Jockeys Jamie Kah and Craig Williams hospitalised after Flemington race fall
Two of Australia's best jockeys Jamie Kah and Craig Williams were rushed to hospital on Saturday after their horses collided during a race at Flemington in Melbourne.
Month: March 2023
Tapit Trice Turns In Furious Stretch Rally To Win Tampa Bay Derby
At almost no point during the opening 6 1/2 furlongs of Saturday's GIII Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby did things look particularly promising for Whisper Hill Farm and Gainesway Stable's heavily favored Tapit Trice (Tapit).
But in a stretch rally befitting his status as a 'TDN Rising Star', the $1.3-million Keeneland September graduate went through his gears and whistled home to–somewhat unbelievably–post an open-lengths victory over Classic Car Wash (Noble Bird) and Classic Legacy (Into Mischief), the third- and fourth-place finishers, respectively, in the GIII Sam F. Davis S. four weeks back.
One of the last to take up his spot in stall six, Tapit Trice was sluggishly into stride, was clearly last through the opening exchanges and was niggled along by Luis Saez before the field had entered the clubhouse turn. Longshot Dreaming of Kona (Fast Anna) took them into the backstretch, but as the half-mile went up in :46.96, Tapit Trice was under even heavier urging three off the fence and Saez even had to resort to a right-handed slap of the crop down the neck of his mount to keep his mind on the increasingly tall task at hand.
Still scrubbed along vigorously at the three-eighths marker and racing with just three rivals behind him at that stage, Tapit Trice was wheeled out about seven wide into the stretch, with plenty of work to do. Classic Car Wash, four wide the trip, came calling for the lead outside of Dreaming of Kona just inside the eighth pole, but Tapit Trice finally hit top gear, wrested command with 70 yards to race and remarkably put a margin on the competition.
“It took him a while to get on track but I was very impressed down the lane,” said Pletcher, winning the race for a record-extending sixth time. “He finished up the way we expected him to. He certainly seems like the farther he goes, the stronger he gets. He's got a big, long stride. Once he got clear down the lane, he really extended himself and I loved the way he finished up. He relished the two turns and the longer he goes, the better he'll get.
Pletcher continued, “Luis fits him well. He understands the way he needs to be ridden and he knows he's not going to come out of the gate quickly. He gave him plenty of time to get going. I feel like he is still learning, though he got a good education today. But he's a horse that I think still needs a little more racing experience to completely put everything together.”
Pletcher indicated that Tapit Trice's final Kentucky Derby prep could come in the GI Toyota Blue Grass S. at Keeneland Apr. 8.
Tapit Trice becomes the 100th worldwide graded/group winner for his Gainesway-based stallion. He is the fourth son of Tapit to win this particular Derby, joining Ring Weekend (2014), the Pletcher-conditioned future GI Belmont S. hero and now fellow Gainesway sire Tapwrit (2017) and Tacitus (2019).
“Thanks to Mandy Pope for letting me stay in on this lovely colt,” said Tapit Trice's breeder, Gainesway's Antony Beck. “We knew he is a very talented colt and we thought he had a very good chance today.”
Added Pope: “It was awesome–just the whole team from Whisper Hill Farm, Gainesway, Todd Pletcher–it takes a mountain of people to be in this position, but the horse is the one who did it. I lost track of him in the race and thought he was never going to make it up, but once he got free he ate up the ground.”
A useful third on his one-mile debut at Aqueduct the day after the Breeders' Cup Nov. 6, Tapit Trice defeated next-out winner and recent GIII Gotham S. runner-up Slip Mahoney (Arrogate) in a muddy mile event in South Ozone Park Dec. 17. Despite earning a lofty 87 Beyer for that effort, Tapit Trice was the somewhat surprising 13-10 second choice behind 9-10 stable companion Shesterkin (Violence) in a Feb. 4 allowance at Gulfstream, in which he turned on the afterburners in the lane to score by eight lengths.
Pedigree Notes:
Also a 159th black-type winner for his sire, Tapit Trice is bred on the exact same cross as two-time Eclipse Award and three-time Grade I winner Unique Bella, Grade II winner West Coast Belle and Grade III victor Capensis. Additional graded winners by Tapit out of Unbridled-line mares include Valiance and the aforementioned Tacitus.
The winner's now 11-year-old dam, a $5,500 Keeneland November weanling and $10,000 Fasig-Tipton October Yearling, was knocked down to Gainesway for $105,000 at the 2014 OBS April Sale and went on to be a three-time stakes and Grade III-placed winner of better than $312,000 while under the care of Steve Asmussen. She visited Union Rags in her first year at stud in 2018 and saw her and her family's value appreciate when her three-quarter sister Jaywalk (Cross Traffic) earned an Eclipse Award with her victory in that year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies. Jaywalk's first foal, a now 2-year-old colt by the late Duramente (Jpn), was sold for ¥300 million (US$2,205,927) at last year's JRHA Select Sale.
Hailing from the female family of the capable graded winners Mission Impazible and Forest Camp, Tapit Trice has 2-year-old and yearling full-sisters and Danzatrice was unsurprisingly bred back to Tapit.
Saturday, Tampa Bay Downs
LAMBHOLM SOUTH TAMPA BAY DERBY-GIII, $360,000,
Tampa Bay Downs, 3-11, 3yo, 1 1/16m, 1:43.37, ft.
1–TAPIT TRICE, 120, c, 3, by Tapit
1st Dam: Danzatrice (MSW & GSP, $312,145), by Dunkirk
2nd Dam: Lady Pewitt, by Orientate
3rd Dam: Spin Room, by Spinning World
'TDN Rising Star' 1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($1,300,000
Ylg '21 KEESEP). O-Whisper Hill Farm, LLC and Gainesway
Stable (Antony Beck); B-Gainesway Thoroughbreds Ltd. (KY);
T-Todd A. Pletcher; J-Luis Saez. $210,000. Lifetime Record:
4-3-0-1, $310,150. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus* Click
for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free
Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Classic Car Wash, 120, g, 3, Noble Bird–East Lake Classic, by
Orientate. ($105,000 2yo '22 OBSMAR). O-Gary Barber;
B-Sherry R. Mansfield & Kenneth H. Davis (FL); T-Mark E.
Casse. $80,000.
3–Classic Legacy, 120, c, 3, Into Mischief–Distorted Legacy, by
Distorted Humor. 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE.
O/B-W. Bruce Lunsford (KY); T-William I. Mott. $35,000.
Margins: 2, 1 1/4, 1HF. Odds: 0.50, 13.10, 6.00.
Also Ran: Prairie Hawk, Lord Miles, Dreaming of Kona,
Shesterkin, Groveland, Zydeceaux, Mikey Bananas,
Champions Dream, Freedom Road.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO,
sponsored by TVG.
The post Tapit Trice Turns In Furious Stretch Rally To Win Tampa Bay Derby appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.
Former Trainer Todd Scherer Murdered at Fonner Park
Todd Scherer, who had worked as an assistant trainer and a groom in recent years on the Nebraska racing circuit, was found dead Thursday morning on the backstretch of Fonner Park, the victim of a shooting. He was 62.
Scherer trained from 1981 through 1994 and won 60 races in his career.
Two individuals have been arrested for their alleged role in the murder. Logan Hunts Horse, 20 of Wounded Knee, S.D., has been charged with first degree murder and two counts of use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony. On Friday, it was reported that a 16-year-old male had also been arrested for his alleged role in the murder and charged with robbery, accessory to murder and accessory to use of a weapon to commit a felony.
According to television station KNSB, police have reported that Scherer was hit with a baseball bat and shot in the torso. Hunts Horse and the boy then took Scherer's wallet which was planned prior to the shooting, according to police.
“It appears the victim and suspects knew each other and this was not a random attack,” Grand Island Nebraska Police Department Captain Dean Elliott told the station.
The Grand Island police and fire departments responded to calls and arrived on the Fonner backstretch at 10 a.m. local time. Upon arrival, they found Scherer dead with an apparent gunshot wound. The police found Hunts Horse asleep in a tack room in the barn where Scherer died and arrested him. A gun, believed to the be the murder weapon, was found with Hunts Horse.
Fonner Park CEO Chris Kotulak said that Scherer had arrived at Fonner the morning of the murder and would have likely found work as an assistant trainer or a groom.
“It is horrifying news that Todd Scherer, who was such a popular person in our Nebraska Thoroughbred industry, has been wickedly taken away from us,” Kotulak said. “Many of us grew up with Todd, including myself, and he was typically associated with good times at the racetrack. He was also known as a very dedicated and knowledgeable horsemen.
“I have visited with some of his family members, and they are understandably devastated. Fonner Park management, staff and our horsemen express our sympathies to his family.”
According to the Lincoln Journal Star, Scherer, the Nebraska native had worked at tracks in his home state and elsewhere for more than 45 years. According to the paper, Scherer worked for Steve Asmussen in 2006 and brought Storm Treasure (Storm Boot) to the paddock for that year's GI Kentucky Derby.
“I've never been connected to anything like this,” he told the Journal Star in 2006. “This race represents history to me, after watching it so many times as a kid growing up.”
The post Former Trainer Todd Scherer Murdered at Fonner Park appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.
Shantisara Kicks Clear For Hillsborough Victory
Even-money favorite Shantisara chased pacesetter Scotish Star throughout the $200,000 Hillsborough (G3) for older fillies and mares Saturday at Tampa Bay Downs, then dueled that rival in early stretch before edging away late for a 1¼-length triumph.
A 4-year-old Clousty mare bred in Ireland, Shantisara was winning for the sixth time in 13 career starts and snapped a three-race winless skein dating from her victory in the Queen Elizabeth Challenge Cup (G1) last October at Keeneland.
Coming into the Hillsborough off a runner-up finish in the Pegasus World Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G3) Jan. 28, Shantisara was ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr. for trainer Chad Brown and covered the 1 1/16-mile turf contest in a quick 1:47.14 on a course rated as firm. The time was just .88 slower than the stakes record of 1:46.26 set by Tepin in the 2016 edition of the race.
Scotish Star held on for second, while Surprisingly was neck back in third in the field seven older fillies and mares.
Shantisara, who is out of the Dalakhani mare Kharana, is campaigned by Madaket Stables, Michael Dubb, and Robert V. LaPenta. She returned $4 for the win and provided Brown a sixth Hillsborough victory.
Hillsborough Stakes Quotes
Winning trainer Chad Brown: “I was really proud of Shantisara. With the slower pace, after she put herself closer, Irad really navigated her around the track perfectly. It was an expert ride and a top performance from this filly, so I am happy to have her back. If we can keep this horse healthy, I'm pretty confident she can be one of the leaders in her division. The proof was her getting close to the stakes record of Tepin .
On winning the race for the sixth time: “Hats off to all the horses through the years. They have my appreciation. Much appreciation to my team as well. Many of them have been with me through all six wins and are still with me. The credit really goes to them.”
Winning jockey Irad Ortiz Jr:: “Perfect. I had a beautiful trip. There was only one horse (Scotish Star) with speed outside of me and I just wanted to break good and try to follow her, because I knew she was going to be on the lead. Last time (a second-place finish in a Grade 3 stakes at Gulfstream) she was coming off a layoff and she had a slow pace to run at and they went too slow maybe for me. She still came running at the end, so I really liked her coming into this race. I really liked her today and so did (trainer Chad Brown). And I knew it would be real easy fractions in front, so I just wanted to be close because I knew (Scotish Star) could steal the race if I didn't jump in there early. At the three-eighths pole it was time to roll, because the fractions were slow, and at the quarter pole I asked her to go and she responded really well.”
Winning co-owner Robert V. LaPenta: “I thought she was great. This is what we expect of her. She had a couple of hiccups along the way, but she was ready to go today. One step at a time – you know what this game is. Chad is beyond comprehension. He really is. This one could be any kind – like (2019 Breeders' Cup Mile winner) Uni, maybe.”
The post Shantisara Kicks Clear For Hillsborough Victory appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
