George Strawbridge Jr.'s homebred grade II winner Smart Bid will enter stud in 2013 with Highcliff Stallions at Mill Creek Farm near Stillwater, N.Y. The 6-year-old son of Smart Strike will stand for $4,500 live foal.
Winner of the Fair Grounds Handicap (gr. IIIT) and the East Hanover Stakes on grass earlier this year, Smart Bid won the Mervin H. Muniz Jr. Memorial Handicap (gr. IIT) in 2011 and the Damascus Stakes at 3 during Oak Tree at Santa Anita.
He finished second behind Get Stormy , beaten three-quarters of the length, in the 2011 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic Stakes (gr. IT) at Churchill Downs and finished a nose behind Teaks North in the Gulfstream Park Turf Handicap (gr. IT), ahead of Get Stormy. Smart Bid was retired with a record of 6-8-4 from 26 starts and earnings of $1,008,309.
"Smart Bid is very correct, and I believe he is the kind of stallion breeders will find tremendously useful," said Highcliff's Suzie O'Cain. "He had a long successful career, he won over a million dollars, and retired sound. He has the right connections, sire line, and pedigree."
"Smart Bid is a millionaire who won from seven furlongs to 1 1/2 miles on dirt, turf, and synthetic," said trainer Graham Motion. "He was a precocious 2-year-old and a classy older horse."
Smart Bid is one of three stakes winners out of New York graded stakes winner Recording (by Danzig).