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Black Tie Affair

SUMMER 2009 OLD FRIENDS EQUINE PRESS RELEASE

While Old Friends is currently home to numerous Breeders’ Cup horses, Black Tie Affair marked the arrival of our first Breeders’ Cup Classic winner, and, more so, our first U.S. Horse of the Year titleholder.

In 1991 the Irish-bred Black Tie Affair (Miswaki-Hat Tab Girl by Al Hattab) astonished the racing world by capturing six consecutive graded stakes, including the GR II Washington Park Handicap and the GR I Philip H. Iselin Handicap for trainer Ernie Poulos and owner Jeffrey Sullivan. He capped off his banner year with a wire-to-wire upset win in the GR I Breeders’ Classic (VIDEO) and for his efforts this stylish stallion earned the Eclipse Award for Champion Older Male and the coveted Horse of the Year crown.

He retired from racing with 18 wins from 45 starts and earnings of over $3.3 million

The stallion entered stud in 1992 at Ben Walden Jr.’s Vinery near Midway, KY, and later stood for five years in Japan. He has sired 35 stakes winners, including the multiple GR1 stakes winner (and fan favorite) Evening Attire.

After returning to the U.S. in 2004, Black Tie Affair stood at Randy Funkhouser’s O’Sullivan Farms near Charles Town, W.VA for a partnership managed by Donna Hayes. Now 23, Black Tie Affair was pensioned from stallion duties due to complications from arthritis and declining fertility. He was donated to Old Friends by the partnership in July 2009

“I was at Churchill Downs in 1991 when Black Tie Affair conquered the impressive Breeders Cup field led by Summer Squall, Twilight Agenda, Strike the Gold, Unbridled, and other graded stakes winners,” said an ecstatic Michael Blowen, founder of Old Friends. “When Donna called and told me of the syndicate’s decision to let Black Tie Affair come to Old Friends it was unbelievable. We hope his fans come to visit, and we hope he will live a long and happy life here.”

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To learn more about Black Tie Affair's fascinating racing career and success as a stallion, please go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Tie_Affair.

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