Robin Goodfellow’s racing tips: Best bets for Friday, November 12
Sportsmail's racing expert Robin Goodfellow dishes out his tips for Friday's meetings at Cheltenham, Newcastle, Kempton and Worcester.
Month: November 2021
Pennsylvania Leaderboard Presented By Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association: Admiral Abe Continues Rewarding His Owners
For all the incentives in the Pennsylvania program geared toward breeding and standing stallions in the Keystone State, the bonuses for racing those horses on their home turf are just as lucrative.
Owners of Pennsylvania-breds that race at Parx Racing, Penn National, or Presque Isle Downs can earn “owner bonuses,” paying out extra money on a percentage of overnight purses. Over $3 million has been paid out in owner bonuses this year, with Admiral Abe bringing in the most for owner Stefcon Racing.
Admiral Abe, a 5-year-old Midshipman gelding, has made $50,592 in owner bonus earnings in 2021, racing exclusively at Parx.
Pennsylvania-breds earn a 40 percent owner bonus on their share of the purse, paid for by the racetrack, for overnight races at Parx. Overnight races at Presque Isle are eligible for a 30 percent owner bonus, while races at Penn National net a 20 percent bonus. Restricted stakes races for horses bred and sired in Pennsylvania are also eligible for a 25 percent owner bonus.
Admiral Abe was bred in Pennsylvania by White Diamond Inc. and Five Ring Stables. He was claimed by Ed Stefanski and Bill Conlin's Stefcon Racing for $25,000 in January 2020; a transaction that was later named Outstanding Claim of the Year by the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association.
Though the accolade was for the 2020 racing season Admiral Abe has rewarded his new owners in 2021 with his best season to date, winning five of 11 starts and earning $265,972. Adding the owner bonus, the money the gelding has brought in this season exceeds $300,000.
Racing for trainer Robert Mosco, Admiral Abe shook off a rusty trip in his 2021 debut to win his next two starts, both one-turn allowance races at Parx. The springtime months saw him take another pair of Parx allowances, both at 5 1/2 furlongs.
Admiral Abe has found his best form in the second half of the year, highlighted by a front-winning score over the slop in the Marshall Jenney Handicap on Aug. 23. He then proved that his form could carry over to the grass, switching surfaces to finish third in the G3 Turf Monster Stakes.
Ninetypercentbrynn sits in second on the list by Pennsylvania owner bonus earnings, bringing in $32,560 for LC Racing on top of the $153,760 she made in purse earnings.
The 3-year-old Weigelia filly has won three of 10 starts in 2021, and she has finished fourth or better each time she has entered the starting gate this season, which helped her compile owner bonus money.
After finishing second in three straight races, Ninetypercentbrynn broke her maiden at Parx in June, and she immediately followed up with a Parx allowance score in July. After running fourth in the Mrs. Penny Stakes and Plum Pretty Stakes, trainer Robert Reid Jr. moved Ninetypercentbrynn to Penn National for her most recent start on Oct. 19, where she overcame traffic trouble to win by 2 1/2 lengths.
Ninetypercentbrynn was bred in Pennsylvania by her owner, LC Racing.
The post Pennsylvania Leaderboard Presented By Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association: Admiral Abe Continues Rewarding His Owners appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
Benie des Dieux Stars at November NH Sale
Five mares broke the six-figure mark during the fifth and final day of the Tattersalls Ireland November National Hunt Sale, and Benie des Dieux (Fr) (Great Pretender {Ire}) was undoubtedly the star of the show. Offered by Closutton Stables, the bay went for €350,000 to MV Magnier/Bective Stud. Sold as lot 1253, she is a three-time Grade 1 hurdle winner and was in foal to Walk In The Park (Ire).
Closutton also offered the third- and fourth-dearest lots– lot 1254 and lot 1257, Buildmeupbuttercup (GB) (Sixties Icon {GB}) and Salsaretta (Fr) (Kingsalsa), respectively. The former was snapped up by Jayne McGivern for €165,000 and is a listed winner and Grade 1-placed hurdler in foal to the popular Crystal Ocean (GB). Salsaretta, a Grade 2 winning-chaser entered the ring carrying to Blue Bresil (Fr), and went to Seamar Bloodstock Ltd.
Magic of Light (Ire) (Flemensfirth) (lot 1251) was second at the end-of-day standings at €185,000 and caught the eye of Coolmara Stables. The Baroda Stud draft member ran out a dual winner of the G2 Warfield Mares' Hurdle, as well as the G2 Glencarraig Lady Mares H. Chase. She is a half-sister to Grade 1 hurdler Pingshou (Ire) (Definite Article {GB}) and sold in foal to young sire Crystal Ocean (GB).
At the conclusion of the sale, 857 lots sold of 1,182 (73%) offered for an aggregate of €15,758,100. The average dropped three points to €18,388 and the median was also marginally down to €12,500 (-4%). Thursday's trade ended with 135 sold and a gross of €2,420,250. The average was €17,928 and the median was €7,000.
Commenting on the conclusion of the November NH Sale, Tattersalls Ireland CEO Simon Kerins said, “What an amazing couple of days we have witnessed at Tattersalls Ireland as the November NH Sale reached unprecedented heights with a trade that was simply extraordinary. The November NH Sale continues to be such a strong hallmark sale for breeders and the 2021 renewal is one that only adds to the story in a hugely positive way. The sale kicked off with the highest turnover for a yearling session since 2015, setting the tone for a week of tremendous highs that saw records continue to fall with the turnover, average and median all making huge gains on the previous decade.
“Our foal session set records for a four-day sale and to break the €5,000,000 barrier on Tuesday was remarkable. The sale was a superb representation of the cream of the 2021 foal crop with so many leading breeders continuing to sell their best in November at Tattersalls Ireland.
“The Breeding Stock Sale continued the trend with top prices of €350,000, €185,000, and €165,000 to buyers from France, Ireland and UK illustrating the enduring appeal for the best NH broodmares, and they were the highlights of another incredibly strong renewal of our mare and filly sale with strong trade which enjoyed a record top lot.
“On behalf of all the team at Tattersalls Ireland, I extend our appreciation to the vendors for giving us the opportunity to promote their top-class yearlings, foals and breeding stock and to each and every one of our buyers.”
The post Benie des Dieux Stars at November NH Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.
Sciacca Gets 1000th Winner
Some four decades after saddling his first winner, trainer Gary Sciacca celebrated the 1000th victory of his career, sending out Caumsett (The Factor) to win the Aqueduct fall meet opener Thursday afternoon. The 47-10 third favorite, Caumsett broke his maiden in a one-mile turf test beneath Hall of Famer Javier Castellano (video).
Sciacca, a two-time leading trainer at Belmont Park (spring 1993 and fall 1997), has conditioned the likes of multiple Grade I winner Saratoga Dew–the first New York-bred to be named an Eclipse champion–and millionaire GISW Subordination.
“I'm just real happy to get it done,” Sciacca, 61 and a Brooklyn native, said. “I would have loved to have got it done at Belmont, but I got my start here at Aqueduct so this is great. It feels great. We needed to get it done and get it over with. I thought she was going to win last time [Sept. 19], but she got nailed right at the wire. Bobby, my son is here, so that's great.”
He added, “The Grade I wins with Saratoga Dew and Subordination were huge. The business has been so great to me and all the hard work is paying off. It's taken me all over and has been really good.”
The post Sciacca Gets 1000th Winner appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.
