January, 2022 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Pauline’s Pearl Headlines Sunday’s John B. Connally Turf Cup At Sam Houston

The fields are set for the premier day of Thoroughbred racing at Sam Houston Race Park. The Houston Racing Festival will take place on Sunday, Jan. 30 with a special afternoon post time of 1:45 p.m. (CT). The 11-race card includes six stakes, highlighted by the Grade 3, $400,000 Houston Ladies Classic and Grade 3, $200,000 John B. Connally Turf Cup.

Now in its tenth running, the Houston Ladies Classic, at 1 1/16 miles on the main track, has been a springboard for top older fillies and mares The purse was boosted to $400,000 this year (from $300,000) in its previous editions and Hall of Fame conditioner Steve Asmussen will go for his third victory with Stonestreet Stable LLC's homebred Pauline's Pearl. The filly by Tapit out of the Dixie Union mare Hot Dixie Chick, drew post position three with Joel Rosario riding the 6-5 morning line favorite. He and Asmussen have teamed successfully of late; Rosario guided La Crete to victory in Saturday's Silverbulletday at Fair Grounds.

The victory by Pauline's Pearl would vault Asmussen into the record books as the only conditioner to win three editions of the Houston Ladies Classic. He won with Midnight Bisou in 2019, the remarkable champion who went on to capture five Grade 1 stakes, banking $7.4 million and was honored as 2019 Eclipse Award winning older female. He also captured 2020 Houston Ladies Classic with Lady Apple, a 5-year-old daughter of Curlin owned by Phoenix Thoroughbred III Ltd.

Pauline's Pearl will be making her 11th career start on Sunday. She made her debut at Fair Grounds last year before shipping to Oaklawn Park for the 2021 Honeybee on March 6. She finished second in that Grade 3 before triumphing in the G3, $600,000 Fantasy. The gray filly completed her 3-year-old campaign with a victory in the Zia Park Oaks on Nov. 23. Asmussen sent the Kentucky-bred filly back to Fair Grounds where she had a series of works in December and January before vanning to Houston last week. On Saturday, Jan. 22, she looked comfortable jogging on a fast main track under exercise rider Eulalio Rivera.

“She's a very nice filly,” said Asmussen. “We have had success with both Midnight Bisou and Lady Apple in this race and look forward to running Pauline's Pearl for Stonestreet Stables.”

The Mary Rose, bred and owned in Arkansas, by Shortleaf Stable, Inc, will ship to Houston from Oaklawn Park on Thursday, according to her trainer John Alexander Ortiz. He has conditioned the 5-year-old Macho Uno mare since last summer, with four on the board placings in five starts. She finished her 2021 season with an impressive seven-length score in a $50,000 allowance at Oaklawn Park on Dec. 31.

“The lightbulb turned on for me in her second race last August at Colonial Downs,” said Ortiz. “She pretty much sprinted. I wanted to see what she did going two turns and she blew the doors off in her last race.”

Jockey Reylu Gutierrez has the call and will break from the far outside post at odds of 3-1. The talented young rider will make his second appearance in the Houston Ladies Classic after riding Jeweled Princess last year for Kenny McPeek.

Shipping from Fair Grounds in New Orleans will be Lothenbach Stable's Inc's Audrey's Time who just won the $75,000 Joseph Spanky Broussard Stakes for trainer Neil Pessin. Corey Lanerie has the return call aboard the 5-year-old daughter of Uncle Mo. Trainer Michael Stidham has entered Velvet Crush, a 5-year-old Tapit mare bred in Kentucky by Calumet Farms and owned by Famousstyle Stables, LLC. Stakes placed at Monmouth Park and Belmont Park, she ran third to Audrey's Time at Fair Grounds last month. Current Sam Houston leading jockey Ry Eikleberry has the call and will break from the rail at odds of 8-1.

Trainer Scott Gelner who competed in last year's edition of the race with Shes Our Fastest for Norman Racing Stables, will saddle Becca's Rocket for the same connections with Adam Beschizza in the irons. The 4-year-old daughter of Orb will be making her 16th career start. Golden Curl, owned by George A. Sharp, will ship in from Turfway Park. The 6-year-old Curlin mare is trained by Shawn H. Davis with Tyler Gafflione flying in from Gulfstream Park to ride. Champagne Affair will make her Sam Houston debut for owners L & G Racing Stable. The Kentucky-bred daughter of Daredevil will be ridden by Ernesto Valdez-Jiminez for trainer Cesar Govea.

The field for the Houston Ladies Classic, will run as the seventh race, with an approximate post time of 4:53 pm (CT). The field, from the rail, with jockeys and morning line odds:

Velvet Crush, Ry Eikleberry (8-1); Audrey's Time, Corey Lanerie (7-2); Pauline's Pearl, Joel Rosario (6-5); Becca's Rocket, Adam Beschizza, (10-1); Champagne Affair, Ernesto Valdez-Jiminez (30-1); Golden Curl, Tyler Gafflione (20-1) and The Mary Rose, Reylu Gutierrez (3-1).

Inaugurated in 2013, the Houston Ladies Classic was awarded its graded status by the American Graded Stakes Committee in 2016. It anchors the annual Houston Racing Festival, which also includes the G3, $200,000 John B. Connally Turf Cup, the $200,000 Bob Bork Texas Turf Mile, the $100,000 Pulse Power Turf Sprint, the $75,000 Jersey Lilly Turf Stakes and the $75,000 Stonerside Sprint.

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Speed Sires In Bolger’s Plans For 2022

As he prepares his runners for the upcoming flat season, Jim Bolger is also keeping a watchful eye on his breeding stock. The master trainer may be juggling the education of his runners with the oversight of his broodmares and youngstock, but Bolger has proven mighty adept at this kind of multi-tasking in the past: as has been well-documented, Bolger breeds many of his own runners, often going back two or three generations on both the top and bottom of the pedigree. His 2021 G1 2000 Guineas and G1 St James's Palace S. winner Poetic Flare (Ire) is by his homebred sire Dawn Approach (Ire) out of his homebred mare Maria Lee (Ire) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}). He also trained Dawn Approach's sire, the Derby winner New Approach (Ire). New Approach sired Bolger's 2021 G1 Irish 2000 Guineas winner Mac Swiney (Ire), who returns for a 4-year-old campaign this year. Bolger also bred Mac Swiney's damsire Teofilo (Ire) and Mac Swiney's first two dams.

It is no surprise that New Approach and Dawn Approach, as well as Bolger's “favourite sire” Teofilo (Ire), will feature prominently in his 2022 mating plans. But Bolger is also mixing in some young, fast sires to inject some speed into his families.

Bolger, who on Christmas Day celebrated his 80th birthday, explained that while he “would have a good idea” at this point as to his mating plans, he doesn't set them in stone until after his mares foal.

“Because I have access to so many stallions, and some of them we would have used in the last covering season, we're waiting to have a look at the foals first,” he said.

Looking for “speed up to a mile”, Bolger said, he will send eight mares to leading third-crop sire Mehmas (Ire) in 2022. Also fitting that bill on his list are Profitable (Ire), Galileo Gold (Ire), Blue Point (Ire), Belardo (Ire) and Space Blues (Ire).

“We used to be told–though I don't hear so much about it in recent years–that when you're breeding staying horses you need to go back to speed every now and then,” Bolger said. “It may not get you a great result in the first instance, but the progeny of the progeny of the speed attempt could be capable of getting you a Classic horse. In recent years some of the owner/breeders have been sending their Oaks winners to Derby winners and they seem to be making out alright. Whether that will continue now or not, I just don't know. I suspect that sometime in the future with those sorts of families that those breeders will be going back and trying to inject some speed.”

Darley's G1 King's Stand S. winner Profitable was fourth on last year's first-season sires' table and sired three stakes winners, including the G2 Queen Mary S. scorer Quick Suzy (Ire).

“Profitable doesn't have a terribly strong pedigree himself except that he's by a very good sire and a sire of sires,” Bolger said. “He's a gorgeous horse and a very good mover, and was a very good racehorse himself.”

G1 Dewhurst S. and G1 Lockinge S. winner Belardo got off to a fast start in 2020, siring four first-crop stakes winners. The Kildangan Stud resident was quieter in 2021, with just one black-type winner, but the son of Lope De Vega has started 2022 on the right note with Bellabel (Ire) winning the Listed Blue Norther S. at Santa Anita.

“He's a nice horse,” Bolger said of Belardo. “I trained some of his family and I liked them. I felt he was a horse with a chance, so much so that I bought a share in him, and I'll continue to use the share.”

Another young Kildangan stallion that will get Bolger's support this year is the four-time middle-distance Group 1 winner and 2020 world's highest-rated horse Ghaiyyath (Ire). Bolger said he has selected the son of Dubawi (Ire) based on his racecourse merits, and also to save face with Ghaiyyath's breeder.

“He's a world champion, so why wouldn't you use him?” Bolger reasoned. “Plus, if I don't use him, Dermot Weld won't talk to me again.”

Bolger will also support a pair of young Newmarket-based stallions in Time Test (GB), the sire of four first-crop stakes winners last year, and Masar (Ire), the son of his Derby winner New Approach who has his first yearlings next year. Bolger said he has earmarked a mare by Sea The Stars he purchased at the December Sales for Time Test.

“I'm doing something that I don't tend to do, and I'm going with the mob,” Bolger said. “Time Test is one of the talking horses at the moment, and he has got off to a great start, so it would seem to be not a very big risk, and he's a great-looking horse.”

Masar won the G3 Solario S. at two and was a first Derby winner in the Godolphin blue at three, in addition to winning the G3 Craven S.

“He's a very good-looking horse himself and a very good-moving horse,” Bolger said. “You don't need me to tell you about his racing achievements, but I think he's a horse that could do very well. I'm very happy to use him; I'll be guaranteed to get horses that will be effective beyond a mile.”

Bolger will send 12 mares to his former star pupil New Approach, who like his son Masar resides at Dalham Hall Stud. Bolger is responsible for breeding and training New Approach's only two multiple Group 1 winners, Dawn Approach and Mac Swiney, and Dawn Approach, who started his stud career at Kildangan, was brought back to Bolger's Redmondstown Stud last year just months before Poetic Flare recorded his Group 1 double. Despite that, Bolger said there hasn't been much outside interest in Dawn Approach, a reality that suits him just fine.

“I don't know the reason for that, but I don't mind having the sole rights, so to speak,” he said. “It suits me fine to be able to send so many mares to him.” Bolger said he is expecting 2022 to be another good year for Dawn Approach; he has 12 to 15 homebred 2-year-olds by him in the yard, as well as others for clients. “I have a nice crop by him so I'm expecting him to do well,” he said.

The same goes for Teofilo, who will get 25 Bolger mares at Kildangan.

“He's given me two Classic winners already and I'm expecting to do well with his progeny this year,” Bolger said. “I have 2-year-olds by him and some 3-year-olds that didn't get the business done at two, so I'd be looking forward to a very good year with them.”

Bolger's stallion selections for 2022 are completed by Parish Hall (Ire), Vocalised and Verbal Dexterity (Ire), who stand at Redmondstown alongside Dawn Approach and will get “a few mares each.” And given Bolger's habit of drawing the very best from his stock as both a breeder and a trainer, any of them are fair game to produce the next big horse from Coolcullen.

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Pegasus Vet Records To Be Digitized

1/ST, owners of the Pegasus World Cup, will partner with Irish technology company Equine MediRecord to digitize veterinary records for this year's event, to be held this Saturday, Jan. 29, at Gulfstream Park.

The Equine MediRecord platform that will be used allows for the full veterinary history of the horse to be collected digitally and recorded securely. Use of this platform will be mandatory and will provide all entrants, trainers and veterinarians with a user-friendly system to comply with the strict medication protocols for this year's event. Once the records are entered into the system they cannot be altered. Results are submitted digitally to designated regulators and officials ensuring the highest level of integrity and transparency of veterinary records.

“The digitization of veterinary records for the Pegasus World Cup is an example of how 1/ST is innovating and using technology to improve our sport,” said Dr. Dionne Benson, Chief Veterinary Officer, 1/ST RACING. “The partnership with Equine MediRecord and the collection of this data is a tool that we can use to protect the safety and well-being of horses.”

The Irish company whose technology is fast becoming the global standard for equine sport organizers has already amassed an impressive list of clients and users including the Thoroughbred Owners of California, Irish Veterinary and Welfare Commission, Kentucky Thoroughbred Association, the Arabian Racing Organisation, Breeders' Cup World Championships and the Saudi Cup.

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Mixed Sales Season Continues in Ocala

A total of 649 horses of all ages, including a supplemental catalog of about 50 horses, is set to go under the hammer at the Ocala Breeders Sales Company's Winter Mixed Sale, which kicks off a two-day run in Central Florida this morning at 11 a.m. ET with a preferred session (hips 1-206, including supplements) and continues with the horses-of-racing-age section (hips 251-365, including supplements). The sale concludes with Wednesday's open session (hips 401-638, supplements included), also beginning at 11 a.m.

In the aftermath of a record-setting entree to the mixed sales season at Keeneland and Fasig-Tipton in November and with steadier, rational trade at the latter's Midlantic Sale in December and back at Keeneland a few weeks ago, sales officials at OBS are expecting more of the same over the next 48 hours.

“Hopefully the trends that we've seen over the last few months continues here. We certainly hope so,” said the auction house's director of sales Tod Wojciechowski. “There certainly does seem to be a zest for horses of all ages. The horse industry in general has been doing very well over the last year or so. I think there is obviously some pent-up demand and there are probably a few factors that will come into play on that, but we're excited to see what happens.”

He continued, “The January Sale has kind of gotten to be a destination sale for many, especially for the short yearlings. I think people sort of use it as a convenient excuse to get out of the colder weather. But on top of that, it's just a sale people that want to be at.”

It is a leaner catalog for the 2022 renewal of the Winter Mixed Sale, down some 19% from last year's 805-strong book. Wojciechowski explained that the slimmed-down catalog is mostly a function of the nature of mixed sales.

“I think the smaller catalog is a function of the ebb and flow of breeding stock from year to year,” he said. “Certainly there has been a drop in the foal crop here in Florida, so that can't have a good impact on us, but I think we've got a good book and I think that the people that come here to shop will be pleased with the stock that we have.”

The catalog features 257 yearlings by sires based not only in Florida, but also mainstream Kentucky stallions such as Accelerate, Always Dreaming, Collected, Goldencents, Gun Runner, Hard Spun, Maclean's Music and Practical Joke, to name just a few. Stallions based in Ocala include Breaking Lucky, Girvin, Khozan, Neolithic and Bucchero, whose first foals hit the track in 2022 and whose popularity in the breeding shed early days looks to have translated to a high number of entries. The Pleasant Acres resident is represented in the catalog by no fewer than 15 newly turned yearlings, the most for any sire in the sale.

“I've heard a lot of good things about Bucchero for sure and that's probably the reason that there are so many of them,” Wojciechowski surmised.

Among the horses recently supplemented to the sale is hip 349, the 3-year-old filly Fifth Anniversary (Runhappy). Runner-up in the Sept. 19 Woodbine Cares S. going five furlongs on turf for trainer Ricky Griffith, the bay made a giant impression on her South Florida debut Jan. 19, taking a five-furlong allowance over the Gulfstream Tapeta track by 2 3/4 lengths, good for an 83 Beyer Speed Figure (video).

The sale also includes a dispersal of breeding stock from Fred Brei's Jacks Or Better Farm, long an institution on the Florida racing and breeding scene. Alone and in partnership, Jacks Or Better has bred and/or raced the likes of GI Forego S. and GI Carter H. winner Jackson Bend–a son of their homebred sire Hear No Evil–and champion 2-year-old filly Awesome Feather (by Jacks Or Better's Awesome of Course), who was sold for $2.3 million following her victory in the 2010 GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies.

“Certainly Mr. Brei has a long and successful tradition in Florida racing and has been a big part of the scene in the state, from a breeding and racing perspective,” Wojciechowski said. “It'll be a loss to the industry, but this will offer people an opportunity to get into some of his really nice families that he's had success with.”

For the full catalog, please visit www.obssales.com.

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