Month: June 2022

Hot Rod Charlie To Make First Start Since Dubai In Monmouth’s Salvator Mile

Trainer Doug O'Neill's ultimate goal for Hot Rod Charlie is a return to the Breeders' Cup Classic. His immediate one is getting the 4-year-old colt started on the road toward that – which is what he will do in Saturday's Grade 3 Salvator Mile at Monmouth Park.

Unraced since finishing second in the World Cup in Dubai on March 26, Hot Rod Charlie will mark his racing return as part of Monmouth Park's inaugural TVG.com Haskell Stakes preview day.

In addition to the $150,000 Salvator Mile, the Saturday card will feature the Grade 3 Eatontown Stakes, the Grade 3 Monmouth Stakes and the $150,000 TVG.com Pegasus Stakes for 3-year-olds, the track's Haskell prep race.

“He's doing really, really well,” said O'Neill, who will be flying in from California on Thursday in advance of the Salvator Mile. “He's trained with a lot of energy and stamina. It just seems like he is ready to get back to the races.

“We were looking at the calendar around the country and the Salvator Mile just seemed to fit perfectly with him being ready right now.”

A son of Oxbow-Indian Miss by Indian Charlie, Hot Road Charlie has banked $5,121,200 from his 15-race career, which includes victories in the Grade 1 Pennsylvania Derby and the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby, as well as second-place finishes in the Dubai World Cup, the Belmont Stakes, and the Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

Last year he also finished third in the Kentucky Derby and was fourth in Breeders' Cup Classic.

“The big race we're aiming for with him will be the Breeders' Cup Classic (Nov. 5 at Keeneland),” said O'Neill, who has won the Kentucky Derby with I'll Have Another and Nyquist. “We've got that circled and Saturday's race circled as well. Aside from the Classic and the Salvator Mile we haven't really decided on anything else.

“Saturday will tell us a lot. What we do after this depends on his performance and how he comes out of the race.”

When Hot Rod Charlie does ship East from California – without his companion pony Lava Man, who is skipping the trip, according to O'Neill – he will be returning to the scene of one of the more memorable moments of his career.

During last year's Haskell Stakes, Hot Rod Charlie fought gamely for a nose victory over Mandaloun only to be disqualified to last for drifting into Midnight Bourbon, causing that horse to clip heels.

“It was a great effort on his part,” O'Neill said of last year's Haskell Stakes. “I'm just grateful no horses or humans got hurt. My mindset with that race is I was proud of his effort and grateful no one got hurt.”

O'Neill said he is more curious than concerned about the nearly three-month layoff and how it will affect Hot Rod Charlie.

“I'm not worried about it because of the way he has been working,” said O'Neill. “In this game you always have concerns going into a race. But he has been breezing like he has been bridging where he was last time out.

“We intentionally gave him this time off coming back from Dubai. We're excited and optimistic. Saturday will tell us a lot about where he is right now.”

O'Neill said it was also intentional to shorten up Hot Rod Charlie following the layoff. Owned by Roadrunner Racing, Boat Racing, Strauss Brothers Racing and Gainesway Thoroughbreds, Hot Rod Charlie has not run as short as a mile since breaking his maiden at Santa Anita on Oct. 2, 2020.

“I'm expecting a real solid performance but I also want something he can build on,” said O'Neill. “I want him to run well and come out of it in good shape and give us something to build on to have him at the top of his game come November.”

In addition to the Salvator Mile, interest Saturday will be focused on the Pegasus Stakes, which is likely to produce a Haskell Stakes starter or two. The $150,000 Monmouth Stakes for 3 year olds and up at a mile and an eighth on the turf, and the $150,000 Eatontown Stakes for fillies and mares, 3 and up, at a mile and sixteenth on the turf, complete the lineup for Haskell Stakes preview day.

The Grade 1 Haskell Stakes on July 23 headlines a card that features four other graded stakes races, including the Grade 1 United Nations.

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World Traveler State Of Rest Gives Joseph O’Brien First Royal Ascot Winner As Trainer

Bay Bridge appeared to have outstanding claims for the Group 1 Prince Of Wales's Stakes on Wednesday at Royal Ascot, but supporters of the Sir Michael Stoute-trained favorite were undone by a masterful front-running ride from Shane Crosse aboard State Of Rest.

It was a fitting victory for State Of Rest, who provided trainer Joseph O'Brien with his first Royal Ascot victory as a trainer, a decade after he won the 10-furlong highlight as a jockey on So You Think.

Crosse, riding his first Royal Ascot winner, was allowed to dictate the five-runner showpiece and that proved fatal for his opponents because there was still plenty in State Of Rest's tank when the 4-year-old kicked for home passing the two-furlong pole.

Bay Bridge, sent off the 10/11 favorite after a brilliant reappearance win in the G3 Brigadier Gerard Stakes, loomed up approaching the final furlong but Ryan Moore's mount couldn't land a telling blow in the closing stages and there was a length separating the pair at the line.

Japanese raider Shahryar sat on the heels of the leader, but his challenge petered out in the straight and he was passed for third by Grand Glory in the closing strides.

It was a fourth G1 success for globetrotter State Of Rest, following wins in America's Saratoga Derby, Australia's Cox Plate, and France's Prix Ganay.

Joseph O'Brien, who rode six Royal Ascot winners as a jockey, said: “It was a brilliant ride from Shane. State Of Rest is a very tough horse. We had a good chat with Shane and decided to make the running. It could not have worked out better. He got the fractions perfect.

“It's very special. It's been a long time coming [first Royal Ascot win as a trainer]. We've had a lot of horses run well here. It's special to get a winner here and not only a winner, but to win a race like the Prince Of Wales's Stakes is hugely special. We have a great team of owners and a special horse.

“He has proven himself to be a high-class horse. He is very versatile and I take some of the blame myself for not using him enough last time, but it was a great run. We knew coming here today that we had a live chance of winning the race and I'm just pleased that the horse has proved himself.

“Shane gave him a marvellous ride and has only ridden a handful of races here. He grabbed the race by the scruff of the neck. It is a huge day and I am very proud of everyone. We have a huge team at home and I'm so proud of them.

“It's very special. This is what it is all about. We love the game, we are born and bred into the game. It is all we know. To have a big winner here is what we do it for.”

Paul Cashman of Rathbarry Stud, which part owns the winner, said: “It is a dream come true. Things did not go to plan in the Tattersalls Gold Cup – the ground was not on our side that day.

“Fair dues to Shane, he was brilliant today, absolutely brilliant. It was Joseph's plan to go forward. He knew from furlong to furlong what he wanted and that is how it panned out. It doesn't always work like that but they had the confidence and the horse to do that.

“When the horse won the Cox Plate last year, we just said look this is a horse who could be real international horse [to invest in]. He'd won the Saratoga Derby and then the Cox Plate, one of the most prestigious races in Australia.

“He had the ability to travel and Joseph said he was unlucky in the spring of his three-year-old career. He pulled a muscle in the spring and did not have a Guineas campaign, so was a second half of the season horse. So for me he'd been under the radar for a race like this. I thought he should have been half the price he was.

“Joseph had such belief in the horse. It is all to do with Joseph and his first Royal Ascot winner of many!

“There are a lot of Australians here, a big team of 16 are here, and Teo Ah Khing [China Horse Club] is involved from the southern hemisphere side.”

Shane Crosse said: “The plan beforehand speaking to Joseph was to uncomplicate things from our draw [1] in a small field.

“Fair play to State Of Rest. In the space of the last 12 months, this horse has done a lot. He has done it all and I am just over the moon.

“It is a dream. To get here and participate is a huge thing. To ride a horse like this in top-class races is a dream. You cannot describe it.”

Sir Michael Stoute said of Bay Bridge: “The race didn't pan out brilliantly for him, but he ran a very big race and we're absolutely delighted. We haven't run him on fast ground before, but that didn't inconvenience him; there was no problem there. Whether we stick at 10 furlongs or go to 12 furlongs, no decision will be taken for a little while.”

Shahryar's rider Cristian Demuro said: “When I asked to go, he didn't have the same acceleration as last time.”

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New Bay’s Saffron Beach Wins The Duke of Cambridge

Wednesday's G2 Duke of Cambridge S. offered another episode of stalls drama that seems to have dogged the first two days of Royal Ascot, but by the time Saffron Beach (Ire) (New Bay {GB}) had come home alone there was a sense that Sibila Spain (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) would have needed wings had she not been removed from the contest after going down in the gates. Making her European return under a five-pound penalty due to her winning exploits in Newmarket's G1 Sun Chariot S. in October, the Jane Chapple-Hyam-trained 5-2 joint-favourite gifted William Buick an easy task from the time the field left behind the withdrawn Sibila Spain. Helped by the target of Novemba (Ger) (Gleneagles {Ire}) dead ahead, the chestnut who was last seen finishing fourth in the G1 Dubai Turf S. at Meydan Mar. 26 slid by passing the three-furlong marker and was soon beyond recall. At the line, she rated as the second widest-margin winner so far at the meeting with a 3 1/2-length verdict over the outsider Thunder Beauty (Ire) (Night of Thunder {Ire}), with Primo Bacio (Ire) (Awtaad {Ire}) a further head away in third. “We were going slow, but she got into a nice rhythm. I wanted to get there in good time and not turn it into a two-furlong sprint, but she won very well and it was straightforward for her,” Buick said.

Saffron Beach had won the G3 Oh So Sharp S. at Newmarket in October 2020 before finishing second to Sacred (GB) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}) in the seven-furlong G3 Nell Gwyn S. and to Mother Earth (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) in the 1000 Guineas last Spring. Getting it together in the G3 Atalanta S. at Sandown last August and the Sun Chariot, she had failed to fire at Meydan but her trainer had worked on having her at fever-pitch for this. “It is hard going to Dubai off a winter break,” Chapple-Hyam explained. “She was up against hardened colts and geldings and it showed in the finish. We didn't have a prep race, whereas here we went to Chelmsford and the July Course to get the work into her. I presume it will be the [G1] Prix Rothschild [at Deauville] on August 2, the Sun Chariot at Newmarket, and then the Breeders' Cup.”

Jason Kelly, assistant to David O'Meara, said of the runner-up who outran her 40-1 odds. “Thunder Beauty has run a great race. We'll probably drop back to seven furlongs. There is the [G3] Oak Tree Stakes at Goodwood and that will be high on the agenda. She is a high-class filly and is versatile ground-wise. She was big odds and we thought Saffron Beach would be handy so, instead of getting into a duel early, we thought we'd take our time and challenge late. She is probably slightly better over seven furlongs, so we wanted to make sure she got home. It was a super run. My uncle David Kelly owns her and we are creeping up. She was listed-placed last year, then group three-placed and now we are group two-placed.”

Primo Bacio was regaining some form after a lean spell and trainer Ed Walker said, “Finally she has got her ground! This race was a bit of an afterthought really, so we are hoping there will be improvement to come. I did not think we'd get here, but she worked really well and, due to a lack of alternative options, we thought let's have a go. On that basis, you have to be super happy with that. I think she would have been a clear second if she was A1. I think we will go to the [G1] Falmouth, as she ran so well in it last year.”

Saffron Beach, who cost a mere 55,000gns at the 2018 Tattersalls December Foal Sale, is out of Falling Petals (Ire) (Raven's Pass) who was sold by Godolphin to the China Horse Club for €235,000 at the 2016 Goffs November Mares Sale. She is a half-sister to the G1 Middle Park S. third Huntdown (Elusive Quality), whose full-sister Continua produced the G3 World Trophy S. and G3 Molecomb S.-winning sire Cotai Glory (GB) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}). The third dam Eternal Reve (Diesis {GB}) annexed the G3 Matron S. and was runner-up in the G1 Coronation S. here and is connected to the leading sire Miswaki. Falling Petals' unraced 2-year-old filly Providenciales (Ire) (Australia {GB}) was a 450,000gns purchase by Blandford Bloodstock at the Book 1 Sale, while she also has a yearling full-brother and foal full-sister to Saffron Beach.

Wednesday, Ascot, Britain
DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE S.-G2, £175,000, Ascot, 6-15, 4yo/up, f/m, 8fT, 1:39.99, g/f.
1–SAFFRON BEACH (IRE), 133, f, 4, by New Bay (GB)
1st Dam: Falling Petals (Ire), by Raven's Pass
2nd Dam: Infinite Spirit, by Maria's Mon
3rd Dam: Eternal Reve, by Diesis (GB)
(55,000gns Wlg '18 TATFOA). O-Mrs B V Sangster, J Wigan & O Sangster; B-China Horse Club International Ltd (IRE); T-Jane Chapple-Hyam; J-William Buick. £103,600. Lifetime Record: G1SW-Eng, 10-5-2-0, $793,851. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Thunder Beauty (Ire), 128, f, 4, Night of Thunder (Ire)–Quiania (Ire), by Dansili (GB). (€42,000 Ylg '19 TIRSEP; £175,000 RNA 4yo '22 GOFLON). O-D K Kelly; B-Kildaragh Stud & Michael Downey (IRE); T-David O'Meara. £39,183.
3–Primo Bacio (Ire), 128, f, 4, Awtaad (Ire)–Suvenna (Ire), by Arcano (Ire). 1ST GROUP BLACK TYPE. (100,000gns Ylg '19 TATOCT). O-David Ward; B-Kildaragh Stud (IRE); T-Ed Walker. £19,583.
Margins: 3HF, HD, 1. Odds: 2.50, 40.00, 14.00.
Also Ran: Novemba (Ger), Bashkirova (GB), Mother Earth (Ire), Kennella (Fr). Scratched: Sibila Spain (Ire). Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

 

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Irad Ortiz, Jr. Handed Five-Day Careless Riding Ban For Wednesday Royal Ascot Ride

Jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. was handed a five-day ban for careless riding by stewards at Royal Ascot on Wednesday, according to the British Horseracing Authority's website. Riding the favorite Love Reigns for trainer Wesley Ward in Wednesday's Group 2 Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot, Ortiz allowed his mount “to drift left-handed without sufficient correction.”

The issue occurred approximately half a furlong after the start; it forced three runners off their lines and caused another horse to clip heels and nearly unseat the rider.

According to the BHA website, Ortiz will serve his suspension from June 29, 2022, through July 3, 2022, inclusive.

Ortiz also had issues at Royal Ascot on Tuesday with Ward's sprinter Golden Pal in the Group 1 King's Stand Stakes. The rider was watching a misbehaving horse behind the gates, not realizing the horse had been scratched, and was not prepared when the gates opened. Golden Pal thus missed the break, nearly unseating Ortiz, and after rushing up to the field wound up fading to finish last.

(Read more about that incident here.)

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