American Spirit, Semoran to Q6 Ranch in Texas

Graded stakes winners American Spirit and Semoran will stand the 2004 breeding season at Drs. Ken and Linda Quirk's Q6 Ranch near Belton, Texas.

Semoran, a 10-year-old Phone Trick stallion out of the winning The Minstrel mare Silk Brocade, comes to Texas from Donald Dizney's Double Diamond Farm near Ocala, Fla.

A winner of four stakes, including the Kentucky Cup Classic Handicap (gr. III) and Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap (gr. III), Semoran earned $860,035 in his 22-race career.

Semoran is owned by a syndicate and will stand for $3,000. He is an accredited Texas Stallion and is nominated to the Texas Stallion Stakes Series.

Joining Semoran at Q6 Ranch is American Spirit, who enters his first year at stud in 2004. The 7-year-old son of Storm Boot out of the Northern Jove mare Pillow Dancer won the Baldwin Stakes (gr. IIIT) on the turf at Santa Anita, was second in the West Virginia Derby, and finished third in the Kentucky Cup Sprint (gr. III) at Turfway Park behind Successful Appeal and Five Star Day.

In all, he won five of 25 start and placed 12 times. He earned $344,772

Owned by a syndicate, American Spirit also is an accredited Texas Stallion and is nominated to the Texas Stallion Stakes Series. He will stand for $1,500.

"American Spirit is an interesting horse; he had racing talent and speed," said Ken Quirk, DVM. "Both of them are physically strong horses.

"We are confident about these two stallions and think they represent real value," he continued, also noting that the stallions came to Texas due in part to Donald Dizney's optimism about the future of racing in the state. "We think their acceptance will be strong."

American Spirit and Semoran join a stallion roster at Q6 that includes Holzmeister, one of Texas' leading freshman sires; and Wild Zone, currently the state's fourth-leading sire and last year's top third-crop sire.