Collected, Courtesy Rancho San Miguel
San Miguel, Calif—In a watershed announcement for the California breeding and racing industry, Grade 1 winner and prominent young sire Collected will relocate from Airdrie Stud in Kentucky to stand at Rancho San Miguel in California for the 2026 breeding season. His introductory West Coast fee is $7,500, with a live foal stand and nurse guarantee.
The 12-year-old son of City Zip enters the state as one of North America’s leading fourth-crop sires, and as the clear-cut, #1 California sire by 2025 progeny earnings with $6,307,233 in purse money amassed through November 5.
Collected will be featured during Rancho San Miguel’s 2025 Open House and Stallion Show at its San Luis Obispo County farm on December 6. Breeders are invited to attend this free event.
The unique partnership formed to relocate the stallion includes Thoroughbred owner and breeder Marsha Naify, a highly respected businesswoman, philanthropist and former chair of Thoroughbred Owners of California.
Saddled by Racing Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert for owner Speedway Stables LLC, Collected won eight of 15 starts on dirt and turf from ages 2 through 5, earning $2,975,500. His seven stakes victories at four racetracks include five graded scores in California and Kentucky.
His signature win came in Del Mar’s $1 million Pacific Classic Stakes (G1) in 2017, in which he capped a four-race win streak by defeating reigning Champion 3-Year-Old Colt Arrogate. Next, he was runner-up to Horse of the Year Gun Runner in the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1), meriting a spot as one of three finalists for the Eclipse Award as Champion Older Dirt Male of 2017.
Collected was retired to Airdrie Stud prior to the 2019 breeding season. From four crops to race, he has sired 20 black-type stakes winners and the collective earners of more than $18 million.
His seven graded stakes winners include his first-crop filly Taxed, a Grade 2 winner and $1,173,919-earner who sold for $750,000 as a racing / broodmare prospect during the 2025 Fasig-Tipton November Sale last Monday. Also among this elite group is 2025 King’s Plate Stakes winner Mansetti ($773,503), one of the leading sophomore runners in Canada.
Collected is one of six winners out of Helena Bay (GB), a winning daughter of Johannesburgwhose 3-year-old Uncle Mo colt Jude — a $2 million Keeneland September Sale graduate —
was named a “TDN Rising Star” after his successful debut for Baffert at Santa Anita Park onOctober 10. Among his extended family is the European champion and leading sire Blushing Groom (Fr).
“Collected has been an absolutely rock-solid Kentucky sire, and he now has the opportunity to stand as California’s premier stallion,” said Airdrie Stud President Bret Jones. “His California training roots and the great success his progeny have enjoyed in the state should guarantee his popularity. We are thrilled to give California breeders access to a stallion that can truly help their programs.”
Collected’s move to California extends the recent outreach that Airdrie has already made to the state. Two of his top runners — the multiple graded stakes winners Conclude ($570,100) and Thought Process ($380,200) — were bred by late Airdrie founder Brereton C. Jones, and have been campaigned in partnership by his estate exclusively at Del Mar and Santa Anita.
“California’s success is so critical to our overall industry,” Bret Jones explained. “This is a great deal for both our syndicate members and the California breeding and racing communities.”
In addition to supporting Collected with her band of broodmares boarded at Rancho San Miguel, Naify plans to purchase additional mares this fall to specifically fit the incoming stallion.
“Partnering with Airdrie and Rancho San Miguel is a natural extension of the strong commitmentI have made to the California breeding and racing industry over the past 25 years,” Naify said.
Collected’s move was brokered by California-based bloodstock agent Lisa Groothedde.
“We are overjoyed and extremely honored to have been entrusted by Airdrie to take the reins of Collected’s breeding career,” said Rancho San Miguel Owner Tom Clark. “In addition to being a familiar runner to our target audience from his years of competing at the highest levels here in California, he is in peak form as a stallion thanks to Airdrie’s expert management. We are proud to now do our part along with our longtime friend and client Marsha Naify to help cement Collected’s legacy.”
“With his proven credentials, we are confident that Collected will make a big splash in our regional market,” Clark said. “He is coming in as the state’s leading sire by a towering margin, which should make him a top choice for mare owners in 2026.”
