August, 2021 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Texas Summer Yearling Sale Posts Across-the-Board Gains

Monday's Texas Summer Yearling and Horses of Racing Age Sale at Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie recorded sizable increases in gross sales, average and median with a Texas-bred colt by Too Much Bling topping the auction at $175,000.

A total of 228 yearlings went through the ring with 176 selling for $3,219,600, a 138.9% percent increase from last year when 106 of 137 sold for $1,347,700. The yearling average this year came in at $18,293, a jump of 43.9% from last year's $12,714. The median soared to $10,000 this year, up 96.1% percent from $5,100. The buy-back rate was 22.8% this year compared to 22.6% last year.

There were also three horses of racing age in the sale this year, which sold for a total of $17,500.

“The numbers are almost overwhelming compared to last year, and this sale exceeded even our very high expectations,” said Tim Boyce, sales director. “The recent gains in purses and breeding incentives in Texas, along with the strong programs in place in Louisiana and Oklahoma, have helped make this a very powerful regional marketplace. This is truly one of the best sales we've ever had in Texas.”

The sale-topping Hip 101, an accredited Texas-bred colt by Too Much Bling, was consigned by Benchmark Training Center, agent, and purchased by Finisterre Racing. The Apr. 3 foal is out of Swifterthantaylor (My Golden Song).

For complete results, go to www.ttasales.com.

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Bunglejungleparty The Star at Tattersalls August

The second year of the Tattersalls August Sale kicked off its run at Park Paddocks in Newmarket on Tuesday. The clearance rate remained solid when compared to the 2020 renewal, which was inaugurated due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

Of the 144 horses offered during the first session 127 (88%) were marked as sold for a gross of 1,459,200gns. The average of 11,490gns and median of 7,000gns were down 36% and 42% on 2020, respectively.

Leading the way on day one was lot 169, Bunglejungleparty (Ire) (Bungle Inthejungle {GB}), who brought 125,000gns from Will Douglass of Charlie Gordon-Watson Bloodstock. Consigned by Jamie Railton on behalf of Theresa Marnane, the Qatari-bound colt was the first six-figure lot of the sale.

His sire celebrated a first Group 1 scorer with Winter Power (Ire) in the G1 Nunthorpe S. at York earlier this month and the four-time starter appears to be shaping with plenty of promise, having run third in the Listed Prix des Jouvenceaux et des Jouvencelles at Vichy in July.

“I have had luck buying from these connections at last year's sale with Pom Malpic,” said Douglass. “This is just a very nice horse with form. He goes to Qatar.”

His dam, the winning Brazilian Breeze (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), is a full-sister to stakes winner Rivellino (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}). The second dam is Group 3 winner Brazilian Bride (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}), while in the extended family are Group 1 winners Dolphin Street (Fr) (Bluebird), Insight (Fr) (Sadler's Wells) and Saffron Walden (Fr) (Sadler's Wells).

“The Marnanes are such enthusiasts, I am so pleased for them,” added Railton. “We are so appreciative of our Qatari bidders. He was a pretty obvious horse and he had an avenue to the US as well as he is a non-winner. We are so appreciative of all these people coming to Tattersalls to buy horses. This sale suits every single jurisdiction in the world to buy horses so we must strive to support it.”

Marnane said of the €12,000 Goffs Autumn Online Sale yearling, “I am over the moon. He is a very good-looking horse, big and strong, everybody wanted him today. He had clean X-rays and a very good scope, and there were three people on him over 100,000gns.”

She added, “We rolled the dice here. He was entered in a Group 3 in Germany this weekend, but the yearling sales are coming up.

“We sold Will a very good horse last year, who has been stakes placed in Qatar; he knows where to get the good ones from.

“This date works in the calendar, the sale companies are doing a great job to get these horse sold and we are looking forward to the yearling sale next week.”

Barton Sales offered Encourage (GB) (Iffraaj {GB}) (lot 197) late on Tuesday and were rewarded with a winning bid of 75,000gns. Trainer Ali Majeed signed the ticket on behalf of His Excellency Sultan Aldeen MS Al-Khalifa of Bahrain.

“He is a little under the handicap mark, but we think he will go well in Bahrain and hopefully he will improve,” said Majeed, who is eyeing the lucrative Bahrain Turf Series for the winning 3-year-old gelding. “He is for Sheikh Sultan and we are looking forward to running him. We hope this will be a nice horse.”

Bred and raced by The Queen and trainer Roger Charlton, Encourage is a winner over 10 furlongs. The bay is out of a winning half-sister to G1 Queen Elizabeth S. hero Kingdom of Fife (GB) (Kingmambo), Group 3-placed Four Winds (GB) (Red Ransom), and the dam of stakes winner and G3 Prix Eclipse third Royal Spring (Fr) (Tamayuz {GB}).

National Hunt racing is next on the cards for Dirham Emirati (Ire) (Vadamos {Fr}), who caught the eye of Phil Middleton. Mick Sheridan placed the winning bid of 62,000gns for Middleton, who missed Dirham Emirati's time in the ring due to heavy traffic.

“Phil has been very keen on this horse for a while, he has watched all his runs,” said Sheridan. “Phil's got a keen eye for a jumper and that is the plan–but he will [give] the horse a bit of time off first. He should go with a bit of cut in the ground.”

A 22,000gns Tattersalls December foal turned 55,000gns Tattersalls October Book 1 yearling, the 3-year-old gelding was consigned by David Simcock's Trillium Place Stables. Sold as lot 180, he has a win over 1 1/2 miles and is rated 78. His sire Vadamos is now a National Hunt sire at Coolmore's Grange Stud after first standing on Tally-Ho Stud's Flat roster. Dirham Emirati's granddam is L'Ancresse (Ire) (Darshaan {GB}), named the European Champion 3-Year-Old Filly in 2003 and runner-up in the G1 Irish Oaks and the GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf.

Added Sheridan of his temporarily stranded friend, “I am very good friends with Phil, we were involved in Arab racing together. He rang me when he got stuck in the traffic two hours ago, and then rang me an hour later when he had not moved.”

The highest-priced filly to sell on Tuesday was lot 211, Eastern Delight (Ire) (Camacho {GB}). Part of the James Owen Racing consignment for Rabbah Bloodstock, the daughter of Glamorous Air (Ire) (Air Express {Ire}) went for 50,000gns to breeder Robert Bailey of New Hall Farm.

“There is one mare in India and one mare in Australia, so apart from those, we have nearly all the family's breeding mares at home, and they are all “Glamorous,'” said Bailey who bid through Jason Singh over the telephone and was not opposed to renaming his new acquisition.

Already a half-sister to G3 Prix du Petit Couvert heroine Just Glamorous (Ire) (Arcano {Ire}) and G3 Sapphire S. Victoria Glamorous Spirit (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), the €180,000 Goffs Orby yearling is rated 76 and has placed twice in six runs.

“There was no need for me to come up to Newmarket as she was the one I wanted–we have done all the checks we needed,” Bailey added from his Chepstow base. “She will go into training for a couple of years with Chris Mason and we will try and improve her form and then she will come back to the farm.”

The sale continues with another 230 lots at 11 a.m. on Wednesday.

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Dennis Alfieri Reappointed to CHRB

Dennis Alfieri has been reappointed to the California Horse Racing Board of Directors, where he has served since 2018, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced Monday evening. The 62-year-old Alfieri has been Managing Member of Mission Real Estate Group since 2005. He was Chief Executive Officer of the Sheriff's Youth Foundation from 2017 to 2020. He was Principal and a Founding Partner at Bantry Property Services LLC from 2005 to 2010 and General Partner and Founder of Twin Palms Restaurants from 1991 to 2005. Alfieri is a 40-year member of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association and a member of the Pasadena Optimist Club. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem.

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Jersey Joe No More, Bravo to Ride Permanently in California

When Joe Bravo decided to leave New Jersey because of new regulations banning the use of the whip, his future was unclear. Bravo, 49, needed a place to ride, but leaving the comfortable confines of Monmouth Park might be difficult. He had been riding at the Jersey Shore track since the late eighties and has been leading rider there 13 times.

But rather than struggling outside of the Garden State, Bravo is having a meet to remember at his new home, Del Mar. With a week to go in the meet, Bravo has 20 wins, good for fifth in the standings. His winning percentage (20%) trails only Flavien Prat (27%).

Having proven that he can compete against the best at a top-tier track like Del Mar, Bravo has decided to make Southern California his home base and said he will be ready to go when racing shifts to Santa Anita Sept. 29.

“The old saying is that when one door closes another one opens,” he said. “In hindsight, this has been a complete blessing. It really shook up my life completely and made me pack my bags up and come to the other coast. It was all for the better. I'm so thankful for the opportunities I have had here.”

To test the waters, Bravo shipped west to ride the final three days of the Santa Anita meet and won two races from 10 starts. He could see right away that California horsemen were willing to give him a chance.

“After I got together with my agent, Matt Nakatani, I came here for the end of the Santa Anita meet and I was overwhelmed by the welcome I got from trainers and owners,” he said. “They were saying 'Joe, it's really good to see you out here.' It's one thing to say that, it's another thing to follow up. Look at who I've been riding for. It's all the top connections. There's no better feeling than that.”

Bravo has ridden winners for eight different trainers, including top outfits like John Sadler, Richard Baltas and Phil D'Amato. He's ridden eight winners alone for Sadler. He's also had three stakes wins, capturing the GIII Rancho Bernardo H. with Edgeway (Competitive Edge), the GII Best Pal S. with Pappacap (Gun Runner) and the Osunitas S. with Ippodamia's Girl (Stormy Atlantic).

“That's what everybody works for, to ride in the higher end races,” Bravo said.

Riding for top outfits like the John Sadler barn has obviously helped, but so has a mental adjustment. Looking back, Bravo realizes he had gotten complacent in New Jersey. He stopped working hard and was content to only ride three or four a day. That was good enough for third place in the Monmouth standings last year, but he was no longer a match for Paco Lopez, a younger jockey who had surpassed Bravo as the top rider in New Jersey.

Bravo knew that he had no chance to make it in California if he didn't come out in the mornings and if he didn't agree to ride in lower-level races.

“Of course I miss it. Jersey will always be home,” he said. “That's probably why the last couple of years I was enjoying the good life. The Jersey Shore is really nice and I wasn't really striving that hard for anything. With this shake up, it's revitalized me. I'm working hard and it's been kind of fun with the way things have been shaken up. I got into a little rut [in New Jersey] and horse racing had become a job. I had an easy go of it at Monmouth for a good run, but coming here has revived my career.”

One of the ironies is that he left New Jersey because of its whip rules only to land in the state with the second strictest rules when it comes to the crop. California riders can only hit their mount underhanded and are limited to six strikes a race. Though he says the California rules are definitely better than they are in Jersey, he is no fan of them.

“They are very strict here,” he said. “If you turn your stick up and hit a horse it's an automatic suspension. It was a very big adjustment for me to make. It's almost like riding with handcuffs. You can't get really aggressive. At least you can do some kind of encouragement. It is difficult, but you have to adjust. I do believe there should be riding crop rules. I just wish they would be a little bit more lenient so you can still have competitive horse races. You have to protect the owners, trainers and gamblers. You see some guys who have already hit their horses six times and there's still an eighth of mile to go and he has to stop. It makes it look like the rider has fallen asleep. Instead, they're just trying to follow the California rules.”

After Santa Anita, Bravo can look forward to the Breeders' Cup, which will be run at Del Mar. He's only won one Breeders' Cup race, with Blue Prize (Arg) (Pure Prize) in the 2019 GI Breeders' Cup Distaff, but his success on the circuit should put him in line for some decent Breeders' Cup mounts. In a normal year, after the Breeders' Cup, Bravo would be on his way to Gulfstream. Instead, he will gear up for the long Santa Anita meet that begins Dec. 26. He's not going anywhere.

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