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Mr. Prospector

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Mr. Prospector
Mr. Prospector at Claiborne Farm in 1981
SireRaise a Native
GrandsireNative Dancer
DamGold Digger
DamsireNashua
SexStallion
FoaledJanuary 28, 1970[1]
CountryUnited States
ColourBay
BreederLeslie Combs II
OwnerAbraham I. Savin
TrainerJimmy Croll
Record14: 7–4–2
Earnings$112,170
Major wins
Gravesend Handicap (1974)
Whirlaway Handicap (1974)
Awards
Leading sire in North America (1987, 1988)
Leading broodmare sire in North America
(1997–2003, 2005–06)
Honours
Mr. Prospector Stakes at Gulfstream Park
Last updated on January 9, 2010

Mr. Prospector (January 28, 1970 – June 1, 1999) was a Thoroughbred racehorse foaled in Kentucky whose descendants have dominated the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. He won half of his 14 career races.

Background

Mr. Prospector's sire was Raise a Native, a son of Native Dancer. He was out of the mare Gold Digger, a daughter of Nashua. He was the highest-priced horse at the 1971 Keeneland July sale of selected yearlings, selling for $220,000 (equivalent to $1.66 million in 2023).[2] "Mr. P", as he came to be known, was trained by Jimmy Croll, a Hall of Fame member who went on to train Holy Bull.[3]

At maturity, he reached 16 hands (64 inches, 163 cm) high.[4]

Racing career

Mr. Prospector was a contemporary of Secretariat. He did not contest the Triple Crown, but he proved successful over sprint distances. Mr. Prospector won the Gravesend Handicap and the Whirlaway Handicap and set track records for six furlongs (1,207 m) at Gulfstream Park and Garden State.

Stud career

Mr. Prospector sired one winner of each of the Triple Crown races, a feat his grandson, Unbridled, has also accomplished. His Triple Crown race winners were 2000 Kentucky Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus; 1985 Preakness Stakes winner Tank's Prospect; and 1982 Belmont Stakes winner and Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year Conquistador Cielo. Mr. Prospector's bloodline has been highly influential in the top echelons of Thoroughbred racing. All eight horses entered into the 2015 Belmont Stakes were descendants, through their sires, of Mr. Prospector.[5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]

Mr. Prospector's stud fee, even without the guarantee of a live foal, peaked at $460,000 in the early and mid-1980s. By March 1994 he was still commanding fees of $170,000-$180,000, having at that point sired 902 offspring; he would eventually sire 1,195 live foals.[3] During breeding season, he was often able to "cover" two mares in one day.[13] Mr. Prospector was jointly owned by a 40-member syndicate.[13]

On June 1, 1999, Mr. Prospector died in his stall of complications from colic at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky. He was buried between Nijinsky and Secretariat.

Progeny

Mr. Prospector's male-line descendants with Triple Crown races won:

Pedigree

Pedigree of Mr Prospector (USA), bay stallion, 1970[1]
Sire
Raise A Native (USA)
1961
Native Dancer (USA)
1950
Polynesian Unbreakable
Black Polly
Geisha Discovery
Miyako
Raise You (USA)
1946
Case Ace Teddy
Sweetheart
Lady Glory American Flag
Beloved
Dam
Gold Digger (USA)
1962
Nashua (USA)
1952
Nasrullah Nearco
Mumtaz Begum
Segula Johnstown
Sekhmet
Sequence (USA)
1946
Count Fleet Reigh Count
Quickly
Miss Dogwood Bull Dog
Myrtlewood (Family 13-c)[14]

References

  1. ^ a b "Kentucky Gold pedigree". equineline.com. 2012-05-08. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
  2. ^ "Sparkman: Mr. Prospector line has no American equal". Daily Racing Form. June 12, 2015.
  3. ^ a b Sparkman, John F. (January 16, 2010). "Sire of Sires: Mr. Prospector" (PDF). Thoroughbred Times. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  4. ^ http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/90474/pedigree-analysis-is-bigger-always-better
  5. ^ "Mubtaahij Pedigree". Equineline. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  6. ^ "Tale of Verve Pedigree". Equineline. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  7. ^ "Madefromlucky Pedigree". Equineline. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  8. ^ "Frammento Pedigree". Equineline. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  9. ^ "American Pharoah Pedigree". Equineline. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  10. ^ "Frosted Pedigree". Equineline. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
  11. ^ "Keen Ice Pedigree". Equineline. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  12. ^ "Materiality Pedigree". Equineline. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  13. ^ a b Searcy, Jay (April 13, 1994). "Mr. Prospector: You Can Call Him The King Of Stallions Eighteen Horses Share Stud Duty At Claiborne Farm. This One Has 902 Offspring, And He Isn't Through Yet". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  14. ^ "Stray Shot - Family 13-c". Thoroughbred Bloodlines. Retrieved 3 January 2015.