June, 2021 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Bolt d’Oro Yearlings Predicted to Be in High Demand

Tim Hamlin, owner and operator of Wynnstay Farm, is high on the filly by first-crop yearling sire Bolt d'Oro (Medaglia d'Oro-Globe Trot, by A.P. Indy) his consignment will be presenting at the upcoming Fasig-Tipton July Sale.

“One word to describe her is athletic,” he said of the youngster that will sell as Hip 94 on July 13. “She's a later filly out of a mare called Wall of Worry (The Cliff's Edge). She's been athletic from the day she was born. She does everything we want her to do and she's been healthy, straightforward, good-minded and everything you could want.”

Hamlin has already had good luck with Bolt d'Oro and his first crop. At last year's Fasig-Tipton November Sale, his Wynnstay Sales consignment sold the co-highest weanling by the Spendthrift sire when a filly out of Clarendon Fancy (Malibu Moon) and from the family of GISW Girvin (Tale of Ekati) and GISP Midnight Bourbon (Tiznow) brought $280,000, selling to Spendthrift Farm.

“All three of them that I have had have been super, super athletic,” Hamlin noted. “I wish I could have had more, but they would only let us have so many because everybody wanted them. The ones we have are rock stars. We love them and have more mares bred to him. We think he's going to be a hit.”

Hamlin isn't the only one wishing he had another Bolt d'Oro yearling or two in his barn. According to Spendthrift's Mark Toothaker, demand for the dual Grade I winner was high from the start.

“In his first year, we had twice as many applications as we had spots,” he shared. “We were able to go through and really take our pick of the mares we wanted, so he got an outstanding group.”

Retired to stud in 2019 with a $25,000 initial fee, Bolt d'Oro bred 214 mares in his first book. Held steady at the same stud fee the following year after shuttling to Spendthrift Australia for a season, he bred an additional 146 mare. Toothaker said the smaller book size was due in no part to decreased demand.

“We started trying to control it to where we were only breeding him a couple times a day. We found that to be a little bit better fit for him.”

This year, Bolt d'Oro's stud fee was adjusted to $15,000 with across-the-board fee cuts at Spendthrift due to Covid-induced uncertainties for breeders.

Bolt d'Oro filly out of Wall of Worry sells as Hip 94 at the Fasig-Tipton July Sale.

At last year's weanling sales, Bolt d'Oro ranked amongst the top five first-crop stallions in North America by average when 30 of 36 of his progeny sold to average $76,966. Along with Wynnstay's $280,000 filly at Fasig-Tipton's sale, another Bolt d'Oro weanling brought the same price days later at the Keeneland November Sale. The colt out of stakes winner C. S. Incharge (Take Charge Indy) from Clarkland Farm sold to Sand Hill Stables.

“The pinhookers were really wanting to buy them,” Toothaker said. “Anytime you have the pinhookers talking about how, 'We need to land a Bolt,' or 'We chased a couple of Bolts but weren't able to have enough money to get it done,' that's what you're looking to hear on the sales ground. He's a very exciting horse. He's got the looks, he's got the pedigree and I look for him to be a serious sire for us.”

A WinStar Farm-bred half-brother to GISW Global Campaign (Curlin) and SW Sonic Mule (Distorted Humor), Bolt d'Oro was a $630,000 2016 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga yearling purchase for Mick and Wendy Ruis. Originally trained by Ruis, the son of Medaglia d'Oro broke his maiden on debut before taking the GI Del Mar Futurity and GI Frontrunner S.

“The Frontrunner was just an unbelievable race,” Toothaker recalled. “He absolutely demolished that field and I thought that was his best race. This horse was just so brilliant with his stride; he was able to leap. It was so amazing how much ground he could cover.”

Bolt d'Oro ended his juvenile season with a third-place finish in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile and came back at three in the GII San Felipe S. After a stretch battle with fellow GISW McKinzie, he was awarded the win via disqualification. He then ran second to future Triple Crown winner Justify in the GI Santa Anita Derby and, after unplaced finishes in his next two Grade I starts, retired with earnings of over $1 million.

Toothaker recalled a story of watching the horse train at Keeneland, “The kid that was on him, I don't want to say he messed up, but he broke off too far behind. Mick had put a rabbit in there as a workmate and when they broke, you're thinking he's never going to be able to catch that horse because they had separated themselves too much. But not only did he catch him, it was one of the most unbelievable works I had every seen. He worked :1.10 and change, at Keeneland, and I mean I can count on one hand how many horses I've seen ever work that fast. It was an amazing morning and one of those that I'll never forget.”

Bolt d'Oro's effortless speed combined with a Classic pedigree has Toothaker excited for the stallion's first progeny to hit the track.

“The thing about Bolt is, we just haven't seen many horses by Medaglia d'Oro out of A.P. Indy mares that are so good as 2-year-olds,” he explained. “Here's a horse that is bred to run all day long and has two Grade I wins at two. With his pedigree, it's kind of freakish. You feel like with his progeny, he'll have every chance to sire a Derby horse. He's got the pedigree to get the Classic distances, no doubt.”

Taylor Made Sales has four Bolt d'Oro yearlings pointing towards the Fasig-Tipton July Sale.

Bolt d'Oro filly out of Moment of Speight (Ire) sells as Hip 227 at Fasig-Tipton July.

Mark Taylor agreed that based on the yearlings he has seen, they should be able to stretch out with ease.

“These Bolts to me look like they'll be fast, but they don't look like one-dimensional horses that are going to be done early in their 2-year-old year,” Taylor said. “I think you're going to see plenty of Bolts run early, but I think they're going to be more Classic-type horses at the end of the day.”

Taylor said that one of Taylor Made's July-bound yearlings, a filly out of the Speightstown mare Moment of Speight (Ire) selling as Hip 227, fits the description.

“She's a long, stretchy filly that looks like she can run two turns,” he said. “She's got a good hip to her and is very well balanced with a lot of strength over her top line.”

Of the trends he's seeing in Bolt d'Oro's progeny overall, Taylor added, “I've seen consistently good horses popping up at the different farms I go to. I think he's a prepotent stallion. He seems to be dominating his mares a little bit and he's throwing a lot of length with plenty of strength behind, which is a great tandem to have in the market and on the racetrack. I'm very bullish on what I've seen so far.”

Toothaker said that many breeders have honed in on Bolt d'Oro's physical to best compliment their mares.

“The breeders are so smart and they want to breed a really strong-hipped mare with a good hind leg to him,” he noted. ” We were happy to see him getting strong-hipped horses, but with Bolt's leg and they stand over some ground. The breeders are very happy with what they got, the response has been great so far and I think they are going to be rewarded very well.”

Bolt d'Oro has six yearlings cataloged in the upcoming Fasig-Tipton July Sale including Hip 43, a colt out of a winning half-sister to GISW Yellow Agate (Gemologist), as well as a filly selling as Hip 161, the first foal out a half-sister to dual GISW Mind Control (Stay Thirsty). View Bolt d'Oro's full Fasig-Tipton July roster here.

“I look for him to have an absolutely great sales season,” Toothaker said. “Most everyone we run into is very excited about these Bolts. This July sale will be a great start for him. We're very excited to kick off sales season and then head to Saratoga with a great group.”

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Canadian Horse of The Year Mighty Heart Headlines Thursday’s Dominion Day Stakes

Reigning Canadian Horse of the Year Mighty Heart will return to the scene of his thrilling Queen's Plate triumph that propelled him to stardom last year at Woodbine Racetrack as the Josie Carroll trainee headlines the field for the featured Grade 3 Dominion Day Stakes on Canada Day.

The Ontario-bred son of Dramedy enters Thursday's $150,000 feature event, to be contested over 1-1/16 miles on the Tapeta, fresh off a victory in the Blame Stakes on May 29 at Churchill Downs.

After taking the first two-thirds of the OLG Canadian Triple Crown during his sophomore season, Mighty Heart finished seventh in the Breeders' Stakes final leg, won by stablemate Belichick, and fourth in the Grade 3 Ontario Derby, both at Woodbine.

He opened his four-year-old campaign in mid-April giving way late to finish third in a Keeneland allowance race before returning to the stakes spotlight.

Owned and bred by Larry Cordes, Mighty Heart has four wins from 10 career starts, with his latest earning him millionaire status.

Jockey Daisuke Fukumoto, who was aboard for the popular one-eyed colt's Triple Crown bid, will be back in the irons for the Dominion Day with Mighty Heart starting from post four in the seven-horse field.

The aforementioned Breeders' Stakes champion Belichick will also be competing in the Dominion Day for NK Racing and LNJ Foxwoods. Luis Contreras will be back aboard the Lemon Drop Kid colt, who has finished no lower than third in all six of his career starts while banking more than $500,000 in purse earnings.

A runner-up in the Queen's Plate and Grade 3 Ontario Derby, Belichick also finished second in his 2021 debut, missing by just a nose when running back on the turf, in a 1-1/16-mile allowance race on May 13 at Churchill Downs.

Scheduled as the seventh of eight races on the Canada Day card, the Dominion Day also features the Mark Casse-conditioned graded stakes winners Lookin to Strike, March to the Arch and Skywire.

Returning to action on Thursday following an injury, jockey Rafael Hernandez will partner with Skywire, who was named Canada's 2020 Champion Older Main Track Male thanks in part to a pair of Grade 2 stakes wins, the Eclipse and Autumn, last year at Woodbine for owners Gary Barber and Lucio Tucci.

Other contenders in the field include Malibu Mambo, now trained by Michael Doyle for Stronach Stables, and Atone for trainer Eoin Harty and owner Godolphin LLC.

First race post time is 1:20 p.m., with the Dominion Day scheduled for approximately 4:24 p.m.

$150,000 Dominion Day Stakes (Grade 3)

1 – Lookin to Strike – Kazushi Kimura – Mark Casse

2 – March to the Arch – Patrick Husbands – Mark Casse

3 – Atone – Justin Stein – Eoin Harty

4 – Mighty Heart – Daisuke Fukumoto – Josie Carroll

5 – Malibu Mambo – David Moran – Michael Doyle

6 – Belichick – Luis Contreras – Josie Carroll

7 – Skywire – Rafael Hernandez – Mark Casse

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From An Ohio-Bred Maiden to Stardom? For Amadevil, It Could Happen

David Wolochuk understands that there's only so much a horse can prove in a five-furlong maiden race for Ohio-breds run over a sloppy track. Then again, he's excited about a horse named Amadevil (Dominus). And who could blame him?

“Now I see why they say no one has ever died when they have a good horse in the barn,” he said. “She makes it real easy to get up in the morning.”

On a quiet Monday afternoon earlier this month at Thistledown, the horse owned by and trained by Wolochuk named Amadevil ran so fast and won so easily that it seems perfectly plausible that the 3-year-old filly, despite her humble beginnings, will be heard from in graded stakes company before her career is over. Under wraps in the June 21 maiden, she won by 24 1/4 lengths, covering the five furlongs in :57.48. The track record at the distance is 57.40 and it has stood since 1978. Her Beyer figure was a 94 and her Thoro-Graph number was a 2 1/2. Those are the sort of numbers that win graded stakes races for 3-year-old fillies.

“We knew she had some ability, but, of course, I was surprised by what she did,” said Wolochuk, who divides his year between Turf Paradise and the Ohio tracks. “We thought she was a really nice filly but I can't tell you I thought she'd be a tick off the track record geared down.”

Wolochuk came across Amadevil when she was a yearling. The stallion, Dominus, stands at Spendthrift for $5,000 and the dam, Preachette (Pulpit), was unraced. Amadevil was her second foal and the first to make it to the races. Still, Wolochuck liked Amadevil from the start and began talking to her breeders, Marne Fauber and the late Heidi Cecil, about a possible purchase. Wolochuk said the breeders were inclined to sell because Cecil was ill with cancer and they wanted to cut down on their numbers to “lighten the load.”

When the Ocala-based breeders offered Amadevil and another horse in package for $30,000, Wolochuck pounced.

“They texted me and asked if I would give them $30,000 for the package,” he said. “I didn't argue. As fast as I could type the word 'yes', that's how fast I answered them.”

Already anticipating he might have a good horse, Wolochuk named her after another over-achieving state-bred. The first Amadevil was a fast Nebraska-bred sprinter born in 1974 who won 20 stakes races, including the Count Fleet H., the Paumonok H. and the Phoenix H. The first Amadevil ran 93 times, won 33 races and set three track records.

This Amadevil had some shin problems that kept her out of the races as a 2-year-old, but she's healthy now and ready to tackle bigger challenges. While Wolochuk believes she can win at the graded level, he said the immediate plan is to keep her home and race in Ohio-bred stakes races. The Ohio-bred stakes program offers plenty of options and the purses range from $75,000 to $100,000, which could be easy money for a horse with this much talent. He could see her going from there to an allowance race at a major track.

“With the way the bigger tracks write their allowance races, state-bred wins don't count against you in the allowance conditions,” he said. “We can get her some more seasoning and see how it goes. Then maybe go to a place like Keeneland or Churchill in the fall.”

That's if Wolochuk keeps her.

Since starting his career, he has been a steady winner at tracks in Ohio, Arizona and New Mexico, but has never won a graded stakes as a trainer, let alone as an owner. He'd like nothing more than to win a major race at a top track, but is well aware that the right move might be to sell. He said he has heard from a number of agents and is still deciding what to do.

“My dreams are for sale,” he said. “That's going to be the case as long as I have kids who are ready to go off to college. If I were a little older it might be a different story. This is something I have to think about. I am a businessman and if there is a fair offer I will have to listen.”

Looking far down the road, Wolochuk, a native Californian, said he might take his filly to Santa Anita. If she continues to thrive in lesser spots, a race like the GI La Brea S. in late December could be in the offing. But is that too much to ask of a filly who has done nothing more than beat Ohio-bred maidens at five furlongs? Maybe. Maybe not. For Amadevil, the next several months should be interesting ones.

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Old Friends Welcomes Retired Millionaire Ring Weekend

Old Friends, the Thoroughbred Retirement farm in Georgetown, KY, has welcomed new retiree Ring Weekend.

Owned and campaigned by West Point Thoroughbreds and trained by Graham Motion, the Grade 1-winning gelding retired from racing in 2018 and was originally sent to retrain for a second career with Olympic gold medalist Phillip Dutton, but a recent injury prevented his further progress.

“Ring showed incredible promise as an Event prospect, so I was devastated when he sustained a career-limiting injury during his turnout,” said Dutton. “I wish Ring Weekend all the best in his new prestigious retirement home,” Dutton added, “and thanks to everyone that followed and supported him—he's a remarkable horse.”

Following his recovery Ring Weekend was sent to Julie Lake's Ship Oak Farm in Massachusetts where he spent 14 months as a pleasure horse, but soundness issues again hampered his success.

“Ring spent his days hacking out on miles of trails, galloping along Crane beach in Ipswich, and learning to walk out with the Myopia hounds,” said Lake. “But after careful consideration by everyone who loves him, the decision was made to relocate him to Old Friends where he can truly retire and live out his life without any more work or stress.”

By premiere sire Tapit, out of the Cryptoclearance mare Free the Magic, Ring Weekend had both longevity and versatility on the race track. In all he captured six graded stakes in his six-season career, winning on both the dirt and turf. His victories as a 3-year-old include the G2 Tampa Bay Derby on dirt and G3 Hill Prince Stakes on turf. At 4 he scored big in the G1 Frank E. Kilroe Mile Stakes at Santa Anita before being laid up for more than a year with hoof issues. But he returned to form at age 6 to take the G2 Dixie Stakes and the G2 Bernard Baruch Handicap at Saratoga, both on the turf.

Ring Weekend retired with an overall record of 8-5-4 from 33 starts and earnings of $1,571,576.

“Ring Weekend took his partners on a great ride, competing at 14 different tracks and in 25 stakes races,” said Erin Birkenhauer, Racing Manager/Director of Communications for West Point Thoroughbreds. “The West Point team is incredibly appreciative of the work done by Graham and Anita Motion, Phillip and Evie Dutton, and Julie Lake over the past few years. They are all true ambassadors for off-the-track Thoroughbreds,” Birkenhauer continued. “Many thanks to Michael Blowen and the team at Old Friends for welcoming Ring with open arms. We can't wait to visit him at his forever home.”

“Ring Weekend had the most elegant way of going and was a pleasure to watch,” said Anita Motion. “He retired from racing in 2018 with earnings of more than $1,500,000 and the decision to send him to Phillip and Evie Dutton to try as an event horse was unanimously made by the West Point partners. He showed promise from the beginning but then sustained a freak injury. We are truly grateful to Old Friends for accepting him, and we hope that this will mean his many fans and admirers can visit, I know we will.”

“We're so excited to be associated with Ring Weekend and all of his previous caretakers–Graham and Anita, Julie Lake, West Point, and Philip Dutton,” said Old Friends Founder and President Michael Blowen. “I was at Saratoga when Ring Weekend won the Bernard Baruch and it was thrilling. Almost as thrilling as the sunny Saturday afternoon he arrived at Old Friends.”

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