Even as a teenager, when some youngsters are inclined to think the world is theirs for the taking, Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott did not dream big. “I was 18 years old and hauling horses around in a two-horse trailer to the bush tracks,” recalled the native of Mobridge, S.D. “I never imagined training for anybody else other than myself.”
Month: November 2020
Britain Remains Free From West Nile Virus
Samples from nearly 1,000 British horses revealed no presence of West Nile Virus (WNV). Transmitted by mosquitoes, West Nile Virus can cause severe neurological issues in horses; the disease has a fatality rate of about 33 percent in unvaccinated animals.
Drs. Arran Folly, Elisabeth Waller, Fiona McCracken, Lorraine McElhinney, Helen Roberts and Nicholas Johnson note that while this is good news for horse owners, they must remain vigilant in the fight against the disease. WNV is seen in many parts of the world, including the United States, southern Europe and Germany.
The researchers focused their study on southeast England, the area of Britain considered most at risk for virus introduction. The virus is most likely spread geographically by birds that have the virus; horses are a dead-end host for WNV.
Two of the 998 horses tested were positive for WNV antibodies, but upon further review, it was deemed that the antibodies were a result of vaccination for the virus within seven days of the testing.
The scientists concluded that there was no evidence of West Nile Virus transmission in England in 2019; this is in agreeance with the results of a 2019 British bird surveillance, which also found no West Nile Virus RNA in the birds.
Read the short report here.
Read more at HorseTalk.
The post Britain Remains Free From West Nile Virus appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
Arklow Surges To Stretch-Running Victory As Hollywood Turf Cup Favorite
The class of the field ran like it Friday at Del Mar as Arklow tracked close to the leaders in the 12-furlong Hollywood Turf Cup, then got the jump on his chief rivals turning for home and went on to an impressive half-length score in the $203,500, Grade 2 headliner at the seaside track north of San Diego, Calif.
The 6-year-old entire horse by Kentucky sire Arch covered the mile and one-half distance on the Jimmy Durante Turf Course in 2:26.31, which established a stakes record and just missed the course record for the distance by 12 hundredths of a second.
Joel Rosario rode the veteran for the first time for trainer Brad Cox and put in a masterful bit of horsemanship on the long-winded bay. Arklow earned a first prize of $120,000 and now sports a sparkling racing record of 31 8-7-2 and $2,666,116 in earnings. The horse races for the partnership of Donegal Racing, Joseph Bulger and the Estate of Peter Coneway. The win was the first in a stakes at Del Mar for Cox.
Finishing second in the seventh local edition of the marathon was Manfred Ostermann's Laccario, who was a half-length ahead of Agave Racing Stable and Sam-Son Farm's Say the Word. Twelve horses ran in the race.
Arklow, who was the 19-10 favorite in the contest, paid $5.80, $3.40 and $2.80 across the board. Laccario, who was the second favorite in the race at 5-2, returned $3.80 and $3.00. Say the Word, the third favorite at just under 7-1, paid $3.80 to show.
“He broke well and we got a good spot,” said Rosario. “I stepped on the brakes a little bit because I was comfortable where we were. I saved ground with him, then moved up a little bit outside. I could tell we were going slow so I felt OK being closer with him. He was running good. When we turned for home, I knew he was a fighter and I knew he's be tough to beat. He finished strong. He's a good horse.”
Acclimate set all the fractions, going :49.64 for the opening half-mile, 1:14.55 for six furlongs, 1:38.78 for the mile and 2:02.62 for 10 furlongs. One of four starters for trainer Phil D'Amato, Acclimate faded to fourth.
“It kind of worked out the way we had drawn it up,” said Blake Cox, son and assistant to the trainer. “Joel (Rosario) was able to get a real good stalking position and then finish strong. What's next will be up to Jerry Crawford and Donegal Racing, but I wouldn't be surprised if the Pegasus World Cup Turf is on the radar. ”
Earlier in the afternoon, trainer Richard Baltas rung up three winners to forge to the front in the local trainer's race. He clicked with Yeng Again ($6.00) in Race 1, Gallovie ($7.40) in Race 3 and Lady On Ice ($4.40) in Race 4. He now has 10 winners at the session after 13 days of racing, putting him one up on rival Peter Miller. Baltas was the Bing Crosby Season leading trainer in 2019 with 11 firsts. Miller has won the fall session four different times. There are two days left in the meet.
Racing resumes Saturday at 12:30 p.m. with a nine-race card.
FRACTIONS:
The time of the race is a stakes record. (Old record 2:27.35.) The course record is 2:26.19, meaning Arklow missed that mark by .12 one-hundredths.
The stakes win was the first of the meet and first in the Hollywood Turf Cup for rider Rosario. He now has 29 stakes wins at Del Mar.
The stakes win was the first at Del Mar for trainer Cox.
The winning owners are Jerry Crawford of Donegal Racing from Des Moines, Iowa, along with Joseph Bulger or the Estate of Peter Coneway.
The post Arklow Surges To Stretch-Running Victory As Hollywood Turf Cup Favorite appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
Mrs. Danvers Stretches Out For Convincing Triumph In Comely
Allen Stables' Mrs. Danvers surged to the front out of the gate and closed even stronger, drawing away for a 6 1/4-length victory for her first career stakes score in Friday's 71st running of the Grade 3, $100,000 Comely for 3-year-old fillies at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.
Stretching out to 1 1/8 miles for the first time, the trainee of Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey broke sharp from post 6, with jockey Jose Lezcano keeping his charge at the front of the eight-horse field with the opening quarter-mile in 24.30 on the main track rated fast.
Project Whiskey, off at 15-1, challenged Mrs. Danvers along the backstretch, with the duo separated by a head as the half-mile went in 48.69. But Lezcano kept Mrs. Danvers pressed heading around the final turn, where she stayed near the rail while expanding her lead when straightened for home, powering to the wire in a final time of 1:50.09.
Making just her second stakes appearance, and first since running fifth in the Grade 1 Test on August 8, Runhappy Travers Day, at Saratoga Race Course, Mrs. Danvers won for the second straight outing, building on her victory by a neck against older allowance company in a one-turn mile on October 25 at Belmont Park.
“We were anxious to get her stretched out. It's just been kind of difficult to do so,” McGaughey said. “This is what we felt like she wanted to do. Watching some of her allowance races, I wasn't sure I was running her right. It looked like she was going to win and then she wouldn't win.
“I think this is naturally what she wants to do is run this far,” he added. “Being on the lead today definitely helped. I don't think it's something she needs, but going down the line she'll be forwardly placed.”
McGaughey added blinkers to the Tapit filly before her last start and has seen the Kentucky homebred improve to 2-for-2 since the equipment change. Mrs. Danvers' dam, Gracie Square, is a half-sister to graded stakes-winners War Front, Teammate, North Dakota and Ecclesiastic. All are out of the stakes winning and multiple graded stakes-placed Rubiano mare Starry Dreamer.
“Any time you can get a win with a filly with a pedigree like that, especially for the breeder, [Joseph Allen], it means a lot. He believed in this filly.”
Off at 7-2, Mrs. Danvers returned $9.50 on a $2 win wager. She improved her career record to 3-3-1 in eight career starts, increasing her bankroll to $211,800.
“She's a nice filly,” Lezcano said. “Today, I let her break and run for the first quarter and she came back to me very nice. She was galloping along the whole way around. When I asked her to run, she jumped up in the bridle and took off.”
Ice Princess notched runner-up status for the second straight stakes appearance, building on her effort in the Fleet Indian against fellow New York-breds last month for trainer Danny Gargan. Returning to open company, Ice Princess was four lengths the best of Thankful for second.
“A couple horses made moves on the backside,” said Ice Princess jockey Junior Alvarado, who also won the $100,000 Gio Ponti aboard City Man and the $100,000 Forever Together on Feel Glorious on the card. “It was a strange move at that point of the race when everybody had their position, but I stayed with my plan. Turning for home, I moved out and picked up the pieces. We were second-best today.”
Toned Up, 2-1 favorite Gale, Miss Marissa, Project Whiskey and My Sweet Wife completed the order of finish. Makingcents and Pure Rhythm scratched.
Live racing resumes Saturday at Aqueduct with a 10-race card highlighted by the Grade 3, $100,000 Long Island for fillies and mares on the turf, the Grade 3, $100,000 Discovery for sophomores on the main track, the $100,000 Central Park for juveniles and the $100,000 Aqueduct Turf Sprint Championship for 3-year-olds and up. First post is 11:50 a.m. Eastern.
The post Mrs. Danvers Stretches Out For Convincing Triumph In Comely appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
