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Highly regarded 3-year-old Arabian Knight returned to the work tab May 29 after more than 11 weeks for trainer Bob Baffert.

Maiden Watch: May 22-May 28

There is an air of trepidation ahead of the Magic Millions National Yearling Sale as vendors reach "the end of the line" of the season, but an influx of overseas buyers and a selection of quality horses has the auction house remaining optimistic.

Paul Cole hopes x-rays May 30 will help unravel the mystery behind Royal Scotsman's tame display in the May 27 Irish Two Thousand Guineas (G1).

A meeting among veterinary teams for the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority, Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, and Churchill Downs will be held May 30.

Winchell Thoroughbreds' Kentucky homebred Red Route One posted a half-mile breeze in :50.85 over the Belmont Park main track  May 29 in preparation for the Belmont Stakes (G1) June 10 over Big Sandy.

Dave Hooper, a longtime racing official and former program coordinator of the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program, died the evening of May 28 at his home in Georgetown, Texas, with his wife, Martha, by his side. He was 88. 

Anmaat made a successful first step into group 1 company after he battled to victory in the Prix d'Ispahan at Longchamp May 29. 

Ike and Dawn Thrash have transferred four horses to trainer Christopher Davis from Brad Cox, including Kentucky Oaks (G1) placed The Alys Look.

Caught late and forced to settle for second when racing for Sean McCarthy in last year's GI Hollywood Gold Cup, Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman's Defunded (Dialed In) wrested command of the 2023 iteration soon after the start and led past every pole to give trainer Bob Baffert a ninth victory in the event, breaking a tie with the legendary Charlie Whittingham for the most wins in the history of the race.

Favored at 3-5, the chestnut broke well and took his five rivals along at a comfortable gallop, covering the opening four furlongs in :47.59 while being kept company by longshot Piroli (Battle of Midway). Kiss Today Goodbye (Cairo Prince) ranged up three wide turning up the backstretch and there would be no further change in the order in what became very much a merry-go-round race through the six furlongs in 1:11.83. Niggled along by Juan Hernandez nearing the stretch while given no breather by a very stubborn Piroli, Defunded led narrowly into the stretch, turned away the race-long challenge of Piroli at the furlong grounds and maintained a safe margin to the wire. The winner's stablemate and 2021 Gold Cup hero Country Grammer (Tonalist) bobbled a bit at the break from the inside stall, settled and chased from fourth throughout and never offered any sort of winning bid.

“I would have like to seen Country Grammer second and run 1-2, but Defunded is a tough horse,” said Baffert, whose won his first Gold Cup with Pegram's GI Kentucky Derby winner Real Quiet (Quiet American) nearly a quarter-century ago. “This horse today he got the lead and he wasn't going to let anybody pass him. He is just improving and getting better. I was happy to see him get a mile and a quarter.”

The 10 furlongs of the Gold Cup had proved a task too tall for Defunded previously, as he was second after setting a much sharper pace in last year's renewal and met a similar fate in the GI Santa Anita H. this past March, where he couldn't quite last and settled for third. Having made the 2022 GI Awesome Again S. his first graded win last October, he added a facile score in Del Mar's GIII Native Diver S. and was second to Art Collector (Bernardini) in the GI Pegasus World Cup in January. Defunded was a latest winner as the 1-5 mortal of the Apr. 22 GII Calfornian S.

Pedigree Notes:

Defunded's dam, a $31,000 Keeneland September yearling, punched well above her weight in winning five times while placing in a similar number of black-type races and bankrolling nearly $195,000.

Having produced four foals, Wind Caper was not mated in 2016 and fetched $37,000 from Athens Woods at that year's Keeneland November Sale. The stakes-winning second dam Wind Tunnel was a half-sister to Grade III winner Reunited (Dixie Union), the dam of GI Runhappy Travers S. and GI Jockey Club Gold Cup winner and GI Kentucky Derby runner-up Code of Honor (Noble Mission {GB}).

Wind Caper is also the dam of the 3-year-old filly Capital Lights (Lookin At Lucky) and a 2-year-old full-sister to Defunded. That filly, named Ringy Dingy, was a $200,000 purchase by Oracle Bloodstock out of last year's Fasig-Tipton October Sale and breezed a half-mile over the Oklahoma training track at Saratoga in :50.12 (12/30) May 26.

Monday, Santa Anita
HOLLYWOOD GOLD CUP S.-GI, $400,500, Santa Anita, 5-29, 3yo/up, 1 1/4m, 2:02.85, ft.
1–DEFUNDED, 124, g, 5, by Dialed In
                1st Dam: Wind Caper (MSP, $194,286), by Touch Gold
                2nd Dam: Wind Tunnel, by Summer Squall
                3rd Dam: Tivli, by Mt. Livermore
($210,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-Michael E. Pegram, Karl Watson
and Paul Weitman; B-Athens Woods LLC (KY); T-Bob Baffert;
J-Juan J. Hernandez. $240,000. Lifetime Record: 17-7-4-2,
$1,588,100. *1/2 to Lookin At Roses (Lookin At Lucky), SP,
$296,510. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Piroli, 122, g, 4, Battle of Midway–Phonybooksnrecords, by
Tapit. 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE, 1ST G1
BLACK TYPE. O/B-Don Alberto Corporation (KY); T-Michael W.
McCarthy. $80,000.
3–Kiss Today Goodbye, 122, h, 6, Cairo Prince–Savvy Hester, by
Heatseeker (Ire). 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($150,000 Ylg '18
KEEJAN). O-Sondereker Racing LLC; B-Debmar Stables (KY);
T-J. Eric Kruljac. $48,000.
Margins: 1, 3 1/4, HF. Odds: 0.60, 28.30, 37.30.
Also Ran: Country Grammer, Senor Buscador, Yes This Time.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

The post Defunded Takes Them Coast To Coast in Gold Cup appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Sent off the 3-1 second favorite to maintain a perfect record in four starts since switching to the grass just after the turn of the calendar, C R K Stable's Exaulted (Twirling Candy) was forwardly placed behind a pair of longshot leaders, got first crack at them into the stretch and kicked home smartly to win the GI Shoemaker Mile Monday at Santa Anita and with it, a fees-paid berth into the GI FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile over the course and distance in November.

Away smoothly for Juan Hernandez, the $77,000 Keeneland November weanling turned $200,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga yearling was taken hold of and sat third as Lamplighter Jack (Fed Biz) came across from his high draw to set the pace while prompted by fellow outside Flavius (War Front). Clocking that pair on the backstretch run, Exaulted was waited with into the final half-mile and was nudged along three wide around the far turn while zeroing in on the leaders. Lamplighter Jack called it a day, leaving Flavius along up front for a stride or two entering the stretch, but Exaulted rolled up to lead approaching the eighth pole and came home gamely to score nicely. Irideo (Arg) (Easing Along) weaved his way through traffic to be second at 41-1, while favored Hong Kong Harry (Ire) (Es Que Love {Ire}) was short of racing room when the real running was about to begin and did well to be third.

“This horse has been improving every race,” said meet-leading rider Hernandez. “He is always in a good position. He broke really sharp today and I took him back. At the three eighths, I asked him to pick it up and it was time to go. I passed a horse to get the lead and he didn't let other horses pass him.”

Having run big numbers in his first three starts, Exaulted broke his maiden in optional claiming company in February 2021, but that proved his lone victory from 11 tries on the dirt to go with third placings in the GII San Carlos S. and GII Triple Bend S. The bay switched to the grass this past January, winning allowance tests at a mile Jan. 2 and Feb. 5 before accounting for Irideo in the GIII American S. Apr. 2.

Pedigree Notes:

Exaulted is an eighth Grade I winner for Lane's End's Twirling Candy and is one of five winners out of a half-sister to GIII Arlington-Washington Lassie S. victress Wonderlandbynight (Sky Mesa). The latter's half-sister Ada Clare (Forest Wildcat) is the dam of five winners–four of which are by Twirling Candy–including the stakes-placed Big Boy Candy. Gilded Time, who was represented by GII Triple Bend S. winner Spirit of Makena (Ghostzapper) May 27, is now the broodmare sire of nine worldwide Grade I/Group 1 winners. Gilded Miracle passed away in 2019 at the age of 15.

Monday, Santa Anita
SHOEMAKER MILE S.-GI, $503,000, Santa Anita, 5-29, 3yo/up, 1mT, 1:34.08, fm.
1–EXAULTED, 122, h, 6, by Twirling Candy
1st Dam: Gilded Miracle, by Gilded Time
2nd Dam: Onemiracleatatime, by Gulch
3rd Dam: Katie Love, by Manila
1ST GRADE I WIN. ($77,000 Wlg '17 KEENOV; $200,000 Ylg '18
FTSAUG). O-C R K Stable LLC; B-Jack Swain (KY); T-Peter
Eurton; J-Juan J. Hernandez. $300,000. Lifetime Record:
15-5-3-4, $603,660. Werk Nick Rating: F.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Irideo (Arg), 122, g, 7, Easing Along–Infiltrada (Arg), by
Footstepsinthesand (GB). O/B-Pozo de Luna (Arg); T-Marcelo
Polanco. $100,000.
3–Hong Kong Harry (Ire), 124, g, 6, Es Que Love (Ire)–Vital Body
(Fr), by Gold Away (Ire). (£185,000 RNA 4yo '21 GOFFLN;
85,000gns 4yo '21 TATAHI). O-Scott Anastasi, Jimmy Ukegawa
and Tony Valazza; B-Amarath Business Management (Ire);
T-Philip D'Amato. $60,000.
Margins: HF, 1, 1. Odds: 3.10, 41.70, 1.60.
Also Ran: Il Bellator, Cabo Spirit, Du Jour, Gold Phoenix (Ire), Balnikhov (Ire), Salesman (Ire), Flavius, Lamplighter Jack.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

The post Exaulted Stays Perfect On Turf, Secures BC Mile Berth in Shoemaker Mile appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Bankit continues his legendary career with second straight victory in the Commentator on Monday’s Big Apple Showcase Day program at Belmont Park. Susie Raisher/NYRA Photo.

By Tom Law and Paul Halloran

Bankit made his ninth appearance on a New York-bred Showcase Day program Monday at Belmont Park and came away with his eighth stakes victory in the headlining $200,000 Commentator Stakes.

The 7-year-old son of leading New York sire Bankit closed the star-studded Big Apple Showcase Day card with a determined victory in the co-featured Commentator. Bankit skipped over a muddy track to win the 2021 Commentator by 13 1/4 lengths. He won the 2023 renewal by a head under Joel Rosario over a determined Olympic Dreams with Sherriff Bianco third and Dr Ardito fourth in the field of 12.

Campaigned by Winchell Thoroughbreds and Willis Horton Racing LLC and trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, Bankit improved to 9-12-6 in 40 starts and boosted his earnings to $1,406,405 in the Commentator. Bankit also moved up to 28th on the list of all-time leading New York-bred earners, just ahead of fellow legend Mr. Buff ($1,403,536) and just behind another in Win ($1,408,980).

Bankit also became a stakes winner for the sixth straight season, going back to his victory at 2 in the Sleepy Hollow Stakes on Empire Showcase Day in 2018 at Belmont Park. He also won last year’s Commentator on Big Apple Showcase Day and has placings in six other Showcase Day appearances – 2018 Funny Cide, 2019 Mike Lee and Albany, 2020 Commentator and Empire Classic and 2022 West Point. The 2021 victory in the Commentator helped propel Bankit to the champion New York-bred older dirt male title.

Dismissed as the 5-1 third choice behind 5-2 favorite Ouster in his stakes debut and 5-2 second choice Dr Ardito looking to rebound from a fifth in the Grade 3 Westchester, Bankit and Rosario settled into fourth early as Sea Foam set the pace. Sea Foam clicked off strong fractions of :22.88, :46.28 and 1:10.55 in the 1 1/16-mile Commentator, which had been run at 1 mile in Bankit’s other appearances.

Bankit (white cap) readies for the stretch run in Monday’s Commentator Stakes at Belmont. Dom Napolitano/NYRA Photo.

Rosario put Bankit four paths off the fence around the far turn and took command from Sea Foam in the lane. Bankit led by a half-length at the eighth pole, with 27-1 longshot Olympic Dreams to his inside and Sheriff Bianco making a run while getting to the outside. Bankit held it together inside the final yards to win in 1:43.01.

“As soon as he took the lead, he waited on horses a little bit,” Rosario said. “Then I just had to keep riding and hopefully he would get ahead of them. That’s the way he runs, I guess.

“It set up good and I kind of had to ride him a little bit, engage him a little and keep him in the race so he didn’t pack himself in there. I got a good trip and was able to come out and he went on. It looked like we were home and going to win by a couple, but he likes to just wait a lot when he passes the last horse.”

Toby Sheets, Asmussen’s New York-based assistant, handled the saddling about an hour after the stable celebrated a comeback victory by Eclipse Award winner Echo Zulu in the Grade 3 Winning Colors at Churchill Downs.

Bankit has trained at Belmont since last September, not long after the Saratoga meet, and Sheets sensed something big again from the horse Monday.

“He was doing really well. He does so well here,” he said. “He has a routine. He rolls in the round pen and all that good stuff. He can get a little on the muscle in the morning, but he’s very manageable. It was a great run from him and a good ride by Joel.”

Bred by Hidden Brook Farm LLC and Blue Devil Racing and foaled at McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds in Saratoga Springs, Bankit is the first foal out of the Colonel John mare Sister in Arms. He originally sold out of the Hidden Brook consignment to SGV Thoroughbreds for $85,000 at the 2017 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale.

Bankit was purchased by Winchell Thoroughbreds for $260,000 at the 2018 OBS March sale of selected 2-year-olds in training sale.

Central Banker, a 12-year-old Grade 2-winning son of Speightstown, stands for $7,500 at McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds. Central Banker topped the New York general sire list in 2022 and 2021, after a runner-up season in 2020. He led the 2023 list by a comfortable margin heading into Monday’s Memorial Day racing programs.

 

Classy Edition rolls into the stretch en route to victory in Monday’s Critical Eye on Big Apple Showcase Day at Belmont Park. Dom Napolitano/NYRA Photo.

• They call it Big Apple Showcase Day and, while it is a card for the entire New York breeding program to bask in the spotlight, it is common for a horse who has run at the highest levels of open company to return to the state-bred ranks for a relatively easy payday.

That happened in the Critical Eye Stakes last year, when Make Mischief, who had multiple in- the-money finishes in graded stakes, rolled to a 4-length win. And that was the case Monday, when Classy Edition, a winner of the Grade 3 Royal Delta Stakes at Gulfstream in February, looked like a winner every step of the way after overcoming a stumble out of the gate.

The final margin in the $200,000 stakes was 2 1/4 lengths for the 4-year-old daughter of Classic Empire out of the Bernardini mare Newbie.

“She stumbled a little bit, but she recovered quickly,” winning jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. said. “She put me in a beautiful position and I was biding my time there. When I asked her to go, she responded very well. It worked out perfect to be honest.”

After the misstep, Ortiz guided Classy Edition to the outside for an unobstructed trip down the backstretch. Venti Valentine broke second and set the pace through a quarter-mile in :23.87, with Let Her Inspire U second on the rail and Classy Edition sitting chilly on the outside. Ortiz made his move on the turn, getting to the front while barely asking his filly for run.

Once the field straightened for home, Ortiz offered mild urging and Classy Edition responded in kind, opening a 1 1/2-length lead at the stretch call and maintaining a comfortable advantage to the wire. The winning time was 1:42.82 over the fast track, with Sterling Silver second and Timeless Journey third.

“The outside filly Venti Valentine showed some speed and can be a little keen,” Ortiz said. “I was looking to break and try to relax, and if I could sit second outside of her, that would have been perfect. It worked out perfect because before we were 100 meters out, I was in the position I wanted to be in.”

Classy Edition, bred by Chester and Mary Broman and foaled at their Chestertown farm, sold for $550,000 out of the Sequel Bloodstock consignment at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May sale of 2-year-olds in training, with bloodstock agent Jacob West signing the ticket for Robert and Lawana Low. She is a half-sister to multiple New York-bred stakes winner Newly Minted and the stakes-placed New Girl In Town.

Newbie is also the dam of unraced New York-bred American Pharoah colt Pharoah Lake and a yearling New York-bred colt by Vekoma bred by the Bromans. She produced the unraced Speightstown mare Colonizer, who sold for $150,000 at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale. The Bromans bought back Colonizer, in foal to Omaha Beach, for $150,000 at the 2022 Keeneland November breeding stock sale.

The Bromans bought Changeisgonnacome, carrying Newbie, for $320,000 at the 2008 Keeneland November breeding stock sale. Bred in Virginia by Audley Farm, that mare won the P.G. Johnston Stakes at Saratoga and was third in a Grade 2 stakes at Belmont. All five foals of her foals to race were winners.

Classy Edition started her career with three straight wins against New York-breds, including the Joseph A. Gimma and the Key Cents for 2-year-old fillies. She then ran five straight times in open company, with a placing in the 2022 Grade 2 Davona Dale and this year’s Royal Delta win her best showings. Trainer Todd Pletcher swung for the fences in the Grade 1 La Troienne on the Kentucky Oaks undercard, but she finished last of 10, making the move back to a state-bred stakes logical.

“She shipped in (from Churchill Downs) in good form and her energy level has been great,” said Pletcher assistant Byron Hughes. “She has a good coat and is a very classy filly, very consistent, and a pleasure to train.”

 

The post Bankit delivers again in Commentator; Classy Edition back home to win Critical Eye appeared first on New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. News.

A champion and dual Group 1 winner in her native Brazil pre-import, R Unicorn Stable's Macadamia (Brz) (Hat Trick {Jpn}) consolidated some very solid recent American form to post a first elite-level victory in this country in Monday's GI Gamely S. at Santa Anita.

None of the seven entrants in the nine-furlong test seemed especially keen to lead, but eventually, Flavien Prat allowed School Dance (Animal Kingdom) through to take up the running in advance of Bellamore (Empire Maker), as odds-on Queens Goddess (Empire Maker) took back off that pair with a circuit remaining. Brazilian native Tiago Pereira, whose biggest career victory came in the 2010 G1 Dubai World Cup aboard Brazilian-bred Gloria de Campeao, had Macadmia settled at the back of the field, but not too far away, as the pace was moderate at best. Luis Saez asked Queens Goddess to apply some pressure to the outside of the leaders and hit the front going well with 2 1/2 furlongs to race, but Macadamia was traveling equally strongly in her wake a few lengths in arrears. The chalk went for home in upper stretch, but Macadamia always seemed to have the move covered and surged past late en route to a cozy success. The in-form Quatroelle (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) outfinished Queens Goddess for second.

“She is a nice filly,” said winning trainer Phil d'Amato. “I have to give Tiago a lot of credit for just getting on her every week, just breezing her and developing her. She was a quirky kind of backwards filly when we got her.

“She just needed to acclimate to North America. She's taken he time and now she is a Grade I winner. [Tiago] has a great attitude in the morning and I think it translates to the horses.”

Macadamia posted a pair of close third-place efforts from four starts on this circuit in the second half of 2022 and kicked off the new year with a 1 1/2-length allowance tally over Monday's course and distance Feb. 3. A troubled second to Quatroelle in the one-mile GII Buena Vista S. Mar. 4, the bay–still a late-season 4-year-old on Southern Hemisphere time–turned the tables with a one-length victory in the GIII Wilshire S. going eight panels Apr. 30.

Pedigree Notes:

Macadamia is one of 14 worldwide Group 1/Grade I winners for Hat Trick, who passed away in Brazil in August 2020. In the United States, the Sunday Silence stallion has been responsible for 17 stakes winners and nine at the graded level, including the additional Grade I winners King David and Win Win Win.

Macadamia is one of three winners from four to race out of her dam, a stakes-placed daughter of Fares Farm's 1991 GIII Selima S. heroine Ken de Saron, who also produced Brazilian Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old colt Sal Grosso (Brz) (Our Emblem) and the three-time French group-placed Jipapibaquigrafo (Irish River {Fr}).

Monday, Santa Anita
GAMELY S.-GI, $401,000, Santa Anita, 5-29, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 1/8mT, 1:48.01, fm.
1–MACADAMIA (BRZ), 122, m, 5, by Hat Trick (Jpn)
           1st Dam: Une Autre Etoile (Brz) (SP-Brz), by Northern Afleet
           2nd Dam: Ken de Saron, by Kenmare (Fr)
           3rd Dam: Lyre de Saron (Fr), by Luthier (Fr)
O-R Unicorn Stable; B-Haras Springfield (BRZ); T-Philip D'Amato; J-Tiago Josue Pereira. $240,000. Lifetime Record: Ch. 2yo filly & MG1SW-Brz, 13-5-3-2, $444,413. Werk Nick Rating: B+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree or free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Quattroelle (Ire), 124, m, 5, by Mehmas (Ire)
           1st Dam: Heavenly River (Fr), by Stormy River (Fr)
           2nd Dam: Aaliyah (Ger), by Anabaa
           3rd Dam: Arpista (Ger), by Chief Singer (Ire)
1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. (€10,000 RNA Ylg '19 TIRSEP). O-Red Baron's Barn LLC and Rancho Temescal LLC; B-Rossenarra Bloodstock Ltd (IRE); T-Jeff Mullins. $80,000.
3–Queen Goddess, 122, m, 5, by Empire Maker
           1st Dam: Royal Story (SP), by Lemon Drop Kid
           2nd Dam: Bauble, by Tale of the Cat
           3rd Dam: Just Reward, by Deputy Minister
($285,000 RNA Ylg '19 FTSAUG; $1,525,000 4yo '22 FTKNOV). O-Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Gary Barber; B-Tolo Thoroughbreds (KY); T-Michael W. McCarthy. $48,000.
Margins: 1, NO, 1 3/4. Odds: 6.20, 7.10, 0.80.
Also Ran: Viareggio (Ire), Bellamore, Closing Remarks, School Dance.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

The post Go Nuts! Macadamia Causes Minor Upset in Gamely appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Co-owner and breeder Michael Dubb shows Marvelous Maude some love after her victory in the Mount Vernon on Big Apple Showcase Day at Belmont Park. Susie Raisher/NYRA Photo.

By Tom Law and Paul Halloran

Slumber’s strong spring continued during Monday when his daughter Marvelous Maude collected her first stakes victory in the $125,000 Mount Vernon Stakes on the Big Apple Showcase Day card at Belmont Park.

Owned by Michael Dubb, The Elkstone Group and Michael Caruso, Marvelous Maude won the 1-mile Mount Vernon in her first start since finishing fourth in the Oct. 30 Ticonderoga Stakes on Empire Showcase Day. She also became Slumber’s second stakes winner on the season, along with Fluffy Socks, winner of the Grade 2 Longines Churchill Distaff Turf Mile on the Kentucky Derby Day undercard.

Dubb bred Marvelous Maude through his Beechwood Bruckner LLC and named her after Maude Walsh, the former hospitality manager for the New York Racing Association who also worked as the paddock host for Breakfast at Belmont and during morning workouts at Saratoga Race Course.

Dubb and partners also campaigned Slumber, who stands for $7,500 at Rockridge Stud in Hudson, late in his career and before he entered stud in 2017.

“I raced the mare and I remember she ran a 91 Beyer so she was kind of fast,” Dubb said after Marvelous Maude won the Mount Vernon. “The timing was such that we had retired Slumber to Calumet (in Kentucky). I had a few breedings, so I tried breeding Wait Your Turn to Slumber. A couple years went by and no one was breeding to Slumber and Calumet was getting ready to geld the horse.

“I showed Chad [Brown, trainer of Marvelous Maude] a picture of the baby who is now Marvelous Maude and he sent it to Calumet, and they decided not to geld Slumber after all. That is how Slumber became a stallion in New York. They were very close to gelding him and it was a picture of Marvelous Maude that saved him from being gelded.”

Marvelous Maude won a photo finish in the Mount Vernon, edging Runaway Rumour on the last jump to win by a nose. She improved to 5-for-12 in the turf stakes and the $68,750 first-place check boosted her bankroll to $374,500.

Irad Ortiz Jr., who rode Classy Edition to victory in the Critical Eye on the Showcase Day card, rode Marvelous Maude. They closed from fourth through the first 6 furlongs in 1:10.20 over the firm turf, before following moves at the lead by Sanura and then by Runaway Rumour.

“Her style is not to run like that, but the track has been playing for the speed,” Ortiz said. “It was 1-mile flat and I think she’s much better going a mile and a sixteenth or a mile and an eighth. So, I had to ride her to try to win and give her the best chance to win. I was a little closer. I moved a little early and was wide, too. She still got there. She’s a nice filly. That’s not her style of running, but she got it done.”

Marvelous Maude is the first foal out of Wait Your Turn, who is also the dam of the winning 4-year-old Freud filly Jet Set Juliet and the unraced 3-year-old Freud filly Phillipsburg Mike. Dubb sent Wait Your Turn back to Slumber in 2021 and 2022 and she’s now the dam of a yearling filly by the sire and another filly by the sire born April 19.

Marvelous Maude won the Mount Vernon in her fourth stakes appearance and in her first start of 2023. She finished sixth in the Grade 2 Flower Bowl at Saratoga, second in the John Hettinger against New York-breds at Aqueduct and fourth in the Ticonderoga at Aqueduct in her final three starts of 2022, races that came after back-to-back wins on the grass in allowance company at Belmont and Saratoga.

 

City Man slips past Jerry the Nipper for his first victory on Belmont’s turf in Monday’s Kingston Stakes on Big Apple Showcase Day. Chelsea Durand/NYRA Photo.

• It was hard to find a blemish on the resume of accomplished New York-bred City Man heading into Monday’s Kingston Stakes on Big Apple Showcase Day, but there was the matter of his record at Belmont Park: 0-10 overall and 0-6 on the turf, where he excels.

Make that 1-11 and 1-6.

Sent off as the 3-5 favorite in the stakes race named for a horse that won 89 times in 138 starts from 1885-93, City Man needed every bit of the 8 1/2 furlongs to record his inaugural Belmont victory. Trapped behind a wall of three horses on the far turn, jockey Joel Rosario opted not to swing to the far outside, instead waiting until the last possible second for a small opening that allowed him to take City Man to the middle of the course.

From there it was simply a matter of whether he could run down Jerry the Nipper, who was given a perfect ride by Jose Ortiz, sitting off 46-1 longshot Rinaldi for about 7 furlongs before taking the lead just after they straightened for home. He looked like a winner until City Man got loose and in full stride and beat him by a nose. A fast-closing Dakota Gold ran third.

“The track is playing fast and those horses aren’t coming back like they were,” said Dean Reeves, who owns City Man with Peter and Patty Searles and also Dakota Gold. “He couldn’t come inside so I’m glad that Joel brought him outside. He really kicked in and it looked like he hesitated a little bit and then got on with it. Dakota Gold was coming on strong, too. I was really happy with both horses.”

Rosario had City Man in sixth on the inside down the backstretch and into the turn. Sitting behind the two leaders – and forming the de facto blockade – were Ocala Dream on the hedge, Citizen K in between and Somelikeithotbrown on the outside. The way it turned out, if Rosario had opted for the overland route, he may not have gotten up. The winning time was 1:39.46.

“He was ready and as soon as I said, ‘Go,’ he was there for me,” Rosario said. “For a second, I thought the horse in front of me (Jerry the Nipper) was going to keep moving and he made it a little hard for me to pass him. It seems like the track was a little speed-favoring and he took his time today, but he finished really well.”

The 6-year-old City Man won his ninth stakes and improved his career record to 10-5-4 from 29 starts. The $68,750 winner’s share increased his career earnings to $1,079,870, good enough for 52nd among all New York-breds.

“He’s a fun horse who wins a lot; I like it,” winning trainer Christophe Clement said. “He always finishes well. Joel did his job. I train, he rides. This horse always finishes strongly. The choices a couple weeks ago, we were either training for this race or the Grade 1 Manhattan (June 10). Obviously, this is a much easier race than the Manhattan and it’s nice to go back to winning ways. We can be a little more ambitious with him next time.”

City Man was in the second crop of 2013 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Mucho Macho Man, also owned by Reeves Thoroughbred Racing. Out of the City Zip mare City Scamper, he was bred by Moonstar Farm and sold for $20,000 as a weanling in 2017. Two years later he went to Reeves for $185,000 at the OBS April sale of 2-year-olds in training.

City Scamper is the dam of six-figure New York-bred earner Go Kelly Go and the Laoban colt El Mayor, who has earned $71,767. City Scamper also produced a New York-bred colt by Hoppertunity in 2020; Miss City Girl, a 2-year-old full sister to City Man who has not yet raced; and a yearling filly by Vino Rosso.

The post Marvelous Maude collects first stakes in Mount Vernon; City Man up in time to take Kingston appeared first on New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. News.

Disco Deano (inside) holds off defending champ Flying Emperor to upset Monday’s George W. Barker at 37-1. SV Photography.

Disco Deano lit up the Finger Lakes tote board in his first start in more than seven months, upsetting Monday’s $50,000 George W. Barker Stakes.

The 6-year-old Verrazano gelding won the traditional Memorial Day stakes and opening stakes of the 2023 Finger Lakes season at 37-1, holding off defending champ and 11-1 Flying Emperor and 48-1 third-place finisher Writer’s Regret to trigger monster exotic payoffs. Owned and trained by M. Anthony Ferraro, Disco Deano won for the ninth time in 27 starts and improved to 8-for-18 at Finger Lakes in the Barker.

Disco Deano and jockey Keibar Coa also survived a steward’s inquiry and jockey’s objection from Nazario Alvarado, aboard fourth-place finisher and even-money favorite Lady’s Golden Guy.

Disco Deano swept to the lead in the 6-furlong Barker around the far turn, taking over from Lobsta after the half-mile in :46.29. Lady’s Golden Guy, prominent throughout, came up the inside to reach contention before Disco Deano responded to the challenge in deep stretch. Disco Deano won by head in 1:12.39 over the fast track. Flying Emperor finished 2 3/4 lengths ahead of Writer’s Regret with Lady’s Golden Guy another three-quarters of a length back in fourth. Senbei, Winston’s Chance, Neava York, Lobsta and Samay completed the field.

Bred by Joe DiRico and out of the unraced Disco Rico mare Nurse Disco, Disco Deano sold for $36,000 out the Harry L. Landry Bloodstock consignment at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Eastern fall yearling sale. Ferraro has trained the gelding throughout his career, including in his winning second start at 2 that earned appearances in the Aspirant Stakes and New York Breeders’ Futurity at Finger Lakes.

Disco Deano finished unplaced in those two events and didn’t make a stakes appearance again until last year’s Leon Reed Memorial in early October at Finger Lakes. He finished fifth in the Reed, which also marked his final start of 2022.

Ferraro prepped Disco Deano for his return with three works at Tampa Bay Downs in April and four more back home at Finger Lakes, including a bullet 5 furlongs in 1:01.40 May 17 and a 3-furlong tightener in :37.10 May 23.

Alfred DiRico purchased the New York-bred Nurse Disco for $30,000 as a yearling out of the Flying Zee Dispersal Phase I in October 2011 at Fasig-Tipton Kentucky. Disco Deano is the third foal out of Nurse Disco, who is also the dam of three-time winner and $174,384-earner Quai Voltaire.

Disco Deano collected $30,000 for the victory and boosted his earnings to $196,788.

The post Disco Deano scores massive upset in Barker appeared first on New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. News.

No stranger to layoffs, champion 2-year-old filly and 'TDN Rising Star' Echo Zulu (Gun Runner) made her first start of 2023 a winning one with a runaway score in Churchill's GIII Winning Colors S. On the sidelines since a game second to 2022 champion female sprinter Goodnight Olive (Ghostzapper) in the GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, she returned to the races in this six-furlong sprint–the shortest distance she's ever raced–without missing a beat, looking every bit the 3-10 favorite.

Sharp from an outside gate, Echo Zulu went out in the search of the early lead but had to contend with an equally speedy Fire On Time (Not This Time) on her outer flank. The pair quickly separated themselves from the rest of the field while working through quick early fractions of :21.75 and :44.62. Neither mare giving an inch around the far turn, Echo Zulu found herself briefly on the back foot as Fire On Time stuck a head in front with a quarter-mile to run. But Echo Zulu responded in kind to a shake of the reins from Florent Geroux, drew alongside her rival, and went on right on past, contesting the final furlong alone and hitting the wire clear by daylight while geared down.

“I'm very grateful for the owners of this very talented filly [L and N Racing and Winchell Thoroughbreds] and [trainer] Steve Asmussen,” said the winning jockey. “She broke really well today and took herself right to the front. We had some pressure on her outside but she was traveling very comfortably the entire race.”

Pedigree Notes:

Part of the wildly successful first crop of Breeders' Cup champion and Horse of the Year Gun Runner, Echo Zulu is a daughter of GII Stonerside Forward Gal winner Letgomyecho, the dam of no fewer than eight other winners including GISW 'TDN Rising Star' and sire Echo Town (Speightstown), GSW J Boys Echo (Mineshaft), and GSP Unbridled Outlaw (Unbridled's Song). Letgomyecho herself is a half-sister to the dams of GIII Ohio Derby victor Dean Martini (Cairo Prince), GSW Western Smoke (Smoke Glacken) and GISP One Lucky Dane (Lookin At Lucky). Echo Zulu's youngest sibling, the now 3-year-old Doing Justice (American Pharoah), brought a final bid of $1.4 million from Northshore Bloodstock at the 2021 Keeneland September Sale.

Monday, Churchill Downs
WINNING COLORS S.-GIII, $223,250, Churchill Downs, 5-29, 4yo/up, f/m, 6f, 1:08.99, ft.
1–ECHO ZULU, 118, f, 4, by Gun Runner
           1st Dam: Letgomyecho (GSW, $136,200), by Menifee
           2nd Dam: Echo Echo Echo, by Eastern Echo
           3rd Dam: Kashie West, by Sir Ivor
($300,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP). 'TDN Rising Star'. O-L and N Racing LLC and Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC; B-Betz/J. Betz/Burns/ CHNNHK/Magers/CoCo Equine/Ramsby (KY); T-Steven M. Asmussen; J-Florent Geroux. $139,000. Lifetime Record: Ch. 2yo Filly, MGISW, 9-7-1-0, $2,255,375. *1/2 to Unbridled Outlaw (Unbridled's Song), GSP, $253,478; J Boys Echo (Mineshaft), GSW, $377,543; and Echo Town (Speightstown), GISW, $410,020. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree or free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Fire On Time, 118, m, 5, Not This Time–Sapphire Spitfire, by Awesome Again. ($95,000 Wlg '18 KEENOV). O-Albaugh Family Stables LLC; B-Jorge S. Wagner (KY); T-Dale L. Romans. $45,000.
3–Last Leaf, 118, f, 4, Not This Time–My Miss Kallie, by Paddy O'Prado. ($7,000 Wlg '19 KEENOV; $10,000 Ylg '20 OBSWIN; $23,500 Ylg '20 OBSOCT). O-Monarch Stables, Inc.; B-Khalid Mishref Alkahtani (KY); T-Eddie Kenneally. $22,500.
Margins: 5 3/4, 1, HD. Odds: 0.31, 7.62, 7.55.
Also Ran: Spirit Wind, Marissa's Lady. Scratched: Scarlet Stripe.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

The post Echo Zulu Much The Best In Winning Colors appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Downtown Mischief and Jose Lezcano cruise to finish in Monday’s Bouwerie to lead off Big Apple Showcase Day. Adam Coglianese/NYRA Photo.

By Melissa Bauer-Herzog

Lady Shelia Stable’s stakes winning homebred Downtown Mischief avenged her lone defeat Monday when she came home a determined winner of the $125,000 Bouwerie Stakes to kick off Big Apple Showcase Day at Belmont Park.

Returning to 7 furlongs after finishing second over 1 mile last out in the Memories of Silver Stakes, the Linda Rice-trained daughter of Into Mischief broke well to enter a three-way duel out of the gate. It didn’t take long for Les Bon Temps and Miracle to yield the lead to Downtown Mischief with Jose Lezcano staying relaxed. Miracle tried to pressure the leader through an opening half in :45.65.

Downtown Mischief repelled that rival, who tried to head her around the turn, and spurted away as the field straightened into the stretch. Miracle grinded away at her lead in the closing furlong but was only able to get within a length at the finish. Midtown Lights settled for third, 7 lengths back. Downtown Mischief won in 1:23.98 over the fast main track.

Now the winner of four of her five starts, the two-time stakes winning 3-year-old boosted her earnings to $221,850 in the Bouwerie. Each of Downtown Mischief’s starts have come in 2023, with the filly racing once a month since winning her debut January 14.

“She has so much heart and soul and that’s a big part of their careers: do they want to win?” said Lady Shelia Stable’s Shelia Rosenblum. “And she definitely does like to win. She has shown it from Day 1.”

As for what’s next for the filly, trainer Linda Rice said they’d eye a graded stakes.

Downtown Mischief has already faced open company in her career, winning Aqueduct’s Cicada Stakes in March by 1 1/2 lengths. Her runner-up in the Memories of Silver also came against open company, though Rice admitted that race was more of an in-between start than an actual target for the runner.

“I told Sheila that we would try open company after this race if she runs as well as she did today,” she said. “Frankly, we’ll probably be in an open company 3-year-old fillies race. Probably the (Grade 3) Victory Ride.

Foaled at Edition Farm in Hyde Park, Downtown Mischief is a second-generation runner for Lady Shelia with Rice purchasing her dam, the Speightstown mare Downtown Mama, for $440,000 at the OBS April sale of 2-year-olds in training for the operation. Downtown Mama went on to win $126,837 with three victories in a seven-race career for her owners.

Downtown Mama is a half-sister to the Grade 2-winning Alpha Kitten and three other winners out of Alpha Mama. She is also one of three stakes producers for that mare with half-sister Malibu Breeze producing stakes winner Coastal Charm and half-sister Mamasez producing Grade 2 winner Brooke Marie.

Downtown Mischief is the first foal out of her dam, who also produced a New York-bred Maclean’s Music filly last year for Lady Sheila Stable and a New York-bred Violence colt April 11.

Maker’s Candy, disqualified from a stakes victory two starts back, comes away with Mike Lee during Monday’s Big Apple Showcase at Belmont. Joe Labozzetta/NYRA Photo.

• Maker’s Candy earned a stakes placing two starts back and went one better Monday with a victory in the $125,000 Mike Lee Stakes for New York-bred 3-year-olds.

Returning to the dirt after making a start on Turfway Park’s synthetic surface last out in the Grade 3 Jeff Ruby, 2-1 favorite Maker’s Candy took up a place behind Looms Boldly early in the 7-furlong Mike Lee. Looms Boldly led by a half-length through the first quarter-mile in :23.07. Jockey Jose Ortiz decided not to fight Maker’s Candy, let him out a notch and his mount quickly poured the pressure on the pacesetter.

The rest of the field couldn’t mount a challenge around the far turn as the timer registered Loom’s Boldy’s half in :45.42, but the game was about to change as they entered the stretch. Looms Boldly and Maker’s Candy continued to battle in the lane with Radio Red charging on the outside. Looms Boldly grudgingly gave in with a sixteenth left to run as Maker’s Candy went by.

Maker’s Candy pulled away late to win by 2 1/2 lengths from Radio Red in 1:23.35 on the fast track. Looms Boldly finished three quarters of a length back in third with What’s Up Bro, Lifetime of Chance, Jackson Heights and Etnico completing the field.

“He didn’t break that sharp, but I saw the opening on the inside and was able to take it,” Ortiz said. “I had a good trip and moved a little bit early to get good position. My horse responded well and I knew he had the stamina because he had run the mile race before and had done well in it, so I wasn’t afraid to move a little bit early.”

Bred by Newtownanner Stud, Maker’s Candy has won two of his four starts in 2023 with one other second via disqualification (from first) in the Gander Stakes. Trained by Mike Maker for Paradise Farms, David Staudacher, Maxi Stable and John Huber, he was a $200,000 Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale of 2-year-olds in training purchase last year.

“We narrowed down several horses at the sale, got down to about seven or eight horses,” said Paradise Farms’ Peter Proscia. “This horse had great conformation, Mike liked the way he moved and galloped out in the sale warm up. It just worked out for us. We got him for the right price.”

By Twirling Candy, Maker’s Candy is out of the two-time winning Bluegrass Cat mare Purple Cat. Sold for $550,000 as a yearling in 2009, she has produced three winners from six to race.

Purple Cat is a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Sky Diva and stakes winner and the multiple Grade 1-placed Freud mare Quick Little Miss with her dam producing six winners from 12 to race. The family also includes dual Grade 1 winner Pure Clan and Grade 1 winner Finley’sluckycharm, among others.

Purple Cat was sold for $12,000 at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky February mixed sale and foaled a New York-bred Speightster colt named Dream Alliance for Brendemuehl and Smith a few months later. Purple Cat’s youngest live foal, Dream Alliance was sold for $20,000 at last year’s OBS October yearling sale.

The post Downtown Mischief leads off Showcase Day; Maker’s Candy leaves no doubt in Mike Lee appeared first on New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. News.

Jun Park and Delia Nash's Sibelius (Not This Time), last seen posting a thrilling victory in the G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen at Meydan Racecourse Mar. 25, will bypass the GII True North S. at Belmont Park June 10 in favor of next weekend's $225,000 Listed Aristides S. at Churchill Downs, trainer Jeremiah O'Dwyer said Monday.

“He's stabled here at Keeneland and it's only up the road,” the conditioner told the NYRA press office. “We'll have a look at the race and see what post position we get and how the race is shaping up. If we like what we've got we'll run him there, but we'll still keep the True North in mind.”

Since defeating defending champion Switzerland (Speightstown) on Dubai World Cup night, Sibelius has breezed three times at Keeneland, including a leisurely half-mile in :50 flat with O'Dwyer in the saddle May 27.

“He's a fun horse to ride. I just wanted a smooth, relaxed breeze. If you put certain riders on him, he'll roll in :46 every time on the bridle if you let him,” O'Dwyer said. “I let him have a nice gallop out and get a bit of air in his lungs. We know he's a very fast horse, but we wanted to make sure that foundation is still underneath him.”

O'Dwyer said Sibelius, who gained something of a cult following during his time in the Emirates, has recovered nicely from the journey.

“He's done great. We gave him some time off and let him relax and put all his weight back on,” O'Dwyer said. “We jogged him at Keeneland for a week and he was jumping out of his skin, so he went back to galloping. He's had three breezes since and his fitness level is good and his energy level is good. He's bright, happy and content. That's all we want. Happy horses run for you and he seems pretty happy right now.”

The post Sibelius To Make U.S. Return In Aristides appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Winchell Thoroughbreds' homebred Red Route One (Gun Runner), beaten just under five lengths when fourth to National Treasure (Quality Road) in the GI Preakness S. May 20, worked an easy half-mile in :50.85 at Belmont Park Monday morning as he readies for his next start in the GI Belmont S. Presented by NYRA Bets June 10.

Trained by Steve Asmussen, who conditioned Creator (Tapit) to victory in the 2016 renewal, the chestnut worked on his own and NYRA clockers caught him galloping out five furlongs in 1:04.

“It was good, he seems like he got something out of it,” said Toby Sheets, Asmussen's Belmont-based assistant.

Third to 'TDN Rising Star' and future champion Forte (Violence) in the GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity at two, Red Route One was runner-up in the GIII Southwest S. and GII Rebel S., but was only sixth in the GI Arkansas Derby. He was victorious in the Bath House Row S. Apr. 22 and went for an early move at Old Hilltop while racing handier than is his custom and finished evenly.

 

 

RED ROUTE ONE posted a half-mile breeze over the Belmont Park main track this morning in preparation for the Belmont Stakes!

Trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, the chestnut son of Gun Runner worked solo under sunny skies on this beautiful Memorial Day. pic.twitter.com/GhfY2eZu5U

— Belmont Stakes (@BelmontStakes) May 29, 2023

The post Red Route One Breezes Towards Belmont appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

With the number of equine fatalities during the current spring meeting at Churchill Downs now up to 12, officials at the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) are convening an 'emergency veterinary summit' to be held Tuesday, May 30, in Kentucky.

“HISA's highest priority is the safety and well-being of the horses and riders competing under its jurisdiction,” a HISA statement released Monday begins. “We remain deeply concerned by the unusually high number of equine fatalities at Churchill Downs over the last several weeks. We continue to seek answers, and we are working diligently with Churchill Downs and the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) to mitigate any additional risk.”

The Tuesday meeting is expected to bring together the veterinary teams from Churchill Downs, the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) and HISA to 'thoroughly review all veterinary information available and conduct additional analysis in hopes of better understanding the events surrounding the recent fatalities.'

HISA is also enlisting the services of noted track superintendent Dennis Moore to provide 'a second and independent' review of the racing and training surfaces at Churchill Downs. The review is scheduled to begin Wednesday, May 31, and HISA CEO Lisa Lazarus and Racetrack Safety Director Ann McGovern will be on site to receive results and analysis and any suggested follow-ups needed.

Dr. Jennifer Durenberger, the director of equine safety and welfare, is also being dispatched to provide additional veterinary expertise and observation to ensure optimal veterinary oversight of the horses.

Following a special Memorial Day program Monday, racing is set to resume at Churchill Thursday, June 1, with a first post of 5 p.m. ET.

Following the 11th and 12th equine fatalities last Friday and Saturday, respectively, officials at Churchill Downs issued a statement of their own, pledging their commitment to pursue answers and solutions to the problem.

The post HISA To Conduct ‘Emergency Veterinary Summit’ To Address CD Fatalities appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.