Month: April 2023

Practical Move, Skinner Among Santa Anita Derby Hopefuls Posting Final Works Sunday, Mandarin Hero Set To Work Monday

Multiple contenders pointed to this Saturday's Runhappy Santa Anita Derby (G1) had their final works on Sunday, including the top three finishers from last month's San Felipe (G2).

Practical Move, winner of the San Felipe here March 4, drilled five furlongs in 1:01.20 for trainer Tim Yakteen. Geaux Rocket Ride, who was second beaten 2 ½ lengths in the San Felipe, worked five furlongs in company with a strong gallop-out for Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella. He was timed in :59.4 by track clockers.

“We're all set,” Mandella said following the work.

Geaux Rocket Ride's effort in the San Felipe came in just his second start and first around two turns. Prior to the San Felipe, the son of Candy Ride broke his maiden by 5½ lengths going six furlongs here Jan. 29.

Skinner, who was third in the San Felipe, worked five furlongs in :59.20 under Hall of Famer Victor Espinoza for John Shirreffs.

“He was just cruising,” Espinoza said. “He's ready now.”

Skinner was last of nine after the opening quarter mile of the San Felipe. He then launched a big move on the second turn to draw into contention before flattening out in the stretch to be beaten by 3 ¾ lengths.

Also working Sunday was National Treasure, who was the morning-line favorite for the San Felipe but had to be scratched because of a bruised foot. He has not started since a third in the Sham (G3) Jan. 8 at Santa Anita. The son of Quality Road worked six furlongs in 1:12.6.

Scheduled to work on Monday at around 8 a.m. (PT) is Japanese import Mandarin Hero with Kazushi Kimura in the irons. Mandarin Hero arrived at Santa Anita on Friday. After galloping one lap around the main track on Saturday, the Shanghai Bobby colt toured two circuits around the oval on Sunday. His traveling party indicated Mandarin Hero has taken well to his new surroundings.

The Santa Anita Derby is one of six stakes on tap for this Saturday. Also on the card are the Santa Anita Oaks (G2), Charles Whittingham (G2) at 1 ¼-miles on turf, Monrovia (G3) on the hillside turf course, and a pair of state-bred stakes going 6½ furlongs on the main track: the Echo Eddie for 3-year-olds and Evening Jewel for 3-year-old fillies.

Entries will be taken on Wednesday. NBC Sports will provide television coverage of the card.

The post Practical Move, Skinner Among Santa Anita Derby Hopefuls Posting Final Works Sunday, Mandarin Hero Set To Work Monday appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Florida Derby Time Adjusted

After reviewing the race, Equibase has adjusted the final time for Saturday's GI Florida Derby, won by Forte (Violence). The original time of 1:48.51 has been changed to 1:49.37.

In a statement released Sunday by Equibase, the company said that the finish line beam may have been tripped before the horses reached the finish line.

Prior to Equibase recognizing the mistake, the error was caught by the Beyer speed figure team. Initially, Forte was credited with a 98 Beyer figure. That number was lowered to a 95.

“The time is almost a full second wrong and I have no idea why,” said Beyer associate Randy Moss.

After doing their own review of the race, the Beyer team came up with a final time of 1:49.39. Moss said questions were raised about the Equibase time because it had the field covering the final eighth of a mile in 12:16 seconds, which seemed unrealistically fast. That, Moss said, drew the attention of Craig Milkowski from TimeformUS. He reached out to Moss and both went over the race. With the recalculated final time, Forte's last furlong went in 13.02. Equibase has also adjusted the time for the final furlong to 13:02.

“We timed it four different times, four different ways and got within three-one hundredths of a second every time,” Moss said.

Moss added that on first inspection it appeared that Forte's figure was significantly higher.

“Initially, we looked at the track variant and had the figure coming up as 104,” Moss said. “Andy (Beyer) and Mark (Hopkins) asked me what did I think. I said that the fig is the fig. They said there was no way those horse who finished behind Forte could have all run that fast. So they decided to make it a 98. As it turns out, they were right because the time was wrong.”

The post Florida Derby Time Adjusted appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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