Grade I winner Strong Mandate has been retired from racing due to a chip in his right knee and is scheduled to begin a career as a stallion. Farm location and stud fee have not yet been announced for the 3-year-old son of Tiznow .
Trainer D. Wayne Lukas told the Courier Journal the morning of May 22 that Strong Mandate had been sent from Churchill Downs to Rood & Riddle equine clinic in Lexington to have the chip evaluated. Equine surgeon Dr. Larry Bramlage indicated the injury would probably hinder Strong Mandate's ability to return to the same level of competition.
"The decision was made to stop on him and market him as a stallion," Lukas told the Courier Journal.
A precocious 2-year-old, Strong Mandate broke his maiden on his second try at Saratoga Race Course last summer, after which he rolled to an impressive 9 3/4-length victory in the 2013 Hopeful Stakes (gr. I) over a muddy track at the Spa. Owned by Robert Baker and William Mack, he capped his 2-year-old season with a respectable third-place effort in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (gr. I).
This year, Strong Mandate finished third in the Southwest Stakes (gr. III), fourth in the Rebel Stakes (gr. II), and eighth in the Arkansas Derby (gr. I). He retires with a career record of 2-1-1 from eight starts, for earnings of $529,566.
Bred in Kentucky by G. Watts Humphrey Jr., Strong Mandate is out of the multiple grade I-winning Deputy Minister mare Clear Mandate. He is also a half brother to grade III winner Newfoundland, stakes winner Full Mandate, and graded stakes-placed runner The Mighty Tiger, all of which brought seven figures at auction.