August, 2022 | Horse Racing Free Tips

‘She Looks Terrific’: Nest Pleases Pletcher With Saturday Breeze Toward Alabama

Dual Grade 1 winner Nest, previously under consideration or the Runhappy Travers (G1), breezed Saturday at Saratoga in preparation or the $600,000 Alabama on August 20, completing a half-mile in :50.60 in company with debut maiden winner Up to the Mark [:50.02].

“I thought she did very well. [She] went a little bit easy the first part and picked it up at the finish and galloped out really well,” said trainer Todd Pletcher. “She seems to be holding her form. We did talk about it [the Travers], but we just felt like as long as she was ready to run back in the Alabama, a mile and a quarter was perfect for her. We felt like it was too good of a spot to pass up.”

Nest was last seen posting a sublime 12 1/4-length triumph in the Coaching Club American Oaks (G1) on July 23, making a grand return for the first time since a game runner-up finish behind stablemate Mo Donegal in the Belmont Stakes (G1) on June 11.

Pletcher said Nest continues to train forwardly following her CCA Oaks coup.

“You always worry about coming back off a big win. It seemed like she did it easy, but it was still a big effort. Just like after the Belmont, every indication since then is she's in good form,” Pletcher said. “She looks terrific and she's doing all the things you want to see them do in between races. We're really happy with her.”

Aside from his star sophomores, Pletcher also sent out reigning champion 3-year-old illy Malathaat to breeze in company with Grade 2 Suburban winner Dynamic One on Friday. The pair posted a bullet five-eighths in 1:01.12 over the main track.

“Awesome. I was really pleased with both of them,” Pletcher said. “It was one of the better breezes I've seen from Dynamic One, so they're doing good.”

Malathaat, winner of last year's Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks, suffered a disappointing loss to Clairiere in the Grade 2 Shuvee last out on July 24, finishing second when sporting blinkers for the first time.

Pletcher said he does not believe the blinkers were to blame for the dull outing and added he will keep them on for her likely next outing in the Grade 1, $600,000 Personal Ensign on the August 27 Travers undercard.

“We'll go in the Personal Ensign if she comes back and breezes good again this weekend,” Pletcher said. “We'll leave the blinkers on. I really felt like she wasn't herself that day. She seemed to get hot and irritated in the paddock, which is unlike her. She was awfully quiet. Credit to the winner, she ran a great race, but we didn't feel like that was Malathaat at her best.”

Pletcher noted Dynamic One is still on target for the Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup on September 3, along with Keepmeinmind, Americanrevolution, and Untreated.

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Coroebus Faces Jacques Le Marois Test

While Saratoga continues to thrill across the Atlantic, the long hot summer of 2022 rolls on with Deauville staging its own prolonged festival to draw the elite to Normandy's cradle of racing. The G1 Prix du Haras de Fresnay-le-Buffard Jacques le Marois is arguably the jewel of the whole month and has attracted some notable actors on Sunday including Godolphin's exciting Coroebus (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}). At this mile trip, Charlie Appleby has the material this season with the English, French and Irish 2000 Guineas and St James's Palace S. already in safe keeping. Only Baaeed (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) could deny Moulton Paddocks a clean sweep in the G1 Sussex S., but even then the stable had a solid second with Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) acting as a deputy for the missing 2000 Guineas and St James's Palace hero. Appleby is surprisingly bullish ahead of the homebred's hardest task to date. “All of his runs before Royal Ascot were over the straight mile at Newmarket and I think he is more comfortable racing over a straight course, which we get here. We are very confident that he can keep his unbeaten record for the year intact.”

What Next From Inspiral?

After Royal Ascot, most would have pointed to Cheveley Park Stud's G1 Coronation S. heroine Inspiral (GB) (Frankel {GB}) as the one to side with in a match with Coroebus who looked fortunate to have come away with the Tuesday feature. While the subsequent shock defeat of the John and Thady Gosden-trained homebred at the hands of Marc Chan and Andrew Rosen's Prosperous Voyage (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) in the G1 Falmouth S. at Newmarket July 8 has raised a question mark, the July Course is renowned for favouring front-runners when the ground is riding as fast as it was then and connections are convinced they have her in the right place for her own moment of truth. “I know she had little bit of a blip at Newmarket last time, but you have to excuse her after the long lay-off and sometimes horses can throw a bad one in,” Frankie Dettori said. “When I say bad, she was second, but she didn't run to her full potential.”

No Time To Rest

Honours are even between the Classic generation and the older horses in the last 10 runnings, but few in the latter category could boast the type of record that State Of Rest (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) brings to the table. His quartet of top-level wins have all come over further, but the pace that he showed from the front when denying Bay Bridge (GB) (New Bay {GB}) in the G1 Prince Of Wales's S. at Royal Ascot June 15 will take him a long way reverting to a mile. His toughness is also an essential quality and will be a prerequisite as the 3-year-olds come at him late on here. Joseph O'Brien has been intent on trying him at a mile for some time and feels this is the ideal spot. “He's a horse that's always shown plenty of speed and it will be interesting to see how he can perform at a shorter distance,” he said. “Every day he goes to the track, he turns up and he has no problem leading, like he did last time. I think it's fairly obvious he'll be ridden in an uncomplicated way, whether he's getting a lead or not. It comes either way to him.”

A Nation's Pride With Erevann

With the first two Group 1 contests of the famed August meeting going the way of the British, the odds are cramped that this prestige event will also traverse La Manche as the home nation struggles to gain any respite from the onslaught. Last Tuesday's G1 Prix Rothschild saw Goldistyle (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) grab third, but Sunday's G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest was a stark reminder of where the balance of power rests in Europe with the eighth-placed Accakaba (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}) faring best of the domestic runners. It is incredible to think that the whole of France's training ranks can muster just two representatives in one of their feature events on Sunday, with both hailing from the Jean-Claude Rouget stable. Nevertheless, one is The Aga Khan's unbeaten 'TDN Rising Star' Erevann (Fr) (Dubawi {Ire}), a son of Ervedya (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) who stated his case when taking Chantilly's G3 Prix Paul de Moussac June 19. He has to find improvement from that effort, but with his pedigree it is entirely possible.

A Continuing Romance?

Charlie Appleby will be hoping that he can pull off a notable double on Sunday, with Rebel's Romance (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) taking on the German runners in Hoppegarten's G1 Westminster 132nd Grosser Preis von Berlin. A typical Godolphin raider in this country, the June 25 Listed Fred Archer S. and July 29 G3 Glorious S. winner is unbeaten on turf and all-weather and his trainer said, “We felt this was a nice opportunity to test the waters at this level and we are confident that he won't disgrace himself.” Stall Nizza's May 29 G2 Grosser Preis der Badischen Wirtschaft winner Alter Adler (Ger) (Adlerflug {Ger}) may offer the sternest threat among the older horses, while the pick of the 3-year-olds look to be Darius Racing's May 22 G2 Derby Italiano hero Ardakan (GB) (Reliable Man {GB}) and Anna Schleusner-Fruhriep's Nastaria (GB) (Outstrip {GB}), who is out just a week after her impressive success in Dresden's Listed Sommerpreis over 9 1/2 furlongs.

Click here for the fields.

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Barns Busy as Fasig-Tipton New York-Bred Yearlings Sale Starts Sunday

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – Fasig-Tipton will be looking to continue the momentum set by its record-setting select sale when bidding returns to the Humphrey S. Finney Pavilion Sunday evening for the first of two sessions of the New York-Bred Yearlings Sale. Bidding begins Sunday at 7 p.m. and Monday's session will begin at 12 p.m.

With the end of the sweltering conditions which punctuated the last week in upstate New York, activity was high at the sales barns on a picture-perfect Saturday morning as a mixture of end-users, pinhookers and locally based trainers perused the 584 yearlings catalogued for the two-day auction.

“It's been very strong, we've been busy, busy, busy,” said Derek MacKenzie, whose Vinery Sales consignment will offer 22 yearlings over the next two days. “Across the board, we are seeing everyone, but I think we are seeing more New York trainers this year than we have the last year or two.”

Among the trainers shopping Saturday morning were Christophe Clement, Mark Hennig, George Weaver, and Tom Morley, while pinhookers Eddie Woods, Raul Reyes, Steve Venosa, Niall Brennan, Paul and Sarah Sharp, Ciaran Dunne, and Barry Berkelhammer were all busy on the sales grounds. WinStar Farm's Elliott Walden was on hand, as were bloodstock agents Liz Crow and Pete Bradley.

Francis and Barbara Vanlangendonck's Summerfield consignment produced strong results at the select sale, with three of three through the ring selling, including a $950,000 son of Speightstown. The operation will look to build on that momentum with a 21-horse consignment at the New York-bred auction.

“Like everybody, we had a great sale,” Francis Vanlangendonck said of last week's results. “We were lucky enough to have some nice horses and we got rewarded for it. So it was really good.”

Vanlangendonck is seeing many of the same faces who shopped the select sale staying in town for the second auction.

“There hasn't been a big drop off on the people looking, there are a lot of holdovers from the last sale and it's been that way for several years,” he said. “This sale has transferred into a little bit better sire power and those guys recognize that they can buy a good horse anywhere. So they will come in here and scope it out and try to find the good individuals. A lot of the same guys will come in here and look. Which is why a lot of times, we will put a horse in this New York-bred sale and not in the first sale and kind of get that momentum working on our side. So we are hoping that's going to pay off here.”

Of pre-sale activity at his barn, Vanlangendonck said, “We showed a little over 1,000 times yesterday and they've been scoped out pretty good. Now they are starting to pick them apart and come looking at the short list. We have been busy since 7:30 this morning.”

Colin Brennan will be offering his first consignment at the New York-bred sale when he sends five yearlings through the ring during Monday's second session of the auction.

“I've consigned with others the past couple of years, but I wanted to take a shot out on my own,” Brennan said. “This is my first full year out on my own from my father's operation. I have had the yearling consignment for about four years now and I'm trying to get more aggressive and get better quality and attend most of the sales.”

Brennan has been active on the buying side of the ledger at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Fall Sale, so selling at Saratoga in August made sense.

“We've had a lot of luck and I enjoy coming up here in October and shopping the fall sale–it's been getting better and better with pedigrees and the horses that come and we have had luck pinhooking out of it,” Brennan said. “I've put some pinhooking partnerships together and I love the New York-bred program. So naturally from shopping there, it's a great idea to come back here to sell. It's always my first choice to come back to the New York-bred sale, but they seem to be well-received just as a whole commercial market.”

Brennan has seen a trickle down of buyers from the select sale ahead of the New York-bred sale.

“Especially this year, there is a lot of rollover from people who attended the first sale,” he said. “And why not? You're already here. Just stay and enjoy Saratoga. Fasig has done a great job as always. I couldn't be more happy with the faces we have seen. You are getting the normal sales faces, but also the trainers and owners that you wouldn't normally see at most sales. So that's great. I'm really looking forward to it. And it's always a fun weekend with the Fourstardave–it's just fun to be here.”

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Tim Cohen Appointed to TOC Board

The Board of Directors of the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC) unanimously named Tim Cohen to fill the board vacancy created by the recent resignation of Mike Harrington. Per the bylaws, Cohen will be required to run in the 2023 board election.

Cohen, owner of Rancho Temescal, runs under Rancho Temescal LLC, often in partnership with his father, Jed Cohen's, Red Baron's Barn LLC. Prior to managing Rancho Temescal, Cohen worked in the hospitality industry, managing luxury hotels and restaurants.

“I look forward to joining the Board and further the efforts to improve California racing for all stakeholders,” said Cohen.

Red Baron's Barn LLC and Rancho Temescal LLC were leading owners at the 2021/22 Winer-Spring Santa Anita meet. They currently own over 75 Thoroughbreds with 55 currently in training. Rancho Temescal LLC, in partnership with others, has campaigned top horses such as Grade I winner River Boyne (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}).

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