Stormy Liberal
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Stormy Liberal (foaled April 12, 2012) is a retired American
Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...
racehorse. He broke his
maiden Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...
in his second start at age two but won only once in the next two years. In October 2016, he was claimed by trainer Peter Miller for $40,000 and went on to become a multiple stakes winner, including back-to-back wins in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint in 2017 and 2018. He was named the American Champion Turf Horse of 2018.


Background

Stormy Liberal is a bay gelding who was bred in Kentucky by Dapple Bloodstock & Gryphon Investments. He was sired by Stormy Atlantic, a stakes-winning son of leading sire
Storm Cat Storm Cat (February 27, 1983 – April 24, 2013) was an American Thoroughbred stallion whose breeding fee during the peak of his stud career was $500,000, the highest in North America at the time. He was the leading sire in North America in 1999 ...
. Stormy Liberal became his sire's 100th black-type winner when he won the Clocker's Corner Stakes in 2017. His dam Vassar, by
Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...
, had previously produced stakes winner Shimmering Moment. She is a granddaughter of successful broodmare Luv Luvin', the family of
Henrythenavigator Henrythenavigator (foaled February 28, 2005) is an American-bred and Irish-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. He won the 2000 Guineas, the Irish 2,000 Guineas, the St. James's Palace Stakes and the Sussex Stakes in 2008. After he finished second ...
and
Saffron Walden Saffron Walden is a market town in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England, north of Bishop's Stortford, south of Cambridge and north of London. It retains a rural appearance and some buildings of the medieval period. The population was 15, ...
. Stormy Liberal was originally offered for sale by Dapple Stud at the
Fasig-Tipton The Fasig-Tipton Company, Inc. is an American auction house for Thoroughbred and Standardbred horses. Founded in 1898, it is the oldest auction company of its kind in North America. The company has offices in Lexington, Kentucky, Elkton, Maryla ...
2015 select yearling sale but did not meet his reserve at $165,000. He was ultimately sold as a two-year-old in training at the Ocala sales for $100,000 to Dennis O'Neill, acting as the agent for his brother
Doug O'Neill Douglas F. O'Neill (born May 24, 1968) is an American Thoroughbred horse trainer. He was born in Dearborn, Michigan, and resides in California, where he trained the 2012 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner, I'll Have Another, and 2016 Kent ...
. Stormy Liberal was originally trained by O'Neill for Success Racing.


Racing career

Stormy Liberal made his first start on September 3, 2014 in a maiden special weight run at a distance of furlongs on the then-existing
all-weather track An all-weather running track is a rubberized, artificial running surface for track and field athletics. It provides a consistent surface for competitors to test their athletic ability unencumbered by adverse weather conditions. Historically, v ...
at
Del Mar Del Mar is Spanish for "of the sea" or "from the sea". It may refer to: Places in the United States * Del Mar, California * Del Mar High School, located in San Jose, California * Del Mar racetrack, located in Del Mar, California * Del Mar Fai ...
. He pressed the pace while racing wide around the turn, but tired and faded to eighth place. On October 10, he was entered in a maiden special weight over Santa Anita's downhill turf case. He broke well and entered into a speed duel with Dream Police for the early lead. Turning into the stretch, Stormy Liberal took the lead then held off a late run from Battle of Evermore to win by a length. Stormy Liberal was then stepped up in class to enter the Cecil B. DeMille Stakes at Del Mar on November 30, run over a distance of one mile. He stalked the early pace and took the lead in mid-stretch but was passed late by Conquest Typhoon. Stormy Liberal finished his two-year-old campaign by finishing tenth in the Eddie Logan Stakes on December 27. At age three, Stormy Liberal was entered in five allowance optional claiming races. His only win came over the Santa Anita downhill turf course on October 24, in which the field included future sprint champion
Roy H Roy H (foaled April 22, 2012) is a Thoroughbred racehorse who is the two time winner of the Breeders' Cup Sprint. He was named the American Champion Sprint Horse of 2017 and 2018. He did not start racing until age three, when he won only one ra ...
. Stormy Liberal started his four-year-old season with three straight second place finishes in allowance optional claiming races, then a fifth. After a summer layoff, he returned on October 16, 2016 in a $40,000 claiming race at Santa Anita. Stormy Liberal won easily and was claimed by Peter Miller for Rockingham Ranch. Stormy Liberal finished the year with two second-place finishes for his new connections.


2017: five-year-old season

Stormy Liberal made his first start as a five-year-old on January 29, 2017 in the Clocker's Corner Stakes at Santa Anita. Over the downhill turf course, he led from gate to wire to earn his first stakes victory by lengths. On March 4, Stormy Liberal followed up by winning the listed Joe Hernandez Stakes, again over Santa Anita's downhill turf course. Running from off the pace, he made a strong stretch run to take the lead and held off the late closing Perfectly Majestic by a nose. He then survived a steward's inquiry regarding another horse, Danzing Candy, who had been cut off when Stormy Liberal passed him in the stretch. Jockey Norberto Arroyo Jr. noted the gelding's tendency to drift in, but was confident the result would stand. "I was flying by those horses," he said. Stormy Liberal continued his winning streak by taking the Siren Lure Stakes on April 23, then earned his first graded stakes victory in the Daytona Stakes on May 27. The latter was won by just a neck but Arroyo felt the gelding had been waiting for the second-place horse to get close. "I had them from the get go and I knew I had more horse than him the whole time." Stormy Liberal was shipped out of California for the first time for the Jaipur Invitational Stakes at
Belmont Park Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse racing facility in the northeastern United States, located in Elmont, New York, just east of the New York City limits. It was opened on May 4, 1905. It is operated by the non-profit New York Racin ...
on June 10. His winning streak was broken with an eighth place finish after he weakened in the stretch run. The winner Disco Partner set a world record of 1:05.67 for six furlongs in the race. Stormy Liberal then had a long layoff before returning on November 4 in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint, held that year at Del Mar – trainer Peter Miller's home base. Going off as a 30-1 longshot, Stormy Liberal staged a major upset when he beat stablemate Richard's Boy by a head after rating behind a fast early pace. "I thought we had home-court advantage and they ran to that," said Miller. "I couldn't be prouder of these horses. They're just two gutsy, tough, hard-knocking horses." It was the first Breeders' Cup win for Miller and Rockingham Ranch, who then doubled up when Roy H won the Breeders' Cup Sprint soon afterwards. After running eleventh in the
Hong Kong Sprint The Hong Kong Sprint is a Group 1 flat horse race in Hong Kong which is open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 1,200 metres (about 6 furlongs) at Sha Tin, and it is scheduled to take place each year in mid De ...
at
Sha Tin Sha Tin, also spelt Shatin, is a neighbourhood along Shing Mun River in the eastern New Territories, Hong Kong. Administratively, it is part of the Sha Tin District. Sha Tin is one of the neighbourhoods of the Sha Tin New Town project. The ne ...
, Stormy Liberal finished the year with a record of five stakes win from seven starts.


2018: six-year-old season

Stormy Liberal made his 2018 debut in the Daytona Stakes on February 24 at Santa Anita, and finished a fast-closing second behind stablemate Conquest Tsunami, with another stablemate Calculator in third. "Unbelievable," said Miller."Maybe Stormy Liberal was a little further back than I would have liked, but for his first race since Hong Kong, I thought he ran well." Stormy Liberal was then shipped to
Meydan Racecourse Meydan Racecourse is a racecourse in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The grandstand is over a mile in length, and can accommodate over 60,000 spectators. Meydan opened on 27 March 2010, replacing Nad Al Sheba Racecourse, which formerly occupi ...
in
Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
for the
Al Quoz Sprint Al Quoz Sprint is a thoroughbred horse race held in Meydan Racecourse, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It was first run in 2007 as part of the then, Dubai International Racing Carnival and subsequently moved to Dubai World Cup night in 2010 to coinci ...
on March 31, in which he finished second to Jungle Cat. He made his next start in the Jaipur International at Belmont Park, finishing sixth to Disco Partner after lacking his normal closing kick. After four straight losses, Miller dropped Stormy Liberal down to allowance company at Del Mar on July 25. There he faced the highly regarded Tribalist, who had three wins over Del Mar's turf course. Tribalist took the early lead then fought to hold off Stormy Liberal's late drive. Despite being bumped, Stormy Liberal inched by to win by a nose under new jockey
Drayden Van Dyke Drayden Van Dyke (born September 10, 1994, in Louisville, Kentucky) is a jockey in thoroughbred racing. At graded stakes races, Van Dyke has won 67 events ranging from Grade I to Grade III. Of these wins, Van Dyke has won both the Starlet Stakes ...
. "He looked good, and that's all that really matters," said Brian Trump, the racing manager of Rockingham Ranch. "We liked the chemistry between Drayden and him." On August 17, Stormy Liberal returned to stakes company in the listed Green Flash Handicap at Del Mar. He stalked the early pace then made a wide move to win by a nose over Richard's Boy. He then extended his winning streak in the Eddie D Stakes at Santa Anita on September 28 with a similar performance. "He knows where the wire is, for sure, but think he could've won by three (lengths)," Van Dyke said. "I thought I'd be a little farther back, but he broke like a rocket, so I was up close." Despite his three-race winning streak, Stormy Liberal went off at odds of 7-1 in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint, held in 2018 at
Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was ...
in Kentucky. He again tracked the early pace, then swung wide to move alongside favorite World of Trouble. The two horses dueled down the stretch, with Stormy Liberal prevailing by a neck. "He just has a tremendous heart," commented co-owner David Bernsen. "He really wants to win. He does just enough, he doesn't overexert himself in any race or any workout... his soundness and durability have also been keys. With most horses, you can't do this. They're just not able to. He's just a special horse in so many ways."


2019: seven-year-old season

Stormy Liberal was winless in seven starts in 2019 with two second-place finishes and three thirds. He was eighth in his final start on November 2 when attempting to defend his title in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint. After the race, David Bernsen bought out Rockingham Ranch to become sole owner, then sent the horse to Florida for an extensive medical evaluation. Diagnostic imaging revealed defects to the cartilage of both front
fetlock Fetlock is the common name in horses, large animals, and sometimes dogs for the metacarpophalangeal and metatarsophalangeal joints (MCPJ and MTPJ). Although it somewhat resembles the human ankle in appearance, the joint is homologous to the ba ...
s. Because of the time required to heal (six to eight months), he was retired. He will reside at
Old Friends Equine Old Friends is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) equine retirement facility in Georgetown, Kentucky, accredited by the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA). The organization started with one leased paddock and two horses, but now owns 136 acres, Dreamchase ...
in Kentucky.


Pedigree

Stormy Liberal is
inbred Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and o ...
4S x 4D to
Northern Dancer Northern Dancer (May 27, 1961 – November 16, 1990) was a Thoroughbred who, in 1964, became the first Canadian-bred horse to win the Kentucky Derby. He then became one of the most successful sires of the 20th century. He is considered a Canad ...
, meaning this sire appears in the fourth generation on the sire's and dam's side of the pedigree. He is also inbred 4S x 3D to Crimson Saint.


References

{{reflist 2012 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States Thoroughbred family 9-b Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint winners