Simply Ravishing’s latest checkmark in P.G. Johnson

By Sean Clancy

Turf. Check.

Open Company. Check.

Dirt. Check.

Stakes. Check.

Simply Ravishing checked off all four in her undefeated career with her second win in her second start, taking Thursday’s P. G. Johnson Stakes at Saratoga Race Course. Rained off the turf, the $93,000 stakes whittled to just four runners, including two main-track-only entries making their first starts for multiple Eclipse Award-winning trainer Todd Pletcher.

They didn’t stand a chance.

Breaking from the outside in the 7-furlong stakes, Simply Ravishing established a stalking spot outside even-money favorite Con Lima through a quarter mile in :22.82 and a half in :45.67. Luis Saez waited until he wanted, allowing the free-moving filly to lengthen around the far turn, dispatching the favorite in a matter of strides and cruising to an untouched 6 ½-length win over Con Lima and Union Gables. With Saez looking once under his right arm and a couple of times at the infield screen, Simply Ravishing finished in 1:21.85.

Owned by Harold Lerner, Magdalena Racing and Nehoc Racing, the New York-bred daughter of Laoban won her debut against open company at Saratoga Aug. 2. That was on the turf against open company.

Bred by Meg Levy, Simply Ravishing attracted the shrewd eyes of trainer Ken McPeek at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky October yearling sale. Purchased for $50,000, the daughter of a Jim Dandy winner and the maiden Four Wishes has proven to be a bargain.

“It’s so great, that little mare I bought for 500 bucks. I remember because it was my birthday, I was going to the Fasig February sale and somebody called me about this More Than Ready mare,” Levy said. “We bred her to Laoban, we had a breeding right because Mike (Levy, Meg Levy’s husband) did the stallion deal. I’m excited about her. She’s a beautiful horse. Hey, even the little guys can hope and wish. Fingers crossed.”

Laoban stands at Sequel Stallions in Hudson, New York. The son of Uncle Mo has produced two stakes performers in his first crop so far. In addition to Simply Ravishing, Ava’s Grace finished third in the Grade 2 Adirondack for Southern Equine Stable, which co-owned Laoban.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2020/09/03/simply-ravishings-latest-checkmark-in-p-g-johnson/

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Officer Hutchy provides quick return for connections

By Melissa Bauer-Herzog

Officer Hutchy quickly paid back her new connections with a half-length victory in Thursday’s Park Avenue division of the New York Stallion Series at Saratoga Race Course for her first stakes victory less than three weeks after being claimed for $25,000.

The race favorite tracked the leading Big Q in the early stages of the 6 ½-furlong race as the leader set fractions of :21.90 and :44.49 for the first half. Racing a few paths off the rail, Officer Hutchy was patiently ridden and turned into the stretch just behind the leader.

The filly waited until Dylan Davis asked her for her best to make a true run for the lead and engaged the then-leading Spin a Yarn in battle. Officer Hutchy proved to be the best in the shadow of the wire to win by half-length for trainer Rob Atras and owner Sanford Goldfarb.

The victory was the first stakes success for Atras, who gave full credit to her owner for deciding to claim her.

“I was expecting her to run well, but that performance really wowed me,” said Atras, winning his first stakes at Saratoga. “The credit goes to Sandford Goldfarb, who picked her out. It was his idea to claim the filly. She ran great. She broke running and Dylan put her in the perfect spot. He sat just off the pace and that other filly was tough to run down. She’s a nice filly so I was happy with my horse today.”

Winning over double her claiming price, Officer Hutchy took home $55,000 to pull within $6,000 of the $250,000 mark in career earnings. The Boys At Tosconova filly isn’t a stranger to stakes competition, finishing second in a Stallion Series event December when beaten 1 1/2 lengths by A Freud of Mama.

For Atras, trying to buy New York-breds is always a priority thanks to the options and money available to them through the New York-bred program.

“We always like to look for New York-breds,” he said. “They seem to always have more options and obviously better spots to run in and they run for great money. I tend to lean towards looking for New York-breds.”

Bred by Green Polka Farms, the filly is out of the Linda Rice-trained New York-bred Patriot Act mare A. P. Hutchy. A. P. Hutchy is out of a half-sister to Grade 3 winner Mulrainy and the dam of Grade 2 Fountain of Youth winner Soldat among others.

Officer Hutchy is one of two winners from two runners out of A. P. Hutchy, who has an unnamed 2-year-old full brother and a yearling full sister with the mare visiting Big Brown this year.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2020/09/03/officer-hutchy-provides-quick-return-for-connections/

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Light day for New York-bred Derby contenders

By Melissa Bauer-Herzog

The two New York-bred Kentucky Derby contenders enjoyed an easy day after heavy early morning rains again left the main track at Churchill Downs sloppy Thursday morning.

Tiz the Law jogged two laps under the twin spires with Heather Smullen aboard and trainer Barclay Tagg closely attending the pair on his pony. Plans set out yesterday initially called for Tiz the Law to gallop Thursday and Friday but with a record-breaking amount of rain dropping 2.3 inches in Louisville, Tagg grudgingly called an audible.

“I wish I could have done more with him, but couldn’t because we’ve had two days of hard rain,” Tagg said. “He’ll gallop tomorrow and he’ll school in the paddock today during the fourth race.”

Thursday’s training added another another chapter in a book that has seen Tiz the Law’s team divert from their original plans most of the spring and summer. They had planned out his schedule early in the year but like most plans, it had been forced to change with the rise of COVID-19.

“The whole plan for the year pretty well had been determined,” Sackatoga Stable’s Jack Knowlton said. “We wanted to run in the Holy Bull, skip the Fountain of Youth and go in the Florida Derby. Five weeks later Barclay had him primed to run in the Kentucky Derby but the world changed and we had to change with it.”

Knowlton admitted that they weren’t sure where to run next after the Kentucky Derby was off but that quickly changed with the Belmont Stakes moving to just a few weeks later. The break between Florida Derby and Belmont allowed Tiz the Law to enter the summer races fresh with the change in schedule also allowing connections to see how the colt would handle the 1 ¼-mile distance in the Travers Stakes.

“You look at the way he ran in the Travers, his lifetime Beyer Speed Figure went up 9 points and that was with Manny (Franco) gearing him down,” Knowlton said of the normal Derby distance question. “He was just cantering the last sixteenth of a mile, the fourth fastest Travers wrapped up. That makes us feel good. It’s a little daunting being a 3-5 morning-line favorite in the Kentucky Derby but he’s earned it.”

Saffie Joseph Jr.’s decision to gallop fellow New York-bred Ny Traffic Wednesday before the heavy rain hit today paid off during morning training. Stepping on to the track at 7:30 a.m. after over three hours of heavy rain, Ny Traffic just jogged a mile for an easy bit of exercise two days after his arrival at Churchill Downs.

Ny Traffic has been a consistent in the 3-year-old stakes this year with four top-three finishes in Kentucky Derby preps. The colt will be looking to break a streak of three seconds in the Kentucky Derby after coming within a nose of a Grade 1 win in the TVG.com Haskell Stakes last out. Joseph said the addition of blinkers in his races has helped him improve with every start.

“Blinkers seem to have really taken him to a new aspect,” Joseph said. “He’s more steady in his races, more focused. He’s been on the improve. All we need is one more improvement from him and he’s going to be a horse that is going to make a name for himself Saturday.”

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2020/09/03/light-day-for-new-york-bred-derby-contenders/

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