The prep season for the 2021 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve is in full gear heading into March, and this upcoming Saturday, March 6, features three races offering qualifying points for Derby 147 at Aqueduct, Tampa Bay Downs and
Month: March 2021
Razorback Winner Mystic Guide To Ship For Dubai World Cup
Trainer Michael Stidham told the Daily Racing Form that Saturday's G3 Razorback Handicap winner Mystic Guide will head overseas to contest the Dubai World Cup, scheduled for March 27. The Grade 1-placed son of Ghostzapper won Oaklawn's $600,000 race by six lengths, and should be one of the lower-priced choices in Dubai.
A Godolphin homebred out of the five-time Grade 1-winning millionaire Music Note (A.P. Indy), Mystic Guide won the G2 Jim Dandy Stakes last year before finishing a close second to Happy Saver in the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup.
Plans call for the 4-year-old to ship from Stidham's base at the Fair Grounds to Miami on March 15, then to the UAE on March 17. No decision has been finalized on a jockey, Stidham said.
Other American horses targeting the Dubai World Cup are Sleepy Eyes Todd and Tacitus, both of whom contested the Saudi Cup and remained overseas.
Read more at the Daily Racing Form.
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Luis Saez Rides Essential Quality, Mystic Guide To Jockey Of The Week Title
Luis Saez usually rides at Gulfstream Park, but he traveled to Oaklawn Park last week as the track reopened after adverse weather conditions led to a two-week shutdown. Saez won both of the rescheduled graded stakes races, earning the Jockey of the Week award for the week of Feb. 22 through Feb. 28. The award, which is voted on by a panel of racing experts, is for jockeys who are members of the Jockeys' Guild, the organization which represents more than 950 active riders in the United States as well as retired and permanently disabled jockeys.
Riding Mystic Guide for the first time for trainer Michael Stidham in the Gr. 3 Razorback Handicap, Saez was unhurried early in the field of seven for the first half mile. Saez moved Mystic Guide closer to the front down the backstretch and was a head in front at the top of the stretch drawing clear to win by six lengths in 1:45.48 for 1 1/16 miles over a track rated as sloppy.
“Everything was perfect, that was the trip we wanted,” said Saez. “We had the perfect spot from the outside. I just tried to keep the horse clean and he was comfortable all the way. He got to the top of the stretch and took off. It was a great race.”
Eclipse-award winning trainer Brad Cox engaged regular rider Luis Saez, on 4-5 favorite Essential Quality in the Gr. 3 Southwest Stakes at 1 1/16 miles. Breaking from the rail, Saez settled the reigning Champion 2-year-old behind Jackie's Warrior who set the pace for the first half mile in the field of seven. Saez patiently moved Essential Quality to the outside and made his move turning for home and drew well clear to win by 4-1/2 lengths in 1:44.33 over the sloppy track.
“I'm so excited,” Saez said. “I'm very happy to riding this horse. We were waiting a long time. What a talented horse. We knew the speed was to our outside. The plan was to follow him (Jackie's Warrior) the whole way. Everything came together. He finished very strong and I still had a lot of horse.”
Saez currently sits in second place in the jockey standings at Gulfstream Park. His weekly stats included seven wins from 22 starts for a win percentage of 31.82 percent and an in-the-money percentage of 59 percent with total purses earned $954,917 to lead all jockeys for the week.
Saez out-polled fellow riders Junior Alvarado with two stakes wins, James Graham who tied for second leading rider by wins with eight, Trevor McCarthy with seven wins and Jose Ortiz who won two graded stakes including the Fountain of Youth.
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Knicks Go Named 2020 Maryland-Bred Horse Of The Year
The fourth annual Renaissance Awards, a collaborative effort between the Maryland Horse Breeders Association, Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and Maryland Jockey Club, which recognizes excellence in Thoroughbred racing and breeding in Maryland in the past year, went virtual this year.
Throughout the week of Feb. 22, awards were presented through the MHBA's social media accounts to the top Maryland owner, trainer, jockey, breeder, broodmare and stallion, Backstretch Workers of the Year, one for Pimlico Race Course and one for Laurel Park, MTHA's Unsung Hero, as well as the champion Maryland-breds of 2020.
Record-breaking Grade 1 winner Knicks Go took home top honors as Maryland-bred Horse of the Year and champion older male.
Owned by Korea Racing Authority and trained by Brad H. Cox, Knicks Go capped off an impressive year by breaking the track record at Keeneland with his victory in the $1-million Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, notching his second Grade 1 victory by 3 1/2 lengths as he stopped the clock in 1:33.85. He went into the Breeders' Cup after securing a 10 1/4-length victory in a 1 1/16 mile allowance at Keeneland, where he broke the track record in 1:40.79, which was preceded by an allowance victory at Oaklawn Park in February. A perfect three for three in 2020, the son of Paynter earned $608,440.
Knicks Go, bred by Angie Moore, was sold as a weanling for $40,000 at the 2016 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale, and later purchased for $87,000 as a yearling by Korea Racing Authority at the 2017 Keeneland September sale. Only the fifth Maryland-bred to win a Breeders' Cup race, his share of the purse ($520,000) propelled him beyond the $1 million mark in career earnings.
Other divisional champions:
Champion 2-year-old male: Jaxon Traveler (dk.b./br.c., 2018, by Munnings—Listen Boy, by After Market). Bred by Dr. and Mrs. A. Leonard Pineau; owned by West Point Thoroughbreds and Marvin Delfiner; trained by Steven M. Asmussen.
Champion 2-year-old filly: Street Lute (ch. f., 2018, by Street Magician—Alottalute, by Midnight Lute). Bred by Dr. and Mrs. Thomas Bowman and Dr. Brooke Bowman; owned by Lucky 7 Stables; trained by John J. Robb.
Champion 3-year-old male: Field Pass (gr./ro.c, 2017, by Lemon Drop Kid—Only Me, by Runaway Groom). Bred by Mark Brown Grier; owned by Three Diamonds Farm; trained by Michael J. Maker.
Champion 3-year-old filly and champion turf runner: Sharing (ch.f., 2017, by Speightstown—Shared Account, by Pleasantly Perfect). Bred by Sagamore Farm; owned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Gainesway Stable (Antony Beck); trained by H. Graham Motion.
Champion older female: Never Enough Time (dk.b./br.m., 2016, by Munnings—What Time It Is, by Partner's Hero). Bred and owned by R. Larry Johnson; trained by Michael J. Trombetta.
Champion sprinter: Laki (ch.g., 2013, by Cuba—Truthful Dutch, by Swear by Dixie). Bred by Tom Michaels and Lorna Baker; owned by Hillside Equestrian Meadows; trained by Damon R. Dilodovico.
Also presented were the annual breeder, stallion and broodmare of the year awards. Angie Moore, breeder of 2020 Maryland-bred Horse of the Year and champion older male Knicks Go, was crowned the Maryland Breeder of the Year, while Sycamore Hall Thoroughbreds LLC and Hillwood Stable LLC's Love's Reason, dam of 2019 Maryland-bred champion older female Majestic Reason, won Maryland Broodmare of the Year and Northview Stallion Station's Great Notion took home the title of Maryland Stallion of the Year for the fifth consecutive year.
Other award winners for 2020 include Robert Bone, Maryland Owner of the Year; Claudio Gonzalez, Maryland Trainer of the Year; Trevor McCarthy, Maryland Jockey of the Year. Edgar Gallegos was honored as the Pimlico Backstretch Worker of the Year, while Antonio Lopez Salazar earned the title of Laurel Backstretch Employee of the Year, and jockey Victor Carrasco was recognized as the MTHA's Unsung Hero.
Watch the video announcements for each champion and award winner here
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