Jemography up in time to win George W. Barker

By Tom Law

Windylea Farm’s Jemography found a home – and success – running at Finger Lakes for 10 straight starts from August 2019 to October 2020. He won or placed in seven of those races for trainer Jonathan Buckley, then ventured back to the NYRA circuit with Mark Hennig and the good efforts followed.

The 5-year-old Big Brown gelding finished second twice then won three in a row this winter, before a four-race losing streak capped by a seventh in the John Morrissey Handicap July 29 at Saratoga Race Course.

Hennig sent Jemography back to Finger Lakes for a wakeup call in Monday’s $50,000 George W. Barker and the gelding returned to his winning ways with a strong run down the lane for his first stakes victory.

Ridden by Dylan Davis, aboard for the three straight wins this winter at Aqueduct, Jemography caught the front-running Flying Emperor in deep stretch to win the 6-furlong Barker by a neck in 1:10.82. The first two were well clear of Tommy the Torch 7 1/4 lengths back in third with Heyitsnricopalazo fourth in the field of six.

Flying Emperor took the early initiative in the Barker, opening up a 1-length lead on the backstretch to the opening quarter-mile in :22.60 while the trio of Runningwscissors, Jemography and Heyitsnricopalazo chased. The field stayed that way to and through the turn with Flying Emperor and jockey Emanuel De Diego along on the lead, opening up by 2 lengths through the half in :45.59. Jemography saved ground around the turn, angled out turning for home, passed Runningwscissors in the lane and was still 2 lengths back at the eighth pole. Davis stayed busy inside the furlong marker and despite drifting out a bit, Jemography got up in time.

Bred by Golden Goose Enterprise and foaled at Dutchess Views Farm in Pine Plains, Jemography is the sixth foal and the leading earner out of the winning Menifee mare Liza Lu. Seven of the mare’s eight foals to race are winners, including the stakes-placed Scat Daddy gelding Good Intent and the Big Brown filly Big Time Lady.

Jemography sold for $22,000 to Wayne Sanders and Larry Hirsch at the 2017 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky October sale. He raced for Sanders and Hirsch and trainer Joe Sharp before being claimed for $25,000 by Windylea and trainer Bruce Brown out of a runner-up effort in a maiden race May 12, 2019. He broke his maiden 15 days later, this time for a $40,000 tag.

Jemorgraphy ran twice for Brown at Belmont and Saratoga, finishing second and fifth in claiming races, before heading to Finger Lakes and Buckley in August 2019.

Jemography is a half brother to a Central Banker filly bred by Spruce Lane, Mashnee, McMahon of Saratoga and partners and foaled Feb. 14 and a yearling colt by Oscar Performance purchased by Begg Racing for $55,000 at this year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred sale.

McMahon and Hill Bloodstock purchase Liza Lu in foal to Big Brown for $26,000 at the 2017 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga fall mixed sale. The resulting foal was Big Time Lady, a filly who brought $100,000 at the 2019 Saratoga New York-bred sale and finished third in last fall’s Tepin Stakes at Aqueduct for Repole Stable and trainer Rudy Rodriguez. She also finished fourth in the Aug. 4 Statue of Liberty division of the New York Stallion Series Stakes at Saratoga.

 

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2021/08/30/jemography-up-in-time-to-win-george-w-barker/

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Giacosa salvages rough day for Bonds, City Man gives Reeves’ a double in West Point

By Tom Law

Jim and Tina Bond could only shake their heads. Well, sort of.

Walking the aisle between the first two rows of the clubhouse boxes after Giacosa provided the family stable with some salve following a circumstantial defeat two races prior, the Bonds let their feelings known without letting their feelings known. Tina led off, the first to reach the steps to the winner’s circle.

“Finally, finally,” she said. “What a game. They should have never went to challenge that guy though. But they did.”

Jim followed up, just a bit more diplomatically.

“Momma always said, if you can’t anything nice don’t say anything,” he said after Giacosa won the $150,000 Yaddo Handicap to close the stakes portion of Friday’s New York Showcase Day card. The homebred Tizway filly won by three-quarters of a length over last year’s Yaddo winner Myhartblongstodady and about an hour after the Bond Stable’s Rinaldi was hooked and cooked on the lead in the $150,000 West Point Stakes.

“But I’m Italian, so I just keep blabbing,” Tina Bond said as the couple met friends and partners on the entrance to the winner’s circle.

Giacosa followed her victory on the second day of the meet in a state-bred optional claimer on the grass with her Yaddo win, both under leading rider Luis Saez. She won in 1:42.54 with her fourth win in 11 starts to go with two seconds and a third for $255,590.

Foaled and raised at the Bond’s Mechanicville-based Song Hill Thoroughbreds, which co-bred the filly with Roderick Towle, Giacosa improved to 3-for-4 on the Saratoga turf.

“She’s been telegraphing it,” Jim Bond said of the filly’s readiness for her return to stakes competition. “She’s probably a little better two-turn horse, she got lost at Belmont. A lot of my horses got lost at Belmont the way the spring was. She’s got a nice pedigree, her sisters can run, her mother was a nice filly. We’re blessed to have her and she was telling me she was right.”

“Luis turned the page for me for the race before. That’s the way the game is. It beats you up one minute and every once in a while you get a breather and they say, ‘stay in the game a little longer dummy.’ ”

The beating came in the West Point. Rinaldi, 4-5 in the field of seven coming off a front-running victory in the Grade 3 Forbidden Apple, and Saez were joined on the lead by a hustling Jose Ortiz and Microsecond from the get-go. The two ripped through early fractions of :22.9, :46.35 and 1:11.19 that took a toll, first on Microsecond and eventually on Rinaldi while City Man closed from just off the pace and held off stablemate Therapist to win by a nose.

Rinaldi wound up fifth, beaten 6 lengths in his West Point title defense. Microsecond, so eager for the lead he broke open the stall door before the start of the West Point, wound up eased and more than 50 lengths back.

Giacosa saved the day and turned the frowns upside down.

The fifth foal out of the New York-bred Smart Strike mare Smart Engagement, who Bond bought as a yearling for $30,000 and trained to two wins and a second for $61,030 in earnings. She’s the dam of three full sisters to Giacosa – stakes-placed $236,150-earner Tizzelle, two-time winner and $128,132-earner Way Smart and winner Tizengaginglysmart – along with the 3-year-old Mineshaft filly Gallina who finished third in a state-bred maiden claimer July 21 at Saratoga.

“Big time win,” Bond said. “We have her sisters, all in foal to good stallions at the farm and now she has a home for the rest of her life. We’re lucky. Here at Saratoga we’ve been a little cold. We started out pretty hot and boy oh boy, we hit a lull. We have some more to fire with and Luis has given me a lot of calls, so I think we could win a couple more hopefully.”

Giacosa’s victory capped the six stakes on the 11-race Showcase Day card that produced a paid crowd of 28,492, on-track handle of $4,191,738 and an all-sources handle of $24,231,854.

“This day is important because it enables us to highlight our state’s breeders, owners, horsemen and every participant in the New York-bred program,” said Najja Thompson, Executive Director of New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. “Since the inaugural Saratoga New York-bred Showcase Day in 2014, this day has only continued to grow. Not only in the purses offered showing the strength and incentives of the New York-bred program, but also the quality of equine athletes on display.

“We’re happy to continue partnering with NYRA to showcase the best of the Empire State on each of our three New York-bred Showcase days throughout the year and especially here at Saratoga.”

• Dean Reeves loved what he saw in Hip 1069 at the 2019 OBS April 2-year-olds in training sale. He was perhaps a bit biased looking at offspring of Mucho Macho Man, who he campaigned to a 2013 Breeders’ Cup Classic victory and a career with more than $5.6 million in earnings, but he wasn’t shy spending $180,000 for a colt from the stallion’s second crop.

Later that year he won the Funny Cide Stakes – a race Reeves and Darlene Bilinski won Friday with Senbei – and last year City Man toppled open company in the Gio Ponti Stakes at Aqueduct. He added another victory to his ledger in the West Point, taking advantage of a early hot pace battle between Rinaldi and Microsecond on the way to a narrow victory over stablemate Therapist.

Campaigned by Reeves Thoroughbred Racing and Peter and Patty Searles, City Man won the 1 1/16-mile turf stakes by a nose in 1:41.30 for his fourth victory in 15 starts. Bred by Moonstar Farm and out of the City Zip mare City Scamper, City Man won for the first time in four starts this season for Christophe Clement.

“At the time when I bought him I was not as involved in the New York situation as I am today. … I love this program,” Reeves said. “I just loved him at the OBS Sale and, of course, being by Mucho Macho Man, I thought this horse would develop. We just recently purchased his (weanling) full sister, who looks just like him. He has developed into a really nice horse as a 4-year-old and I think we’ve got some really nice racing ahead.”

City Man started his career on the main track, winning a Saratoga maiden and the Funny Cide and finishing a close the Bertram F. Bongard before taking on open company and finishing fourth in the Central Park Stakes at Aqueduct in early December 2019 to close out his 2-year-old season. He’s run in seven grass races in 10 subsequent starts over two seasons, including a close fourth in the Grade 3 Transylvania at Keeneland, the win in the Gio Ponti and a second in the Grade 2 Fort Marcy in his 2021 debut May 1 at Belmont Park.

“People forget my horse had a really good race in the Fort Marcy when he finished second,” Clement said. “It was a great race. Then I was very disappointed in the Manhattan. He ran flat and when he came back, he wasn’t training well afterwards. It took me a while to get him back, but now he’s back, and I am very happy with it. He’s a good horse.”

City Man prepped for the West Point with a seventh as the favorite in an open optional at 9 furlongs on the grass Aug. 6. Clement also gave him a wake-up 5-furlong breeze in :59.90 Aug. 18.

“I’m proud of both horses, they really came to run,” Reeves said. “I really felt good about City Man because he had worked so well last time out on the dirt. It was 59 and change and he did it with ease. I felt good about that. Senbei, I didn’t know what to expect, but he put on a show.

This is so special for City Man to win this for Mucho Macho Man. He ran really well in the Grade 2 and then we just had two down days, but he’s got to break well. He’s got to be in the game. I think he doesn’t get tired, but he’s not quite as quick footed to finish, but if you’ve got him out there you’ll have a hard time running him down.”

City Man is one of two winners out of City Scamper, a half-sister to New York stakes winner Alysinstilettos and stakes-placed Always For You. He was a productive pinhook for Off The Hook, which purchased City Man for $20,000 as a weanling at the 2017 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga fall mixed sale. He next went through the ring at OBS April and brought $185,000 from Reeves.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2021/08/27/giacosa-salvages-rough-day-for-bonds-city-man-gives-reeves-a-double-in-west-point/

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Americanrevolution takes Albany, Byhubbyhellomoney upsets Fleet Indian

By Paul Halloran

The owners of Americanrevolution toyed with the idea of taking a big swing in Saturday’s Grade 1 Travers Stakes with their New York-bred 3-year-old, but opted instead for Friday’s $250,000 Albany Stakes on New York Showcase Day at Saratoga Race Course.

Winstar Farm and China Horse Club were looking and feeling good after the son of Constitution justified his 3-5 favoritism and with a 5-length victory in the Albany.

“We were confident,” said WinStar President and CEO Elliott Walden, after the colt bred by Fred Hertrich III and John D. Fielding had no problem blowing by Bob Baffert’s Bobby Bo in the stretch. “He’s a very good horse, one of our better 3-year-olds. It’s nice to see him put it together.”

Americanrevolution, a son of Constitution out of the Super Saver mare Polly Freeze foaled at Irish Hill Century Farm in Stillwater, sold for $275,000 at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale. Hertrich, who runs Watercress Farm in Kentucky, has a large collection of broodmares and has been a staunch supporter of the New York breeding program. He and Fielding bred New York-bred multiple Grade 1 winner Diversify.

“We were looking for Constitutions,” Walden said. “He was so well-balanced. He stood out to us at the New York-bred sale.”

Americanrevolution ran a troubled fourth in his debut at Keeneland last October, a race won by Mandaloun, who won the Grade 1 Haskell Stakes via disqualification and may yet capture the Kentucky Derby in the same manner. Walden thought Mandaloun should have been on the other end of a DQ in Americanrevolution’s debut.

“Mandaloun bumped him. I thought he should have come down,” Walden said. “They were going for the same spot and he banged him.”

The horse was given the winter off and returned to break his maiden at Belmont June 20 in his first start for Todd Pletcher. That prompted the owners and Pletcher to send him to Finger Lakes July 19 for the New York Derby, a race he won by 7 lengths as the odds-on favorite.

“That was our first,” Walden said, when asked if WinStar had ever run a horse at the Farmington track.

That made the Travers a consideration.

“We thought about it,” Walden said, “but we thought this race would be low-hanging fruit and would build his confidence. I wouldn’t be surprised if he showed up in the Pennsylvania Derby (at Parx Racing Sept. 25).”

Bobby Bo led the Albany through fractions of :23.49 and :47.33, with It’s Gravy and Joey Loose Lips in pursuit. Joel Rosario was content to track them in fourth, advanced on the rail going into the far turn and shifted three-wide coming out of it. He took the lead at the eighth pole and pulled away.

“I thought we would be a little closer to the pacesetter, but we got a little traffic and a little dirt around the turn,” Pletcher said. “He came away in good position turning up the backside and continued to improve his spot. It seemed like he was always travelling well.”

The winning jockey was Luis Saez, who made three trips to the winner’s circle Friday to extend his lead in the jockey standings to 14 over Jose Ortiz (56-42).

“He put me in a nice spot, right there. He’s a nice horse,” said Saez, who left Saratoga after the last race and flew to West Virginia to ride Art Collector in the Charles Town Classic. “When we came to the stretch, we found the room and he just started running pretty quick. I knew he was going to be in that spot. That’s the spot I was looking for. I tried to cover up and everything came so well. I’m very happy.”

• A daughter of Effinex winning on New York-bred Showcase Day at Saratoga for an owner from Queens and an octogenarian who has been training horses for a half-century?

That works.

That was the story in Friday’s Fleet Indian Stakes, as the cleverly named Byhubbyhellomoney rallied up the rail to win the $200,000 stakes for 3-year-old fillies at 1 1/8 miles on the main track. Byhubbyhellomoney caught 4-5 favorite Make Mischief, who nearly beat the starting gate and had a wide trip, taking the lead at the top of the stretch, before losing by a neck.

Steve Shapiro, owner of Jupiter Stable, claimed the filly in June at Belmont and sent her to Bob Dunham, the trainer of Eclipse Award champion filly Chou Croute in 1972.

“Bob is the most underrated trainer out there,” said Shapiro, who lives on the water in the Neponsit section of Queens. “Unfortunately, he’s outlived all his moneyed owners. I found him three or four years ago. … He doesn’t have a lot of horses, so he can pay attention to me. I love him.”

Shapiro said he claimed the horse – named by original owner Bad Boy Racing apparently after an acrimonious severing of marital vows – because of his sire, the fourth highest-earning New York-bred of all time. Effinex won the Grade 1 Clark, Grade 2 Suburban twice and the Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap. He was standing at McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbred in Saratoga Springs when he died suddenly of a ruptured pulmonary artery in 2017.

Effinex, who originally stood at Questroyal North in Stillwater before moving to McMahon six weeks before he died, sired his first black-type winner June 19 at Belmont when Tom Morley saddled 3-year-old Ocala Dream to a New York Stallion Series Stakes win.

“Effinex was a $3 million earner who could go long,” Shapiro said. “He was a solid sire and if he had lived I think he would have turned out to be solid New York-bred sire.”

He would have been proud Friday of his daughter, who was bred by Anderson Boulton Thoroughbreds and is out of the El Prado mare Shocking Behavior. After getting bumped at the start, Joel Rosario had her in the middle of the pack through a half mile in :48.30 and 6 furlongs in 1:13.24. Rosario saved ground on the far turn and stayed on the rail in the stretch, outdueling Make Mischief, owned by Gary Barber and trained by Mark Casse, who was coming out of the Grade 1 Test three weeks ago.

“I had no choice but to be [to the inside],” Rosario said. “In the beginning, I didn’t know how much room was there. There was a little bit of room, but it looked like she would take a little bit of time to get there. Afterward, when she saw everything open, she just went forward. She responded really well.”

Dunham, bedecked in a multi-colored sport coat in the winner’s circle, said he was confident his filly would get the distance, even though she had never run beyond a mile.

“She’s been training very good,” said Dunham, who has won 415 races with earnings of just under $9 million in his career. “We breezed her and she breezed outstanding. She reaches out when she gallops. It’s great to win any race at Saratoga, whether it’s a $25,000 claimer or a maiden special weight or a stakes. It’s nice to run New York-bred horses.”

Casse congratulated Dunham in the winner’s circle and if he had to get beat, he wanted it to be by him.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2021/08/27/americanrevolution-takes-albany-byhubbyhellomoney-upsets-fleet-indian/

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Waldorf-foaled Senbei, November Rein win Showcase Day juvenile stakes

By Mary Eddy

Reeves Thoroughbred Racing’s and Darlene Bilinski’s Senbei remained perfect in Friday’s $200,000 Funny Cide Stakes on New York Showcase Day at Saratoga Race Course. A debut winner in a maiden special weight July 18 for trainer Christophe Clement, Senbei added a second victory with a front-running effort in his stakes debut.

“I was surprised he was 8-1,” said Clement. “He has trained well and he’s a good-looking horse. He always showed speed. The only instructions I gave to Manny (Franco) was to break well and then be comfortable. I thought he did pretty good. He’s not just a horse, he’s a nice horse.”

When asked by Franco, the 2-year-old son of Candy Ride took the lead a few strides from the gate and was challenged by Rick Violette Stakes winner Run Curtis Run. After running the half-mile in :44.88, Run Curtis Run began to tire as the pair reached the top of the stretch. Eventual runner-up Montebello put in his bid on the outside, but Senbei rebroke and stayed clear to win by 2 3/4 lengths. The final time was 1:18.09.

“He tried to break so fast, he bobbled a little bit, but he’s fast and I was able to make the lead,” Franco said. “When I passed the half-mile pole, he picked his ears up a little bit and I said, ‘I’ve got horse.’ I was a little worried because I knew I was going a little faster, but as I told the trainer and owner, that’s the way he can get it done.”

The win with Senbei added to a big day for Dr. Jerry and Darlene Bilinski’s Waldorf Farm in North Chatham, which was also the birthplace of Seeking The Ante winner November Rein.

“I was nervous and decided to say my prayers and not bet and the combination made the whole thing happen,” Jerry Bilinski joked. “This is the ultimate. To have a horse like this go wire-to-wire was amazing. He blew them all away.”

A top breeder in New York, Waldorf Farm stands first-year sire Mr. Monomoy and top New York stallion Bustin Stones. Bilinski said the success he has seen in the racing industry wouldn’t be possible without the programs offered in New York.

“Because of Showcase Day and the New York-bred program, I’m still in the business,” he said. “We produce a lot of income for a lot of feed companies and other entities that pay taxes, so it’s a great program for the state, too. As a breeder, getting breeder awards is what keeps us afloat. It’s fantastic.”

Out of the winning Western Cat mare Sweet Aloha, Senbei is a half-brother to dual stakes winners Filibustin and Indy’s Lady and stakes-placed Man O Manassas. Bilinski recalled the mare’s other foals and compared Senbei to his half-siblings.

“His mother has produced a number of other stakes horses, but this is probably the best one,” Bilinski said. “We’re very happy about that.”

• November Rein improved to 2-for-3 when she won the $200,000 Seeking The Ante to kick off the six stakes. Trained by Kelly Breen, November Rein overcame a stumble at the start to win her first stakes for owner/breeder Ron Lombardi’s Mr. Amore Stables.

November Rein was hurried to the front after the troubled start by Jose Ortiz to set the pace for the 6 1/2-furlong stakes over the main track. As Velvet Sister tracked 2 lengths behind in second, November Rein rolled through a half in :45.98. Velvet Sister tried to make a run at the top of the stretch but could not pass the daughter of Street Boss, who won by 1 3/4 lengths in 1:17.74.

“She recovered quickly (after the start) and it was a short field, so I let her run through the chute and ended up on the lead anyway,” Ortiz said. “She was very good. She relaxed well and when I asked her, she was there for me.”

Relieved that she recovered well from her poor start, Breen said the filly can often be temperamental in the barn and for her handlers.

“She’s very quirky,” he said. “Until she’s loaded in and they open the gate, believe me, I’m nervous. … Jose has formed a perfect bond with her. To get her here to win a stakes race with her, plus being a homebred for Ron Lombardi is amazing. It takes a village to get to the winner’s circle.”

Lombardi, who has seen success at the highest level of racing with horses like multiple Grade 1 winner Firenze Fire, said winning with horses like November Rein is always memorable.

“Winning once at Saratoga is special, but winning twice with the same horse, it doesn’t happen often,” he said. “I’ve been up here for years and you don’t win them all. Kelly’s been really high on her and she showed it again today. I expected her to do well, but how she ran today was just tremendous.”

November Rein was also foaled at Waldorf Farm, where Lombardi keeps his broodmares.

“I’m up to 23 mares. I stockpiled them to breed to Firenze Fire, but I decided to get them out to New York stallions first,” Lombardi said. “The New York-breds are so great. It’s a great program. It’s one of the best.”

With another win and a second to her credit, November Rein’s earnings have increased to $171,750. She is the first winner out of the multiple stakes-winning Gators N Bears mare Ju Ju Eyeballs.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2021/08/27/waldorf-foaled-senbei-november-rein-win-showcase-day-juvenile-stakes/

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New York Showcase Special

By Tom Law

The biggest day of the Saratoga season for New York-breds – and easily one of the most anticipated of the year – unfolds Friday with New York Showcase Day.

Eleven races are on tap, including six stakes worth $1.15 million. Everything starts at 1:05 and the first stakes, the $200,000 Seeking the Ante for 2-year-old fillies, goes as the second race at 1:41. The team at The Saratoga Special and This Is Horse Racing wanted to preview all the action and present the New York Showcase Special to set the stage. And we’ll be back with another edition for Empire Showcase Day this fall at Belmont Park.

Here’s wishing everyone in the New York Thoroughbred industry a safe Showcase Day and prosperous rest of the year.

 

Worth Repeating

“New York Showcase Day is the flagship event on the calendar for our state’s breeders and owners. We’re proud to partner with NYRA to feature an all New York-bred card at the premier racing meet in the country with lucrative purses and six state-bred stakes totaling $1.15 million.”
New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. Executive Director Najja Thompson.

“It showcases exactly what New York is all about. We can raise a good horse and compete at the highest level at Saratoga. There’s nothing better. Needless to say, Rinaldi, he just came out of a Grade 3. We looked at the Fourstardave and I felt like maybe it was too tough for him.”
Trainer Jim Bond on Rinaldi, winner of last year’s West Point and back again after winning the Forbidden Apple the first Friday of the meet

“Pecatonica, she’s got a fighting chance. Hopefully she’ll give Castellano a good feel and he’ll ride her hard. She has to be ridden, she’s very willing but she still has to be ridden to get something done. She’s doing well. Really well.”
Trainer Tom Bush on Berkshire Stud’s homebred Pecatonica, who runs in the Yaddo

“It took me six months to convince Charlie Frock and Gerald Burns to come back to New York. They finally shipped up here and she won the allowance. There’s no better time to try a stakes race with her. She’s training well and she has a shot. I think she’s going to try to put in the best race of her career.”
John Taisey, breeder of Yaddo entrant Mike’s Girl through his Hibiscus Stables

“I can unequivocally say that I’m nervous. I want them all to do well.”
Lawrence Goichman, breeder of three stakes runners on Showcase Day including last year’s Yaddo winner Myhartblongstodady

 

By the Numbers

4: Horses bred solely or in partnership by the three breeders most-represented on the card – Dr. Jerry Bilinski, McMahon of Saratoga, and Sequel.

6: Offspring of the late Effinex, who stood at Questroyal North, entered to lead all sires. War Dancer, now at Irish Hill & Dutchess Views, leads among active stallions with five.

7: Horses entered Friday by trainer Christophe Clement, most of any conditioner on the card. Jeremiah Englehart is second with six.

12.75: Combined margin of victory for the Milfer Farm-bred Miss Alacrity in her two starts prior to Friday’s Seeking the Ante Stakes.

62: Trainers with runners on Showcase Day.

110: Horses entered on Showcase Day.

$677,865: Earnings for 6-year-old Freud gelding Therapist, most of any runner on the Showcase Day card.

$800,000: Total spent at auction for three fillies in the Seeking the Ante – $500,000 Velvet Sister, $150,000 Miss Alacrity and $150,000 Laoban’s Legacy.

$1,545,000: Purses for the 11 races on Showcase Day.

 

Names of the Day

Baudi Moovan, fifth race: The 3-year-old Twirling Candy filly is named for lead character in the pandemic hit documentary Don’t F**k With Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer.

Exact Change, fifth race: Daughter of Central Banker out of Precise Lady also runs in the 5 ½-furlong maiden on the grass

Mosienko, sixth race: Stacy Lalman’s 4-year-old Hat Trick filly, bred by Anthony Grey, is named for former NHL star credited with fastest hat trick in history – 21 seconds.

Byhubbyhellomoney, seventh race: Daughter of Effinex goes in the Fleet Indian.

Purple Hearted, ninth race: Epona Racing Stable’s gelding by Normandy Invasion finished second to Americanrevolution in the New York Derby. Salute to all the veterans.

 

Tiz the Law autograph session 

Fans have the opportunity to celebrate 2020 New York-bred Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old male Tiz the Law, last year’s Belmont Stakes and Travers winner, during a special autograph session with owner Jack Knowlton of Sackatoga Stables, trainer Barclay Tagg and jockey Manny Franco.

The trio will offer autographed editions of a commemorative Tiz the Law poster at the Jockey Silks Room Porch from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. with a recommended donation to the Backstretch Employee Service Team and the New York Race Track Chaplaincy. Tiz the Law hats and t-shirts will be available for an additional donation.

Tiz the Law posters are free throughout the day at NYRA Bets Squad kiosks and Guest Services locations, while supplies last.

 

The Showcase Special

Saratoga Race Course. Race 1. 1:05 p.m. Full group of 10 2-year-olds, plus a couple main track only runners, for 5 1/2-furlong turf maiden.

Saratoga. Race 2. 1:41. The $200,000 Seeking the Ante. Miss Alacrity, daughter of Munnings bred by Milfer Farm Inc., comes in with wins by 10 lengths at Belmont Park in May and 2 ¾ in the Colleen Stakes at Monmouth Park Aug. 1. She’ll be tough from the rail against November Rein, Laoban’s Legacy and Velvet Sister.

Saratoga. Race 3. 2:15. Back to the grass for two-turn maiden for 3-year-olds and up. Barrage, a son of New York-based sire War Dancer, tried divisions of the New York Stallion Series in his last two starts and returns to the main ranks for Danny Gargan. Merrylegs Farm North homebred Yarrow and Gallaghers Stud homebred Sandro the Great look to graduate.

Saratoga. Race 4. 2:47. The $200,000 Funny Cide Stakes presented by Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital. Eight entered for 6 1/2-furlong stakes, including California shipper and $400,000 yearling Montebello, Rick Violette Stakes winner Run Curtis Run and debut maiden winner Daufuskie Island.

Saratoga. Race 5. 3:23. Back to the grass for 5 1/2-furlong maiden for 3-year-olds and up. Mark Casse sends out Sinfully Sweet, daughter of Twirling Candy who cost Tracy Farmer $320,000 at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale. Gary Sciacca continues his quest for 1,000 wins and could get to 999 with Caumsett in her eighth start.

Saratoga. Race 6. 3:55. Sort out this group of 11 fillies and mares for 7-furlong allowance and there should be some type of reward.

Saratoga. Race 7. 4:29. The $200,000 Fleet Indian for 3-year-old fillies kicks off run of four straight stakes. A Bit o’Irish Sass won the New York Oaks last time at Finger Lakes and looks to make it three in a row for trainer Rick Schosberg. She’ll need a top effort if Make Mischief, a competitor in seven graded stakes in her 13-start career.

Saratoga. Race 8. 5:03. Excellent group of older turf horses for the $150,000 West Point Stakes presented by Trustco Bank. Rinaldi, winner of the Grade 3 Forbidden Apple and 4-for-5 on the grass at Saratoga, leads the cast. Connections considered the Grade 1 Fourstardave but opted instead for title defense here. They take on multiple stakes winner Therapist, City Man, Graded On a Curve and Mo Ready.

Saratoga. Race 9. 5:39. Americanrevolution blasted the field in the New York Derby last month and looks to add another prize in the $250,000 Albany. Trained by Todd Pletcher, son of Constitution rides two-race win streak into 9-furlong headliner. The main threats look like Bobby Jo, son of Speightster who ships in from Southern California off a win at Del Mar; and Anejo, winner at the track and trip Aug. 11.

Saratoga. Race 10. 6:13. Another title defense on the line with Myhartblongstodady returning to the state-bred ranks in the $150,000 Yaddo Handicap. One of the best fixtures on the New York-bred racing calendar, 1 1/16-mile turf stakes also attracts last year’s third-place finisher Classic Lady, Saratoga Dew winner Dancing Kiki, Chocolate Cookie and Giacosa.

Saratoga. Race 11. 6:47. Don’t hit the exit just yet. A maiden claimer on the grass with a full field of 12, along with three AEs and an MTO, closes the card.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2021/08/26/new-york-showcase-special/

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Team Effort: Showcase Day highlights state’s breeding program

By Tom Law and Paul Halloran

Friday’s Saratoga Showcase Day card for New York-breds features six stakes worth $1.15 million and five others worth $395,000.

On display at Saratoga Race Course – 110 horses bred in the Empire State by dozens of breeders, conditioned by 62 trainers and owned by scores of owners. That’s what you can see on the overnight, in the Post Parade or Daily Racing Form, or any decipherable website with entries and results.

What most don’t see – like every race day at every track worldwide – is what it takes to get to a Showcase Day.

“I was told a long time ago. I came from the corporate world and I didn’t get it. A friend of mine from Kentucky said ‘this is a lifestyle,’ ” said Tina Bond, riding back and forth from Clare Court to Gridley Street with husband and trainer Jim Bond behind the wheel of the Bond Stable golf cart. “Once you put your head around that it’s easier to digest. We live on a farm, so it is our life. You don’t get away from it. Some days are tough, yes, but I don’t know what we would do that would be so satisfying. There are days that are challenging, but the rewards …”

The Bonds, who own and operate Song Hill Thoroughbreds in Mechanicville, will try for a couple of the day’s major rewards when they run Rinaldi in the $150,000 West Point Stakes and Giacosa in the $150,000 Yaddo. Giacosa is a homebred, a daughter of the Bond-trained Tizway out of the Smart Strike mare Smart Engagement that Jim Bond bought as a yearling for $30,000 and won two races with on the NYRA circuit in 2008 and 2009.

The Bonds spent Tuesday morning training the family’s string out of their private barn on Gridley and another on the main track not far from the Morning Line Kitchen. When they finished there they, like other small-, medium- and large-scale breeders in the state, went to the farm to continue the process of producing the next generation of potential runners to compete at Saratoga.

“Tuesday is a dark day for a lot of people but after this we’re going to the farm to wean some babies off their mares,” Jim Bond said. “We all want to get here. When you’re lucky enough to win at Saratoga with one of them it’s like ‘wow, it came together, finally.’ You have to wait, sometimes, three years, or more for that plan. You talk about a stock market going up and down. It’s a roller coaster someday, one comes in with a temperature, something wrong or whatever it might be. It’s humbling.”

Lawrence Goichman knows the rewards and what it takes to make it in New York.

He bred last year’s Yaddo winner Myhartblongstodady from a relatively small broodmare band and he finished second in last weekend’s Grade 2 Lake Placid Stakes with the 3-year-old New York-bred filly Runaway Rumour.

Goichman is represented by three runners on the Showcase Day card – Myhartblongstodady in her Yaddo defense, Run Curtis Run in the $200,000 Funny Cide for 2-year-olds and Graded On A Curve in the West Point. He owns Myhartblongstodady, but sold Run Curtis Run ($45,000 at 2020 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Eastern fall yearling sale) and Graded On A Curve ($80,000 at 2017 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale).

“It’s nice to see horses that I bred run,” Goichman said. “As a breeder, it gives me the chance to visit with the kids who graduated from our program. I can unequivocally say that I’m nervous. I want them all to do well.

“It’s a great program, that’s why I pursue it. It enables you to come up with the income you need to support your program. Unless you’re a member of the ruling class in the Middle East and you have oil wells, you have to make it work financially. I wanted to develop a breeding program and that’s what I did. The goal was to produce some high-quality runners. It’s a lot of fun when it works. Friday is going to be a lot of fun for me, to see three horses I bred all in stakes.”

Make Mischief, bred by the Martinez family’s Avanti Stable in nearby Greenfield Center, makes her second start at Saratoga this year and a return to Showcase Day after finishing second in last year’s Seeking The Ante. Foaled at Song Hill, the daughter of Into Mischief out of the Speightstown mare Speightful Lady runs in the $200,000 Fleet Indian after finishing eighth in the Grade 1 Test Stakes Aug. 7. She also finished second in last year’s Grade 3 Schuylerville and Grade 2 Adirondack.

“It’s a good day for us, with Make Mischief in the race,” Mario Martinez said. “Speightful Lady (also mother of Speightful Kitten, $220,000 earner) has done very well for us with some great offspring. We stopped selling horses and we are going to enjoy racing them ourselves.

“It’s a good day to spotlight the New York-breds. The New York breeding program has come a long way. It’s an attractive way to induce breeders to keep breeding in New York. There are significant financial advantages. As breeders, it’s important to us that horses stay in New York.”

Hibiscus Stable bred a winner on Big Apple Showcase Day this spring at Belmont Park when Robin Sparkles took the off-the-turf Mount Vernon Stakes. With a broodmare band of about seven, the Hibiscus Stable also bred Yaddo contender and July 24 Saratoga winner Mike’s Girl.

Foaled at Dr. Jerry Bilinski’s Waldorf Farm in North Chatham, Mike’s Girl is a 5-year-old daughter of Scat Daddy out of the Salt Lake mare Salt Water Reign who originally sold for $160,000 at the 2017 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale. Hibiscus also bred Funny Guy, who earned $638,645 and won the 2019 Albany on Saratoga Showcase Day, along with the Commentator, John Morrissey and a Stallion Series event in 2020.

“We focus mostly on New York breeding and racing,” said Jon Taisey, of Hibiscus. “We take a lot of pride in our breeding. The Showcase Days are fun. As a breeder, it’s just as much fun as being the owner, when you watch them get to the track and be successful.”

Showcase Day kicks off at 1:05 p.m. Friday with the first stakes – the $200,000 Seeking The Ante for 2-year-old fillies – at 1:41. Miss Alacrity, a daughter of Munnings bred by Milfer Farm who won the Colleen Stakes Aug. 1 at Monmouth Park, drew the rail in the field of six. The $200,000 Funny Cide with a field of eight goes as the fourth at 2:47. Bob Hahn’s homebred Goldencents colt Daufuskie Island figures to vie for favoritism with Rick Violette winner Run Curtis Run, California shipper Montebello and Saratoga debut winners Senbei and Happy Happy B.

Make Mischief and eight others are entered in the 9-furlong Fleet Indian that goes as the seventh at 4:29. Rinaldi defends his title in the West Point, the eighth at 5:03, against the likes of Therapist, Mo Ready and Graded On A Curve. New York Derby winner Americanrevolution, a colt by Constitution bred by Fred Hertrich III and John Fielding, is one of nine entered for the 9-furlong Albany along with Bobby Bo, Bingo John and Purple Hearted. The Yaddo closes the stakes portion of the card as the 10th at 6:13. Defending champ Myhartblongstodady meets Classic Lady, Giacosa, Pecatonica and others in the 1 1/16-mile turf test.

 

Two-day Pick 4

NYRA will host a two-day $2 Pick 4 with races on Friday’s Showcase Day and Saturday’s Travers Day cards. The wager is available to any location that has access to NYRA content. This is NOT restricted to only NYRA Bets customers. The following are details pertaining to the special wager:

• NYRA will be the host and settle for the wager, which will have the standard NYRA Pick 4 takeout (24%) 
• The wager minimum is $2
• The 2 Day $2 Pick 4 will be a separate event wager in tote under Event Code SQD
• Mandatory payout of the entire pool on the day of
• The race order and approximate post times (eastern) are as follows: 

Leg A: Saratoga (Friday)–Race 9 (5:39 pm) 

Leg B: Saratoga (Friday)–Race 10 (6:13 pm) 

Leg C: Saratoga (Saturday)–Race 10 (4:47 pm) 

Leg D: Saratoga (Saturday) –Race 12 (6:12 pm)

Free PPs will be available on both www.NYRA.com[4] and www.NYRABets.com[5]

Equibase will be creating a special race card file for the wager that will be available once the card goes final.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2021/08/26/team-effort-showcase-day-highlights-states-breeding-program/

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Diamond Digger stays perfect at Assiniboia

By Tom Law

Michael Nault took one look at some photos and video of Hip 545[2], a New York-bred colt by Violence selling on the second day of last year’s Fasig-Tipton Kentucky October yearling sale and knew what to do.

“This is the horse you want right here,” Nault told Nolan Allard, who heads up the Canadian partnership The Young And The Rest Of Us that has raced at Assiniboia Downs in Manitoba and Century Mile in Alberta since 2018. “We look for that, horses that fit up here. If somebody shows me a horse and if I don’t like I won’t recommend we buy it. But if they do something to me, then I say, ‘this is the one I want.’ ”

Allard bought the colt, now a gelding and named Diamond Digger, for $2,000. Diamond Digger continued to show he was worth that and more Monday when he improved to 3-for-3 in the $35,000 Osiris Stakes at Assiniboia Downs. He won by 3 3/4 lengths under Stanley Chadee Jr., collecting $17,236 (U.S.) to boost his earnings to $41,897.

“I loved it, obviously,” Nault said of Diamond Digger’s latest score. “The one thing I liked about it was the other horse tried to hook him and he put him away. The other horse was scrubbing and he was just sitting there idling until they turned for home. Once they turned for home and as soon as my rider asked him at the eighth pole, he took off.”

Thirsty Ears and jockey Neville Stephenson took the initiative early, hustling to the front and ahead of the 1-9 favorite Diamond Digger through the opening quarter in :23.60. Diamond Digger glided past the early leader around the bend, was in front by the three-eighths pole and past the half in :47.80. He and Chadee opened up by 1 1/2 lengths in the lane before drawing clear late to win in 1:07.20.

Diamond Digger came into the Osiris off a 7 ¾-length win in his debut July 21 and a 5 ¼-length score in the Graduation Stakes Aug. 4, both at Assiniboia. He figures to show up next in the $35,000 Winnipeg Futurity at 6 furlongs Sept. 8, with a larger goal down the road.

“He’ll go in there and from there we’ll probably send him to Arizona for the winter,” Nault said. “I used to go there, too, but I’m not going to this year because of Covid and everything. We’re going to send him to another guy you might know, Don Schnell. He’ll go with him for the winter. We’ll keep him in Arizona, train him lightly, maybe run him a few times and get him back here. If he’s what we think he’s going to be he’s our Manitoba Derby horse for next year.”

The Manitoba Derby goes for a $100,000 purse in early August. By then Nault expects even more from the gelding out of the Pulpit mare Prayer Bell.

“He’s still tall and gangly, about 16 2, but he’s going to fill out,” he said. “If he develops and everything, stays healthy and things keep going right he’ll be a Class A horse up here.”

Bred and foaled at Dr. Jon Davis’ Milfer Farm in Unadilla, Diamond Digger was sold at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky sale by Legacy Bloodstock.

He’s the third foal out of Prayer Bell, a maiden winner at Keeneland in 2014 for trainer Charlie LoPresti. She sold in foal to Lookin At Lucky for $70,000 to Winchester Farm at the 2015 Keeneland November breeding stock sale, and the subsequent foal named Lookin At Liberty sold for $200,000 at the 2017 Keeneland September yearling sale. He went 2-2-1 in nine starts and earned $91,850 racing in Kentucky in 2020.

Prayer Bell’s second foal, the Verrazano filly Chic Bella, sold for $30,000 at the 2017 Keeneland September sale and $50,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May 2-year-olds in training sale.

Prayer Bell went through the Keeneland ring one more time, in 2018 at the November sale in foal carrying Diamond Digger in utero, and sold to Milfer Farm for $57,000.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2021/08/24/diamond-digger-stays-perfect-at-assiniboia/

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This Cat Can Fly scores in Genesee Valley Breeders’ Stakes

By Tom Law

This Cat Can Fly came into Monday’s $50,000 Genesee Valley Breeders’ Stakes at Finger Lakes with almost twice as many starts and wins than the rest of the field combined, and he put that home-track advantage to good use.

Rated off an early pace battle between two of the 1 1/16-mile race’s main players – Chowda and Danebury – and then countering a strong middle move from post-time favorite I Love Jaxson, This Cat Can Fly and jockey Jackie Davis rolled grinded out a half-length victory over Chowda. The 6-year-old Birdstone gelding became a stakes winner in his first stakes appearance that followed 36 prior starts including 21 at Finger Lakes.

This Cat Can Fly improved to 7-for-22 at Finger Lakes, to go with six seconds and four thirds. He’s won seven of 37 overall, for $155,012 in earnings.

Davis rated This Cat Can Fly in fifth early while Chowda and Danebury sparred through the opening quarter-mile in :24.10 and the half in :49.89. Chowda shook off Danebury on the backstretch, clicked past 6 furlongs in 1:13.84 and braced for the rush of I Love Jaxson around the far turn.

Chowda still led into the stretch before This Cat Can Fly reached even terms near the eighth pole. The two battled inside the final furlong, extending their lead over Run for Boston and I Love Jaxson before This Cat Can Fly hit the finish in 1:47.08 for the 1 1/16 miles on the fast track. Chowdawinner of last year’s Gander Stakes at Aqueduct, held second by 1 ½ lengths from Run for Boston with I Love Jaxson, Coragescontender and Danebury completing the field.

Bred by Cheryl Prudhomme, Dr. Michael Gallivan and Breeding Bliss and foaled at Shamrock Hill Farm in Fort Edward, This Cat Can Fly is the fifth foal out of the unraced Cat Thief mare Mia Gatto. A daughter of graded stakes winner Risen Colony, Mia Gatto is also the dam of 10-time winner and $153,076-earner Articulate and winners Fanny Brice, Jegos Fire and Taino. The latter is a 3-year-old gelding by Bayern who sold at last year’s OBS July 2-year-olds in training sale and won his debut in early January at Aqueduct.

This Cat Can Fly sold for $20,000 to Daren English, agent, as a weanling through is co-breeders’ Shamrock Hill Farm consignment at the 2015 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga fall mixed sale. He then sold to Jay Em Ess Stable for $80,000 at the 2016 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Eastern fall yearling sale.

This Cat Can Fly made his first eight starts on the NYRA circuit for Jay Em Ess Stable and trainer Michelle Nevin before making his Finger Lakes debut – a second in a maiden special weight Aug. 20, 2018 – for new connections.

Trainer Troy Smith and owner Top Hat Thoroughbreds claimed This Cat Can Fly for $5,000 in October 18, 2018. He ran for Smith and Top Hat through 2019, made one start at Turf Paradise in early 2020 and made his first start for Jeffrey Englehart last August at Finger Lakes. He’s won four of 13 with Englehart, including the Genessee Valley and a starter optional two starts back May 24.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2021/08/23/this-cat-can-fly-scores-in-genesee-valley-breeders-stakes/

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Awesome Debate upsets Union Avenue Handicap

By Mary Eddy

Mark Van Vranken made his way down the box seat stairs to the Saratoga Race Course winner’s circle, arms raised in victory after his mare, Awesome Debate, scored the first stakes win of her career in Thursday’s $100,000 Union Avenue Handicap.

“Is this even real?” Van Vranken kept questioning, his hands on his head as he watched the replay of the gray mare’s victory over the sloppy main track.

Awesome Debate’s win was reality thanks to a smart ride by Luis Saez, who kept pacesetter Sadie Lady within his reach, 2 1/2 lengths back in second through an opening quarter in :21.91. Swung three-wide in the turn, Saez got to work on the 5-year-old daughter of Honorable Dillon, taking over the lead at the top of the stretch.

Widening her lead, Awesome Debate galloped easily across the wire 4 1/4 lengths ahead of Irish Constitution in a final time of 1:17.48. Hannah Dances followed in third, a half-length ahead of Sadie Lady, who tired and finished fourth.

“The plan was to be right there and to not let them breathe too much, and everything worked out pretty well,” Saez said. “This filly, I love her. I rode her (before) and I knew she’d have that quick turn-of-foot at the top of the stretch. She did it perfectly.”

With the sloppy track playing in favor of speed on the front-end, it was both trainer Bruce Brown’s and Saez’s plan to not let Sadie Lady loose on the lead in the 6 1/2-furlong race.

“We knew we had to stay close to the speed and not let her get away,” Brown said. “The rain, I didn’t mind at all. When we claimed her, she ran good in the slop, so I was happy with the surface. Luis did a good job and stayed right there. He had it in mind to really be aggressive and not let that horse get a loose lead. … Luis knew (Sadie Lady) had to run to get there.”

Making her second start off the claim for her connections, Awesome Debate’s Union Avenue victory comes after a difficult start last time out when she stumbled badly and nearly lost her rider in an Aug. 9 optional claimer at Finger Lakes. Brown felt less of a sting over her last outing after the Union Avenue win.

“That was a total mess,” he said. “Afterwards, I felt bad about how everything went up there, but if she had run hard that day, maybe she wouldn’t have ran as well today. Things have a way (of working out). In the moment, I was very upset, but this makes it better.”

Van Vranken said the win also helped to ease the emotions of another tough loss when eventual John Morrissey Stakes winner Foolish Ghost was claimed from the group at Saratoga last year.

“(Foolish Ghost) has done nothing but win money, so it was bittersweet watching him win the (Morrissey),” he said. “The only thing that could erase it is this victory today. I can’t say enough about Bruce. To bring this horse back here 10 days (after her last race) … I give all the credit to him. We have had some ups and downs, but it has been great.”

Now with eight wins and four other placings from 16 starts, Awesome Debate has increased her earnings to $322,577. Out of the winning Freud mare Healthy Debate, she is a half-sister to seven-time winner It’s Debatable and five-time winner Tricky Posse. Bred by Charlton Baker, Awesome Debate was foaled at Rockridge Stud in Hudson.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2021/08/19/awesome-debate-upsets-union-avenue-handicap/

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