November, 2021 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Kentucky Appeals Court Upholds Dismissal Of Farms From MGG/Zayat Case

A Kentucky appeals court has upheld a lower court's dismissal of several Thoroughbred entities from a civil suit between MGG Investments and Zayat Stables. The Kentucky Court of Appeals unanimously upheld the actions of Fayette County Circuit Court, which determined the New York investment firm could not sue the purchasers of stallions, mares, and stallion shares sold by Zayat.

MGG sued Zayat Stables in early 2020 after the investment firm said the stable failed to pay back a $23 million loan. Among its accusations against the Triple Crown-winning owner, MGG claimed that Zayat had sold off assets without informing MGG or giving the company the money it was entitled to from those sales. MGG had named Yeomanstown Stud, Hill 'n' Dale, LNJ Foxwoods, Orpendale, and others who had purchased bloodstock assets from Zayat.

Zayat Stables was put under the care of a third-party receiver, and as of early 2021 was down to two horses. Zayat Stables owners Ahmed Zayat has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy since the start of the MGG lawsuit.

Maximus Mischief Colt Tops Book 5 Opener

A colt from the first crop of Maximus Mischief (Into Mischief) (Hip 2804) topped the day's trade during the Book 5 opener of Keeneland November Wednesday, bringing $75,000 from Patillo Equine.

Consigned by Tim and Nancy Hamlin's Wynnstay Sales, Hip 2804 was bred in Indiana by Deann and Greg Baer DVM. The bay colt is out of the Uncle Mo mare Andapinkcarnation, who is a half to SW Desiraes My Candy (Candy Stripes).

“The colt is a first foal out of a mare and he just gets better by the day,” Tim Hamlin said. “He has a wonderful mind, is a wonderful mover, vets well and is a class act. I had a lot of people tell me he was the best foal in the sale today.”

Maximus Mischief was three-for-three as a juvenile, including a victory in the 2018 GII Remsen S. Third in his lone start at three in the GII Fasig-Tipton Holy Bull S., he was retired to stand alongside his sire at Spendthrift.

When asked his impressions of Maximus Mischief's first crop, Hamlin said, “I actually I bought one last night for a customer for $50,000 and this one sold well. I like them.”

The horseman added, “He is out of a daughter of Uncle Mo and he looks like an Into Mischief/Uncle Mo cross. He looks a bit more like his mother. I hope he is as fast as Uncle Mo and Into Mischief. They will do well with him.”

Another son of Maximus Mischief cracked the top 10 Wednesday when Gun Chai (Hip 2787) brought $57,000 from Machmer Hall.

The most expensive mare of the day was Chelsea Road (Speightstown) (Hip 2846), who brought $65,000 from St. Simon Place and Machmer Hall. Consigned by Buckland Sales, she sold in foal to new Lane's End stallion Gift Box.

A total of 260 horses changed hands Wednesday for a gross of $4,363,200. The average was $16,782 and the median was $12,000. The RNA rate was 18.24%. In the equivalent 2020 session, 256 Thoroughbred brought $3,797,300 with an average of $14,83 and median of $8,000. The RNA rate was 12.33%.

“I thought it was very strong,” Hamlin said. “There are a lot of people still shopping. We sold all of the horses we brought today, so we are very happy. It's been a great November Sale.”

There were 1,950 horses sold during the first eight days of the Keeneland November Sale for a total of $190,531,700. The average thus far was $97,709 and the median was $50,000. In 2020, 1,786 head brought $144,012,000 through the first eight sessions with an average of $81,455 and median of $32,000.

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Report: Jackie’s Warrior Has Knee Chip Surgery, Will Race Next Year

J. Kirk and Judy Robison's talented sprinter/miler Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) underwent surgery last week to remove a bone chip in his left knee, Daily Racing Form reports. The procedure was performed by Dr. Larry Bramlage last Friday. “He is going to do rehab at Becky Maker's farm in Lexington,” trainer Steve Asmussen told DRF. “We do plan on a 2022 campaign.” A two-time Grade I winner at two, Jackie's Warrior annexed the GII Pat Day Mile S. in May and was second by a neck in the GI Woody Stephens S. the following month. He took his next three, scoring emphatic wins in the GII Amsterdam S. and GII Gallant Bob S. on either side of a hard-fought victory over the fellow superstar Life Is Good (Into Mischief) in the GI H. Allen Jerkens Memorial S. in August. The bay was most recently sixth at 1-2 odds in the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint Nov. 6. It was announced last month that Spendthrift Farm had acquired Jackie's Warrior's breeding rights.

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Bobby Flay Talks Breeders’ Cup Triumph On Writers’ Room

Still riding high from a scintillating victory in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf with fast-finishing Pizza Bianca (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), celebrity chef, restaurateur and owner/breeder Bobby Flay joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland Tuesday afternoon. Calling in via Zoom as the Green Group Guest of the Week, Flay appreciated the significance of winning on racing's biggest stage with a homebred, teased a potential Royal Ascot trip with Pizza Bianca and discussed how he would approach racing's marketing challenges and more.

Flay made a huge splash at the 2014 Tattersalls October Sale when going to 1,250,000 guineas (around $2,122,050 U.S.) to purchase a regally-bred daughter of Galileo (Ire)–the highest-priced filly sold in the Northern Hemisphere that year–he named White Hot (Ire). But the filly never made it to the races. Flay could've cut his losses and sold the mare back at auction, but instead held onto her to breed, putting trust in her pedigree, and she rewarded him with a Breeders' Cup winner as her first foal.

“She has a lights-out pedigree,” he said. “She's by Galileo, she's a half to Pour Moi (Montjeu {Ire}), who won the English Derby, and that's just the beginning of the pedigree. It goes on for pages. It's a Coolmore family. And one thing about buying into a Coolmore family, those guys are so focused on making their families better and better that they're going to spend money all over that pedigree until the end of time. So I made that bet. I took a leap of faith and it didn't work out. The horse never ran, just wasn't good enough. But I knew I was going to keep this horse for the rest of her life. My feeling was, at some point, the blood will show up. If it's that good, something has to happen, directly or indirectly, that's going to help your family. But you have to be patient. You may have to invest more money actually to continue to breed, but at some point it will work. And I obviously did not expect it to work with the first foal, but it did. It's all gravy from here on out.”

Flay has become a breakthrough celebrity and, as a result, a de facto ambassador of racing. He was asked about how receptive people in his world are to the sport and what can be done to introduce more potential owners and bettors into the game.

“There's only one way to do it. You have to expose them to it,” he said. “If you ask me for a recipe and I just hand you a piece of paper or tell you to go download something off a website and you make it, it's going to be one way. But if I actually show you how to do it, it's going to come out differently and probably better, because I'm showing you as opposed to telling you. It's the same thing for racing. If I tell people about my experience, they're like, 'Oh yeah, that's great.' I take people to the big events, because I want them to see racing at its best, see the best horses and the biggest crowds, and then they're hooked. They're like, 'I can't believe I've never done this before.' I hear that all the time. Every year, I take about 25-30 people to the Belmont Stakes. Half of them have never been to a race before. They become racing fans.”

Elsewhere on the show, which is also sponsored by Coolmore, West Point Thoroughbreds, XBTV, Lane's End and Legacy Bloodstock, the writers discussed their takeaways from last week's interview with Travis Tygart and Tessa Muir of USADA, debated whether or not Lasix-free racing is a big deal anymore and addressed potential remedies for the wagering public in situations like the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf mess. 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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