Caleb's Posse , last year’s Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (gr. I) winner, has been retired from racing and will stand at Robert N. Clay’s Three Chimneys Farm near Midway, Ky., in 2013. He is owned by Three Chimneys in partnership with Everett Dobson and Don C. McNeill.
Caleb’s Posse’s last start came in the Metropolitan Handicap (gr. I) May 28 in which he was beaten a nose. The 4-year-old son of Posse started two other times this year, finishing a close second in both the Carter Handicap (gr. I) and the Tom Fool Handicap (gr. III).
“We discovered a non-displaced fragment in his left knee after the Met Mile,” said the horse's owners in a prepared statement. “We were hopeful that some time off would resolve the situation, but recent radiographs have revealed that surgery to remove the chip will mean that he could not return to the racetrack this year. He has proven his brilliance on the track, and now we want to give him a chance to pass on that brilliance in the breeding shed.”
Caleb’s Posse, who was a graded stakes performer at ages 2 through 4, was a close runner-up to Animal Kingdom in 2011 Eclipse Award balloting for 3-year-old male. In addition to winning the Dirt Mile by four lengths for McNeill Stables and Dobson's Cheyenne Stables, Caleb’s Posse captured last year’s Foxwood King’s Bishop Stakes (gr. I), the Amsterdam Stakes (gr. II), the Ohio Derby (gr. III), and Smarty Jones Stakes. He placed in the Indiana Derby (gr. II) and the Rebel Stakes (gr. II).
As a 2-year-old Caleb’s Posse won the Clever Trevor Stakes and ran third in the Arlington-Washington Futurity (gr. III).
Caleb’s Posse was retired with a record of 8-5-2 from 19 starts and earnings of $1,423,379. He was trained by Donnie Von Hemel.
“We are thrilled that Caleb's Posse is coming to Three Chimneys,” Clay said. “He was a brilliant miler who traces back to La Troienne. He is a quality individual that will cross well with a variety of pedigrees. We expect him to be a very popular commercial sire.”
Bred in Kentucky by McNeill, Caleb’s Posse is out of the Slewacide mare Abbey’s Missy, whose dam, Abbey’s Phone, is a half sister to multiple graded stakes winner Mr Ross (by Slewacide).
Caleb’s Posse will be available to breeders for inspection beginning next week. His stud fee will be announced in conjunction with the rest of the 2013 Three Chimneys stallion roster in the fall.