USA: The well-traveled career of multiple graded stakes-winning millionaire Drafted has come to a close after eight seasons on the racetrack and visits to 10 racecourses across three continents.
“We never thought we would get to the stage we did with him,” said trainer David Duggan. “All his runs were special. He was an exciting horse to watch.”
Owned by Dublin Fjord Stables, Racepoint Stables, Kevin Hilbert and Thomas O’Keefe, the nine-year-old son of Field Commission won a pair of G3 events during a four-season stint in Dubai before arriving in Duggan’s barn at the end of 2020.
Since then, he has posted some of his most memorable victories, highlighted by G3 wins under Jose Ortiz as an eight-year-old in Aqueduct’s Toboggan and Belmont Park’s Runhappy.
He retires with a record of 38-10-3-6 and total purse earnings of $1,171,593 in a carer that started as a two-year-old in 2016, when he ran at Royal Ascot in the Godolphin blue for original trainer Eoin Harty before joining Doug Watson in Dubai.
Duggan said he has particularly fond memories of Drafted’s win in the Toboggan when he captured the seven-furlong sprint by 4½ lengths with a come-from-behind rally.
“I think the day Jose Ortiz rode him was the most exciting, even though he won by four or five lengths,” Duggan said. “We kind of caught everyone off guard with a change in tactics and how he engulfed them.”
Ortiz fondly recalled his graded triumphs aboard the fan favorite veteran. “What can I say? It’s a little sad to see him go and I even rooted for him when he would go out of town and run other places,” said Ortiz.
‘He sat back and came flying late’
“The Toboggan was an amazing race – he sat back and came flying late,” Ortiz went on. “I love this horse. He’s got some character and is very classy. He’s a horse that you knew every time he stepped on the track, he’s going to give you all he’s got. Those are rare to find. I hope he goes on to have a nice retirement and second career.”
Ortiz praised the work done by Duggan and his wife, Lara, to keep the horse sound and happy through his nine-year-old campaign.
“David and Lara are amazing people and I know the horse is going to retire very healthy,” said Ortiz. “They are amazing horsemen and work hard. I’m rooting for them to get another nice horse, and hopefully I’ll be on it.”
Duggan said the decision was made to retire Drafted after he finished last-of-six in a race at Delaware Park on July 1.
“I was mulling around the idea and I knew in my gut that if he didn’t show up at Delaware, it would be time to retire him,” said Duggan. “We could have waited and focused on the wintertime, but the right decision was made and it’s time to move on.”
Drafted has since returned to Duggan’s barn at Belmont Park where he has enjoyed some quiet days in anticipation of being rehomed through the New York Thoroughbred Horseman’s Association’s (NYTHA) TAKE THE LEAD program, a retirement program for Thoroughbreds stabled at New York Racing Association (NYRA) tracks that facilitates the search for rehabilitation and retraining placements for retiring NYRA racehorses.
‘We’ll get him where he needs to be’
“We don’t have a final confirmation for a rehab spot, but he’s in the program and we’ll get him where he needs to be,” said Rick Schosberg, president of TAKE THE LEAD.
“He’s got some quirky things and he’ll need a good transitional rider, so I think it will be up to him what he wants to do. He’s the poster child of doing things the right way. He’s accomplished a lot and they all deserve a safe landing.”
Both Duggan and Schosberg are unsure exactly what second career lies ahead for Drafted, but expressed confidence that the spirited gelding can excel in a variety of roles.
“With his athleticism and talent, I think the book is wide open for him,” said Schosberg. “He could jump – he’s sound and has a great hind end and shoulder. With his looks, he could be a dressage horse, but he could also probably rustle cattle!”
Drafted will remain in Duggan’s Belmont barn until a new home has been found for him where he will learn how to be ridden for a discipline beyond racing. He has undergone TAKE THE LEAD’s usual intake process, which includes diagnostics, a visual inspection when jogging and a comprehensive veterinary exam.
“He’ll be taught how to react to the bit a little differently and different leg signals,” said Schosberg. “He may do that absolutely perfect, but we just want to make sure the transition is smooth and seamless.”
The honest and hard-trying gelding provided Duggan with some of the biggest highlights of his career, capped by his graded triumphs last year in the Toboggan and Runhappy. He notched additional stakes coups last year in the Mr. Prospector at Monmouth Park and the Gravesend in December at Aqueduct, which proved to be his final trip to the winner’s circle.
‘He didn’t dodge anyone’
Duggan, who started his first horse in 2005, expressed gratitude for the way Drafted’s stakes performances helped to put his operation back in the graded spotlight for the first time since he won the G2 First Flight Handicap with Porte Bonheur in 2009.
“Not every horse is able to have a career at the top level – he dabbled there and was competitive at the second tier,” said Duggan. “It’s a competitive division and he didn’t dodge anyone in New York. He put us back on the map to some extent and it was special.
“What he’s done for us is huge, and these are the horses that make the game what it is. It’s good for all aspects of it.
“It is the end of an era, and it ends well,” added Duggan. “He’s competed well at the level he was in at his age. It’s a happy ending and it’s just good for everyone. It was a fun ride.”
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