February, 2023 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Well-Related Spirit of St Louis Set To Take Flight

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency
3rd-AQU, $70k, Msw, 4yo/up, (S), 1m, post time: 2:20 p.m. ET
A $300,000 Keeneland September purchase by Peter Brant back in 2020, SPIRIT OF ST LOUIS (Medaglia d'Oro) makes a belated first trip to the races. Bred by the Bromans, the dark bay is a gelded son of GIII Herecomesthebride S. winner Khancord Kid (Lemon Drop Kid), whose daughter Bar of Gold (Medaglia d'Oro) caused one of the bigger upsets in the history of the Breeders' Cup when taking out the GI Filly & Mare Sprint in 2017, returning $135.40 to her backers. Bar of Gold has gone on to be a producer herself, as she is responsible for Grade III-winning turfer Coinage (Tapit), as well as the placed Chulligan (Justify), an $825,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga graduate. TJCIS PPs

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World’s Best Sprinter Nature Strip Headlines Saturday’s Lightning; Return Trip To Royal Ascot A Possibility

The world's top-rated sprinter and 2022 Royal Ascot winner Nature Strip is the headline act in Saturday's (Feb. 18) Group 1 Black Caviar Lightning (1000m), which tops the nine-race card to be simulcast from Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne.

Nature Strip, who's won 22 races including nine at Group 1 level, prepared for his first assignment of 2023 with an unofficial trial win – beating Roch 'N' Horse and stablemate September Run – down the Flemington straight track on Feb. 10.

“That's exactly what we wanted to see,” trainer Chris Waller said after the workout.

Waller said he was not looking any further than the Lightning, although in the back of his mind he would like to see Nature Strip line up in a fourth Group 1 T J Smith (1200m) at Randwick, having won the past three editions.

He added he would like to again travel with Nature Strip to the northern hemisphere and Royal Ascot where Nature Strip was successful last year in the Group 1 King's Stand Stakes.

“It's all about the autumn, all about his first-up run at this stage. We're not thinking about travel outside of Australia until we get the autumn out of the way,” Waller said.

His rivals will include the two horses who finished behind him in the Flemington gallop. Mike Moroney-trained Roch 'N' Horse won two Group 1 races down the Flemington straight course in 2022, including the G1 Darley Champions Sprint (1200m) where she had the better of Nature Strip by a head; and September Run, who was second to Nature Strip in the 2021 Black Caviar Lightning.

“She's come back in super order and they'll definitely know she's there on Saturday,” said jockey Jamie Mott who rides Roch 'N' Horse.

Leading jockey Craig Williams picks up the ride on Matthew Smith-trained Buenos Noches, who will be well fancied given the excellent record of 3-year-olds this season.

Buenos Noches was beaten a nose by Giga Kick in the G2 Danehill Stakes (1100m) last October, two weeks before the Williams-ridden three-year-old Giga Kick beat all comers including Nature Strip in the world's richest turf race, The Everest (1200m).

“We know this horse (Buenos Noches) is very effective down the straight, Matthew is happy with the way that he's trained on and he's got within a nose of Giga Kick for goodness sake,” Williams said.

Queenslander Baller, who's won and been placed in his only three runs down the Flemington straight, won a barrier trial on Tuesday (14 February) before heading to Melbourne.

“He's got the right straight form to say he'll run very well but whether he can beat Nature Strip I don't know because on his day he (Nature Strip) is the world's best sprinter,” said trainer Tony Gollan.

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U.S. Trotting Association Will Fund Drug Study With USADA’s Sports Medicine Research & Testing Laboratory

The U.S. Trotting Association, in conjunction with the Ohio Harness Horsemen's Association, Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association of NJ, and the Standardbred Owners Association of New York, have agreed to fund a research project with the Sports Medicine Research & Testing Laboratory (SMRTL), one of two United States Anti-Doping Agency labs that does research and testing in the area of human sports for the World Anti-Doping Agency. The research will seek out legally defensible extraction methodologies for a variety of modified erythropoietin (EPO) biosimilars.

USTA Harness Racing Medication Collaborative (HRMC) Chairman Joe Faraldo, who is hopeful that other concerned harness racing horsemen's associations will join in supporting the study, brought the proposal forward from HRMC member Dr. George Maylin, the head of the New York State Drug Testing and Research program.

“The USTA is pleased to be a leader in the forefront of this initiative in equine research,” USTA President Russell Williams said in making the announcement. “The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) was the original agency the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) planned to have administer their anti-doping and medications control program before the two could not come to a financial agreement.”

USADA, which is the official anti-doping organization for all Olympic, Pan American and Parapan American sport in the United States and is the administrator of the UFC Anti-Doping program, utilizes Sports Medicine Research & Testing Laboratory to conduct their testing.

“For the first time in our study, the Sports Medicine Research & Testing Laboratory will apply its existing science and research to horses,” added Williams.

“Harness racing is entering into a comprehensive testing and anti-doping program along with other international, national and professional organizations, including Olympic, collegiate, professional sports leagues, and federal and state departments,” said Williams. “The USTA is excited to join in this study that will help us address the issues involved with the use of illicit performance-enhancing drugs in harness racing.”

This work, Faraldo said, “is promised within three to six months after the first samples are made available for analysis.”

Research and testing will be done at the SMRTL lab in Jordan, Utah. and will be conducted by Daniel Eichner (PhD), President of SMRTL, and his associates Geoffrey D. Miller (PhD) and Chad Moore (PhD).

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Murphy Opens Up About ‘Many Errors’ After Return Winner

Oisin Murphy made a winning return to race-riding at Chelmsford on Thursday evening, after which he described his actions that led to a 14-month ban for alcohol and Covid breaches as “silly” and admitted to “many, many errors”.

The three-time champion jockey had just the one ride on the card, the Mick Appleby-trained Jupiter Express, and after partnering that horse to victory, he opened up about his time away from the saddle.

He told Racing TV about his behavior that led to a hefty ban, “Realistically, very silly. I made many, many errors that I wish I hadn't done. I've had a period of time to think about that and come back with a different mindset. Hopefully, over the next year and the following years, I can prove the person I'd like to be.”

Murphy credited the support of the Andrew Balding stable and the Qatar Racing team as being a major help to him during his suspension.

He said, “It's been incredible. When you start listing people, you will leave someone out. From my family to the Baldings and all of the Qatar Racing team, I never felt left out.

“I obviously focussed primarily in the first few months [of the ban] on me being sober and well. But from then on, I felt really good and I was able to carry that through for a long time and here is where I wanted to begin my riding career again. There is much to look forward to.”

Murphy had not ridden in public since November 2021 but showed no ring rustiness in driving the quirky but capable Horse Watchers-owned Jupiter Express to a narrow success at odds of 15-8.

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