April, 2021 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Cuomo Announces 20 Percent Fan Capacity For New York Tracks Starting April 23

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday that the state's auto and horse racing tracks can reopen to fans at 20 percent capacity, bringing racing into line with other outdoor sports in the state.

Spectrum News reports that the announcement comes ahead of Belmont Park's upcoming spring/summer meet, which is set to launch April 22.

Fan attendance at New York tracks has been prohibited since shortly the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The New York Racing Association released the following statement following Cuomo's announcement:

“The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) looks forward to welcoming fans back to Belmont Park this spring and to Saratoga Race Course this summer. We thank Governor Cuomo for the opportunity to host fans at our historic tracks for the first time since the start of the pandemic.

“We will announce ticketing options for fans once we further review the guidelines and protocols set forth for thoroughbred tracks in New York state.

“NYRA has dearly missed the passion and excitement that fans bring to the sport of thoroughbred racing. Today's announcement by the Governor is one more indication that we are collectively moving toward a return to normalcy.”

Trainer Charles LoPresti Retires

Trainer Charlie LoPresti, who conditioned Morton Fink's Wise Dan (Wiseman's Ferry) to victories in the GI Breeders' Cup Mile and Horse of the Year titles in 2012 and 2013, told Daily Racing Form that he is retired from training.

A New York native, LoPresti began training horses in 1993 and fully 16 years later wa s represented by his first winner at the graded level when Successful Dan (Successful Appeal), a Fink-owned and -bred son of Lisa Danielle (Wolf Power {SAf}) won the GIII Northern Dancer S. His half-brother Wise Dan had his graded-stakes breakthrough in Keeneland's GIII Phoenix S. in 2010 and would go on to become the defining horse of his 27-year career. Having won the Phoenix on the Polytrack, Wise Dan belied odds of 14-1 to win the GII Firecracker H. when making his turf debut in 2011. Highlighting his versatility, he added the GI Clark H. over the Churchill main track to conclude his 4-year-old campaign.

The best was yet to come for Wise Dan, who won the GI Woodbine Mile, GI Shadwell Turf Mile and Breeders' Cup Mile for the first of his two Horse of the Year titles in 2012. He retained his brilliance at the age of six, winning the GI Turf Classic over nine furlongs before successfully defending his title in the Woodbine Mile and Breeders' Cup Mile. He was denied a perfect season when runner-up in the off-turf Shadwell. Wise Dan was a perfect four-for-four at age seven in 2014, winning the Shadwell for the second time, but he missed a three-peat attempt at the Breeders' Cup Mile and was retired with 23 wins from 31 runs and earnings of $7.5 million.

Other graded winners trained by LoPresti included GISWs Turallure (Wando) and Here Comes Ben (Street Cry {Ire}).

LoPresti saddled his final runner last October and retires with 310 winners from 2,205 starters and stable earnings of better than $20 million.

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Arrest Made in Bourbon County Animal Cruelty Case

Xavier McGrapth, who is the operator of McGrapth Breaking and Training and Whispering Creek Thoroughbreds, was arrested Tuesday by the Bourbon County Sheriff's office, it was announced Wednesday.

The sheriff's office released a brief statement Wednesday, which read “On the afternoon of April 13, 2021, Xavier McGrapth who is a suspect in an active investigation involving Equine in Bourbon County came into the Bourbon Sheriff's Office for an interview. Upon conclusion of the interview McGrapth was arrested on an active warrant that was tied to the same case. The Bourbon County Sheriff's Office and the Bourbon County Attorney's Office are working closely together to bring this case to a close. At this time, all horses involved have been removed from the Farm and have been relocated to facilities to best suit the care they need.”

Earlier, McGrapth was charged with 13 counts of animal cruelty in the second degree. It appeared that he had been starving some of the horses under his care, and that at least two of them died.

“I'm relieved in that we've made some progress with Xavier turning himself in,” said Amanda Scarsella, who had sent six horses to McGrapth. “With the news that he has formally been charged and taken into custody, I'm hopeful we can move forward and see some justice served. This is only the beginning. What needs to happen is we all need to use this as a teaching point and as a learning point to change laws. We don't want to see this happen again.”

Five of the horses she had with McGrapth have returned to Scarsella's upstate New York farm. She fears that a sixth horse, a broodmare named Fresh Face (Uncle Mo), may be one of the two dead horses, neither of which have been identified.

“This has been bittersweet,” she said. “We are so glad that they are alive and are home, but it's been pretty gutting to see them this way. My colts are sleeping a monstrous amount of time because they are just so wreak and so tired.”

McGrapth had been advertising his services on Facebook under the names of McGrapth Breaking and Training and Whisper Creek Thoroughbreds. He posted that he was available to break and train young horses and board broodmares. McGrapth had the horses on a section of a farm he leased from longtime Central Kentucky horsemen Steve Johnson. Johnson has said that he did not know that McGrapth was mistreating any of his horses.

The case came to the attention of the Bourbon County Sheriff's office when Alyssa Evans, a client of McGrapth's, came to the farm to check on one of her horses. While there, she saw two dead horses laying in a paddock and alerted the sheriff's office. The sheriff's office began its investigation shortly after receiving Evans' call and first inspected the farm on March 19. The sheriff's office then called on a local veterinarian, Dr. Zach Logan, who inspected 23 horses and reported that 11 were malnourished or severely malnourished and that two others were dead.

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Mexican Champion Letruska Under The Radar In Apple Blossom Showdown

Clearly, the stars of the $1 million Apple Blossom Handicap (Grade 1) for older fillies and mares at 1 1/16 miles Saturday at Oaklawn are Eclipse Award winners Monomoy Girl and Swiss Skydiver.

As for the small supporting cast, the most accomplished of the four other entrants is Letruska for trainer Fausto Gutierrez and breeder/owner St. George Stable LLC (German Larrea Mota-Velasco).

A champion in Mexico for her Mexican connections, the speedy Letruska has won 12 of 17 lifetime starts, including the $125,000 Shuvee (G3) Aug. 30 at Saratoga and the $300,000 Houston Ladies Classic (G3) Jan. 31 at Sam Houston. In her return to Oaklawn, Letruksa finished second, beaten a head by Shedaresthedevil, in the $350,000 Azeri Stakes (G2) March 13. The Azeri is the final major local prep for the Apple Blossom.

“I know it's a tough race, but this is the perfect spot to try,” Gutierrez said after Letruksa's half-mile bullet workout Sunday morning at Oaklawn. “We don't have anything to lose. Any of these horses have to run their best race to win. Of course, Letruska, but Swiss Skydiver needs her best effort and Monomoy, too.”

Letruksa won her first seven career starts, including six at Hipodromo De Las Americas in Mexico City. The streak was highlighted by blowouts in two legs of Mexico's Triple Crown for 3-year-old fillies in 2019 – Clasico Esmeralda (G1) and Clasico Diamante (G1) – when Letruksa was named the country's divisional champion.

“Why not three? Because one is just for Mexican-breds,” Gutierrez said.

Larrea Mota-Velasco, a copper mining mogul, bred Letruksa in Kentucky. The 5-year-old mare is by 2010 Kentucky Derby winner and Arkansas Derby runner-up Super Saver.

In addition to the Shuvee and Houston Ladies Classic, Letruksa's resume includes a front-running romp against males in her American debut, the restricted $85,000 Copa Invitacional del Caribe Stakes, in December 2019 at Gulfstream Park, an allowance victory last April at Oaklawn and a victory in the $100,000 Rampart Stakes (G3) Dec. 12 at Gulfstream Park. Letruska normally goes straight to the front in her races.

Letruska won her six starts in Mexico by a combined 40 ½ lengths and joined select company, Gutierrez said, with her American success.

Gutierrez said Mazatleca is the only other horse to begin its career in Mexico and win a graded stakes race in the United States. The Mexican-bred Mazatleca captured the $50,000 Red Bank Handicap (G3) in 1986 at Monmouth Park before going on to a distinguished broodmare career. Mazatleca is the dam of Grade 1 winner Wild Escapade and Grade 2 winner Mazel Trick.

But no horse that started its racing career in Mexico, Gutierrez said, has won a Grade 1 race in the United States. Letruksa, in her Grade 1 debut in the United States, finished fifth in the $300,000 Ballerina last August at Saratoga.

“This is the big gap,” Gutierrez said. “Maybe the horses that run in Mexico, in the Triple Crown, run here for a claiming price or for $12,000 (allowance purse). It's another planet. There's no comparison. It's absolutely another planet. It's not like Argentina or Brazil or maybe Chile – to the level it's very good.”

Letruksa nearly grabbed her signature American victory in the Azeri, falling just short of catching 2020 Kentucky Oaks winner Shedaresthedevil after, unexpectedly, coming from off the pace in the 1 1/16 mile race.

“That was not the plan,” Gutierrez said.

Letruksa switches from Joel Rosario to three-time reigning Eclipse Award-winning jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. for the Apple Blossom. Letruksa is scheduled to break from post 3 Saturday. Swiss Skydiver drew post 2, Monomoy Girl post 6 in the projected six-horse field.

Instead of shipping back to her South Florida base, Letruksa remained at Oaklawn following the Azeri and recorded two works leading up the Apple Blossom. She covered a half-mile in :48.80 April 4 and zipped a half-mile in :47.20 last weekend, galloping out 5 furlongs in :59.40.

“She's a very sound filly,” Gutierrez said. “I think 5 years old is the perfect age for her.”

Letruska, a seven-time stakes winner, has career earnings of $557,319.

The Apple Blossom headlines Saturday's 12-race card, with probable post time 6:09 p.m. (Central). It is the 11^th race. First post Saturday is 12:02 p.m.

The projected Apple Blossom field from the rail out: Another Broad, Ricardo Santana Jr. to ride, 115 pounds; Swiss Skydiver, Robby Albarado, 122; Letruska, Irad Ortiz Jr., 118; Chance to Shine, Ken Tohill, 114; Getridofwhatailesu, Francisco Arrieta, 117; and Monomoy Girl, Florent Geroux, 124.

The infield, weather permitting, will be open Saturday.

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