Mike Smith asking him to make a challenge around the turn.
By the time the field hit the final furlong, War At Sea was eye-and-eye with the leader and pulled away late to win by three quarters of a length with Cabo Spirit also finishing ahead of the pacesetter.
War At Sea has now won both his starts since breaking his maiden in March.
“He’s a real talented colt and Ron’s done a great job with him, spacing his races and giving him time,” Smith said. “He’s a real big horse, but I told Ron, he always seems to have an ace up his sleeve and he hasn’t had to use it yet, so that’s a good thing. He’s on the improve, no question. What’s good about him as well is he’s quick for a big horse. He gets out of the gate good and puts you in a happy spot and after that, it’s just a matter of pointing him in the right direction.”
A $525,000 2-year-old purchase by his trainer last year from Eddie Woods, War at Sea runs for Doubledown Stables. He was bred by Lewis Thoroughbred Breeding and is one of two foals out of the stakes winning Serena’s Song daughter Serena Melody.
War At Sea is the 16th stakes winner to hail from champion racehorse and bluehen broodmare Serena’s Song’s line. Others in that group include Group 1 winners Sophisticat and Honor Code.
WAR FRONT also registered a pair of runner-up finishes in stakes yesterday with all three performers coming from his 3-year-old crop. That pair followed Annapolis’s second in Friday’s Penn Mile (G2).
Napoleonic War was second in the Pennine Ridge Stakes (G2) in his fourth career start and the stakes placed Smokin’ T added another blacktype placing to his record with a second in the Audubon Stakes, missing the victory by just a head.
| Stallion | Stakes Horses (%) |
|---|---|
| WAR FRONT | 28.9% |
| Not This Time | 23.3% |
| Gun Runner | 22.6% |
| Munnings | 22.2% |
| Medaglia d’Oro | 20.0% |
| Uncle Mo | 16.9% |
| Constitution | 15.5% |
| Nyquist | 15.0% |
| Tapit | 14.3% |
| Into Mischief | 14.3% |
WAR FRONT is again showing his success as a sire with 13 stakes performers from 45 runners in his 2019 crop – striking at a rate of 28.9% stakes performers to runners – more than double of that than perennial leading sires Into Mischief and Tapit. That group includes three stakes winners, led by the Grade 2 winning Annapolis and the Group 3 winner and multiple Group 1-placed Ancient Rome.
In all, WAR FRONT has 10.5% stakes performers in 2022, led by three stakes winners. His 2022 stakes performers rate is ahead of stallions such as Into Mischief (9.66%), Uncle Mo (9.95%), Munnings (8.21%), and Quality Road (8.99%).