November, 2021 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Gulfstream: Eldon’s Prince Chases Third Stakes In A Row In Friday’s Pulpit Stakes

Gentry Farms' Eldon's Prince is scheduled to seek his third-straight stakes victory on Friday's opening day program of the 2021-2022 Championship Meet at Gulfstream Park, where the son of Cairo Prince figures as the horse to beat in the $75,000 Pulpit Stakes.

The Pulpit, a mile turf race for 2-year-olds which drew a field of 12, will co-headline an 11-race program with the $75,000 Wait a While, a mile turf stakes for juvenile fillies. The Pulpit and Wait a While will kick off a $14.26 million stakes schedule for the Championship Meet that will run through April 3.

Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr.-trained Eldon's Prince has shown versatility in his three-race career, having won the Proud Man at a mile on turf and the off-the-turf Armed Forces while sprinting on dirt.

“He finds a way to win,” Joseph said. “He's a horse, as the distances get longer, he'll want to go further. I think he's going to be a horse that will go a mile-and-an-eighth, a mile-and-a-quarter, a mile-and-a-half on the grass, but this is a good race to get him started. Hopefully, he'll run as well as he's run before.”

A $280,000 purchase at the OBS April 2-year-olds-in-training sale, Eldon's Prince debuted on turf at Gulfstream Sept. 18, rallying from off the pace to finish second in a 7 ½-furlong maiden special weight race. He came right back to graduate in the Proud Man, overcoming a rough start and drawing away to a six-length victory. Cutting back to seven furlongs on the main track, the Ontario-bred colt rallied from seventh to prevail by a head in the Armed Forces.

“He's not super flashy as far as speed in the morning, but he's super steady. He'll gallop out super strong in all of his works,” Joseph said. “On the dirt, you can see that he's even. I think his preferred surface is going to be turf. I know he won on dirt, but I think he just won on ability. He's a horse that can overcome things.”

Edgard Zayas has the return mount aboard Eldon's Prince.

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Silverton Hill LLC's Red Danger also brings stakes experience on both turf and dirt into the Pulpit. The son of 2013 Florida Derby (G1) and Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Orb captured the $500,000 Juvenile Sprint over Kentucky Downs turf Sept. 29. After finishing fourth in the Bourbon (G2) on turf at Keeneland, the Brendan Walsh-trained colt finished second behind Howling Time in the Oct. 31 Street Sense at 1 1/16 miles on dirt at Churchill Downs.

Julien Leparoux, who was aboard in the Street Sense, has been awarded the return call.

Cammarota Racing LLC's Baron Cesco is slated to stretch out to a mile after showing considerable promising sprinting both on turf and Tapeta. The Antonio Sano-trained son of Klimt debuted with a front-running victory Aug. 6 at Saratoga. After finishing far back in the off-the-turf Skidmore Stakes at Saratoga, Baron Cesco finished a late-closing third in the Hollywood Beach over Gulfstream's turf after being held up in traffic on the backstretch. The Kentucky-bred colt enters the Pulpit off a second-place optional claiming allowance over Gulfstream's Tapeta course.

Wendall Yates, Troy Johnson, Carroll Boys Racing and Marita Weston's C My Meister enters the Pulpit off a pair of third-place stakes finishes. The Kelsey Danner trainee, who broke his maiden at Gulfstream in his turf debut, finished third in the Aug. 21 Kitten's Joy at Colonial before checking in behind a pair of next-out-winners while finishing third in the Oct. 23 Juvenile for Florida-breds at Gulfstream.

Live Oak Plantation's Biz Biz Buzz, a Michael Trombetta-trained son of Fed Biz who finished third in the Futurity (G3) on turf at Belmont two starts back; Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Speaking Scout, a Graham Motion-trained son of Mr. Speaker who finished second in a Keeneland allowance last time out; and My Racehorse.com's Duke of Love, a Josie Carroll-trained son of Cupid who is coming off an impressive debut victory over Woodbine's Tapeta; are promising Pulpit entrants.

Peacock Stable's Sport Pepper, Carl Hess Jr.'s Concrete Glory, Joker Racing LLC's Kitodan, John Minchello's Fast N Ready, and GU Racing Stable LLC's Always Gambling, round out the field.

The post Gulfstream: Eldon’s Prince Chases Third Stakes In A Row In Friday’s Pulpit Stakes appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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With Strength in Numbers, Repole and Viola Hope to Hit It Out of the Park

Passionate about the sport and determined to win at the highest level, partners Vinnie Viola and Mike Repole have come up with a formula they hope will mean lasting success. It's not just about quality, but quantity. Attack the game with an army of well-bred horses, most of them colts, send them to Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher and sit back and wait for good things to happen.

In what amounts to a historic buying spree, Repole and Viola's St. Elias Stable bought 43 yearlings at Keeneland September, paying a combined $16.045 million. That's after they spent $1.375 million on two yearlings at Fasig-Tipton October and one at Fasig-Tipton Saratoga for $350,000.

Represented by bloodstock agent Jacob West, the Repole-Viola partnership bought 40 colts at Keeneland and three fillies, paying anywhere from $40,000 for a colt by Always Dreaming to $1.05 million for a City of Light colt. They went after a number of sires, including four by Curlin and three by City of Light. The average price they paid was $373,000.

“There really is a good formula,” Repole said. “We know what we are doing. We have incredible lists. We have incredible advisors, an incredible team. We expect to do the same next year, the year after. We do it because we really enjoy this game.”

It's all about putting yourself in a position to win at the highest levels of the sport, something both have achieved. They teamed up to win the 2019 GI Breeders' Cup Classic with Vino Rosso (Curlin), a horse they bought at the 2016 Keeneland September sale for $410,000. Viola owned 2021 GI Florida Derby winner Known Agenda (Curlin) and was a co-owner of 2017 GI Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming (Bodemeister), while Repole campaigned, among others, GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner Uncle Mo (Indian Charlie) and GI Travers S. winner Stay Thirsty (Bernardini).

At the end of the day, it's not necessarily about the bottom line, but a thirst to win in a sport neither can get out of their systems.

“We've developed a passion,” said Viola, who owns the NHL's Florida Panthers. “It's less market driven. It makes sense on a sportsman's level. Every sports person wants to compete at the highest level at whatever activity or sport they participate in.”

Viola is from Brooklyn and Repole is from Queens. Both used Pletcher as their primary trainer and have similar goals and philosophies when it comes to the sport. It made their teaming up natural. As a partnership, their first big splash at the sales came at the 2020 Keeneland September Sale, where they bought 23 horses for a total of $9.295 million.

They are not just spending a lot of money, they are trying to spend a lot of money wisely. It starts with a team of advisors that includes West, Pletcher, Ed Rosen, Jim Martin, Rory Babich and Monique Delk. Each one has their strengths. Their information is passed on to Viola and Repole, who continue the hunt to find the next Vino Rosso.

“This is not an easy task” Viola said. “This is part art, part science, part team discipline. Mike and I are constantly communicating about those three challenges. It is very, very easy when you have a partner like Mike. He is an ultra-talented individual. We work really well together.”

“In business, it's 80% plan and 20% luck” Repole said. “In horse racing, it's 20% plan and 80% luck. Not too many people have that 20% plan. They are all over the place. Vinnie and I are hyper focused right now.”

Buying mainly colts is part of that plan. For Viola, it comes down to trying to win another Kentucky Derby.

“We are primarily buyers of colts,” Viola said. “The sole purpose is to win what we think is the Super Bowl of horse racing , the Kentucky Derby. You will see us buying 90% plus colts.”

Repole wants to win his first Derby, but he also wants to develop stallions, another reason why the two buy very few fillies.

“It's driven by having colts and driven by having stallions,” he said. “The one thing that Vinnie and I figured out pretty quickly is that the ability to make money in this game is with stallions. I still own a big percentage of Uncle Mo. His stud fee is $175,000 and he's bred every year to 200 mares. Anyone can do the math.”

Repole said he's reluctant to go over $1 million for any horse and prefers to stay in the range of $300,000 to $600,000.

“It's a numbers game” he said. “What Vinnie and I are trying to get is quality and quantity. That's what we are looking for. If somebody wants to go up to $2.7 million, God bless and good luck. Vinnie and I will never buy the sales topper because there's always going to be one horse that goes for $4 million and everyone says, 'Wow, look at that horse.' A couple of years later tell me what that horse did.”

The relationship has grown over the years. In 2016, the year they bought Vino Rosso at Keeneland, Repole and Viola went in on only two horses together. Repole said the success they had with Vino Rosso cemented the partnership, which has come to be more than just a business relationship. It has become a close friendship.

“Vinnie and I have gone from partners to great friends to family over the last 12 years,” Repole said. “There's no doubt I'd rather own 50% of a great horses with Vinnie than own 100% of as great horse by myself. It feels more special that way.”

Buying yearlings is never easy and there are no guarantees, but there is something to be said about having such a deep group of horses. So they hope to make some memories in the years ahead, starting next year when the 2021 yearling class hits the track and continuing in the 2023 Kentucky Derby. From the 2021 yearling buys, they'll have 46 chances to find a star. The odds are in their favor.

The post With Strength in Numbers, Repole and Viola Hope to Hit It Out of the Park appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Grade 1 Winner Klimt Sold To Stand In Turkey

Klimt, a Grade 1 winner and freshman sire, has been purchased by the Turkish Jockey Club, and he will relocate to that country for the 2022 breeding season, the Turkish publication Yaris Dergisi reports.

The 7-year-old son of Quality Road previously stood at Darby Dan Farm in Lexington, Ky., where he entered stud in 2018.

Klimt currently ranks sixth among North American freshman sires by progeny earnings, with $1,091,435 from 72 starters and 21 winners. His best runners to date include stakes-placed runners Rumble Strip Ron, Sea Art, Barone Cesco, and Quality Bet.

During his own on-track career, Klimt won three of eight starts, and earned $468,960. His resume was highlighted by victories in the Grade 1 Best Pal Stakes and G2 Best Pal Stakes.

Bred in Kentucky by Thor-Bred Stables, Klimt is out of the stakes-placed Dixie Union mare Inventive, and he's a half-brother to Grade 3-placed West Coast Chick. His extended family includes Grade 1 winners Concern and Fara's Team.

The post Grade 1 Winner Klimt Sold To Stand In Turkey appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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BHA Bullying Hearing Begins: Frost Subjected To ‘Foul, Sexually Abusive And Misogynistic Language’ As Well As Threats Of ‘Serious Physical Harm’

Tuesday began the British Horseracing Authority's hearing into the jockey's room bullying case brought by female national hunt jockey Bryony Frost against male rider Robbie Dunne. Frost's attorney Louis Weston made his opening statement, reports The Guardian, telling the three-member panel that Dunne had used “foul, sexually abusive and misogynistic language” toward Frost as well as threats to “cause her serious physical harm.”

Weston detailed that the issues between Dunne and Frost could be traced as far back as 2017, when Dunne paraded himself naked in front of Frost in the weighing room. In another alleged incident in 2019, Dunne made mocking comments after Frost became emotional during a post-race winning interview.

In 2020, a quintet of specific dates envelop the current charges against Dunne:

On Feb. 13 at Leicester, Dunne is accused of calling Frost “a f***ing slag and a dangerous f***ing whore.”
On July 8 at Stratford, Dunne pulled his horse up near Frost's after a race and allegedly said: “you're a fucking whore … and if you ever fucking murder me like that again, I'll murder you.” (“Murder” in this context refers to cutting off a rival in a race)
On July 29 at Market Rasen, Dunne is alleged to have ridden over-aggressively toward Frost.
In early August at Uttoxer, Dunne is alleged to have said to Frost: “I'm going to stop you murdering everyone, I'm going to murder you.”
On Sept. 3 at Southwell, after Dunne's mount fell and was fatally injured, he is reported to have later accosted Frost in the weighing room, threatening her with physical harm: “the next time I ride against you, I promise I will put you through a wing [of a fence].”

Weston calls Dunne's alleged language “plainly offensive, plainly misogynistic and if tolerated by a sport's regulator, bringing it into disrepute,” and said “there is no excuse or justification for it, none at all.”

The hearing will continue on Wednesday, with Frost expected to give testimony.