Month: May 2022

Op/Ed: NY Gaming Commission Gets It Wrong..Again

When the news was reported earlier in the week that a NYRA clocker had been charged with altering a published workout, it may have seemed at first that a significant penalty was in order. Workouts are an important part of a horse's history and gamblers must be able to have trust in their accuracy. The New York Gaming Commission is alleging that clocker Richie Gazer played around with the workout of a horse named Papi On Ice (Keen Ice) and suspended him for 30 days and fined him $2,500.  He was charged with “altering a published work of a horse to make the horse eligible to race.”

But, in this case, dig just a little bit deeper and apply just a modicum of common sense to the situation and you'll likely conclude that Gazer did nothing wrong. Unfortunately, when it comes to the Gaming Commission common sense seems to be in short supply.

Thanks to the reporting by Dave Grening in the Daily Racing Form, we know what happened. On May 1, Papi On Ice was credited with a five-furlong work in 1:04.60 over the Belmont Park training track for trainer Randi Persaud. The work was important because the horse needed to have a satisfactory workout in order to get off of NYRA's poor performance list. The poor performance list was created in 2015 and was part of an effort to increase safety at the New York tracks.

If a horse is beaten by 25 lengths or more, the stewards have the option of placing the horse on the list. On April 16, Papi On Ice was beaten 26 3/4 lengths in a maiden special weight race at Aqueduct, finishing fifth in the field of five. To get off the poor performance list, a horse must come back with a subsequent four-furlong workout in :53 seconds or better. For whatever reason, workouts longer than four furlongs do not count.

Because, by the letter of the law, Papi On Ice had not done what was needed to come off of the poor performance list, the NYRA racing office would not accept the entry when Persaud tried to get the colt into a race. The racing office had no choice because it had to adhere to the rule, even if the rule makes no sense. If a four-furlong workout is sufficient to make the horse eligible, why would a five-furlong workout not be? The longer the work, the better the gauge of a horse's fitness and their ability to be competitive in a race.

Gazer did indeed change the workout, but not the time. He changed the distance. Gazer checked with the clockers assigned to the training track and was told that during Papi On Ice's May 1 work, the horse went the first four furlongs in :51.33, fast enough to get off the list. So, knowing that only a four-furlong workout would get the horse eligible to run again, he changed the work from five furlongs to four.

Maybe Gazer should have left the workout alone. Since the May 1 work, Papi On Ice has had two four-furlong works, one coming May 11 and the next May 25. Both were faster than the :53-second criteria, meaning the horse would have found himself off of the list in short order if the May 1 distance had not been changed. Everyone involved could have just waited it out.

But he chose to change the distance and is now facing a penalty that in no way fights the “crime.” A veteran of some 40 years clocking horses on the NYRA circuit, Gazer, in no way, was trying to deceive gamblers, the racing office or anyone else. Probably, he thought that what he did was no big deal..and it wasn't. And if the rule was not so poorly conceived this never would have been an issue. At the very worst, Gazer deserved a phone call from someone at the Gaming Commission telling him not to do this again. Nothing more.

This isn't the first time we've seen head-scratching rulings or decisions from the New York Gaming Commission. This is the same commission that ruled that aspiring jockey agent and recent college graduate Philip Miller couldn't be an agent because he had no hands-on experience on the backstretch. That doesn't make any sense. You don't need to have been a trainer, a jockey or a groom to be an agent and if the same rule had been applied over the years probably half the agents working the New York tracks now would not meet the criteria to be a jockey agent. Apply a dose of common sense and that rule goes away.

Then there was the case of jockey Trevor McCarthy and his wife, Katie Davis. Thanks to a nonsensical Gaming Commission rule, when both appeared in a race the horses they were on had to be coupled in the wagering. The rule was in place to prevent married jockeys from conspiring to alter the outcomes of races, which is preposterous. The rule, widely criticized as being outdated and sexist, led to fewer betting interests in some races, costing NYRA handle. Apply a dose of common sense and that rule never would have existed in the first place.

(The New York Gaming Commission has taken steps to change the married jockey rule, but the rule remains as it has yet to clear a number of bureaucratic hurdles. A rescission of the rule is expected shortly).

There's nothing wrong with a gaming or racing commission being vigilant and going after-rule breakers. If anything, that's the type of thing the sport could use more of. But pick the right battles. Don't go after married jockeys or a clocker who merely changed a five-furlong workout to a four-furlong workout. Not everything is so black and white. Gazer has appealed his suspension, and, hopefully, once his case is heard he will be exonerated. There was no real harm here. There should be no foul.

The post Op/Ed: NY Gaming Commission Gets It Wrong..Again appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Intriguing Brigadier Poser On Thursday

There is something for everyone on a frantic Thursday afternoon and evening across Europe, with five pattern races at Baden-Baden, ParisLongchamp and Sandown and four of them condensed within less than two hours. Perhaps the most crucial comes at the latter venue, where the G3 Coral Brigadier Gerard S. sees a pair of colts with big potential in Shadwell's Mostahdaf (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) and James Wigan and Ballylinch Stud's Bay Bridge (GB) (New Bay {GB}) measured against Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum's solid veteran yardstsick Addeybb (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}). Bay Bridge incites enthusiasm as a member of the Sir Michael Stoute academy and the typical improver by steady increments ended his intriguing 3-year-old campaign with a first black-type win in Newmarket's Listed James Seymour S. Mostahdaf likewise has considerable scope and with an unbeaten record in three starts at Sandown in the Listed Heron S., Listed Fortune S. and G3 Gordon Richards S., he already has a headstart on his high-class half-sister Nazeef (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) who only really got going at four.

Allez L'Astronome!

Time is running out for inclusion in the Prix du Jockey Club and in any case Al Asayl France's L'Astronome (GB) (Frankel {GB}) is probably one that needs a sterner test than he would get at Chantilly in a fortnight. Not even entered in the Classic, he goes for the G2 Prix Hocquart set at 11 furlongs on Thursday where the emphasis is bent on enhanced staying power. He fits the bill, having won over the same ParisLongchamp track last time Apr. 28 and looks certain to stay further. We all know what Francis-Henri Graffard can do with these homebreds as they build a head of steam, but he has to deal with Gestut Ittlingen's May 1 G3 Bavarian Classic scorer Lavello (Ire) (Zarak {Fr}).

Fine Tuning

Also at ParisLongchamp, the G2 Prix Vicomtesse Vigier sees Moyglare's dual G1 Irish St Leger heroine Search For a Song (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) attempt to get back on track after some up and down performances of late. It won't be easy for the homebred, who faces the G3 Prix Gladiateur winner and G1 Prix du Cadran third Bubble Smart (GB) (Intello {Ger}) as the French staying scene takes shape.

In other focal points of the day, last year's G2 German 1000 Guineas winner and G2 Prix Daniel Wildenstein S. third Novemba (Ger) (Gleneagles {Ire}) will take some overhauling in Baden-Baden's G2 Kronimus Badener Meile, while Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum's Apr. 14 Newmarket novice winner 'TDN Rising Star' TDN Rising Star Tajalla (Ire) (Kessaar {Ire}) warms up for Royal Ascot in the Listed Coral National S. at Sandown.

Click here for the group fields.

The post Intriguing Brigadier Poser On Thursday appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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‘I Had No Clue Who Adlerflug Was But I Just Loved Alenquer’ 

Few people will go through life fortunate enough to say they have had anything to do with a Group 1 winner–fewer still with one who cost just €18,000 as a foal.

But back in 2018, when not many were in a hurry to get behind the little-known Adlerflug (Fr) (In The Wings {GB}), one of the ill-fated sire's most talented sons went through the ring at Arqana for that paltry sum.

It was Gerry Burke's eye and pocket who saw something in Alenquer (Ger) long before the horse confirmed himself a colt of the highest standard in winning the G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh on Sunday, not that the man behind Glidawn Stud will take much credit. 

“Normally, when these horses end up becoming Group 1 winners, it's because they have been fortunate enough to have been in good hands, particularly when it comes to the trainer,” said Burke, deflecting the praise towards William Haggas.

“It's lovely when something like this happens as it gives people hope that you don't have to spend hundreds of thousands to find a Group 1 winner. 

“He [Alenquer] was a relatively inexpensive foal and was lucky for everyone he was associated with. He left me a few quid and has done very well for his new connections.” – Gerry Burke

Torquator Tasso (Ger), last season's Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner, and In Swoop (Ire), had yet to fly the flag for Adlerflug by the time Burke re-offered Alenquer as a yearling, not that it mattered much.

Such was the quality of animal Burke was dealing with, Alenquer was accepted into Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Sale, and despite admitting to knowing next to nothing about the colt's sire, popular bloodstock agent Armando Duarte went to 80,000gns to secure him.

Picking up the story, Duarte, who purchased Alenquer on behalf of MM Stables, recalled, “Within three strides of seeing Alenquer walking out of his box, I thought 'wow, he is absolutely unbelievable.' He'd a great walk, a great shoulder, a lovely head with good ears and good eyes. “I went and looked at every other horse in that sale but he was the one who kept coming back to my mind. I think I looked at him 13 times. I had no clue who Adlerflug was but I just loved Alenquer.”

He added, “Bill O'Gorman, who taught me everything I know, always said to me that horses don't know how much they cost and it's a fact. He was a great mentor to me and taught me to look for the triangular shape between the withers, shoulders and the hip. Alenquer had that triangular shape that I look for.”

The Tattersalls Gold Cup has at times been rendered a damp squib, a soft touch if you like, but not Sunday's edition. 

Alenquer beat globetrotting stars State Of Rest (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) and Lord North (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), Irish 2,000 Guineas winner Mac Swiney (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}) and Group 1 scorers Broome (Ire) (Australia {GB}) and Helvic Dream (Ire) (Power {GB}) in recording his finest hour on the racetrack and Duarte believes the 4-year-old has more to offer at the highest level.

“To be honest, sometimes I have to pinch myself. Things like this don't happen very often so you have to enjoy it,” he said.

“It was as good a Tattersalls Gold Cup as I can remember. We like to give him a little break between races so I think we will go to the Coral-Eclipse Stakes at Sandown next. After that, we could look at the King George at Ascot, the Juddmonte, the Irish Champion Stakes or even the Arc. There are so many options. He's improving all the time and is exciting.” 

Alenquer was the only foal that Burke brought home from Arqana in 2018 and he counts himself “blessed” to have found him. Whether it was fate, or just sheer luck, Burke explained that Duarte was the first man to pull Alenquer out of his stable at Tattersalls and that Sunday's triumph marked the anniversary of another special day. 

The renowned pinhooker said, “I knew that Armando loved him. He was the first man to pull him out of the box. The horse was well liked by a lot of very good judges at the sales and it was nice to see the experts back up what we thought of him at home. 

“He was the only foal I bought at Arqana that year. I was blessed to find him. We sold Hula Angel (Woodman), who won the Irish 1,000 Guineas 23 years ago to the day of Alenquer's Gold Cup win, so that's how long it took me to find another one. We have been very blessed to have had him.”

Many good things come to those who deserve them least but in the case of Gwen Monneraye and Lucie Lamotte of La Motteraye, who consigned Alenquer at Arqana on behalf of Michael Andree, they have earned their place in the third and final chapter of the Alenquer story. 

Gwen and Lucie, who welcomed their first child Olivia into the world just three months ago, were zipping down to the south of France for a mini holiday when they pulled over to watch Alenquer storm to Curragh glory. 

Alenquer came from just the second crop of foals born at La Motteraye, the fast-developing stud in Normandy, with the broodmare band more than doubling since 2018 from 20 to 50 currently. 

Among them is Alenquer's dam Wild Blossom (Ger) (Areion {Ger}), happily in foal to Victor Ludorum (GB) (Shamardal), which provided the young family with extra reason to celebrate over the weekend. 

Monneraye said, “Alenquer was born and reared on our farm. Michael Andree, of Gestut Romerhof, is the Coolmore representative in Germany and is also a very good client of ours. He sent the mare [Wild Blossom] in foal to Adlerflug and she has remained on our farm ever since.”

He added, “I can remember asking Michael about the stallion as I didn't know a lot about Adlerflug. He was a nice horse to be bringing to the sales but people were not aware of Adlerflug and he made only €18,000. His statistics are looking very smart now.

“We work hard every day and to get a result like that was amazing. We were actually on the road to go on a little holiday when we pulled over to watch the race on our phone. It was the best start ever to a holiday and we drank a lot of champagne when we arrived.”

Rare are days where a horse like Alenquer comes along. They need to be celebrated and Burke, Duarte, Andree, Monneraye and Lamotte certainly have.

The post ‘I Had No Clue Who Adlerflug Was But I Just Loved Alenquer’  appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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