Tales from the Crib: Journalism

Apr 22, 2025 Kellie Reilly/Brisnet.com

Journalism as a baby with his big head and ears (Photo courtesy of Reed Ringler/Don Alberto Corp.)

Journalism as a baby with his big head and ears (Photo courtesy of Reed Ringler/Don Alberto Corp.)

On the first Sunday in February, Haras Don Alberto’s homebred filly Lucky Red beat the boys in Chile’s El Derby (G1) at Valparaiso, the most prestigious race in their homeland. On the first Saturday in May, the perennial leading Chilean breeders will have their best chance yet in the most coveted U.S. prize, the Kentucky Derby (G1). Early favorite Journalism is a product of their Bluegrass division.

Haras Don Alberto, or Don Alberto Corp. as it is known in its U.S. and European ventures, is the nom de course of Liliana Solari and her son, Carlos Heller. Liliana named the establishment in honor of her late father, Alberto Solari, who was a venerable figure in Chilean racing and breeding. Indeed, he is memorialized by a Group 1 race for fillies and mares at Hipodromo Chile in Santiago.

Responsible for numerous major winners at home, including Chilean Triple Crown champion Fortino, Don Alberto has made quite a splash stateside in recent years. The stable purchased and campaigned two-time Eclipse Award winner Unique Bella, and they co-owned 2017 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1) hero Battle of Midway, the third-placer in that year’s Derby.

Don Alberto’s fledgling Kentucky breeding operation has already produced champion Arcangelo, who turned the Belmont (G1)/Travers (G1) double in 2023; multiple Grade 1 scorer Muth, scratched as the morning-line favorite in last year’s Preakness (G1); and Mr. Big News, third in the 2020 Kentucky Derby.

In addition to Journalism, Don Alberto bred several other nominees to the 2025 Triple Crown. Most notable are Caldera, the close second in both the Sunland Park Derby and Bathhouse Row S. at Oaklawn Park; Maximum Promise, third in the John Battaglia Memorial and Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3); and turf stakes winner Scipio, most recently runner-up in the Transylvania (G3) at Keeneland.

To ramp up their U.S. efforts, Don Alberto collected well-bred mares on offer at the best sales. A case in point is Journalism’s mother, Mopotism, who was a familiar face after vainly chasing Don Alberto’s Unique Bella in several graded stakes.

Indeed, her history with Unique Bella was the driving force behind Don Alberto’s purchase of Mopotism once her racing career was over.

Mopotism was “absolute iron” and “a bit of a warrior,” noted Reed Ringler, the chief operating officer of Don Alberto’s U.S. operations.

A daughter of champion Uncle Mo, Mopotism sported the colors of Reddam Racing. In 2016, trainer Doug O’Neill’s brother, Dennis, sourced her as a two-year-old in training at Fasig-Tipton’s Gulfstream Sale, going to $300,000 to acquire her.

One year earlier, Dennis had bought another Uncle Mo juvenile, a colt, at the same sale. That purchase turned out to be champion Nyquist, who would give Reddam and O’Neill their second Kentucky Derby trophy.

Mopotism did not develop into a win machine like Nyquist, winning just three of 26 starts. But she was a solid competitor at a high level over four seasons of racing.

Earning her way into the 2017 Kentucky Oaks (G1) through placings in the Starlet (G1) and Las Virgenes (G2), Mopotism wound up 10th behind Abel Tasman in the slop at Churchill Downs. She fared much better next time out in the Summertime Oaks (G2) at Santa Anita, just missing by a head.

Mopotism’s graded breakthrough didn’t come until 2018, when she battled to prevail in a three-way photo in the La Canada (G2). She ultimately amassed 10 graded stakes placings, four at the Grade 1 level, and retired with $876,090 in career earnings.

Cataloged for Fasig-Tipton Kentucky’s November Sale in 2019, Mopotism was consigned under the banner of Roderick Wachman’s Kingswood Farm. That name pops up elsewhere in the 2025 Kentucky Derby picture, for Kingswood co-bred Wood Memorial (G2) winner Rodriguez.

Mopotism had obvious broodmare appeal, and as she toured the ring, the bidding spiraled into seven-figure territory. But Don Alberto persevered and took her home for $1.05 million.

Mopotism was bred to Hall of Famer Curlin with a specific aim in mind.

“Curlin was Carlos’s idea,” Ringler said. “We’ve had great success with Curlin. We wanted to get that speed of Uncle Mo to carry a little further, and that’s why the cross was done.”

When her bay colt arrived on Feb. 6, 2022, he was literally more than they’d bargained for, as the mare’s first foal.

“We were not expecting a big foal, but he was a monster that weighed 153 pounds! He had a huge head and ears,” Ringler recalled.

The colt was insatiably hungry too, at one point prompting worries that he might get too heavy from eating so much. He kept finding ingenious ways to get into the feed buckets, no matter how his caretakers tried to position them strategically out of reach.

Journalism as a baby with his big head and ears

Journalism as a baby with his big head and ears (Photo courtesy of Reed Ringler/Don Alberto Corp.)

Not only was the big baby “very smart,” but Ringler also remembered that he had a strong independent streak. He didn’t want to stick around his mother at all.

“He could not wait until he got out to go play and mess with all the other mares and foals.”

Thus for him, the weaning process was one of pure liberation: “I am free!”

The colt enjoyed getting to do as he pleased, including munching on grass to his heart’s content. But he wasn’t mischievous at all, and as long as he was fed, he was happy to cooperate.

“Throw my feed at me, and I’ll do what you say,” was effectively his rule of life.

His intelligence came to the fore when it came time to prepare for the yearling sale. During the prepping stage, he carried himself as if he were saying, “I can do it on my own.”

As Ringler summed it up, the colt “kind of knew his job from day one.”

By now, the youngster had grown into a handsome specimen, worthy of the boutique Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale. Mom Mopotism was herself a graduate of the same auction, selling for $200,000 as a yearling before bringing more as a juvenile.

Her Curlin colt attracted plenty of attention. Consigned by Denali Stud as agent, he commanded $825,000 from Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners. Eclipse founder Aron Wellman came up with the name “Journalism.”

Don Alberto retained an interest, and soon others would climb aboard for a share. Bridlewood Farm, the Ocala facility where Journalism learned his early lessons, bought into the colt, and Elayne Stables 5 and Robert V. LaPenta also came in for a piece.

Since Curlin never ran at two, and Mopotism improved over time, Journalism was not going to be an early type. He benefited from patient handling, both at Bridlewood and once joining trainer Michael McCarthy in Southern California.

McCarthy, formerly an assistant to Hall of Famer and two-time Derby winner Todd Pletcher, has trained such standouts as $5.6 million-earner City of Light, champion female sprinter Ce Ce, and 2021 Preakness winner Rombauer. He unveiled Journalism in a six-furlong maiden at Santa Anita on Oct. 27. The colt rallied for third after being outpaced early and taking time to wind up.

Promising to move forward once he stretched out in distance, Journalism kept that promise enthusiastically. He promptly broke his maiden going a mile at Del Mar, breaking alertly before easing off the pace, and making a sustained move to win handily by 2 1/2 lengths.

Journalism wasn’t initially considered for the Los Alamitos Futurity (G2), but McCarthy believed that he was improving rapidly enough for the class test. He was supplemented to his first Road to the Kentucky Derby scoring race, where his leading rivals were a pair of Bob Baffert trainees coming out of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) – runner-up Gaming and fourth Getaway Car. Gaming accordingly ranked as the heavy 1-2 favorite at Los Alamitos, only to wind up a disappointing fourth behind the rampant Journalism.

While his Los Alamitos Futurity victory put Journalism into the Derby discussion, he still had to grapple with a couple of other high-profile Bafferts out west. The first was Barnes, who brought a big reputation into the March 1 San Felipe (G2) as the early Derby favorite. Journalism burst his bubble with a powerful rally down the lane and supplanted him as the favorite in the Kentucky Derby Future Wager.

Up until this point, Journalism had not gone off as the favorite in any of his races, although he did attract a good degree of support from the bettors. In the Santa Anita Derby (G1), however, he finally garnered the overall respect of the betting public, as he was dispatched as the even-money favorite. Last year’s champion two-year-old colt, Citizen Bull, and his Baffert stablemate Barnes were the second and third choices, respectively, but neither performed up to billing.

Journalism briefly had an anxious moment in the Santa Anita Derby when caught behind a tiring rival. Once he swung to the outside for room, though, he kicked into gear and collared Baeza, the half-brother to 2023 Kentucky Derby hero Mage and 2024 Belmont winner Dornoch. Citizen Bull retreated to fourth, and Barnes removed himself from the Derby picture by trailing home last.

By winning four straight, and remaining unbeaten around two turns, Journalism consolidated his grip on Derby favoritism. Curlin has yet to sire a Derby winner, but this might be his best chance so far.

Ringler noted that the Derby will mark Journalism’s third start of the season, following the pattern that worked so well when he dominated the Los Alamitos Futurity in his third start as a juvenile. He’s also staying on strongly through the wire in his races, suggesting that he will relish the 1 1/4-mile distance.

But his mindset could serve him best of all amid the hoopla of Derby Day.

“He’s been bomb-proof to everything,” Ringler said, right from the beginning, when he didn’t even need his mom.

If Journalism satisfies his appetite for roses, the cheers will echo as far afield as Chile.

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