Month: August 2022

Lovell-Trained Damon’s Mound Goes From Debut Winner To Saratoga Special Victor

Trainer Michelle Lovell, who finished second three times at Saratoga Race Course as a jockey in 1993, returned 29 years later to finish one better with Cliff Love and Michele Love's talented homebred Damon's Mound in Saturday's $200,000 Saratoga Special (G2) for juveniles.

The lightly -raced son of Girvin entered Saturday's contest from a visually impressive 12 1/2-length debut maiden score on July 2 at Churchill Downs, an effort that was enough to see him sent to post as the 9-5 second choice in the field of four with Bashford Manor winner Gulfport slightly favored.

Damon's Mound was guided to victory from post 2 by returning rider Gabriel Saez, settling in behind his three rivals as they bunched up in a battle for the lead. Super Chow, who broke well from the inside post with Luis Saez up, came away with the advantage through the first quarter mile in :21.94 over the fast main track with Valenzan Day backpedaling from second position.

As the field rounded the turn, Gulfport came under a ride from Joel Rosario in between a rail-skimming Super Chow with Damon's Mound pursuing to his outside through a half-mile in 45.06. Gulfport was forced to check hard as Super Chow came under urging from Luis Saez and drifted out into Gulfport's path. Damon's Mound maintained his path and took over at the top of the lane, powering home under steady urging from Gabriel Saez to score a professional 3 1/4-length win over Gulfport in a final time of 1:17.94 for the 6 1/2 furlongs.

It was another seven lengths back to Super Chow in third with Valenzan Day finishing a distant fourth. Owen's Leap was scratched.

Damon's Mound was the first Saratoga starter for Lovell, who said the bay colt's trip was exactly what she had been hoping for.

“It was perfect. I was so happy where we were laying where we were tracking,” said Lovell. “And then Gabe couldn't hold him any longer and he just let him creep on up there and make his little move. He did his job.”

Saez echoed Lovell's sentiments, adding that Damon's Mound was there for him when he asked.

“He broke a step slow. Next thing I know he's moving along,” Saez said. “So, for a three horse, four horse field, not too much traffic and I was able to squeeze him out into the clear and make my move when I really wanted to and when I asked him to kick that gear, he did it and we turned for home and I switched leads and he was gone. He came home nicely and comfortably.”

Damon's Mound remained in Lovell's care after Cliff Love and Michele Love turned down several offers to sell the horse proceeding his impressive debut score. Lovell said it was satisfying to see the owners' decision proven correct.

“It's incredible. All props to the horse,” Lovell said. “He's just awesome and he proved it and spoke for himself. I couldn't be happier for his owners. They're breeders, they [didn't sell him], and they got rewarded for it. I wouldn't have traded him for any horse. I thought he had an awesome chance, and he showed it. I'm glad he did.”

Lovell said she was confident in her horse going into the race, but praised the Steve Asmussen-trained Gulfport for the talents he showed in going 2-for-2 to start his career.

“The connections [of Gulfport] speak for themselves. Steve Asmussen is an awesome trainer and the owners have been in the business a long time,” Lovell added. “Their horse is a real well-bred horse and ran two beautiful races, so we had our work cut out for us. But I thought our horse would step forward and that would get us there.”

The win was the most prestigious of Lovell's training career since going out on her own in 2003. Her previous best scores came in Grade 3 company with the mare Change of Control in last year's Intercontinental at Belmont Park and Franklin County at Keeneland. She also scored in the 2017 Pucker Up at Arlington Racecourse with Fault.

“It's a Grade 2, so it's my biggest accomplishment with a horse with so much potential,” Lovell said. “My other horses that we've won graded races with have been close to my heart and I'm so proud of them.”

Damon's Mound has a plethora of options going forward, including the Grade 1, $300,000 Hopeful on September 5 at the Spa, the Grade 1 Breeders' Futurity on October 8 at Keeneland and the Grade 3 Iroquois on September 17 at Churchill Downs.

Lovell said she will weigh all her options before deciding on a next start.

“I think he has a huge future. We have a couple spots. Obviously, there's the Hopeful, the Iroquois, the Breeders' Futurity. Those three races are on the calendar,” Lovell said. “We'll see. We'll cool him out and see what we've got. He's been a super sound and mature animal and I just look forward to his future.”

Bred in Florida by his owners, Damon's Mound returned $5.70 for a $2 win wager and was awarded $110,000 for the winning effort, increasing his total purse earnings to $145,560 with a perfect 2-for-2 record.

Rosario said Gulfport was compromised by having to steady in the turn.

“It looked like we had no room in there. The horse on the inside and I couldn't really tell if the outside [horse] both came out at the same time and I had to check my horse,” Rosario said.

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Bourbon Bash Can’t Be Caught For D. Wayne Lukas

7th-Saratoga, $105,000, Msw, 8-13, 2yo, 6f, 1:11.77, ft, 8 lengths.
BOURBON BASH (c, 2, City of Light–Buy Sell Hold {SW & GSP, $125,520}, by Violence) made it a hat trick for jockey Flavien Prat, breaking from the inside gate and wasting no time in flashing his early speed to quickly open up a length on the field in the first furlong. Under a stoic ride a path off the rail, Bourbon Bash put six lengths on a quartet of chasers passing the quarter pole and never gave them a chance to catch him, marching home on cruise control to defeat a loaded field of maidens by eight lengths without ever being asked at odds of 4-1. Ohana Honor (Honor Code) drew in off the also-eligible list and closed well to fill out the exacta. Bourbon Bash is the fourth winner for his freshman sire (by Quality Road) and second at Saratoga. Buy Sell Hold is a full-sister to GI A.G. Vanderbilt H. winner and current Three Chimneys stallion Volatile and the third dam is MGISW Lady Tak (Mutakddim). Bourbon Bash, his dam's first foal, has a yearling half-sister by Union Rags and a weanling half-brother by Uncle Mo. Buy Sell Hold was bred back to Gun Runner for a 2023 foal. Sales History: $280,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: 2-1-1-0, $78,750. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.
O-BC Stables, LLC; B-Machmer Hall (KY); T-D. Wayne Lukas.

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14 HBPA Affiliates, 4 Tracks Want in on HISA Lawsuit

Led by 14 affiliates of the Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA) and four racetracks, an alliance of entities seeking protection from the alleged harms of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act Authority (HISA) have asked a federal judge to allow them to participate in an existing lawsuit that claims HISA and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) violated the Fourth and Seventh Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, plus the process by which federal agencies develop and issue regulations.

On Friday, the anti-HISA parties filed what is known as a “motion to intervene” in United States District Court (Western District of Louisiana). If accepted by the judge, it would grant the petitioners status in the case alongside the lead plaintiffs from the states of Louisiana and West Virginia.

An “intervenor” designation allows outside parties who have a personal stake in the outcome of a civil suit to participate in a case, even if their interests don't align exactly with those of the original plaintiffs.

“[Our] interests will be seriously impaired if Defendants prevail in their effort to enforce the enjoined HISA Rules beyond Louisiana and West Virginia,” the movants wrote in their Aug. 12 court filing. “Intervenors are not adequately represented by the parties to this action. Intervenors therefore respectfully request that this Court grant their motion to intervene as plaintiffs to protect their and their members' interests.

“Specifically, Intervenors seek to ensure that HISA does not kneecap the horseracing industry as a whole or themselves with the implementation and enforcement of defective HISA Rules,” the filing continued.

HISA and the FTC have consistently denied the allegations listed in the underlying June 29 lawsuit, which was filed two days before the federally mandated July 1 start date for HISA's first set of rules.

“Plaintiffs' eleventh-hour challenge to those rules on the eve of the statutory deadline [is an] emergency of their own making,” the defendants wrote in court documents just after the complaint was filed, noting that the plaintiffs waited a full three months after the approval of the rules to challenge them in court as being immediately harmful.

The HBPA affiliates wanting in on the suit are Arizona, Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Washington, Charles Town and Tampa Bay Downs. The Colorado Horse Racing Association, which is that state's statutorily recognized horsemen's group for all racing breeds, also wants to be an intervenor.

Three of the four opting-in racetracks are in Nebraska: Fonner Park, Horsemen's Park, and the recently approved racino that will go by the name Legacy Downs. The fourth is Arizona's Turf Paradise.

The North American Association of Racetrack Veterinarians, plus the state of Oklahoma and its racing commission, round out the list of potential intervenors.

“Intervenors seek to join this action to protect their interests and those of their members or citizens in avoiding severe economic harms to the horseracing industry generally and to Intervenors specifically through the enforcement of HISA Rules that suffer from fatal procedural and substantive defects,” the Aug. 12 filing stated.

“Intervenors further seek intervention to address HISA's exercise of regulatory power against Intervenors and the threat of severe sanctions that HISA is currently imposing on Intervenors,” the filing continued.

“Intervenors interests may not–indeed, will not–be adequately represented by the existing parties because they have a different ultimate objective from the [existing plaintiffs] by covering a different portion of the United States and of the horseracing industry,” the filing stated.

Beyond the states of Louisiana and West Virginia, the Jockeys' Guild and various Louisiana-based “covered persons” under HISA rule are the existing plaintiffs.

Friday's motion to intervene asked for “expedited” consideration. But that might not be possible because aspects of the underlying lawsuit have been appealed to a higher court.

When cases go under appeal, the lower-court judge has limited power to change anything in the underlying case until the appeals process has been completed. The movants in Friday's filing wrote that they recognized that fact.

“Of course, Intervenors understand that though this Court's preliminary injunction order is on appeal to the Fifth Circuit, which partially stayed the injunction pending the outcome of an expedited appeal,” the filing stated. “At a minimum, the Court could hold the motion to intervene in abeyance, pending the resolution of the appeal.”

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