Johannes ended the year the same way he began it – with an impressive victory in yet another Graded Stakes.
The four-year-old son of Nyquist brought the curtain down on a tremendous year with a win in the G2 San Gabriel Stakes, one of the highlights of the opening day card at Santa Anita on Thursday, 26 December.
Other than a second-place finish in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Mile, Johannes has been perfect in 2024, winning five of six starts – all in Graded Stakes, with the G1 Shoemaker Mile at the top of the list.
Ridden once again by jockey Umberto Rispoli, Johannes was bumped slightly coming out of the starting gate but was settled off the pace in fourth, content to track leader Cabo Spirit while saving ground along the rail.
Caught behind a wall of horses on the far turn, Johannes was swung four-wide at the top of the stretch for a clear run. The response was immediate, as Johannes hit another gear and swept past Mi Hermano Ramon and Seal Team in the stretch to win by three-quarters of a length.
Johannes was bred in Kentucky and is out of the mare Cuyathy, a Stakes-placed daughter of Congrats. In addition to Johannes, Cuyathy is also the dam of the three-year-old filly, Sea Dancer (Mastery), recent winner of the Carousel Stakes, and the two-year-old filly, Sea Runner (Gun Runner), recently third in the Listed Del Mar Juvenile Fillies Turf. Cuyathy herself is a half-sister to multiple Graded Stakes-placed Join in the Dance, and the family also boasts of such standouts as Pennyhill Park (Champion Older Mare in Canada), Elm Drive (G2 Sorrento Stakes, G3 Monrovia) and Mother Of Dragons (California Governor’s Handicap).
In addition to Johannes, Nyquist is also the sire of the undefeated G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner, Immersive; G1 Del Mar Debutante winner, Tenma; and Randomized, winner of the G1 Ogden Phipps Stakes.
Nyquist will stand the 2025 breeding season at Jonabell Farm for $175,000, stands and nurses.
