Breeders' Cup Classic hero and renowned sire Awesome Again dies aged 26

Awesome Again, the winner of the 1998 Breeders' Cup Classic and the sire of four Breeders' Cup winners, died on Tuesday at Old Friends Thoroughbred Retirement farm in Georgetown, Kentucky. He was was 26.

Michael Blowen, the founder and president of Old Friends, made the announcement on Wednesday. The exact cause of death is unknown; a full necropsy is pending, however, and a veterinary report will follow.

A Canadian-bred son of Deputy Minister bred by Frank Stronach and campaigned by Stronach throughout his career, Awesome Again had an exemplary résumé as both a racehorse and a stallion.

He broke his maiden at Hollywood Park on just his second start as a three-year-old in 1997. He returned a few weeks later to capture that year's Queen's Plate Stakes at Woodbine. Back in the US that summer, he went on to win the Jim Dandy Stakes and was third to Deputy Commander in the Travers Stakes at Saratoga Racecourse.

At four, he completed an undefeated season that included five Graded stakes victories, among them the Stephen Foster Handicap, Whitney Handicap, and one of the most memorable editions of the Breeders' Cup Classic.

Looking defeated in the historic event at Churchill Downs, he rallied in the stretch to top Grade/Group 1 winners Coronado's Quest and Swain and the previous year's Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner, Silver Charm.

Awesome Again at Adena Springs in KentuckyCredit: Michele MacDonald

Awesome Again was retired from racing in 1998 with nine wins from 12 starts and earnings of $4,374,590 and began a 20-year stud career at Stronach's Adena Springs Kentucky.

As accomplished in the breeding shed as he was on the track, Awesome Again sired three champions: Ghostzapper, the 2004 Horse of the Year and champion older horse; Ginger Punch, the 2007 champion older mare; and Nominee, a multiple champion in Trinidad and Tobago.

He became the first Breeders' Cup Classic winner to sire a Breeders' Cup Classic winner when Ghostzapper won the 2004 running of the Grade 1 prize.

His other elite runners include Old Friends retirees Game On Dude, who captured 14 Graded stakes and is the only three-time winner of the Santa Anita Handicap, and Awesome Gem, who captured the 2010 Hollywood Gold Cup at age seven; 2006 Emirates Airlines Breeders' Cup Distaff winner Round Pond; 2004 Bessemer Trust Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner Wilko; and 2019 Belmont Stakes winner Sir Winston.

Awesome Again sired 69 black-type winners worldwide, including 39 Graded/Group stakes winners, 12 millionaires, and six multimillionaires.

His progeny have earned more than $98 million. While most of his top performers excelled on dirt, he sired 13 stakes winners on turf, including Hollywood Turf Cup Stakes winner Manitoulin and Kentucky Cup Turf Stakes winner Rumor Has It.

In October, Awesome Again was pensioned to Old Friends.

"Anyone who ever saw Awesome Again on the racetrack or at Adena Springs knew he was aptly named," Blowen said.

"I'm just sorry his time at Old Friends was so short because I know he would have made a searing, lasting impression on his many fans, and I'm so sorry that circumstances prevented him from displaying his greatness for a lot longer. Awesome, indeed."

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