A bold truth at the core: Layabout isn’t your typical racehorse, but he’s proving that quirks can coexist with genuine potential. The Tropical Park Derby, listed at $125,000, wasn’t the day’s marquee event for most viewers, yet across the pond in London, Kevin Doyle and stable manager Andy Smith watched with bated breath as their 3-year-old Kentucky-bred, Layabout, surged to the front in the final sixteenth and narrowly held off Tiz Dashing by a nose to win the 1 1/16-mile race.
After the photo confirmed the victory and the Gulfstream Park winner’s circle filled with cheers, trainer Patrick Biancone phoned in to share the success. “We had a laugh,” Smith recalled. “On to the next one. January 24, we’re hoping for.” That date marks the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf (G1T), an ambitious target for this developing gelding that the team hopes will serve as a stepping stone to serious international campaigns in the Middle East over the coming months. Such plans would be a big deal for Doyle’s Newbyth Stud operation in Scotland.
Doyle, long involved in entertainment and property, has maintained an ongoing passion for Thoroughbred breeding. He keeps a small group of mares in Scotland at Floors Castle and a few more in Kentucky under the care of Peter O’Callaghan at Woods Edge Farm. “He’s deeply involved, but more an investor than anything else,” Smith said. “He enjoys it, and we try to turn a profit where we can. He likes turnover. We’ve bred and traded breeding stock in America quite a bit.”
Doyle’s footprint in American bloodstock runs deep. He was an original owner of Trolley Song, dam of 1995 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) hero and influential sire Unbridled’s Song, and he bred War Plan, a graded-placed runner whom he sold for $700,000 at the 2004 Fasig-Tipton Florida Select 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale.
Batalla Sindical, a Kentucky-bred daughter of Big Brown who raced in Argentina, is one of the mares Doyle keeps at Woods Edge. Smith leapt at the chance to acquire her because she is a half sister to 2019 Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1) winner Blue Prize, both out of Blues For Sale. The pedigree gained another boost when Blue Stripe, another half sister, won the 2022 Clement L. Hirsch Stakes (G1) and was nosed out in the Distaff by Malathaat.
Layabout’s dam, Batalla Sindical, was bred to Laoban after a COVID-related delay that forced a stallion change from the originally intended Uncle Mo. She was consigned to the 2021 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale while carrying Layabout, but a cyst on one leg led to RNA’ing for $130,000. That turn of events yielded a striking colt—Layabout—and Doyle and Smith decided to train him themselves.
The road to Layabout’s success wasn’t straightforward. He started on Gulfstream’s dirt for trainer Brian Lynch and failed to win in his first three starts. Yet his speed showed in morning workouts, and his early races featured future stars such as River Thames and Gosger in the mix. “He’s a bit of a strange horse,” Smith noted. “When he hits the front, he slows to a stop. He’s awkward in the gate, awkward in the mornings.”
With Gulfstream’s Championship Meet ending and no clear progress, Smith kept Layabout in Florida and enlisted Biancone. The French-born trainer quickly made a difference, treating Layabout with patience and care, lifting him to success on the synthetic at first, then two turf wins, including the Bear’s Den Stakes in August.
Layabout then traveled to Kentucky Downs, finishing fourth in the $2 million Gun Runner Stakes after a late rush. Returning to Gulfstream for the Showing Up Stakes on Nov. 1, he burst to the lead but was caught late by Souper Forces, losing by a half-length. “He hit the front and was cruising, but then his toe dipped and he eased up,” Smith explained.
In the Tropical Park Derby, Junior Alvarado rode Layabout to perfection. As the gelding reached the front, there wasn’t much ground left to the wire, allowing him to withstand Tiz Dashing’s furious late run by a nose. Alvarado reportedly told Smith on Dec. 13 that he loves the horse and believes he’s got real ability. Smith added praise for Biancone, describing him as a patient, highly skilled horseman who has connected well with Layabout and unlocked his potential.
With three wins from four Gulfstream grass starts, the team remains optimistic about earning an invitation to the Pegasus Turf. They’re confident Layabout’s quirks don’t diminish his talent, and they see a path to competing at the highest levels and traveling abroad to Saudi Arabia and Dubai. “We think he’s better than his results so far,” Smith said. “He’s a 3-year-old gelding showing real form. We want him to flourish because we have more quality stock to come from the mare. There’s a lot on the horizon, so we’ll keep experimenting and learning.”
Newbyth Stud still owns Batalla Sindical’s 2-year-old Cupid filly and a Practical Joke yearling, while Layabout’s dam is in foal to Gunite, with another promising foal on the way. Batalla Sindical’s legacy lives on in the promising prospects Doyle and Smith are quietly building for the future.
