hi austique
Respectfully...Afleet Alex proved he was a versatile and superior 2-yo. His wins in the G1-Hopeful, G2-Sanford and 2nd place finish in the G1-BC Juvenile etc are evidence.
Smarty proved he was the best 2-yo at Phila Park.
As 3-yo's, Afleet Alex and Smarty Jones were both very worthy triple crown contenders.
When all was said and done though Afleet Alex did something (to help confirm his versatility) that few thoroughbreds ever do anymore...at any age...he won at a mile and a half on the dirt...Smarty did NOT. Smarty was a very nice horse...but absolutely (from my perspective anyway) is a cut below Afleet Alex.
I'm not concluding that Afleet Alex is a great race horse...but he might still prove worthy of that accolade. For what it's worth...I was never convinced (even prior to his retirement) that Smarty could have gone on and been a standout versus top older horses (going a mile and a quarter for example). I am convinced that Alex had what it takes (pre-injury anyway) to be a standout versus top older horses, and he still might have it (despite the injury). If he races again...and if he defeats top older horses...Afleet Alex will have proven (as far as I'm concerned) that he is extremely rare and special.
Smarty was a very popular racehorse...and deservedly so. He was on the road to winning the triple crown...but the FACT is he did not...nor did Afleet Alex. Each won two legs of the triple crown and was placed in one...they have that in common.
Again...I view Alex (based on what I've seen thus far) as a cut-above Smarty Jones.
Best to you.
Respectfully
How good was Smarty Jones?
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bcassidy
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FOS--everything you say is true about their respective racing records and if that is the way you choose to analyze their ability than you are indeed very accurate but I like race performance data and I like the speed sheet approach to analyzing races. A few of the speed sheets had Smarty Jones as the fastest 3 yr old they ever graded. That is why I believe SJ was one of the best 3 yr olds to ever race. As you know I really love Northern Afleet and his best son to race "to date" Afleet Alex. AA hasn't matched SJ's fastest numbers yet but he isn't far from them and I think AA has more upside in his ability than SJ did. SJ may have hit his peak sooner but I think AA has more upside. I think AA will continue to impress the industry and also earn some huge speed numbers. Let's hope he gets a chance to prove what kind of an individual he really is. If he does he also could go down as a truely special race horse before his racing career is over. I can't wait to see him perform in the BC Classic. I think he will turn some heads again and set some huge speed figures in the process. I wish he had another month in his training schedule.
On the topic of great stallions, it might be very coincidental, but I think not---that Funny Cide, Smarty Jones and Afleet Alex were all sired by stallions that started their breeding career at 10k or less. I happen to love all three of these sires, Distorted Humor, Elusive Quality and Northern Afleet and it certainly shouldn't surprise anyone to know that they all did it with a very modest book of mares.
Great race horses don't (necessarily) make great stallions and therefore, the best stallions weren't necessarily the best racehorses.
I would have no problem breeding any mare in the world to either of the three stallions listed above and I don't think you would be hurting that mares chances of producing a top notch individual-- a foal as good as any other stallion in the world would be capable of producing. I wish I could fast forward 10 years from now to see how it all turns out but that would take all the fun out it. Respectfully
On the topic of great stallions, it might be very coincidental, but I think not---that Funny Cide, Smarty Jones and Afleet Alex were all sired by stallions that started their breeding career at 10k or less. I happen to love all three of these sires, Distorted Humor, Elusive Quality and Northern Afleet and it certainly shouldn't surprise anyone to know that they all did it with a very modest book of mares.
Great race horses don't (necessarily) make great stallions and therefore, the best stallions weren't necessarily the best racehorses.
I would have no problem breeding any mare in the world to either of the three stallions listed above and I don't think you would be hurting that mares chances of producing a top notch individual-- a foal as good as any other stallion in the world would be capable of producing. I wish I could fast forward 10 years from now to see how it all turns out but that would take all the fun out it. Respectfully
best regards Brendan
hi bcassidy
As always...your commentary and insights are appreciated.
Regarding the following that you wrote "On the topic of great stallions, it might be very coincidental, but I think not---that Funny Cide, Smarty Jones and Afleet Alex were all sired by stallions that started their breeding career at 10k or less. I happen to love all three of these sires, Distorted Humor, Elusive Quality and Northern Afleet and it certainly shouldn't surprise anyone to know that they all did it with a very modest book of mares." I couldn't agree more...
...and what about the GREAT Mr Prospector starting at $7,500...and more recently El Prado started at $10,000, Successful Appeal started at $5,000+-, Saint Ballado started at $2,500+- etc etc etc.
Best to you.
Respectfully
As always...your commentary and insights are appreciated.
Regarding the following that you wrote "On the topic of great stallions, it might be very coincidental, but I think not---that Funny Cide, Smarty Jones and Afleet Alex were all sired by stallions that started their breeding career at 10k or less. I happen to love all three of these sires, Distorted Humor, Elusive Quality and Northern Afleet and it certainly shouldn't surprise anyone to know that they all did it with a very modest book of mares." I couldn't agree more...
...and what about the GREAT Mr Prospector starting at $7,500...and more recently El Prado started at $10,000, Successful Appeal started at $5,000+-, Saint Ballado started at $2,500+- etc etc etc.
Best to you.
Respectfully
Of the two, I think Smarty Jones is the faster, although agree that Afleet Alex is much more versatile. By that I mean he is able to run his race each time out. I don't think the jocks could gang up on AA the way they did SJ in the Belmont. In a match race, I'd take SJ, ones with moderate pace SJ, but overly heat it up and AA would be my pick. Long term, AA will probably be a good Sire and SJ better as a broodmare sire.