CAPT MIDNIGHT
CAPTAINTREACHEROUS – IT WAS FASCINATION – AMERICAN IDEAL
p2, 1:49.4s; p3, 1:48.3s BT 1:47.2 – $662,286
2017 – bay horse – 16 hands
- In two of his last four starts Capt Midnight paced in 1:47.2 and 1:47.3 with fast closing quarters each time finishing second.
- Very rarely has a three-year-old ever paced in sub 1:48s let alone three times as a three-year-old.
- During his career Capt Midnight was only out of the money on three occasions.
- Paced 14 of his 15 starts as a three-year-old in 1:49.4s or faster. His other start was in a heat of the Little Brown Jug when he was timed in 1:50.1s on the half-mile track.
- Paced two last quarters in 25.4 or faster and 10 last quarters in 26.4 or faster.
- Paced two first quarters in 25.4 and 13 first quarters in 26.4 or faster.
- Paced three races in 1:47.4 or faster (his time) as a three-year-old, with his best time in 1:47.2.
- Paced his last quarter in 25.2 at his first lifetime start.
- Paced three races as a two-year-old in 1:49.4 or faster.
- Slowest mile at three was 1:50.1 and his slowest lifetime mile was paced in 1:52.2.
“I rank him probably on top of all the 2 year old’s I’ve ever driven. Once you ask him to go he gives you goose bumps.” – Driver, Andy McCarthy
The pedigree of Capt Midnight is one of the most intriguing and sensational in the breeding world.
When a yearling is sold for $350,000 anywhere in the Harness Racing world, you can be sure it will tick all the boxes in relation to Conformation and Pedigree.
At Harrisburg in 2018 a colt named Capt Midnight found himself in a bidding duel and when the hammer dropped he was off to join the powerful Tony Alagna barn in New Jersey.
Alagna of course had trained his sire Captaintreacherous to a $3.148 million career, while the dam of this powerful and stunning colt, It Was Fascination, compiled a record of 1:51.2 and $317,222 in prizemoney. Tony Alagna trained her as well.
The fact that the first foal of the dam, Captain Trevor (a full brother to Capt Midnight) was showing some extreme juvenile speed also helped the breeder to his big payday. Captain Trevor in fact won six of his nine starts as a two-year-old and joined that elite group of freshman pacers to take a sub 1:50 record – 1:49.2. Captain Trevor is now standing at stud.
Capt Midnight is now retired to stud duty with a two-season racing resume of 25 starts, eight wins, seven placings and prizemoney of $662,286. He has a two-year-old record of 1:49.4s, a three-year-old record of 1:48.3s and a best time of 1:47.2.
Capt Midnight was a ready-made two-year-old evidenced by the fact he powered home his last quarter in 25.2 in his debut race at The Meadowlands in July 2019.
Capt Midnight certainly was the dominant two-year-old in North America for the first half of the 2019 season.
As a two-year-old Capt Midnight won the $228,100 Nassagaweya Stakes in 1:51 starting from post 11.
Capt Midnight won the Dream Maker Series at Woodbine Mohawk Park in 1:49.4s taking a new stakes record in the process.
Capt Midnight won the Champlain Stakes in 1:50.2s at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
Capt Midnight won the International Stallion Stakes at The Red Mile in 1:49.4.
Capt Midnight won an elimination of the Metro Pace easily by four lengths in 1:51.4s and was third in the $750,000 Metro Pace Final at Woodbine Mohawk Park to Tall Dark Stranger p2, 1:49.1; p3, 1:47.1 ($2,020,195) and Papi Rob Hanover 1:47.1, ($1,019,244).
Capt Midnight had his last start as a two-year-old in the $789,474 Breeders Crown but was an unlucky fifth (placed 4th after interference) behind Tall Dark Stranger, Papi Rob Hanover and Cattlewash.
As a two-year-old Capt Midnight was the equal third fastest two-year-old pacer in 2019.
As a three-year-old Capt Midnight at his very first start paced in 1:49.3 beating Papi Rob Hanover at The Meadowlands.
Capt Midnight won a $77,500 division of The Somebeachsomewhere in a stakes record equalling time of 1:48.3s.
Capt Midnight ran second by a head to Cattlewash in the Adios elimination in 1:49.2 (his time) and second to Tall Dark Stranger (Horse of the Year) in the $273,135 Cane Pace in 1:47.4 (his time).
Capt Midnight ran second by a head to Tall Dark Stranger in the $50,000 elimination of the $1 million North America Cup in 1:48.4s (his time).
Capt Midnight ran second in the $68,600 Bluegrass Stakes to Warrawee Vital in 1:47.2 (his time).
Capt Midnight ran second in the $239,500 Tattersalls Pace to Party Girl Hill in 1:47.3 (his time).
Capt Midnight ran against Tall Dark Stranger seven times, running second to him twice in the North America Cup elimination by a head, and in the Cane Pace.
Capt Midnight ran third, fourth and fifth to Tall Dark Stranger as well.
Capt Midnight is from the second crop of sensational sire Captaintreacherous and is the second foal of the Stakes winning American Ideal mare It Was Fascination 1:51.2 ($317,222).
Captaintreacherous has been a revelation since retiring to stud in 2015 in North America. From 330 foals from three crops of racing age (three-year-olds and older) he has sired 212 winners including an unbelievable 30 in 1:50 or faster and 179 in 1:55. His 270 starters have averaged $102,410 per starter and his average earnings per foal is $83,479 as at April 28, 2021. He has produced three millionaires and 63 $100,000 plus winners to date.
Such is the demand from breeding farms for sons of Captaintreacherous that many are going to stand as stallions as three and four-year-olds long before their racing careers are completed.
From his first two crops Captaintreacherous is represented by his sons Captain Crunch, Captain Trevor, Captain Ahab, Capt Midnight and Catch The Fire, all standing at stud in 2021.
It is understandable as Captaintreacherous was the North American leading money winning two-year-old sire with his first crop in 2018 when his 78 starters won $3,525,548.
He was again the North American leading money winning two-year-old sire in 2019 with $4,922,011 and the leading money winning three-year-old sire with $6,759,492 heading his own great sire Somebeachsomewhere on both lists.
Also with just two and three-year-olds racing Captaintreacherous made the top five all aged list of money winning sires.
Another amazing statistic from 2019 was that the top five sires on the all age list of money winning sires included Mach Three (sire of Somebeachsomewhere) and Somebeachsomewhere (sire of Captaintreacherous). Their combined earnings in 2019 was $49,515,313. The other two leading sires that year were Bettor’s Delight and American Ideal with combined earnings of $44,191,037.
Now another amazing statistic from 2019 was on the average earnings per starter list where Captaintreacherous completely dominated this with sensational numbers. In the two-year-old list he had 75 starters from 120 foals that averaged $65,626 per starter (his nearest rival had $42,378). In the three-year-old list he had 82 starters from 113 foals that averaged $82,432 per starter (his nearest rival was his own sire Somebeachsomewhere, who had 87 starters from 114 foals for an average of $69,247.
In 2020 Captaintreacherous finished second (with 68 foals) on the North American money winning two-year-old sire’s list to his own sire Somebeachsomewhere (with 89 foals), but he again dominated the three-year-old list with 84 starters earning $5,969,767 over Bettor’s Delight (with 98 foals) and Somebeachsomewhere (101 foals).
In 2020 Captaintreacherous jumped to third place on the all aged money winning sire’s list (with 220 starters) behind Bettor’s Delight (616 starters) and his own sire Somebeachsomewhere (496 starters).
Perhaps the most amazing statistic for 2020 was the fact that Captaintreacherous topped the three-year-old average earnings list for three-year-olds with a staggering $71,068 per starter with 84 starters from 120 foals. The next best stallion on that list was Bettor’s Delight with $48,918 per starter from 98 starters from 120 foals.
The dam of Capt Midnight, It Was Fascination (by American Ideal), counted a victory in a New York Sires Stakes Final [3YO fillies] among her six wins and $317,222 in prizemoney.
Capt Midnight is a descendant of the grand broodmare Romola as is his own sire Captaintreacherous and the sire of his dam American Ideal. This family has arguably been the most productive in the American stud book for successful sire and millionaire race performers.
The ULTIMATE crosses for Capt Midnight are:
Dams by Bling It On, Hes Watching, Heston Blue Chip, Soho Tribeca, Downbytheseaside, Huntsville, Poster Boy, Soho Lanikai, Stay Hungry & Sunshine Beach Grand Dams by American Ideal, Somebeachsomewhere, Art Major, Dream Away, Grinfromeartoear, Modern Art, Perfect Art, Rocknroll Hanover, Shoobees Place & Sportswriter.
Dams with the above and following stallions and dams in their pedigrees: Mach Three, Artsplace, World Order, Western Ideal, Matts Scooter, Beach Towel, Abercrombie, Nihilator, Rodine Hanover, Western Hanover, Three Diamonds & Cambest.
