The Showcase Special

By Tom Law

The biggest day of the year for New York-breds arrives Saturday with the Empire Showcase at Belmont Park and the crew from The Saratoga Special is proud to roll out a special edition of The Showcase Special for the occasion.

Wow, that’s a lot of special but deservedly so considering an 11-race card worth $1,412,000. Showcase Day features eight stakes for horses bred in the Empire State worth $1.2 million, including the co-featured $175,000 Empire Classic and $175,000 Empire Distaff.

The Showcase Special goes race-by-race, providing the perfect primer and follow-along guide for horsemen, breeders, owners and fans of the New York Thoroughbred. And you can watch the whole card during Saturday’s America’s Day at the Races program that runs from noon to 5:30 p.m. ET on FS2 and MSG+.

Here’s the primer for Saturday, Oct. 24. Safe trips to all and good luck.

Race 1. $70,000 maiden special weight. Noon. Full field of 12, along with three on also-eligible list and a main track only, for $70,000 turf maiden for 2-year-olds. John McClutchy’s homebred Arrowheart chased Breadman last time out and that one goes in stakes later in the card. Cotton hasn’t done a thing wrong in his three starts for trainer Mark Casse while Christophe Clement (Swashbuckle), Mike Maker (Vodka Lemonade), Jonathan Thomas (He’s a Lucky Devil) and Ray Handal (Humpday) send out well-meant firsters.

Race 2. $150,000 Maid of the Mist Stakes. 12:40 p.m. Party At Page’s overcame some trouble winning her second straight in the Lady Finger Stakes last time and needs to bounce back quick off 19-day turnaround. Chasing Cara might have been best in the Joseph A. Gimma last time. She lost all chance when she jumped at the start and still managed to finish third for owner-breeder Richard Greeley and trainer Mitch Friedman, who also send out Cara’s Dreamer in 1-mile test.

Race 3. $150,000 Sleepy Hollow Stakes. 1:15 p.m. Owner, breeder and trainer Richard Lugovich said he “expected to win” the Bertram F. Bongard with Hold the Salsa last time out and the Hold Me Back colt delivered on his expectations. Off the board in back-to-back stakes tries at Saratoga, Hold the Salsa ran his record to 2-for-2 at Belmont and looks to make it three here against impressive maiden winner Breadman, two he beat in the Bongard and three others.

Race 4. $150,000 Ticonderoga Stakes. 1:49 p.m. Lawrence Goichman’s homebred Myhartblongstodaddy made it look easy all the way on the lead winning the Yaddo last time for trainer Jorge Abreu. No doubt jockey Jose Lezcano will try similar tactics in 1 1/16-mile turf stakes against familiar foes Wegetsdamunnys and War Canoe.

Race 5. $70,000 maiden special weight. 2:22 p.m. Shorter trip – 7 furlongs – for this 2-year-old filly maiden that also drew a full field plus two AEs and 2 MTOs. Mark Casse sends out Hard Spun firster Pretty Clever, bred by Chester and Mary Broman and a $240,000 buy at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale. Christophe Clement also runs a first-time starter bought at the same sale – for $230,000 – in the Shanghai Bobby filly Home for Christmas.

Race 6. $175,000 Empire Distaff Handicap. 2:53. Ratajkowski returns to defend her title in the co-feature against six other fillies and mares. Six-year-old Drosselmeyer mare didn’t get the cleanest of trips last time as the 6-5 favorite in the Union Avenue, finishing fifth, but she’s back to a more favorite distance of 1 1/16 miles. Jeremiah Englehart holds strong hand with last year’s New York-bred champion 2-year-old filly Critical Value and Fleet Indian Stakes winner Makingcents. The latter handled older foes back in June while the latter exits a prep going 1 mile against older open-company rivals. Mrs. Orb just missed in the Union Avenue and could continue strong year for trainer Mike Miceli.

Race 7. $125,000 Hudson Handicap. 3:26. Time to sprint. Nine line up for 7-furlong test, including trio of Big Engine, Tribecca and T Loves a Fight. They prepped for this finishing 1-2-3 in open optional Sept. 26. Arlington shipper Dugout makes his return to New York, where he won the Funny Cide at Saratoga and New York Breeders’ Futurity at Finger Lakes as a 2-year-old.

Race 8. $150,000 Mohawk Stakes. 3:59. Back to the grass and a West Point rematch between Rinaldi, Dot Matrix and Therapist. They were the first three under the wire that day, with Rinaldi doing it all the way on the lead. Expect similar tactics here for trainer Jim Bond and jockey Luis Saez but they face a tall order against Mike Maker’s Somelikeithotbrown and Cross Border. If either of those two, winners of graded stakes this summer at Saratoga, win it could pave the way to a New York-bred championship. Somelikeithotbrown already has one of those titles, last year’s 3-year-old male honor.

Race 9. $125,000 Iroquois Stakes. 4:31. Newly Minted, last year’s champion New York-bred 3-year-old filly, ran lights out winning the Union Avenue and draws rail here against nine others entered in 6 1/2-furlong stakes. The winner of last year’s Bouwerie and Fleet Indian will be tough against the likes of Finger Lakes shipper Spin a Yarn, Timely Tradition, Fair Regis and Officer Hutchy.

Race 10. $175,000 Empire Classic Handicap. 5:05. The co-feature and last stakes of the day is a good one with defending champ Mr. Buff in the field with multiple stakes winner and Grade 2 Vosburgh runner-up Funny Guy, 2019 New York Derby and graded stakes competitor Bankit, 2020 Albany winner Chestertown, 2018 Albany winner Sea Foam and last-out blowout winner Evaluator. Mr. Buff has handled his peers in four of his last five starts against New York-breds, including a 20-length score in the Haynesfield and a 7 ½-length tally in the Alex M. Robb. Those were at Aqueduct, but he’s just as effective at Belmont for trainer John Kimmel and owners-breeders Chester and Mary Broman. Funny Guy, fourth in the Grade 1 Forego run in a monsoon two back, figures to be a tough challenger. Son of Big Brown has won his last three against New York-breds, including strong score in the John Morrissey at Saratoga and Commentator at Belmont for trainer John Terranova.

Race 11. $72,000 allowance. 5:35. Close the card with 7-furlong turf event for older horses. The lightly raced duo of Advanced Strategy (Jimmy Jerkens) and Uncle George  (Christophe Clement) should be tough.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2020/10/23/the-showcase-special/

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Here & There – Showcase Day 2020

The Saratoga Special

Who’s ready for Empire Showcase Day? We definitely are and put together a special Here & There Showcase Day edition for the occasion, just like what you’d see on a warm summer day in The Saratoga Special. Special thanks, too, to the communications team at the New York Racing Association.

Names of the Day

Byhubbyhellomoney, fifth race. Bad Boy Racing’s 2-year-old filly is by Effinex out of Shocking Behavior.

Caumsett, fifth race. Michael Henning’s 2-year-old filly by The Factor. Causett State Historic Park Preserve, a state park on Lloyd Neck in Long Island, is an English-style estate with sports & recreation, nature trails & historical society in a manor house.

Ratajkowski, sixth race. Empire Distaff. Gary Broad’s 6-year-old mare won the race last year and we figure she’s named for Sports Illustrated and runway model Emily Ratajkowski, who had 26.8 million followers on Instagram as of Friday morning.

Rinaldi, eighth race. Mohawk Stakes. Jim and Tina Bond like to name the family’s horses for Italian wines and this year’s West Point winner is named for the late Giuseppe Rinaldi.

Somelikeithotbrown, eighth race. Mohawk Stakes. Last year’s New York-bred champion 3-year-old male and multiple graded stakes winners is by Big Brown out of Marilyn Monroan. He’s appeared in Names of the Day in the past but we can’t get enough.

 

By the Numbers

1:13.20: Tiz the Law’s 6-furlong workout time Friday morning at Keeneland. The New York-bred Belmont and Travers winner galloped out 7 furlongs in 1:25.40 and got his final quarter in :23.60 as he continues to prep for the Nov. 7 Breeders’ Cup Classic.

4: Winners from the 2019 Empire Showcase program entered back Saturday – Ratajkowski, Critical Value, Captain Bombastic and Mr. Buff.

5: Entries sired by freshman sire War Dancer on Showcase Day, one more than fellow New York-based stallions Central Banker and Big Brown.

6: Runners bred by Chester and Mary Broman entered for Showcase Day, including Mr. Buff and Chestertown in the co-featured Empire Classic.

7: Entries for Jeremiah Englehart on Showcase Day, most of any trainer and one more than both Rudy Rodriguez and Christophe Clement.

109: Total entries for Empire Showcase Day card.

1,412,000: Dollars in purse money on the line on Showcase Day.

1,002: Mares bred by 37 stallions in New York in 2020 according to statistics released by The Jockey Club Friday morning.

123: Mares bred by McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds’ Solomini in his first season in 2020, the most of any stallion in New York. Central Banker, who also stands at McMahon of Saratoga, bred 114 mares and Rockridge Stud’s Leofric bred 91 mares.

 

Worth Repeating

“He’s giving me every indication that he’s doing well. He’s training well and breezing well. Junior (Alvarado) gets on him for all his breezes and says he feels terrific. I can’t say anything negative about the way he’s coming into the race.”
Trainer John Kimmel on defending Empire Classic winner Mr. Buff

“It’s always nice to pick up New York-breds. The money there is really good and when you have a New York-bred you can go up there and get all the bonuses. The New York-bred program is intriguing right now.”
Mid-Atlantic-based trainer Danny Velazuez, who runs Laobanonaprayer in the Maid of the Mist and Brooklyn Strong in the Sleepy Hollow

“I’m not sure what that was because she’s never not done that [switched leads] but she’s also never had to run that hard. At Finger Lakes, it’s just a cakewalk for her.”
Trainer Chris Progno on Iroquois entrant Spin a Yarn’s runner-up effort in the Park Avenue division of the New York Stallion Series this summer at Saratoga

“She’s a missile.”
Jockey Kendrick Carmouche to Progno after breezing Spin a Yarn 5 furlongs in 1:01.22 Sunday at Belmont

“It’s a little quick back for her but we thought she wouldn’t have any issue with stretching out, so we’re going to give her a shot and go from there. A lot will depend on how the race shapes up. She’s pretty versatile and we can ask her to do different things.”
Trainer Jeremiah Englehart on Party At Page’s, who runs back on 19 days’ rest in the Maid of the Mist off her win in the Lady Finger at Finger Lakes

“The waters are going to get deeper and deeper every time, but we’ll just keep marching forward and keep our fingers crossed that he keeps getting better.”
Trainer Jim Bond on Rinaldi’s chances in the Mohawk

 

On the air

Empire Showcase Day will be part of Saturday’s America’s Day at the Races coverage on FOX Sports and MSG Networks. Coverage will run from noon to 5:30 p.m. ET on FS2 and MSG+.

 

 

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2020/10/23/here-there-showcase-day-2020/

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