If, at the start of the year, one had been drawing up a list of runners that might be headed to the top of the older horse division, it's unlikely that list would have featured Arthur's Ride . Indeed, at that point the striking 4-year-old gray had started just three times, and had not been seen in public for more than 10 months.
That said, Arthur's Ride did make a promising start to his career with seconds in a pair of seven-furlong maiden special weight races at Saratoga Race Course in August and September of his 2-year-old season, on both occasions showing enough speed to take the lead. Arthur's Ride broke his maiden going a mile at 3 in February 2023, but that was the only time he would be seen in public that year, with what was described as "...a little bit of a tendon issue..," sending him to the sidelines.
It appeared the break had benefited Arthur's Ride when in March he came back to take a one-mile allowance optional claiming test at Gulfstream Park by 7 1/2 lengths, but he then flopped as favorite over a wet track in a similar event on the Kentucky Oaks (G1) undercard. Exactly one month later came a very different performance, as Arthur's Ride dominated a 1 1/4-mile optional claiming/allowance contest at Saratoga from start to finish to score by 12 3/4 lengths despite being confidently handled the last half furlong.
In the Whitney Stakes (G1) on Saturday, Arthur's Ride produced another powerful front-running effort. He went straight to the head of affairs, opening up by five lengths in the stretch and scoring by 2 1/4 lengths from Crupi (who, incidentally, was third in Arthur's Ride's first two starts).
Last year's Whitney Stakes was won by White Abarrio , a gray grandson of Arthur's Ride's sire, Tapit , and White Abarrio subsequently captured the 2023 Breeders' Cup Classic (G1). Arthur's Ride will likely run in the Jockey Club Cup (G1) next, but at the moment he looms as a major contender for the Classic, especially given that his last two starts have yielded Beyer Speed Figures of 111 and 110, the year's fastest and second fastest (tied with Fierceness ) on the dirt.
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Tapit's three-season reign as leading sire ended in 2016, and the son of Pulpit is now 23 years old. That said, he is still a force to be reckoned with, and in addition to Arthur's Ride, he's represented by six other stakes winners this year, including Scylla , successful in the Fleur de Lis Stakes (G2) and Shawnee Stakes (G3); Ohio Derby (G3) captor Batten Down ; and Tapit Trice , who impressed in taking the Monmouth Cup (G3) on his belated seasonal debut. All told, Tapit has sired 166 stakes winners, 105 of them graded, and 32 grade 1, headed by the incomparable Flightline , and other champions Essential Quality , Untapable , Stardom Bound , Hansen , and Unique Bella .
There is also plenty of quality on the distaff side of Arthur's Ride's pedigree. His dam, the Point Given mare Points of Grace , took the Dance Smartly Stakes (G2T) and River Memories Stakes, which was enough to earn a title as champion turf mare in Canada in 2009. Points of Grace has been an extremely successful producer, with six winners from seven foals, also including champion Canadian 2-Year-Old filly Victory to Victory , successful in the Natalma Stakes (G1T); the 2023 Ginger Brew Stakes scorer Alittleloveandluck ; and the stakes-placed Double Blessed .
Points of Grace is out of the English-raced Fateful, also dam of Fatefully, a dual black-type winner in England, and herself dam of the Nassau Stakes (G1) heroine Favourable Terms, and third dam of three of stakes winners, including Berneuil, twice successful in group sprints in France.
Arthur's Ride's fourth dam, Cast the Die, was one of three stakes-winning siblings by Olden Times, one of the others being Hagley, who took the Withers Stakes and was a successful sire in Maryland. Cast the Die herself won 14 races, five of them black-type, including the Cicada Stakes. Cast the Die went on to produce the Santa Monica Handicap (G1) victress Devil's Orchid and Pimlico Distaff Stakes (G3) winner Double Sixes. The pedigree goes back to Flaming Mask, a daughter of the 1934 Acorn Stakes winner, Fleam, and a three-quarters sister to Omaha, who captured the Triple Crown in 1935, and his brother Flares, winner in England of the Ascot Gold Cup and Champion Stakes.
Arthur's Ride is one of two graded stakes winners from 20 starters by Pulpit and sons out of Point Given mares, and is also one of 20 graded stakes winners by Tapit line stallions with Relaunch in the dam, Relaunch being a brother to Moon Glitter, the third dam of Tapit.