Welcome to 2022 Kentucky Derby Prospect Snapshots, where we’ll take a look each week at a recent winner on the Triple Crown trail, usually from the Road to the Kentucky Derby schedule from which the racehorses earn points toward qualifying. The 1 ¼-mile Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve will be held May 7, 2022, at Churchill Downs.
Month: April 2022
WC Equine Building On Positive Beginnings
Ellie Whitaker and Tegan Clark clearly remember the empty silence that followed an email blast out to the industry upon the launch of WC Equine.
“We had a list of trainers' emails,” recalls Clark. “And we put together an email saying we're here, this is what we're doing, along with background of what we've done before, and emailed 93 of them.”
Whitaker takes up the story. “We got three responses, all saying good luck! It's about selling a product at the end of the day and we didn't have a product to show people. We had all our social media set up but nothing to show for it. We just needed one person to send us one horse.”
It is to the pair's credit, however, that they had already secured the regard of trainer Roger Varian as well as Brendan Morrin of Pier House Stud. A base at Robert Cowell's Bottisham Heath Stud in Six Mile Bottom also had plenty to recommend it, allowing Whitaker and Clark to take advantage of Newmarket's facilities without being in the hustle and bustle of the town itself. And so with a barn and the hope of a handful of horses to come, WC Equine was launched.
“We started with no horses,” says Whitaker. “Then Kevin Philippart de Foy, who is a good friend of Tegan's, sent us our first yearling.
“We had also worked with Brendan Morrin at Pier House Stud and I would joke with him at the sales. If something good didn't sell, we'd keep asking 'can we breeze it, can we breeze it?'”
If you don't ask, you don't get, so the saying goes, and so it was with two Pier House Stud-bred fillies that WC Equine entered the breeze-up sector at last year's Tattersalls Guineas Sale. In the meantime, Varian had stuck to his word and sent a group of youngsters to the pair for pre-training. Their gratitude is tangible but it works both ways and Varian was evidently impressed enough to send another sizeable batch of young horses to them this season.
“I worked for Roger around the time he had Postponed, and he had always said 'give me a call when you set up',” says Clark. “And so I rang him to say we had a few boxes and he said, 'I'll definitely support you'. He basically kept us afloat that first year–he was very good to us, and we've done a few more for him this year.
“But then I think the breeze-ups really motored us forward and sparked a bit of interest.”
Of course, there is no better place to advertise than the public arena and while Clark and Whitaker were gaining respect as for their pre-training ability, it was arguably their debut effort at last year's Guineas Sale that drew greater attention to their name.
WC Equine headed to the sale with two fillies on behalf of Pier House Stud, namely a first-crop daughter of Aclaim (GB) and another from the first-crop of Galileo Gold (GB). Both found new homes but particularly impressive was the Aclaim filly, who changed hands for 60,000gns to Rabbah Bloodstock.
“We liked her and we knew she was the better of the two,” says Clark. “You'd pull up after a gallop and think, yes this is nice.”
Whitaker adds: “We thought she was a nice filly but we went there thinking we'd be happy at 30,000gns. We kept her under wraps for the majority of the winter. The horse physically was always going to get there but it was about training her mind as much as anything else.”
Sent to James Tate and named Royal Aclaim (Ire), she made a smart winning debut against colts less than a month later over 5f at Newcastle where her victims included none other Perfect Power (Ire) (Ardad {Ire}), subsequently winner of the G1 Prix Morny and G1 Middle Park S. who is now around a 10-1 shot for the 2000 Guineas, and Fearby (Ire) (Havana Gold {GB}), who would go on to run second in the G3 Molecomb S.
“The money wasn't the be all and end all,” says Whitaker. “It was a bonus but it was seeing her go out and win, and saying the proof is in the pudding, we've done the job essentially. That was more rewarding than having a bit of cash in your pocket.”
Fast-forward a year and WC Equine is thriving. By mid-March, the pair had broken in 60 yearlings in batches, with a waiting list of others to come in. Included in the mix are five breeze-up horses slated to fly the flag at this week's Tattersalls Guineas Sale in Newmarket.
It is the result of a deep grounding within the business allied with an appreciation of hard work and love of the animal.
“I was two when my mother first sat me on a horse,” says Whitaker. “I did a lot of hunting and eventing. I sort of fell into racing.
“I was about 15 when I went to work for Mark Dwyer and I was there for about four years. I did the sales circuit for a year and then went to Roger Marley's [Church Farm Stables]. I went in as a head girl, I was 18 and chucked in at the deep end but I learnt a lot in a short space of time. I think you take a piece out of everything and put it into your own. You learn in abundance with people like that–and also how not to do it. They both work extremely hard. Both him and Mark rode out back then. They'd get up, muck out, feed and ride out.
“Roger has been very helpful to us, and Mark and Blarney [Brendan Holland of Grove Stud] would be the same. They're always there to help. It's so competitive but they've been there to help and assist, and congratulate as well.”
She continues, “I was with Roger for about a year and a half and from there I went to Newmarket and to the Godolphin pre-training yard on Hamilton Road, which was a whole different way of doing things. When they dispersed, I went to Charlie Appleby's at a time when he had good horses like Cross Counter and Line Of Duty. I broke in Pinatubo–it was year of some seriously good 2-year-olds there. It's not often you get on every lot and you go 'wow, that's ok'. It was a real eye-opener.
“And after that I came here to Robert's [Cowell]. I did two and a half years as a work rider and then launched WC.”
South African-born Clark has a similarly deep background in racing.
“My first job in racing was with Olly Stevens and before we started here, I had worked in Newmarket for about four years,” she says. “I did a season with Roger Varian and then worked the rest of time for Simon Crisford, who gave me the opportunity to go out to Dubai.
“I've been very lucky to be involved with some lovely horses. I remember riding Lightning Thunder, who was second in the 1000 Guineas. I took her up the canter and remember thinking 'this is a different class'. There was a real class to her, she did it so easily and professionally.
“Postponed was at Roger Varian's when I was there, and just to be involved with a horse like him was amazing. When I was at Simon Crisford's, he had [G2 winner] Ostilio and [G1 miler] Century Dream. Ostilio was in my section, I had a couple of spins on him, and he was a lovely horse to deal with. I also did a couple of seasons breaking in some horses with Richard Morgan-Evans. It's a seriously good operation, they work so hard, and he was very willing to help and teach.”
Whitaker and Clark today operate at Bottisham Heath out of two barns and a stable block. They have access to a variety of gallops but also the luxury of being able to work the horses in town if needed.
“They will go into town for an educational canter,” says Whitaker. “They'll do three or four bits in town but they'll do most of their work here. We've proven that we can get them fit here.
“We've got walkers and we put in a lunge pit ourselves, which works well as an arena. We can put them in the dummy stalls, which are great, and there's the opportunity to turn them out as well.”
Clark adds: “It's a good place to chill out, they can relax coming from town.
“This is something that we've always wanted to do. It's pretty basic but it works. They're really healthy barns. And we ride them all ourselves. When we had 15, we did everything pretty much ourselves–muck out all morning and ride all afternoon. Now we've got two riders coming in. So between all of us, we'd do five or six lots each.”
This year's WC Equine Guineas draft kicks off with Lot 146, a first-crop daughter of Sioux Nation. By a sire quick off the mark with his runners, she is a half-sister to four winners and out of Luxie (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}), a half-sister to the fast Listed winner Mister Manannan (Ire) (Desert Style {Ire}).
A real feather in the cap of their draft is the presence of a Zarak (Fr) filly. Catalogued as Lot 198, she is the only filly to be catalogued to the sale by her sire, one of the most exciting young stallions in Europe, and is a granddaughter of G2 May Hill S. winner Nasheej (Swain {Ire}).
She is followed immediately into the ring by a Starspangledbanner (Aus) colt (Lot 199), who is a half-brother to three winners and a member of the Doff The Derby (Master Derby) dynasty.
The draft is rounded out by a colt from the second crop of Caravaggio (Lot 227), who is closely related to G1-winning sprinter The Right Man (GB) (Lope De Vega {Ire}), and a colt from the first crop of Cracksman (GB) (Lot 313), who is a half-brother to Listed winner Panstarr (GB) (Pivotal {GB}).
“We started with seven this season but that's down to five, which isn't bad although we'd like to have more,” says Clark.
“It keeps us really busy. If you start expanding, what you do can be diluted and we're very hands-on, and we want to keep enjoying it. Yes we'd like to expand more but definitely not over the 50 mark overall. We're lucky to have a fantastic client base, they're very good to us and have been very supportive.”
Whitaker concurs. “We'd be comfortable if the breeze-up side keeps expanding,” she says. “We've gone from two to five. It's a big jump for us but still not as many we'd like.”
She adds: “I think we have a nice bunch. But you've got to be realistic, you've got to know what you're galloping next to. We're riding them and that's an advantage as we know when they feel a bit off and you've got to take a pull, or if they're a bit fresh and you have to give them more. You've got to manage your expectations. Everything will happen on the day and we'll just have to see.”
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NSA: Iranistan Springs Upset In Gwathmey, ‘Oz’ Shows His Wizardry In Grand National
One of the largest crowds to watch the Middleburg Spring Races at Glenwood Park in Virginia enjoyed one of its most thrilling races, but the way the $75,000, Grade 2 Temple Gwathmey Stakes played out was anything but expected.
Five runners turned out to face starter Stirling Young in the historic 2 ½-mile contest, but as Young dropped the flag, the field “dawdled,” in the words of the chartcaller, and stood motionless for a full 15 seconds before Parker Hendriks, aboard Ed Swyer's Iranistan, broke the stalemate and took off with the lead. The move proved fortuitous. As it turned out, Iranistan led throughout, though he was headed at the 14th and final fence by Bruton Street-US' mighty Snap Decision (ridden by Graham Watters), but had enough in the tank to prevail by 2 1/4 lengths in a driving finish for trainer Keri Brion. It didn't hurt, either, that Snap Decision, who had won nine straight races over two years until last September, was giving Iranistan 14 pounds under the handicap conditions of the Gwathmey.
Snap Decision's Bruton Street-US' stablemate, 2020 Eclipse Award winner Moscato also put in a solid effort following a long layoff. Making his first start in 20 months after a tendon injury, the 11-year-old tracked Iranistan in second under Jamie Bargary for much of the going, but was outrun late. Still, he finished third, only 2 ¼ lengths behind Snap Decision. Irv Naylor's Amschel was fourth; Sharon Sheppard's Redicean trailed.
In the co-featured $25,000 Middleburg Hunt Cup timber stakes, at 3 ¼ miles, it was a tour de force by veteran Storm Team. The eight-year-old chestnut by Candy Ride, owned by Sheila Williams and Northwoods Stable, set the pace and navigated the 18 fences skillfully. He was never seriously threatened, and drew off easily after the final fence with Graham Watters aboard for trainer Jack Fisher, who saddled both Snap Decision and Moscato in the Gwathmey. Ballybristol Farm's 2019 timber champion, Andi'amu, a previous winner of the race, finished second while making his first start since June 2020. Regular rider Tom Garner had the mount. For Storm Team, it was his eighth win in 34 career starts, and brought his earnings to just under a quarter-million-dollar mark. Storm Team had captured his previous start over the course in the National Sporting Library & Museum Cup Stakes at the Virginia Fall Races last season.
There were enough other highlights on the day to fill several scrapbooks, starting with wins by two of the National Steeplechase Association's latest riders from Europe, Mikey Hamill and Jamie Neild. Hamill struck first, in the second, an allowance hurdle for non-winners of two, with The International Venture's Going Country, a lightly raced Irish-bred six-year-old, who broke his maiden a week ago at Tryon. Riding for Keri Brion, Hamill rated off the pace set by Del Rio Chasers' Recent Revelations, began to move forward in the final half mile, and drew even with new leader Scorpion's Revenge at the last. From there, the duo dueled to the finish, with the winner maintaining a length advantage.
Next, it was Neild's turn to find the winner's circle, in the sixth, a maiden hurdle, with Kiplin Hall's Take Profit. Making his first start over hurdles after eight tries on the flat at Laurel, Pimlico, Aqueduct, Gulfstream Park, and Delaware Park, the four-year-old son of Air Force Blue took to hurdles like an old pro. Never farther back than third in the field of 10, Take Profit stalked pacesetter, Buttonwood Farm's Caughtoncamera, and outfinished Riverdee Stable's Awakened for a narrow score. William Dowling trained the winner.
Parker Hendriks, whose crowning moment prior to Saturday came aboard Historic Heart in the recent Carolina Cup novice stakes, had two other victories besides the Gwathmey, both for Brion. First, he guided Buttonwood Farm's Sa'ad in a rousing stretch contest with Irv Naylor's Fearsome in the opener, a training flat event. His third tally came in the fifth, a filly and mare maiden special weights hurdle, with Metahorse Racing's Kicking Myself, who like Brion's champion The Mean Queen was sired by Irish stallion Doyen. Making her first career start, the filly sat seventh in the field of 10 for a mile and a half, got into gear with two fences remaining, powered to the lead in mid-stretch, and won with authority by four lengths. Jennifer Pitts' Lear Avia, who led most of the way, was second.
Picking up where he left off in Aiken in March, Sean McDermott was again victorious as both a trainer and rider in the seventh, a maiden claiming hurdle. McDermott guided South Branch Equine's Who's Counting to a two-length win in his NSA debut. It was the veteran reinsman's second triumph with Who's Counting, whom he saddled successfully on the flat at Laurel.
The eighth and final race on the card was the always thrilling Alfred M. Hunt Steeplethon, at 2 ⅝ miles over mixed obstacles, and the winner was Silverton Hill's Bodes Well. With Tom Garner aboard for trainer Leslie Young, the seven-year-old Irish-bred son of Rock of Gibraltar, who earned his first steeplethon win at Great Meadow last fall and finished second in a similar race at Glenwood Park before that, set an unpressured pace, and finished 27 lengths in front of the runnerup, Irv Naylor's A Silent Player. Bodes Well, who also boasts a novice stakes score over hurdles, has finished in the top three in 16 of his 32 career starts, with earnings of more than $150,000. Since coming to the U.S. from Europe in 2019, Bodes Well has a dozen in-the-money finishes in 17 starts.
Road to Oz takes the Grand National
After a series of solid performances in the maiden and allowance ranks, Holwood Stable's Road to Oz became a stakes winner on Saturday, taking the 119th running of the $30,000 Grand National, the second leg of the Maryland Timber Triple in Butler.
With Brett Owings in the saddle for trainer Mark Beecher, a heralded timber rider himself before switching hats, the seven-year-old Maryland-bred son of Quality Road bided his time early, sitting in the middle of the field of six. He began to gain ground after the 10th of 18 fences, drawing even with the leader at the 14th, and taking charge with three jumps to go in the 3 ¼-mile test. At the wire, Road to Oz was two lengths clear of Nancy Reed's Awesome Adrian and Eric Poretz, who maintained the same advantage over the show horse, Armata Stable's Goodoldtimes.
Neither Road to Oz nor Leipers Fork Steeplechasers' Tomgarrow, winner of the first leg of the series, the My Lady's Manor Stakes on April 16, are among the nine overnight entries for the most grueling and richest final leg of the series, the 4-mile, $100,000 Maryland Hunt Cup in Glyndon on April 30. But Armata Stable's Vintage Vinnie, who made his 2022 debut at The Manor Races on April 16 with an allowance score, is expected to defend his title in the Hunt Cup on Saturday.
The Grand National was one of four timber races on the card. In the $10,000 maiden, Ballybristol Farm's Boutonnierre won in his first try over wooden fences – and his first start since August 2020 at Colonial Downs – for new NSA jockey Freddie Procter and trainer Leslie Young. Boutonniere took command from the outset and controlled the race on the front end, widening his margin of victory through the lane to eight lengths. Irv Naylor's Stooshie was second.
Procter struck again in the next race, an allowance contest, with Upland Partners' Shootist for trainer Todd McKenna. In that race, Procter gunned Shootist to the lead and never looked back. Lucy Goelet's Rocket Star Red finished second, nearly three lengths back.
The 23-year-old has experienced stunning success in his first few weeks on the NSA circuit. In six mounts, all over timber, Procter has four wins and two seconds.
In the day's final race, an allowance event restricted to apprentice riders, Riverdee Stable's Include It won over the course for the second straight year, this time under Elizabeth Scully for trainer Todd Wyatt. The victory was the third in a row for the seven-year-old Maryland bred. Include It was content to race near the back of the field early, closed the gap turning for home, but still had ground to make up heading to the final fence. After that it was clear sailing, with Include It drawing clear by about five lengths. Ballybristol Farm's Mercoeur was second.
Heading into this weekend's triple header – The Maryland Hunt Cup, Queen's Cup in North Carolina, and Foxfield Races in Virginia – trainer Leslie Young leads with eight wins on the season, one more than Keri Brion, but Brion holds the edge in earnings, by a little less than $40,000. Among riders, Parker Hendriks leads in both categories, with seven victories – three more than Procter – and $168,150 in earnings, more than double that of Graham Watters.
The post NSA: Iranistan Springs Upset In Gwathmey, ‘Oz’ Shows His Wizardry In Grand National appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
Derby Jockeys: Manny Franco Picks Up Zozos Mount, Julien Leparoux To Ride Classic Causeway
Two more Kentucky Derby contenders have found their partners for the Run for the Roses.
Trainer Brad Cox revealed to the Daily Racing Form on Monday that Zozos, runner-up in the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby in his most recent start, will be handled by Manny Franco.
Classic Causeway, who rejoined the field for the Kentucky Derby on Monday, will be piloted by Julien Lepearoux for trainer Brian Lynch, reports DRF.
The full list of probable Kentucky Derby jockeys is as follows (listed in order of points earned/preference for Derby field):
- Epicenter – Joel Rosario
- Zandon – Flavien Prat
- White Abarrio – Tyler Gaffalione
- Mo Donegal – Irad Ortiz, Jr.
- Tiz the Bomb – Brian Hernandez, Jr.
- Cyberknife – Florent Geroux
- Crown Pride – Christophe Lemaire
- Taiba – Mike Smith
- Simplification – Jose Ortiz
- Smile Happy – Corey Lanerie
- Classic Causeway – Julien Leparoux
- Tawny Port – (TBD)
- Barber Road – Reylu Gutierrez
- Un Ojo – Ramon Vazquez
- Early Voting – (TBD)
- Messier – John Velazquez
- Zozos – Manny Franco
- Summer Is Tomorrow – Mickael Barzalona
- Charge It – Luis Saez
- Happy Jack – Rafael Bejarano
- (AE) Pioneer of Medina – (TBD)
- (AE) In Due Time – (TBD)
The post Derby Jockeys: Manny Franco Picks Up Zozos Mount, Julien Leparoux To Ride Classic Causeway appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
