To celebrate the 40th running of the Breeders’ Cup, the TDN will share a photo and catch up with a past winner in each of the 40 days leading up
to the event. Today, we have 2007 and 2008 Sprint winner Midnight Lute. | Sarah Andrew
By Jill Williams
Midnight Lute gave a masterclass in devastating closing speed in his back-to-back Breeders’ Cup Sprint wins, with his 4 3/4-length score in 2007 an eye-popping performance visually and his 1:07.08 time in 2008 still holding the Sprint record. Veteran yearling-to-juvenile reseller Eddie Woods broke the champion, who was a $290,000 RNA at OBS March in 2005 as a 2-year-old.
“He was a wonderfully big, good-looking black horse,” said Woods. “Tom McGreevy bought him to pinhook him to OBS. It’s shameful to say for a champion sprinter, but he didn’t work quick enough. If you look at his style of running, he sashayed out of the gate. He had no early speed at all.
“He was always good-looking and he turned into a big, handsome horse with crazy finishing speed. His Breeders’ Cup at Monmouth in the slop was one of the best races I’ve seen.”
Midnight Lute (2003 dark bay or brown horse, Real Quiet–Candytuft, by Dehere)
Lifetime record: Ch. sprinter, MGISW, 13-6-3-1, $2,690,600
Breeders’ Cup connections: B-Tom Evans, Macon Wilmil Eq, & Marjac Fm (KY); O-Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, and Weitman Performances, LLC; T-Bob Baffert; J-Garrett Gomez.
Current location: Hill ‘n’ Dale at Xalapa, Paris, Ky.
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