Early On, a daughter of Union Rags bred by John Lauriello, leads the New York-bred contingent this weekend at Churchill Downs and starts in Friday’s Kentucky Oaks. Churchill Downs/Coady Media.
A trio of runners will fly the flag for the New York Thoroughbred breeding program at Churchill Downs in Grade 1 events on this weekend’s Kentucky Oaks-Kentucky Derby cards.
The group includes Early On in Friday’s headlining $1.5 million Longines Kentucky Oaks, which lost a New York-bred Thursday morning following the scratch of potential contender Five G.
Early On, a 3-year-old daughter of Union Rags bred by John Lauriello, will start from post one in the 9-furlong Oaks for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. and owners C2 Racing Stable, Ken Reimer and Paul Braverman, Timothy Pinch and Bradley Kent. She finished second by a nose behind Ballerina d’Oro last time out in the Grade 3 Gazelle April 5 at Aqueduct and is listed at 30-1 on the morning line for the Oaks.
“This is unbelievable. She’s going to be in the Kentucky Oaks,” Lauriello said last month. “I’m 77. I’ve been in and out of the horse business in a small way for 50 years. This is just a miracle. That filly has really done well. Sometimes you get lucky, not often.”
Lauriello lives in Alabama and keeps a small band of broodmares as a hobby. He purchased the winning Distorted Humor mare Sally O’Brien, carrying Early On in utero, for $75,000 at the 2021 Keeneland November breeding stock sale. Sally O’Brien later sold in foal to Corniche for $55,000 to Fortune Farm at the 2023 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga fall mixed sale.
Early On, who also finished second behind fellow Oaks entrant Fondly in the Virginia Oaks March 15 at Colonial Downs, was foaled at Hickory Hill Farm Thoroughbreds in Fort Edward and sold for $20,000 at the 2023 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale.
“I love the New York program,” Lauriello said. “The New York breeding program is second to none in my opinion. I’ve been involved in horse racing with some folks from Birmingham and upstate New York, but the breeding was as much or more fun. The people from Birmingham got old and stopped their horse racing business, still fans, but didn’t want to breed or race, so I started about 15 years ago buying broodmares.
“I grew up in Amsterdam. The Sanford family had a farm there. When the season started at Saratoga, we used to hitchhike, and when kids couldn’t get in, we’d stand on the hoods of cars and look over the bushes to see the track. From the time I was a kid in Amsterdam going to the Sanford farm, I got bit early. Long story short, I got the bug.”
The New York program lost its other Oaks entrant, Grade 1 Gulfstream Parks Oaks winner Five G, when trainer George Weaver scratched the daughter of Vekoma after she reportedly backed off her feed and didn’t train to his satisfaction. The Gatsas Stables’ homebred figured to be one of the potential threats to favorites Good Cheer, Quietside, La Cara and Ballerina d’Oro.
“This is the type of race where you’ve got to be 110 percent and we don’t feel like she is,” Weaver told Daily Racing Form’s David Grening Thursday morning.
The Kentucky Oaks goes as the 11th of 13 races Friday with post time set for 5:51 p.m. ET.
The other two Grade 1-bound New York-breds run on Saturday’s Kentucky Derby Day card.
• Gary Barber’s Mi Bago, the winner of three straight stakes to end 2024 and start this season, leads things off when he takes on a full field of 13 other 3-year-olds in the newly upgraded $1 million American Turf presented by Ford. Bred by Highclere Inc., the son of Vekoma drew post four in the full field for the 1 1/16-mile turf event that goes as the ninth race at 4:06 p.m.
Mi Bago won the Pulpit Stakes on the turf in late November, Dania Beach on synthetic on New Year’s Day and Colonel Liam back on the grass in early March, all at Gulfstream for trainer Mark Casse. Foaled at Waldorf Farm in North Chatham and out of the Indian Charlie mare Wabanaki, Mi Bago is 10-1 on the morning line for jockey Jose Ortiz.
• Spirit of St Louis, winner of the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Turf two starts back, could give the Empire State its best chance of the weekend in the $1 million Old Forester Bourbon Turf Classic Stakes. Campaigned by Michael Dubb, Madaket Stables and Richard Schermerhorn, the 6-year-old Medaglia d’Oro gelding is the 9-2 second choice in the field of 12 entered in the 9-furlong stakes.
Bred by Chester and Mary Broman, foaled at their Chestertown Farm in Chestertown and out of the Lemon Drop Kid mare Khancord Kid, Spirit of St Louis reunites with Manny Franco for the Turf Classic. Franco rode the gelding to six stakes victories in 2023 and 2024, including back-to-back editions of the Mohawk on Empire Showcase Day. Trained by Chad Brown, Spirit of St Louis drew post 10. The Turf Classic goes at 5:39 p.m., leading in as usual to the headlining Kentucky Derby at 6:57 p.m.
Notes: Buck Butler’s homebred My Mane Squeeze was entered in Saturday’s $1 million Derby City Distaff Stakes presented by Kendall-Jackson Winery but reportedly will scratch in favor of next Saturday’s Grade 2 Ruffian at Aqueduct. The 4-year-old daughter of Audible is trained by Mike Maker and co-owned by WinStar Farm.
