August, 2020 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Del Mar Bans Desormeaux

Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux was take off his mount at Del Mar Friday by track management after an alleged altercation earlier in the week. The story was originally reported by the Daily Racing Form.

Del Mar officials did not provide specifics on the alleged incident, but Del Mar’s Josh Rubinstein said, “Our action is not related to racing, but rather is as a result of conduct not consistent with our standards and values.”

A California Horse Racing Board rule allows a racetrack to remove or deny “access for any reason deemed appropriate by the association.” The CHRB’s Mike Marten said, “The Del Mar Thoroughbred Club has provided the California Horse Racing Board with the information they relied upon. The CHRB is conducting its own investigation to determine if there were any rule violations that would require CHRB action with respect to Mr. Desormeaux’s license.:

Desormeaux’s agent J.R. Pegram refused to comment.

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Tiz the Law ‘Perfect’ in Saturday Drill

Sackatoga Stable’s Tiz the Law (Constitution) tuned up for next Saturday’s GI Runhappy Travers S. with a five-furlong work in :59.44 (2/24) at Saratoga Saturday.

“I wanted to go in a minute and he went in a minute. It was perfect,” trainer Barclay Tagg said of the work. “We couldn’t have worked better. He came back good and he was breathing good. Everything was good. He’s a gem to work with. He is doing perfectly as far as I’m concerned. I don’t know what else we can do for him. I like this colt. Why wouldn’t you? We’ve got a nice horse.”

Sent out at 5:30 a.m., Tiz the Law recorded splits of :23 4/5, :36 and out in 1:13 2/5 over a fast main track with exercise rider Heather Smullen aboard.

“He’s a little more relaxed in the morning,” said Smullen. “He’s nice and professional and does his job. There is always adversity. If he sees someone, he will get strong. He will get aggressive. He’s a racehorse. Luckily, there was no one out there today. He went out there today and did what I told him to do. He was strong and consistent. It sure seems like [he’s ready for the Travers]. He’s done everything they have asked him to do.”

Tiz the Law has won all three of his starts this season, opening his sophomore campaign with a win in the Feb. 1 GIII Holy Bull S. before adding the Mar. 28 GI Curlin Florida Derby. He is coming off a win in the June 20 GI Belmont S.

Sackatoga Stable will be seeking its second GI Kentucky Derby win next month at Churchill Downs. The operation, headed by Jack Knowlton, won the 2003 Derby with Funny Cide.

“I want to enjoy the next week because it is going to be a lot of fun,” Knowlton said. “We will get to do a lot of things and we will enjoy the moment at Saratoga. Hopefully, everything will work out. We’ve got four weeks to hopefully win another Derby.

Knowlton continued, “It’s exciting [to be here for the Travers]. My second biggest disappointment with the whole Funny Cide run was not being able to even run in the Travers. When he got sick, that was a bigger disappointment after not winning the Triple Crown. Now, we’ve got a second chance. It’s not often you get second chances the way we have with this horse and to do things that we couldn’t do. We checked one box by winning the Belmont. It would be wonderful to check this box to win the Travers. I have a lot of confidence that he’s going to get the mile and a quarter.”

Travers contenders Country Grammer (Tonalist), Shivaree (Awesome of Course) and Caracaro (Uncle Mo) also breezed over the main track at Saratoga Saturday, while possible Travers entrant Mystic Guide (Ghostzapper) breezed at Fair Hill Training Center in Elkton, Maryland.

Paul Pompa, Jr.’s Country Grammer worked four furlongs in :47.66 (6/50) for trainer Chad Brown. The bay colt is coming off a win in the July 16 GIII Peter Pan S.

Jacks or Better Farm’s Shivaree, trained by Ralph Nicks, went five furlongs in 1:03.27 (24/24). The chestnut homebred was second in the Florida Derby and is coming off an 11th-place effort in the July 11 GII Toyota Blue Grass S.

“It looked like he went well. He’s a tough horse and he handles everything fine,” said Nicks. “He handled shipping up there fine. He seems to be in good form. It was a nice maintenance breeze on the bridle, just kind of cruising around there this morning, so all is well. We decided last week to take a shot, and everything’s good.”

Global Thoroughbred and Top Racing’s Peter Pan runner-up Caracaro, trained by Gustavo Delgado, worked six furlongs under Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano in 1:15.99 (1/1) Saturday.

A maiden winner second time out at Gulfstream Park in January, the bay colt was making just his third lifetime start in the Peter Pan.

“He’s a good mover. Today, it wasn’t about looking for time, it was more like a two-minute lick starting from the three-quarters and letting him gallop out,” said Castellano. “He just ran three weeks ago, so today was a good maintenance work. He galloped out beautiful past the wire, but I didn’t let him overdo it. He handled the track well. He did everything the right way today.”

Godolphin homebred Mystic Guide, a late-running third in the Peter Pan for trainer Mike Stidham, added blinkers for his five-eighths work in 1:01 flat (1/5) Saturday at Fair Hill.

“We felt like he was a little more handy with the blinkers on,” said Stidham. “He broke off three lengths behind another horse. We told the rider to stay even with the other horse down to the wire and he galloped out well. He went out in :13 and change. I was very happy with the addition of blinkers.”

Stidham said he is considering the colt for either the Travers or the Sept. 5 GII Jim Dandy S.

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Upstart Colt Much the Best in Hot Spa Maiden; Garners Rising Stardom

The Saratoga opener Saturday was one of those vintage events in which virtually every firster was touted as a runner, and it was Klaravich Stables, Inc.’s Reinvestment Risk (Upstart) who emerged as the best of the bunch while becoming his freshman sire (by Flatter)’s third winner and first ‘TDN Rising Star’. A $140,000 FTKJUL yearling turned $280,000 OBS March acquisition off a strong :20 4/5 breeze, the bay joined the Chad Brown barn at Payson Park this spring before stints at Monmouth and most recently locally.

Off at 4-1, he broke in midpack and was pushed along by Irad Ortiz, Jr. to grab a foothold at the rail just off the pace. Second timer Windcracker (Super Saver) showed increased speed to seize a clear lead through an opening quarter of :22.79, but he left the rail open for Reinvestment Risk turning for home and the colt came through willingly to take over after a :46.14 half. The race was won at that point, and Reinvestment Risk poured it on in the stretch to run up the score to 7 3/4 lengths and stop the clock in1:09.95 after finishing up in a snappy :23.72. Windcracker held on for second over Olympiad (Speightstown–Tokyo Time), the seemingly less fancied half of a 7-5 entry with eighth-place finisher Outlier (Not This Time).

Upstart was a 5 1/2-length debut winner at Saratoga himself before adding the Funny Cide S. for New York-breds here nine days later for owner Ralph Evans and the late Rick Violette, Jr.–who at one point campaigned many of Klaravich’s most precocious babies. Twice Grade I-placed to complete his juvenile season, Upstart added the GII Fountain of Youth S. at three and GIII Razorback H. at four before retiring to Airdrie Stud. In addition to his three winners, Upstart is responsible to Belterra’s Hoover S. runner-up Uptown.

Reinvestment Risk was one of two Upstart colts purchased by agent Mike Ryan at OBS March–he also bought $600,000 Founder, who is training towards his own debut up at the Spa, for fellow Chad Brown clients Jeff Drown and Don Rachel.

Reinvestment Risk is the second foal out of a four-time winning daughter or Candy Ride (Arg) who was acquired by breeder Gerry Aschinger for just $6,000 at the 2016 Keeneland January sale. Dam Ridingwiththedevil, who’s out of a half-sister to MGSW My List (Banker’s Gold), produced a Strong Mandate filly in 2019 and Stormy Atlantic colt earlier this term before being bred to Audible for 2021.

1st-Saratoga, $72,000, Msw, 8-1, 2yo, 6f, 1:09.95, ft.
REINVESTMENT RISK, c, 2, Upstart
                1st Dam: Ridingwiththedevil, by Candy Ride (Arg)
                2nd Dam: One Charming Devil, by Devil His Due
                3rd Dam: Enduring Charm, by Batonnier
Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $39,600. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton. Free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. ThoroStride Video.
O-Klaravich Stables, Inc.; B-Aschinger Bloodstock Holdings, LLC (KY); T-Chad C. Brown. *$140,000 Ylg ’19 FTKJUL; $280,000 2yo ’20 OBSMAR

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Former Jumps Jockey Mellor Dies

Stan Mellor, who was the first jumps jockey to ride 1,000 winners, has died aged 83.

Mellor retired from the saddle in 1972 after riding 1,034 winners and went on to a successful training career with jumps and flat horses, training more than 700 winners.

Brough Scott, who started as an amateur rider when Mellor was in his prime and has since gone on to a career in sports writing and broadcasting, paid tribute to his former colleague, saying, “He was a pioneer and a mentor, and a worker for other people. But he was a brilliant, brilliant champion jockey–the ultimate brain over brawn. He could do things others couldn’t–people have a particular shot they can play in cricket, or a move at football. Stan Mellor, wow. He was amazing.

“His particular thing, over fences–to do with his show-jumping background–he would wind a horse up and launch it at the last fence with a rhythm and power that would be a match-winning leap. They never missed–he had it down to a tee, and when he wound them up like that, he knew what he had beneath him, and he timed it for an unbelievable match-winning blow. It was absolutely extraordinary, a byword–no one else did it like that.”

Scott said Mellor also enjoyed mentoring young riders and advocating for jockeys’ welfare.

“He did more for jockeys than anyone else has ever done, or ever will,” he said. “At the time when jockeys were only just getting themselves organised, he was the pioneer for everything; new helmets, backpads, concrete posts, insurance. The Jockeys’ Association had only just started, but he’d be the brightest person at the meeting with the head of Levy Board and such.

“He was very, very good at training youngsters. He always wanted to share his knowledge–he was a tremendous person to go and talk to. I’ll rejoice in his life, although it’s infinitely sad to think of him not being there any more.”

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