July, 2022 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Kimari Prevails Over Frank’s Rockette In Honorable Miss

Westerberg, Mrs. John Magnier, Jonathan Poulin, Derrick Smith and Michael Tabor's Kimari outkicked a determined Frank's Rockette to capture Wednesday's Grade 2, $200,000 Honorable Miss Handicap, a six-furlong sprint for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up at Saratoga Race Course.

Trained by Wesley Ward and piloted by Joel Rosario, the 5-year-old Munnings mare earned Grade 1 status last April with a three-quarter length score in the seven-furlong Madison at Keeneland. She again established her class on Wednesday with a half-length triumph over a stubborn Frank's Rockette with Grade 1-winner Bella Sofia, who carried a field-high 125 pounds, settling for third.

“I was pretty confident going into today,” Ward said. “It just worked out great, and it's always great to stand in the winner's circle for a graded race at Saratoga. There's nothing like it.”

Ohio-bred shipper Amadevil broke alertly and assumed command through a quarter-mile in 22.72 seconds over the fast main track in front of Bella Sofia with Kimari in third and Frank's Rockette, who bobbled at the break, sitting last-of-4 under Flavien Prat.

Frank's Rockette made an inside rush down the backstretch and took command through a half-mile in 45.87 with the Luis Saez-piloted Bella Sofia under a ride and Kimari waiting for her cue. Kimari advanced with purpose down the center of the track as Frank's Rockette dug in gamely but could not hold off the winner, who prevailed in a final time of 1:10.78. Frank's Rockette completed the exacta by 5 3/4-lengths over Bella Sofia. Amadevil, who was eased to the finish, was vanned off and reported to have bled.

Ward said Kimari, assigned 123 pounds, was well-placed in the compact field of four.

“I thought the race set up for today, especially drawing the outside – it gave Joel a nice easy run down the backside with no opposition as far as maneuvering to try to get there,” Ward said. “He was already there when they opened the gates. That was a key. It all worked out. Some days it does, and some days it doesn't.”

It was the fifth graded-stakes win of the meet for Rosario, adding to scores in the Grade 1 Diana [In Italian], Grade 2 Shuvee [Clairiere], Grade 3 Forbidden Apple [City Man] and Grade 3 Quick Call [Big Invasion].

“I'm glad we got the win today,” Rosario said. “It looked like there was going to be so much speed and she [Kimari] can be up closer, but we kind of were in a good spot and she did great and responded to everything I asked her to do. I thought for a second the leader might get away, but she kept fighting and got the job done.”

Frank Fletcher Racing Operations' Frank's Rockette has completed the exacta in all three starts this season. Trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, Frank's Rockette entered from a game runner-up effort in the Grade 3 Vagrancy in May at Belmont when defeated a nose by Bella Sofia, who won the Grade 1 Longines Test here last summer.

Prat said the stumbled start required a change in tactics.

“It changed the game plan a little bit, but it worked out well because there was some pace up front,” Prat said. “I was happy where I was after that and made a good move around the turn and just got outrun. She's been really consistent. She'll get there one day.”

Saez said Bella Sofia, who was worked up before the race, didn't fire her usual strong effort.

“She calmed down after we went to the pony, and then she broke well,” Saez said. “She was in a great spot, but at the three-eighths she didn't give me a big kick. She was a little flat at the top of the stretch.”

Kimari launched her current campaign in March with an optional-claiming win at Gulfstream and followed with a third in her title defense in the Grade 1 Madison in April. She entered the Honorable Miss from a fifth-place finish in the Grade 1 Derby City Distaff on May 7 at Churchill Downs.

Ward said he may have brought Kimari back too quickly last out.

“She came back a little closer than I would have liked with a big filly like this, and she probably went on a track she didn't really care for at Churchill,” Ward said. “I knew that going in, but kind of talked myself into it.”

Ward said he would like to get Kimari to the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint in November at Keeneland, but did not immediately commit to the Grade 1, $500,000 Ballerina Handicap on August 28 at the Spa, which offers a “Win and You're In” berth to the prestigious race.

“Our ultimate goal would be the Breeders' Cup because it's my home track and her home track,” Ward said. “So we'll work backwards from there and get together with Coolmore and give them a few options and go from there.”

Bred in Kentucky by China Horse Club International, Kimari is out of the graded-stakes winning Cozzene mare Cozze Up Lady. She banked $110,000 in victory, while improving her record to 15-8-2-2, returning $8.10 for a $2 win ticket.

Live racing resumes Thursday at Saratoga with a 10-race card highlighted by the $200,000 Birdstone in Race 5. First post is 1:05 p.m. Eastern.

Saratoga Live will present daily coverage and analysis of the summer meet at Saratoga Race Course on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule.

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Daughter Of Dynaforce Debuts At Goodwood

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. Thursday's Observations features a daughter of the dual Grade I winner Dynaforce (Dynaformer).

5.20 Goodwood, Mdn, £30,000, 2yo, f, 7fT
MISS DYNAMIC (GB) (Cracksman {GB}) cost a mere 78,000gns at the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale Book 2, but as a daughter of GI Beverly D S. and GI Flower Bowl Invitational heroine Dynaforce (Dynaformer) by one of the first-season sire sensations carries gravitas in the Jane Newett colours from the Charlie and Mark Johnston stable. She will have to be talented to deal with the streetwise Zarga (Fr) (Camelot {GB}), Al Shaqab Racing's daughter of the G2 Windsor Forest S. winner Strawberrydaiquiri (GB) (Dansili {GB}) who made a big impression when third on debut at Kempton for the Sir Michael Stoute stable.

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Asmussen Set For Big Saturday at the Spa

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – Two standouts. Two high-profile graded stakes. Two different scenarios Saturday for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen.

In the Grade I portion of his afternoon at Saratoga Race Course, Asmussen will saddle champion Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music), who just might go off as the shortest-priced favorite in the history of the $350,000 GI Alfred G. Vanderbilt H., which has been run since 1985.

One race later, in the $600,000 GII Jim Dandy S., Asmussen will send out Epicenter (Not This Time), runner-up as the favorite in the GI Kentucky Derby and GI Preakness S. The Jim Dandy is the local stepping stone to the meet's signature race, the GI Runhappy Travers S. Aug. 27. It is entirely possible that he will be the favorite in a field that includes Preakness winner Early Voting (Gun Runner) and GI Toyota Blue Grass S. winner Zandon (Upstart), both trained by Chad Brown.

Asmussen picked up his first victory of the meet on Sunday when Clairiere (Curlin) solidified her hold on the top spot in the older female dirt division with an impressive score in the GII Shuvee S. over champion Malathaat (Curlin). This weekend at the Spa, the focus shifts to a pair of male horses, who could also end the season with Eclipse Awards.

A tribute to Jackie's Warrior's dominance in the sprint division is that just nine other horses were nominated for the six-furlong Vanderbilt and only five of those will face him Saturday. Further, the 4-year-old will carry a career-high 127 pounds, six more than Ny Traffic (Cross Traffic). The weight assignment is hardly a surprise since the speedy colt is perfect at Saratoga, unbeaten this year and has won six of his last seven starts.

“I don't think that you can talk about Jackie's Warrior running without pointing out how fortunate we are to have a champion colt back in training,” Asmussen said. “Kirk and Judy Robison allowing us to run or enjoy him another year is very special.”

The Robisons purchased the colt as a yearling for $95,000 and he has won 11 of 15 career starts and earned over $2.4 million. Joel Rosario will be up for the 15th-consecutive start.

“His three races this year have been very exciting, very dominating performances,” Asmussen said. “And the Vanderbilt just being another opportunity to run him at Saratoga, where I think his best races have been. Both of his runs as a 2-year-old, the Saratoga Special and the Hopeful were brilliant.

“And last year, a great win in the Amsterdam with a rain delay. You're stuck in the paddock an extra 20-30 minutes and then the performance he put in that day. I cannot say enough about his duel with Life is Good in the Allen Jerkens. So when you talk about getting to continue to run that horse and even better yet an opportunity to run him at Saratoga it's very special and unique.”

Jackie's Warrior was prepared for the races by Asmussen's parents, Keith and Marilyn, at their Texas training center. The Robison's colt promptly built his reputation during morning training and in the afternoon with four-straight victories. In the first three, he was not the favorite.

“When he came from Laredo, he was a very attractive, fast horse,” Asmussen said. “Ran excellent first time out, but I do think the ascension happened at Saratoga. We had a very good 2-year-old that had won the Bashford Manor in Cazadero (Street Sense). We breezed him and Jackie's Warrior together. It was a far more experienced or accomplished Cazadero and Jackie off one race and it was like 'wow, you're better than good. You're special.' I think that every day since then that's who he's been.”

Asmussen nodded in agreement at the comment that there can't be many horses that are four-for-four in graded stakes at the Spa.

“Winning one graded stake at Saratoga is a tall task,” he said.

Epicenter did not make his 2-year-old debut until September at Churchill Downs, a few weeks after the end of the 2021 Saratoga season. He broke his maiden second time out in November and has never been worse than second in his six races since. With victories in the GII Risen Star and GII Louisiana Derby on his resume, he went off as the 4-1 favorite in the Kentucky Derby. The Winchell Thoroughbreds colt looked like a winner in the stretch after a duel with Zandon when long shot Rich Strike (Keen Ice) rolled on by to score a huge upset.

Asmussen took him to the Preakness, but he encountered some trouble early, was far back and ended up 1 1/4 lengths behind Early Voting.

“Two hard races 14 days apart. He got a little freshening since then,” Asmussen said. “We love what we've seen since we've been here at Saratoga, but it is his first run at Saratoga ever. It will be his first try up here against a very accomplished field, but with the eye on the prize, that is the Travers this summer.”

Epicenter has breezed three times at Saratoga on the Oklahoma training track and Asmussen chose the Jim Dandy over the GI Haskell Invitational S. last weekend in order to give his colt a race over the main track.

Asmussen said that Epicenter is a popular runner, whose best performances may be ahead of him.

“Epicenter has a tremendously large rooting section, from people that I come in contact with, and in passing even, Epicenter has a large fan group,” he said. “What I am hoping, and on the way to proving, is that he's the next Gun Runner. And it feels very similar, because he does have a groundswell of support as a 3-year-old, even though he has not been victorious in the major races yet.”

Gun Runner had a very solid though not spectacular 3-year-old season, but became a superstar with $15,998,500 in earnings by winning seven of his last eight starts. That run started with the GI Clark H. in late November 2017 and ended with a win in his finale, the 2019 GI Pegasus World Cup.

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Cox Talks Haskell, Jim Dandy, San Diego H. on Writer’s Room

Fresh off his win in the GI Haskell S. with Cyberknife (Gun Runner), trainer Brad Cox joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland Wednesday as the Green Group Guest of the Week. There was plenty to talk about as Cox's stable remains one of the hottest in the sport and he will send out GIII Ohio Derby winner Tawny Port (Pioneerof the Nile) in Saturday's GII Jim Dandy S. at Saratoga and 2021 GI Kentucky Derby winner Mandaloun (Into Mischief) in Saturday's GII San Diego H. at Del Mar.

Cox was understandably proud of the win by Cyberknife in the Haskell, who is the only 3-year-old dirt male in the country to have won two Grade I races this year. It was the trainer's second straight victory in the signature race of the Monmouth Park meet, but his first in which his horse crossed the wire first. In 2021, Mandaloun was placed first via disqualification after Hot Rod Charlie (Oxbow) was taken down because of interference.

“It was a big performance for Mandaloun last year,” Cox said. “He was battling back and we were very proud of his effort. But, in the moment, it's it feels a little better to cross the wire first as opposed to having to wait for the stewards' decision, to say the least.”

Cyberknife will go next in the GI Runhappy Travers S., where he could be joined by Tawny Port. But first, Tawny Port, will have to tackle a tough assignment in the Jim Dandy.

“He's a good colt and I know he's improving physically,” Cox said of Tawny Port. “He looks amazing. His color's good. Like I said, he's moving great. I think he likes Saratoga. I'm hoping that there's some sort of pace presence. Oftentimes, we don't get that in a short field. But I'm hoping that there's some pace and those horses can work on each other early. He's the type of horse who will definitely like the mile and an eighth and should like the Saratoga surface.”

Mandaloun, coming off a fourth-place finish in the GII Stephen Foster S., has headed west to join a field in the San Diego that is topped by GI Dubai World Cup winner Country Grammer.

“Hopefully, this race can jump start what will be a great second half for him,” Cox said.

Cox is coming off a sensational 2021 in which his stable earned $31,715,312, won 30 graded stakes races and campaigned the Horse of the Year in Knicks Go (Paytner) and the 3-year-old male champion in Essential Quality (Tapit). But, by no means, was Cox ever prepared to rest on his laurels.

“Our horses performed extremely well last year,” he said. “So that was something that we're hoping we can build off of and continue to move forward. You just want to be relevant and be competitive at the graded stakes level. Hopefully, some of these horses are developing and we can be a factor in the Breeders' Cup. You just try to increase your numbers every year. I'm not certain we can eclipse the earnings mark that we had last year, but we're working every day in order to try to achieve that.”

Elsewhere on the show, which is also sponsored by Coolmore, XBTV, West Point Thoroughbreds, The Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association and Legacy Bloodstock, the writers took a look at the latest developments concerning the Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Authority, which lost a round in court this week, the future of TVG now that it is reportedly about to be renamed FanDuel TV and the robust business thus far at the Del Mar meet.

To view the latest episode of Writer's Room, click here and for the audio only version, click here.

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