It was an impressive debut. The young stallion, who stood for a modest fee in the fiercely competitive Kentucky market, put a pair of horses from his first crop in the 2013 Kentucky Derby – Santa Anita Derby winner Goldencents and Wood Memorial third-place finisher Vyjack. Although neither hit the board that first weekend in May, both went on to be millionaires and performers at a high level for multiple seasons. And Into Mischief wasn’t joking around. Since that impressive coming-out party on the national stage, Into Mischief, who stands at B. Wayne Hughes’s Spendthrift Farm in Lexington, has made a deadly serious rise through the North American sire ranks. Already established as a perennial leading juvenile sire, he claimed his first general sire title in 2019, leading the way by both earnings and individual winners. Into Mischief also looked poised to be the start of a serious sire line, and Spendthrift, which purchased the horse as a juvenile and campaigned him to be a Grade 1 winner, hasn’t played around with its investment. The farm stands his first son at stud, two-time Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner Goldencents, now a young leading sire himself. The farm introduces Into Mischief’s son Maximus Mischief this year and has secured the future rights to Goldencents’s most consistent son, Mr. Money. “The rise of Into Mischief has been special to witness, and there’s every indication that the best is yet to come,” Spendthrift general manager Ned Toffey said. “We genuinely believe he’s the best sire in the world and is on the verge of becoming an important sire of sires when you look at what Goldencents is doing.” Into Mischief blazed his way to the general sire title on the heels of his daughter Covfefe, whose four graded stakes victories in 2019 were capped by the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint. She is considered the favorite to be honored with Eclipse Awards as both the champion female sprinter and champion 3-year-old filly of 2019 at the awards ceremony on Jan. 23 at Gulfstream. With her seasonal earnings of more than $1 million, Covfefe helped Into Mischief claim his title with a bankroll of more than $18.9 million and a margin of more than $3 million over his closest pursuer, Curlin. Grade 1 winner Audible was Into Mischief’s first classic-placed runner in 2018, when he finished third in the Kentucky Derby behind Triple Crown winner Justify, helping his sire to finish third on the general earnings list, his highest placing in those rankings to that point. Audible made just two starts in 2019, but picked up a check when fifth in both of the world’s richest races, the Pegasus World Cup Invitational and the Dubai World Cup, good for earnings of $910,000 to again be among his sire’s top earners. Into Mischief had his second classic-placed runner in 2019, as multiple graded stakes winner Owendale finished third in the Preakness Stakes. The stallion had another Grade 1 winner on the season in Mia Mischief, who won the Humana Distaff and subsequently handed Covfefe her only defeat of the season while winning the Roxelana Stakes. Into Mischief led the juvenile sire list again in 2019, outpacing Triple Crown winner and leading freshman sire American Pharoah. He previously led the juvenile list in 2016 and 2018 and finished second in 2017. His top 2-year-old of 2019 was Shoplifted, who finished second in the Grade 1 Hopeful Stakes and later won the Springboard Mile at Remington. With another group of standout juveniles having just turned 3 and eyeing the classics, and Covfefe, Mia Mischief, and Owendale all expected to return to the races in 2020, the future indeed looks bright for Into Mischief – whose books of mares have risen in quality along with his stud fee. :: Download the complete Kentucky Stallions special edition :: The son of Harlan’s Holiday entered stud for a fee of $12,500 in 2009, dipped as low as $7,500 in 2012, the crucial year that his first foals raced, then began to climb steadily upward. The stallion first stood for six figures in 2018, at $100,000, then was advertised at $150,000 in 2019. His book of 241 mares, according to The Jockey Club’s Report of Mares Bred, was full of prominent producers, including Halo Humor, dam of his multiple Grade 1 winner Practical Joke. The stallion also covered Love Style, dam of Grade 1 winner and classic sire Scat Daddy; Miss Macy Sue, dam of Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner Liam’s Map; and the dams of Grade 1 winners Cupid and Vasilika. Into Mischief’s book also included Eclipse Award champion La Verdad, Kentucky Oaks winner Cathryn Sophia, Canadian champions Hillaby and Roxy Gap, and Grade 1 winners Artemis Agrotera, By the Moon, Constellaton, Dance Card, Embellish the Lace, Gomo, Iotapa, Let Faith Arise, Paola Queen, Paulassilverlining, Pretty City Dancer, Sweet Lulu, and Tiz Miz Sue. “I don’t know if we’ve seen anything quite like Into Mischief. It’s truly remarkable the things he’s doing,” Toffey said. “Aside from amounting results on the track and in the sales ring, he’s the consummate professional and loves his job. This year, over 96 percent of his mares checked in foal. We think Into Mischief is making a positive impact on the breed that will be felt for years to come, particularly with the heart and durability that are signatures of his offspring.” Into Mischief’s fee again rises for 2020, to $175,000, and his book has already been reported to include a gem in Breeders’ Cup Distaff winner Blue Prize. The multiple Grade 1 winner led the fall mixed sales when she sold for $5 million to Larry Best’s OXO Equine at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky selected sale. Meanwhile, Into Mischief’s first son to stud, Goldencents, has only boosted his sire’s stock by getting off to a flying start. The two-time Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner joined his sire for the 2015 breeding season, and his first crop made him the leading freshman sire by individual winners and runner-up by earnings in 2018. He was 2019’s leading second-crop sire as By My Standards won the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby and Mr. Money, who had been his leading juvenile earner, captured four consecutive Grade 3 events in the Pat Day Mile, Matt Winn, Indiana Derby, and West Virginia Derby. Mr. Money also finished second in the Grade 1 Pennsylvania Derby. Mr. Money represents one of the avenues Spendthrift Farm has taken in doubling down on its investment in Into Mischief. The farm bought into Mr. Money to continue to campaign him with owner Chester Thomas’s Allied Racing Stable and to one day stand him. Meanwhile, Spendthrift introduces Into Mischief’s Grade 2-winning juvenile Maximus Mischief at stud in 2020. “Obviously, we believe in the sire line and know it very well,” Toffey said. “Mr. Money is a fantastic physical representation of Goldencents and Into Mischief, and he has that tremendous desire to compete, which we’ve come to know from this sire line.” Into Mischief has two other Grade 1-winning sons at stud at major Kentucky operations in Practical Joke (Coolmore’s Ashford Stud), whose first foals are yearlings, and Audible (WinStar Farm), who begins his career in 2020. Clearly, no one is fooling around.