March, 2022 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Echo Zulu Narrowly Stays Unbeaten in Fair Grounds Oaks

With the GI Kentucky Oaks fast approaching, the racing world has been anxiously awaiting the return of 2021's leading lady, undefeated champion juvenile filly Echo Zulu (Gun Runner). Hammered down to 1-9 favoritism in what appeared to be a group of overmatched rivals, Echo Zulu left her fans holding their breath in the lane when confronted by a determined Hidden Connection (Connect). However, the Eclipse winner summoned all her class to eke out the victory, keeping her perfect record in tact and stamping her ticket to the First Friday in May.

Away well from her rail draw, Echo Zulu took up her preferred position at the head of affairs, clocking opening splits of :23.79 and :47.68 with Turnerloose (Nywuist) on her heels and host of foes just behind her. Drifting off the rail a path turning for home, the bay was confronted for the first time in her young career when Hidden Connection drew alongside, posing a serious threat in mid-stretch. As the wire rapidly approached, it looked like the Eclipse winner may lose her perfect record, but she proved to be all guts and all class, fending off that foe for a narrow victory.

Echo Zulu was the undeniable choice for last year's champion 2-year-old filly honors after a flawless season that included three Grade Is. Earning the 'TDN Rising Star' tag off a dominant score in her Saratoga unveiling July 15, the $300,000 KEESEP acquisition took them gate-to-wire in that venue's GI Spinaway S. Sept. 5, winning by four lengths. In a race of her own when taking Belmont's GI Frizette S. Oct. 3 by 7 1/4 lengths, Echo Zulu was the easiest of winners at the World Championships at Del Mar, wiring the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies by 5 1/4 lengths with Hidden Connection back in fourth. She returned to the worktab in early February and has been breezing steadily towards this return.

Pedigree Notes:

Echo Zulu was the first Grade I winner and first champion for last year's leading freshman sire Gun Runner. His second Grade I winner came just a day after her Spinaway victory when stablemate Gunite took the GI Hopeful S. Her co-owner Winchell Thoroughbreds and trainer Steve Asmussen also campaigned her sire and Gunite. Avocet purchased the winner's GSW dam Letgomyecho for $135,000 at the 2011 KEENOV sale and since then she has produced five black-type horses. The first was GSP Unbridled Outlaw (Unbridled's Song) and he was immediately followed by GSW J Boys Echo (Mineshaft). Two years later she produced SP Dragic (Broken Vow), who was followed by Coolmore stallion and GISW Echo Town (Speightstown), and two years after that came her best yet in Echo Zulu. Her final foal, a filly named Doing Justice (American Pharoah), brought $1.4 million from Northshore Bloodstock at KEESEP.

Saturday, Fair Grounds
TWINSPIRES.COM FAIR GROUNDS OAKS-GII, $388,000, Fair Grounds, 3-26, 3yo, f, 1 1/16m, 1:42.69, ft.
1–ECHO ZULU, 122, f, 3, by Gun Runner
                1st Dam: Letgomyecho (GSW, $136,200), by Menifee
                2nd Dam: Echo Echo Echo, by Eastern Echo
                3rd Dam: Kashie West, by Sir Ivor
'TDN Rising Star' ($300,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP). O-L and N Racing LLC and Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC; B-Betz/J. Betz/Burns/CHNNHK/Magers/CoCo Equine/Ramsby (KY); T-Steven M. Asmussen; J-Joel Rosario. $240,000. Lifetime Record: MGISW, 5-5-0-0, $1,720,000. *1/2 to Unbridled Outlaw (Unbridled's Song), GSP, $253,478; 1/2 to J Boys Echo (Mineshaft), GSW, $377,543; 1/2 to Echo Town (Speightstown), GISW, $410,020. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Hidden Connection, 122, f, 3, Connect–C J's Gal, by Awesome Again. ($49,000 RNA Wlg '19 KEENOV; $40,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP; $55,000 RNA 2yo '21 OBSAPR; $85,000 2yo '21 OBSOPN). O-Hidden Brook Farm and Black Type Thoroughbreds; B-St. Simon Place (KY); T-W. Bret Calhoun. $80,000.
3–Favor, 122, f, 3, Pioneerof the Nile–Fame and Fortune, by Unbridled's Song. 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($500,000 Ylg '20 FTKSEL). O-Stonestreet Stables LLC; B-Diamond Creek Farm (KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher. $40,000.
Margins: NO, 2 1/4, 2 1/4. Odds: 0.10, 9.50, 12.40.
Also Ran: Turnerloose, Sequist, Bernabreezy.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

The post Echo Zulu Narrowly Stays Unbeaten in Fair Grounds Oaks appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Connect Colt Romps on Debut

2nd-Santa Anita, $67,500, Msw, 3-26, 3yo/up, 6 1/2f, 1:16.48, ft, 10 lengths.
HIGH CONNECTION (c, 3, Connect–Forest Legend, by Forest Camp), sent off at 7-5, was hustled out of the gate from his rail post and took the early lead. Setting the pace through a quarter in :21.86 and a half in :44.96, he skipped away in upper stretch and powered home a 10-length winner. Pioneering Papa (Classic Empire) chased throughout and was second. High Connection was a $75,000 KEESEP yearling and a $290,000 OBS March juvenile (:10 flat). Forest Legend, who produced a filly by Tonalist last year, sold for $16,000 while in foal to Summer Front at the 2021 Keeneland November sale and was exported to Turkey. The mare is a half-sister to graded winner Silver Reunion (Harlan's Holiday), who produced graded winner Speaktomeofsummer (Summer Front). Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $40,200.
O-HRH Prince Sultan Bin Mishal Al Saud; B-G. Watts Humphrey (KY); T-Bob Baffert.

The post Connect Colt Romps on Debut appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Tuesday Returns at Naas

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-pedigreed horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Sunday's Observations features a full-sister to MG1SW Minding (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}).

5.00 Naas, Mdn, €15,000, 3yo, f, 8fT
TUESDAY (IRE) (Galileo {Ire}) is arguably the most high-profile maiden in Europe as a full-sister to Minding (Ire) and Empress Josephine (Ire) who shaped with so much promise on her sole start when narrowly denied by the subsequent G1 Moyglare Stud S. winner Discoveries (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) at The Curragh in June. Pointed by Aidan O'Brien to the same maiden that Empress Josephine captured 12 months ago en route to Irish 1000 Guineas glory, the daughter of Lillie Langtry (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) will start at cramped odds in a field containing the intriguing Niarchos newcomer Verlinga (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), a Jessie Harrington-trained daughter of the dual group winner Bocca Baciata (Ire) (Big Bad Bob {Ire}).

How They Fared…
1.25 The Curragh, Mdn, €17,000, 2yo, 5fT
FINSCEAL GO DEO (IRE) (Kingman {GB}), the daughter of Finsceal Beo (Ire) (Mr. Greeley), was always in the firing line and was tiring out of contention when bumped by the eventual winner inside the final furlong out. Not given a hard time afterwards, she finished fourth.

4.10 Doncaster, Mdn, £7,300, 3yo, 10f 43yT
ALMUHIT (IRE) (Sea the Stars {Ire}), the full-brother to Taghrooda (GB), ran green throughout and although well-beaten in fourth showed promise.

The post Tuesday Returns at Naas appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Olympiad Stays Hot in NOLA Classic

Olympiad added to his 2022 hot streak with his third straight win Saturday in the GII New Orleans Classic at Fair Grounds. The heavy favorite stalked from second as Promise Keeper put up early splits of :23.69 and :47.25. Seizing command in early stretch, Olympiad rolled clear in the lane for a facile score over Proxy. Promise Keeper held third. Olympiad's final time of 1:47.74 just missed the track record for nine furlongs of 1:47.64.

Olympiad won a Keeneland allowance in October, for which he earned a 98 Beyer Speed Figure and a chance at graded company next out. Stepped up in class big time for the GI Cigar Mile Dec. 4 at the Big A, the bay checked in fourth to Americanrevolution (Constitution). Kicking off this term with a 7 1/4-length tour de force at Gulfstream Jan. 15, he was a decisive winner of this venue's GIII Mineshaft S. last out Feb. 19, breaking the track record in the process.

Pedigree Notes:
Olympiad is one of 128 black-type scorers and 63 graded winners for his timeless sire Speightstown. The $700,000 KEESEP buy is bred on the same Speightstown/Medaglia d'Oro cross as MGISW Rock Fall. Olympiad is out of GSP Tokyo Time, who is a half to MGSW Hungry Island and GSW Soaring Empire. This is also the family of GISW Preservationist (Arch). Tokyo Time is also responsible for a juvenile filly by War Front, who brought $450,000 at KEESEP, and a yearling colt by American Pharoah. She was bred back to Quality Road.

Saturday, Fair Grounds
NEW ORLEANS CLASSIC S.-GII, $485,000, Fair Grounds, 3-26, 4yo/up, 1 1/8m, 1:47.74, ft.
1–OLYMPIAD, 122, c, 4, by Speightstown
1st Dam: Tokyo Time (GSP, $249,177), by Medaglia    d'Oro
                2nd Dam: Flying Passage, by A.P. Indy
                3rd Dam: Chic Shirine, by Mr. Prospector
($700,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-Grandview Equine, Cheyenne
Stable, LLC and LNJ Foxwoods; B-Emory A. Hamilton (KY);
T-William I. Mott; J-Junior Alvarado. $300,000. Lifetime
Record: GSW, 8-5-1-1, $648,440. Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click
   for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Proxy, 118, c, 4, Tapit–Panty Raid, by Include.
O/B-Godolphin, LLC; T-Michael Stidham. $100,000.
3–Promise Keeper, 118, c, 4, Constitution–Mira Alta, by Curlin.
($160,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-Woodford Thoroughbreds LLC,
WinStar Farm LLC and Rock Ridge Racing LLC; B-Rock Ridge
Thoroughbreds, LLC (KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher. $50,000.
Margins: 2, 2 3/4, 1HF. Odds: 0.60, 3.80, 3.90.
Also Ran: Super Stock, Happy American, Chess Chief. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

The post Olympiad Stays Hot in NOLA Classic appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post