Stallion Feature: Malibu Moon Highly Exceeding Expectation

Stallion Feature; Malibu Moon Highly Exceeding Expectation: Often times, the racing world will see horses of great achievement retire to stud. The racing world has seen the great either live up to their legacy, or flop horribly. However, what about those who don’t ever achieve greatness on the track, but instead, in the breeding shed? The racing world has seen horses such as Elusive Quality, who was mainly an allowance runner, but has become a high dollar stallion in the hands of Darley. Managed correctly, he produced hero Smarty Jones. The racing world normally values the high dollar earners over the allowance horses. One horse, only racing twice as a two-year-old, has produced a champion, 31 graded stakes winners, with two coming this year. Malibu Moon was injured as a two-year-old and retired to stud. Throughout his life, he has produced 14 crops, 12 of which are of racing age. He is likely most known for his Kentucky Derby winner, Orb. Malibu Moon has come from the minors to the majors of thoroughbred breeding rather quickly.

With not much of a race record to reflect on, Malibu Moon only raced twice. He broke his maiden in his second start at Hollywood Park. He was the full package, or so it appears. By champion A.P. Indy, Malibu Moon was out of the Mr. Prospector mare Macoumba. A.P. Indy had exhibited that he needed a mare with some speed to her, as A.P. Indy was a glorified distance runner. Malibu Moon seemed to be what the mix was supposed to produce. He had to speed and stamina. However, his race career was not in the cards, and when he was injured, he retired to stud in Maryland at Country Life Farm for a fee of only $3,000.

The interesting part, later discovered, about Malibu Moon, is that he is bred on the exacta same cross as Congrats, Flatter, and Mineshaft. Each of these stallions, including Malibu Moon, is out of a Mr. Prospector mare.

While standing in Maryland, Malibu Moon sired four crops, which included champion juvenile Declan’s Moon. This was cause enough to spark interests in Malibu Moon as a Kentucky sire. In 2004, Malibu Moon was moved to Castleton Lyons, but then was again moved in 2008 to Spendthrift Farms, his original owners and breeder. His original advertised fee for his first year in Kentucky was $10,000, but was quickly increased to $12,500, then $17,500, to $25,000. By 2013, Malibu Moon was standing for $70,000. The fee seemed justified, due to Malibu Moon’s presence among the top 10 sires for the prior three years.

Malibu Moon may be known to the general public as the one who gave the racing world Orb, Malibu Moon has proven to be a sire of exceptional racemares. He has sired mares like Life at Ten, Devil May Care, Ask the Moon, Eden’s Moon, Malibu Mint, Malibu Prayer, and Funny Moon. The only grade one winning son of Malibu Moon since Declan’s Moon was Orb.

Malibu Moon has proven he can sire exceptional racehorses with ability to be versatile. He is the sire of Classic winner Orb, but also the sire of 6F juvenile winner Grand Full Moon, who recently won the Shakopee Juvenile at Canterbury Park. His 2014 stud fee was an advertised $95,000, and is likely to remain unchanged for 2015. Malibu Moon is an amazing stallion with hardly a race record. Not all stallions need to be champions on the track to be champions in the breeding shed.

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Malibu Moon