Month: December 2022

Making his first start for Michael Hui, Phil Forte and trainer Michael Maker, recent Keeneland November purchase Value Engineering returned fast dividends with a victory in the $100,000 H. Allen Jerkens at Gulfstream Park.

The Jerkens, which honors the memory of the beloved Hall of Fame trainer, was transferred from turf to Tapeta and cut back is distance from two miles to 1 5/8 miles due to an early afternoon rainstorm.

Purchased last month for $35,000 from consignor ELiTE at the Keeneland November Horses of Racing Age Sale, Value Engineering was also making his first start on an all-weather surface after racing exclusively on turf and compiling a record of 3-2-7 in 15 starts.

“I was hoping (he) would stay two miles, which was my concern more than the surface change,” said Maker, who also trains 17-1 Wicked Fast, the runner-up. “A Lemon Drop Kid out of a Dynaformer mare says two miles.”

Value Engineering ($12), a 6-year-old gelding, managed to get the job done at 1 5/8 miles under a perfectly rated ride by Jose Ortiz, who rated the former Chad Brown trainee a few lengths off pacesetter Basso, who cleared the field from the outside post to run the first half-mile in :52.48. Basso continued to show the way along the backstretch under Junior Alvarado while stalked by Sole Volante on the outside and 2-1 favorite Another Mystery on the inside with Value Engineering looming in fourth on the outside.

Sole Volante took over on the far turn but was quickly joined by Value Engineering on the turn into the homestretch with stablemate Wicked Fast in pursuit. Value Engineering kicked in through the stretch to draw away to victory by 1 1/4 lengths in 2:43.01, a record time on the all-weather surface.

“I thought the race was devoid of speed except for the outside horse [Basso],” Maker said. “He [Value Engineering] had good position and kicked on when it counted.”

Wicked Fast also gave a solid stretch kick to finish second under Miguel Vasquez, three-quarters of a length ahead of Barberini, who made a strong inside drive to finish third under Jorge Ruiz.

Another Mystery faded in the stretch to finish sixth. Agitare, the 5-2 second choice, broke awkwardly from the gate before fighting jockey Julien Leparoux's efforts to get him to settle while racing extremely wide, finishing in seventh.

Value Engineering was comfortable over the all-weather track while racing three-wide, inside the rank Agitare, Ortiz said.

“He broke well. It doesn't matter if he was going to take to the Tapeta or not. He was traveling good every step of the way. Passing the wire ,the horse outside of me [Agitare] kind of showed me he wanted to move, so I decided to go ahead and take the position I did, and I was three wide all the way around but I felt like I had a lot of horse,” Ortiz said. “When we hit the half-mile pole, I just asked him a little bit and he was there for me. I was very comfortable.”

Maker said Value Engineering, whose dam is Frozen Treat, could return in the $200,000 John B. Connelly (G3) Jan. 28 at Sam Houston or remain for at Gulfstream for a stakes. He was bred in Kentucky by D. J. Stable LLC.

The post Recent Purchase Value Engineering Tops Maker Exacta In H. Allen Jerkens At Gulfstream appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Deuce Greathouse, Cindy Hutson, and Brett Setzer's Les Bon Temps doubled up on stakes scores in Saturday's $500,000 Fifth Avenue division of the New York Stallion Stakes Series, a seven-furlong sprint for eligible New York-sired juvenile fillies, at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Trained by Mike Maker and expertly piloted by Jose Lezcano, the Laoban bay entered from a 13-1 upset score against fellow New York-breds in the one-mile Maid of the Mist on October 30 at Belmont at the Big A. She maintained her winning ways Saturday with an impressive stalk-and-pounce score as the 6-5 mutuel favorite.

Lezcano hustled Les Bon Temps out of the inside post in a loaded 10-horse field and saved ground in fifth position as maiden winner Forces Sweetheart set fractions of :22.86 and :46.92 over the muddy and sealed main track.

Forces Sweetheart led the field into the turn with Central Speed, Fema Funds, and Sweet Liberty rallying into contention on the outside as Lezcano waited for racing room with Les Bon Temps. Sweet Liberty was full of run but bolted late in the turn as Lezcano angled Les Bon Temps off the rail and into the lead with Midtown Lights and Little Linzee taking aim. But there was no denying a game Les Bon Temps, who was resolute to the wire to notch the 1 1/4-length score in a final time of 1:27.28.

Midtown Lights completed the exacta by 1 3/4-lengths over Little Linzee with Dream On Cara, Sweet Liberty, Forces Sweetheart, Clover Street, Fema Funds, Central Speed, and Small Pebbles rounding out the order of finish. Bustin Hot was scratched.

Lezcano said he worked hard to keep Les Bon Temps in contention.

“With this kind of filly, you have to use her. You have to keep her in position,” Lezcano said. “I had to keep waiting until making my move at the quarter pole. When I did, she went on and won the race. It was easy to get to the outside. She handled the track well. The only thing is I think she could have used somebody next to her to keep going more.”

Les Bon Temps, a $65,000 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale purchase from Bluewater Sales, launched her career with trainer Norm Casse, winning her May debut at Churchill Downs ahead of a third-place finish in the Debutante at the same track.

She followed with a distant fourth-place effort in the state-bred Seeking the Ante in August over a sloppy and sealed main track at Saratoga Race Course and joined the Maker barn to finish a game third in the state-bred Joseph A. Gimma in September here ahead of her Maid of the Mist coup.

“Honestly, when she ran at Saratoga, I don't think the mud bothered her. She hadn't run in a while and she just looked like she needed that race really badly,” Greathouse said. “Mike just worked her one time and ran her up here and she was on the lead and got a little tired. I thought her last start was us finally getting to see what kind of a filly she was, and obviously she built off that, so that was great.”

Greathouse said Les Bon Temps could look to pick up Kentucky Oaks (G1) qualifying points next at the Big A with both the nine-furlong $100,000 Busanda [20-8-6-4-2] on January 14 and the one-mile $200,000 Busher [50-20-15-10-5] on March 4 under consideration.

“We're going to see what Mike says. I think at some point she deserves a chance [at open company] – she broke her maiden in open company,” Greathouse said. “So, I don't know, maybe the Busanda or the Busher. We'll see what Mike says. Two turns is going to be her friend.”

Bred in the Empire State by Southern Equine Stables, Les Bon Temps was produced by the Tapizar mare Winsantiy. She banked $275,000 in victory while improving her record to 3-0-2 from six starts. She returned $4.40 for a $2 win bet.

The post Les Bon Temps Rolls To Victory In NYSSS Fifth Avenue Division, Connections Looking To Pick Up Kentucky Oaks Qualifying Points Next appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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