September, 2021 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Old Friends Welcomes Next Shares and Bordonaro

Grade I winners Next Shares (Archarcharch–Two Dot Slew, by Evansville Slew) and Bordonaro (Memo {Chi}–Miss Excitement, by Rajab) are the latest retirees to take up residence at Old Friends, the Thoroughbred retirement home near Georgetown, Ky.

Next Shares, winner of the GI Shadwell Turf Mile S. in 2018 among his trio of graded scores, last raced in July at Del Mar for trainer Richard Baltas, who was also part of his large ownership group. The 8-year-old gelding retires with a record of 41-7-5-5 and earnings of $1,891,971.

Bordonaro, now 20, won the 2006 GI Ancient Title Breeders' Cup S., three other graded events, and earned just shy of $1 million. Trained by William Spawr, he raced as a homebred for Fred Carrillo and Daniel A. Cassella and has been residing at the United Pegasus Foundation near Tehachapi, Calif.

“We're so thrilled to have both of these wonderful athletes,” said Old Friends founder and president Michael Blowen. “Richard Baltus, who entered Next Shares in the [2018] Old Friends S. [at Kentucky Downs] because it guaranteed his retirement, and Bill Spawr, who trusted us with Amazombie, are two very special old friends.”

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Next Shares, Bordonaro Retired To Old Friends

Old Friends, the Thoroughbred Retirement Facility in Georgetown, KY, has welcomed two new retirees.

Next Shares, winner of the 2018 Old Friends Stakes at Kentucky Downs, and multiple graded stakes winner Bordonaro.

A Richard Baltas trainee and owned in partnership, Next Shares (Archarcharch – Two Dot Slew, Evansville Slew) retires after seven seasons with a record of seven wins from 49 starts and earnings of $1,891,971.

A multiple graded stakes winner, Next Shares also captured the 2018 G1 Shadwell Turf Mile at Keeneland, the G2 San Gabriel Stakes at Santa Anita, and the G2 Seabiscuit at Del Mar in 2019.

Bordonaro (Memo – Miss Excitment, Rajab), comes to Old Friends through the United Pegasus Foundation in Tehachapi, CA. A William Spawr trainee, the now 20-year-old gelding won the 2006 G1 Ancient Breeders' Cup Stakes at Oak Tree and is a two-time winner of the G3 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap (2006 and 2007) at Oaklawn Park. He retired with 10 wins from 20 starts and earnings of $938,128.

“We're so thrilled to have both of these wonderful athletes,” said Old Friends founder and president Michael Blowen. “Richard Baltus, who entered Next Shares in the Old Friends Stakes because it guaranteed his retirement, and Bill Spawr, who trusted us with Amazombie, are two very special old friends.”

The post Next Shares, Bordonaro Retired To Old Friends appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Bret Calhoun Joins Writers’ Room

On the heels of a breakout performance from his juvenile filly Hidden Connection (Connect) in Saturday's GIII Pocahontas S. at Churchill, trainer Bret Calhoun joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland Wednesday morning to talk about his new barn star, upcoming career milestones, the closure of his old home track Arlington Park this weekend and more.

Calling in via Zoom as the Green Group Guest of the Week, Calhoun was asked about how Hidden Connection's 9 1/4-length tour de force beneath the Twin Spires compared to his expectations for the filly.

“Trainers have got a million excuses, we're always nervous. We don't have quite what we want. Nothing rarely goes perfect,” Calhoun said. “But this filly showed a lot of talent early on. She breaks her maiden impressively, very easily. But we've got basically 30 days from a 5 1/2[-furlong] maiden race at Colonial to come to the Pocahontas at a mile and a 16th. So there wasn't a lot of time to prepare like I wanted. She always looked like she wanted to go two turns in the morning, but until you do it, it's a

lot to ask. With that being said, I did have a lot of confidence in her going in and I really felt like she would run really, really well that night. I thought she would get a good position on the first turn,and we really thought she wanted to go on. But like I said, until they prove it, you're not for sure.”

Calhoun has accomplished a lot since taking out his trainer's license in 1994, and currently has 3,308 wins to go along with over $92 million in earnings. He expressed gratitude and said he's far from done when asked to reflect on those numbers.

“It's been an unbelievable run. I'm hoping to reach 4,000 wins and $100 million in earnings. I love the sport. I love the horses. And it's provided a good living for me. I can't say enough about the business and what it's done for me. A lot of people have to go to job every day that they can't stand. I go to a job every day that I love.”

Elsewhere on the show, which is also sponsored by Spendthrift Farm, West Point Thoroughbreds and Legacy Bloodstock, the writers returned to the studio to discuss trainer Charlie Appleby's dominance in America, Tomas Mejia's 10-year suspension for using a buzzer, Bob Baffert's scratch of Medina Spirit (Protonico) from the GI Pennsylvania Derby and more. Click here to watch the podcast; click here for the audio-only version or find it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

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Dubawi’s Modern Games Makes All At Newmarket

Stepping off a 3 1/2-length Doncaster nursery handicap victory earlier this month, Godolphin's 2-year-old colt Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) was in command throughout Thursday's G3 Tattersalls S. at Newmarket and registered another clear-cut success at the expense of Coolmore and Westerberg's French raider Trident (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) in his fifth consecutive start at the seven-furlong distance. He had earlier backed up a July 1 debut fifth at Haydock with a July 24 breakthrough score at Newmarket's Summer course and posted an Aug. 8 conditions second to the reopposing Cresta (Fr) (New Bay {GB}) at Leicester in his penultimate outing. The homebred chestnut was swiftly into stride and gained an overall lead on the far side as the six-runner field, reduced from seven by the late scratching of Shadwell's Ribhi (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}), split into three distinct groups of two. Coming under pressure when threatened approaching the quarter-mile pole, the 3-1 second choice refused to relinquish his advantage and was ridden out up the hill to comfortably hold the Andre Fabre-trained even-money chalk by 2 1/2 lengths for a career high.

“He's not a big, imposing horse by any stretch and Lorna, who rides him at home, said it would take a good one to beat him,” revealed trainer Charlie Appleby after adding yet more fuel to the juvenile tank. “He did a bit of work on Saturday and, while he didn't surprise us, he worked particularly well. That was always the plan to go out there and make it and get them to come at us. It was a great ride by William [Buick] and it paid off.”

Looking ahead to future engagements, the Moulton Paddocks conditioner added, “He's a neat, little horse and maybe we'll have a look at the Breeders' Cup. He's got plenty of experience under his belt now and I wouldn't quite think of him as a [G1] Dewhurst horse. If you were to put him and [G1 Vincent O'Brien National S. winner] Native Trail together at home, it wouldn't be much of a competition. It would be a shame to run the two of them in the Dewhurst and, if Native Trail wasn't around, we all know this race today is a springboard to a Dewhurst. We've [also] got Albahr for the Breeders' Cup as well and they're two hard-knocking sons of Dubawi who can go to the Breeders' Cup and might just run well over there.”

Modern Games, the fourth of six foals, is one of three scorers and the leading performer produced by a half-sister to G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere-winning sire Ultra (Ire) (Manduro {Ger}), G3 Prix Minerve victrix Synopsis (Ire) (In the Wings {GB}) and the dual stakes-placed Epic Similie (GB) (Lomitas {GB}), herself the dam of G2 July S. and G3 Sirenia S. runner-up Figure of Speech (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}). His dam Modern Ideals (GB) (New Approach {Ire}) is also kin to the dam of last term's Listed Prix Pelleas second Lackeen (GB) (Shamardal). Descendants of his MGSW third dam Proskona (Mr. Prospector), herself a half-sister to MG1SP sire Keos (Riverman) and G3 Prix Chloe-winning blue hen Korveya (Riverman), include MG1SW sire Act One (GB) (In the Wings {GB}), G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains third Gharir (Ire) (Machiavellian), G1 Fillies' Mile runner-up Summer Symphony (Ire) (Caerleon) and GI Belmont Oaks Invitational third Summer Solo (Arch). The April-foaled homebred chestnut is a half-brother to a yearling filly by Exceed and Excel (Aus) and a weanling filly by Mastercraftsman (Ire).

Thursday, Newmarket, Britain
TATTERSALLS S. (REGISTERED AS THE SOMERVILLE TATTERSALL S.)-G3, £60,000, Newmarket, 9-23, 2yo, c/g, 7fT, 1:23.62, gd.
1–MODERN GAMES (IRE), 126, c, 2, by Dubawi (Ire)
1st Dam: Modern Ideals (GB), by New Approach (Ire)
2nd Dam: Epitome (Ire), by Nashwan
3rd Dam: Proskona, by Mr. Prospector
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN. O/B-Godolphin (IRE); T-Charlie Appleby; J-William Buick. £34,026. Lifetime Record: 5-3-1-0, $75,348. Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Trident (Fr), 126, c, 2, Wootton Bassett (GB)–Mezzo Mezzo (Fr), by Mount Nelson (GB). (€140,000 Ylg '20 ARDEAY). O-Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor & Westerberg; B-David Smaga & Mme Marie-Benedicte Fougy-Smaga (FR); T-Andre Fabre. £12,900.
3–Harrow (Ire), 126, c, 2, El Kabeir–School Run (Ire), by Invincible Spirit (Ire). (65,000gns Wlg '19 TATFOA; 85,000gns Ylg '20 TATOCT). O-Highclere Thoroughbred Racing (Wisteria); B-School Run Bloodstock (IRE); T-Andrew Balding. £6,456.
Margins: 2HF, 1 1/4, NK. Odds: 3.00, 1.00, 5.50.
Also Ran: Cresta (Fr), Ring of Beara (Fr), Claim The Crown (Ire). Scratched: Ribhi (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

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