May, 2023 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Racetrack Success Leads Back to Timonium as Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale Opens Monday

TIMONIUM, MD – The Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale, whose graduates have been hitting on all cylinders on the racetrack recently, begins Monday morning at the Maryland State Fairgrounds. A total of 603 juveniles have been catalogue for the two-day auction and bidding begins at 11 a.m sessions Monday and Tuesday.

“There has been a lot of interest and we have the right people here–either they have been here or their agents have been here to watch the horses breeze,” Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sales Director Paget Bennett said at the sales barns Sunday morning. “So we are cautiously optimistic.”

In addition to GI Kentucky Derby winner Mage (Good Magic), who sold for $290,000 in Timonium last May, the Midlantic auction was represented by a pair of graded stakes winners at Pimlico this past weekend, with Straight No Chaser (Speightster) winning the GIII Maryland Sprint S. and Maple Leaf Mel (Cross Traffic) taking the GIII Miss Preakness S. Another 2022 graduate of the sale, multiple graded-stakes winner Faiza (Girvin) was third in the GII Black-Eyed Susan S.

“It just tells you, you can get any kind of horse out of this sale,” Bennett said of the auction's impressive roster of graduates. “It's just huge. It's so rewarding to have this sale finally get the attention that it deserves.”

The Midlantic sale has become the only major 2-year-old auction to conduct its under-tack show over a dirt track, which could be an added attraction to buyers, according to Bennett.

“They want to see them on dirt and then they can figure out how that relates to where they go next,” she said. “From start to finish, they see them on the surface that they are going to run on.”

A common refrain from consignors Sunday, however, was a question mark about how buyers would react to the times of the works from last week's three-day under-tack show.

“My main worry is what the buyers are taking away from the breeze show because it wasn't the usual 2-year-old breeze show where the track is fast,” said consignor Cary Frommer. “It was just a normal track. And those were good times on a normal track. I am afraid the buyers aren't going to make the correlation. But the smart ones will.

She continued, “The first day there was certainly more moisture in the track, it was a little bit sticky. The second day there was a great tailwind and the third day there was a headwind. That's mother nature. If you take those things into consideration, you're fine. But if you're strictly a numbers person, you are going to miss some really good horses.”

Carlos Manresa of Sequel Bloodstock agreed buyers should take conditions from day to day of the under-tack show into consideration.

“They did a very good job maintaining the track,” Manresa said. “I think the weather conditions were very inconsistent. But I think the buyers have a good read on those kinds of things. I think they are very aware of what day horses were breezing and what time they were breezing. If you went on the second day, they look at those numbers a little bit differently than they do on the first day and third day horses.”

Ciaran Dunne's Wavertree Stables sent out 17 horses to work over the track in Timonium last week. Without the super-fast works that have become common at the juvenile sales, Dunne hopes buyers will spread their interest out over a wider swath of horses.

“The racetrack wasn't like any of us had expected in terms of how fast it was,” Dunne said. “But the fact that everyone went the same, I think it's making the buyers work harder. And maybe that will spread them out more.”

Sequel Bloodstock had a notable 2022 Midlantic consignment, which featured the $3.55-million sale topper Hejazi (Bernardini), as well as Derby winner Mage. The operation returns with 11 juveniles this year.

Manresa is expecting a strong top market this week in Maryland, while hoping for a broader middle market.

“I've seen significant buyers here who are wanting to spend a lot of money,” Manresa said. “I think the top end, as usual, will be very strong. The middle market, we will have to wait and see if something develops there. That's always been the more difficult area to sell horses and I don't think this sale is going to be any different.”

The Midlantic sale's setting at the confluence of a number of different tracks–from Maryland to Pennsylvania and New York–makes it easily accessible to regional buyers and could help boost that middle market.

“I think we get a lot of New York trainers turning out for this sale,” Manresa said. “There are a lot of people who come to our consignment specifically looking for New York-breds, which is helpful for us. So I think regional-breds tend to do very well here at this sale.”

With six Maryland-breds and a handful of New York-breds, Frommer is also looking to take advantage of the regional market.

“I know Maryland is in a little bit of turmoil right now and I have a lot of Maryland-breds–and some really nice Maryland-breds, so it remains to be seen [how strong the regional market will be],” Frommer said. “There is always a nice string of people from New York coming down this way. And that's always good. But we will see. I am hoping it will be strong.”

Jorge Villagomez's JVC Training and Sales, which debuted its consignment in Timonium in 2018, returns with a seven-horse consignment this year.

Villagomez was finding activity brisk at the sales barns Sunday morning.

“It's been steady,” he said. “We've been busy all morning. All the big buyers are here and the good horses are showing. We have seven horses and we've been busy with all of them.”

Of his under-tack show results, Villagomez said, “They all performed well. And the good ones showed up. The ones that were fast on the farm, went fast here.”

Villagomez, who preps horses for Gary and Mary West at his Ocala base, worked with Eisaman Equine for 15 years before going out on his own six years ago.

“It was our first consignment here in 2018,” Villagomez said. “We came in with three horses and we sold all three of them. We have been coming every year since.”

The post Racetrack Success Leads Back to Timonium as Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale Opens Monday appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

White Pine Thoroughbreds Sells Far From Their Old Kentucky Home At Fasig-Tipton Midlantic

When it comes to the 2-year-old auction season, the primary hub of activity for preparation and commerce tends to be Central Florida, with a prominent satellite platoon of consignors nearby in South Carolina.

When trade moves to Timonium, Md., for the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sales, local horsemen from Maryland and Pennsylvania begin to appear on the consignor list with more frequency, along with some shippers from the Southwest.

For all that Kentucky is known for in the Thoroughbred industry, the commercial 2-year-old market does not occupy a high position on that list. Because of that, the Bluegrass State address of Justin Wojczynski's White Pine Thoroughbreds stands out in the Midlantic May sale catalog.

Wojczynski's consignment is based at The Thoroughbred Center in Lexington, Ky., where his horses train next to veteran runners preparing for their next starts at tracks across the Midwest. He brings a four-horse consignment to this year's Midlantic May sale that has had a closer experience to the racetrack life than most, which Wojczynski sees as a selling point.

“Being based at The Thoroughbred Center gives the horses a good exposure to what their next stage is,” he said. “It's a busy facility, so they're constantly training with other horses that are breezing and jogging. From a pure point of getting a horse used to what their life is going to be, I think The Thoroughbred Center is a very good spot.”

A Michigan native, Wojczynski moved to Kentucky after graduating from school, and apart from stints with South Carolina-based 2-year-old consignor Cary Frommer and Florida-based Wavertree Stables, he has remained there. He's worked for farms including Lane's End and Pin Oak Stud, and for trainer George 'Rusty' Arnold.

In that time, Wojczynski has familiarized himself to the unique ebbs and flows of training a 2-year-old for the sale on a Kentucky schedule, versus the more popular hubs further south where winters are much more temperate. The colder weather, he said, doesn't effect his training schedule as much as it might seem.

“We still have paddocks at the training center,” he said. “They still go outside. We miss very few days. The Thoroughbred Center does a good job of keeping the track open. I can probably count on one hand over the last four or five years the amount of days we've missed training, and missing a day of training here or there because it's cold or snowy or icy, it's just a recovery day.

“I don't think you need to be out there training six days a week all the time,” Wojczynski continued. “It's certainly good to get them out and doing something, whether it's in the field or out on the track training, but a day here and a day there, it's just a refresher day for them.”

The Thoroughbred Center has a pair of dirt training tracks for year-round training – a five-eighths oval and another at seven furlongs – along with a trio of grass gallops. Wojczynski said the dirt surface is on the deeper side and doesn't typically produce blazing-fast times when horses go under the stopwatch, but the kind footing puts his charges in a good position to move on to their next destination.

Support our journalism

If you appreciate our work, you can support us by subscribing to our Patreon stream. Learn more.

Many of the horses prepped by major consignors in the traditional locations do so at venues catered toward them. If they're not doing their work at a private oval, there are often several like-minded horsepeople working toward similar goals, whether that's getting their young charges to a sale or directly to a racetrack trainer to begin their next chapters.

This is another scenario where the unique setup of The Thoroughbred Center works just fine for what Wojczynski is trying to accomplish.

“We just pick our times a little bit,” he said about scheduling his juveniles to train toward the breeze shows amidst the veteran racehorses. “It's a typical training track. We just kind of stagger it a bit if we need to go an eighth of a mile, but there are plenty of babies going an eighth of a mile and quarters, so we just kind of fit in.

“We don't do too many 'prep breezes,' ” he continued. “We just get them going and breaking off a little bit, and one half-speed, three-quarters speed prep breeze is all we really do down there.”

There are currently no Kentucky-based 2-year-old sales, so every auction on the calendar requires significant movement of horses and staff for the White Pine Thoroughbreds operation, compared with the Central Florida operations, where many are a short trailer ride away from the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. property.

However, Wojczynski regains an advantage when it comes time to restock at the yearling sales. The Keeneland parking lot is often filled with RVs during its marathon two-week September Yearling Sale, housing southern-based pinhook buyers for the long haul. The four-day Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale is no short stand, either.

Wojczynski said being able to sleep in his own bed in the midst of a long sale can be a game-changer.

“That's our home game,” he said. “We get to be at home for the yearling sales.”

This year's Midlantic May sale marks Wojczynski's fifth year in operation under the White Pine Thoroughbreds banner. That four-horse platoon at the 2018 sale included Grade 1 winner Concrete Rose.

Getting a horse the caliber of Concrete Rose out of a debut consignment is a fine way to make a first impression, but Wojczynski said the process of getting to know the buyers bench, and getting those buyers to know how he trains his horses takes more time and effort than just one big hit can provide.

“I think it's people getting familiar with you, people understanding how your horses go, what your horses are like, and trying to build a good reputation for the kind of horse that you want to sell and the kind of businessperson that you want to be,” he said. “Obviously, you want to sell good horses consistently, but I think just being honest and hopefully presenting a good product where people have good experiences when they purchase from you and feel good about coming back.”

The post White Pine Thoroughbreds Sells Far From Their Old Kentucky Home At Fasig-Tipton Midlantic appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

‘We Will Give Him A Little Vacation’: Mage To Be Aimed For Travers

Next up for Preakness (G1) third-place finisher Mage is some time off. The colt, owned by OGMA Investments LLC, Ramiro Restrepo, Sterling Racing LLC, and CMNWLTH, will soon head to The Thoroughbred Center in Lexington, Ky.

“He was there from May of last year to October,” Restrepo said after checking on Mage at the Pimlico Stakes Barn Sunday morning. “We will get him turned out and do some training. Everything is great. The colt is fantastic, bright-eyed, and his head is up. We could not be any happier with him after trying as hard as did in the Preakness. The kid is an iron horse.”

Restrepo was not sure when Mage would ship to Lexington. That decision will come after he huddles with trainer Gustavo Delgado and his son and assistant, Gustavo Delgado Jr.

The next goal for Mage, who won the Kentucky Derby (G1) in his fourth career start, will be the Travers Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course on Aug. 26.

“We will give him a little vacation and he will power up and we will figure out the best way to get to the Travers,” Restrepo said. “He has not missed a day and has been on the engine since January.”

Mage, who was ridden by Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano, was victim of a slow pace in the Preakness, which was crafted by another Hall of Famer, John Velazquez, aboard winner National Treasure.

The third-place finish ended Mage's bid to become the sport's 14th Triple Crown winner.

“I am old enough to remember Unbridled,” Restrepo said. “And I am old enough to remember Ferdinand and Alysheba and Street Sense. They were all amazing Derby winners who ran nice races in the Preakness but didn't win. They went on to have great careers after that. Are you kidding me? We won the Derby, and we were third in the Preakness. If you would have told me that was possible a year ago, I would have given you my right hand.”

Wait And See For Preakness Runner-up Blazing Sevens

The first Preakness for John and Carla Capek brought plenty of excitement, but not the outcome they were hoping for.

The Capeks' Rodeo Creek Racing LLC's Blazing Sevens finished a head behind National Treasure in the second leg of the Triple Crown.

“We thought he ran exceptionally well,” John Capek said “It's tough to be a little bit short on the winning side of things, but we are pleased with his progress.”

Trainer Chad Brown was attempting to win his third Preakness in the last seven years. He skipped the Kentucky Derby with Blazing Sevens, even though he had enough qualifying points for the race. He had used the same formula with Preakness winners Cloud Computing in 2017 and Early Voting last year.

“It was better for us to come to the Preakness and have a shot of winning than be in the middle of the pack in the Derby,” John Capek said “The horse is making progress. Every race this year has been a better race than the previous one.”

Blazing Sevens shipped back to New York early Sunday morning. Brown has not said what the colt's next race will be.

“We will talk to Chad and see what is best for the horse for his next race,” John Capek said.

Asmussen Likes Mile And A Half For Red Route One

Trainer Steve Asmussen saw enough in Red Route One's Preakness (G1) fourth-place finish that after the race he said the Belmont Stakes (G1) is the obvious target. Jockey Joel Rosario was forced to have Red Route One closer to the lead than is his want, given how John Velazquez was able to back down the pace to a crawl up the backstretch.

“This race fell apart for a lot of reasons that nobody will be able to put their finger on,” the Hall of Fame trainer said. “I don't expect that to be the way things are going forward. We just regroup and get better at it.

“You're not guaranteed to get pace in the Belmont. You win races because of pace, and you benefit from it periodically. And then other times you don't. This would have been the latter for him,” he added. “He is nearing $700,000 in earnings. He's kept very good company his whole career and was probably beaten [4 ¾] lengths in the Preakness in a race I don't think set up ideally for him. Does he beat them under different circumstances? Who knows? But I do like the opportunity to run him a mile and a half.”

Actually, Red Route One has earned $732,525 off of a 2-2-1 record in 10 starts. He earned a free roll in the Preakness by virtue of winning Oaklawn Park's Bath House Row Stakes.

The post ‘We Will Give Him A Little Vacation’: Mage To Be Aimed For Travers appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

The Week In Review: So Many Storylines On Preakness Day But None Bigger Than Another Tragedy

There was an exciting race, a thrilling stretch duel between winner National Treasure (Quality Road) and runner-up Blazing Sevens (Good Magic), and the first-ever win in the GI Preakness S. by classy Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez. And think what you want of Bob Baffert, but his winning the first Triple Crown race he entered since the suspensions and bans had ended was a compelling chapter to this story. The man sure can train a race horse.

But those stories will start to drift away as we head to the GI Belmont S. and beyond. The one that will not is that this was another Triple Crown race marred by the death of a race horse. Havnameltdown (Uncaptured) broke down on the undercard, during the running of the GIII Chick Lang S., and had to be euthanized. That he is also trained by Baffert was red meat for racing's many critics.

This came after seven horses died at Churchill Downs in the lead-up to the GI Kentucky Derby. Two more horses have died at Churchill since the Derby, including one on Saturday.

From the mainstream media, the takes on the Preakness were predictable. A front-page, above-the-fold story in the Baltimore Sun appeared under this headline: 'National' Conflict. National Treasure's victory in the race contrasted with a horse's death earlier in the day–highlighting the controversy in a historic, but deadly sport. This was the headline on the Associated Press's report of the race: “Baffert back from ban, wins Preakness with National Treasure after another horse euthanized.”

And please don't dismiss this as noise from those who don't understand our game. On the two biggest racing days of the year so far, two days where the general public is paying attention to the sport, we left them with a dark and disturbing narrative, that as long as there is horse racing, horses will die. What's not to understand about that? We had hoped the Preakness card would shift the story, that the day would be without incident, that Mage (Good Magic) would win again and put himself in position to win a Triple Crown, and that we could put the seven deaths at Churchill in the background, at least somewhat. So much for that.

Had it happened to any other trainer, the story wouldn't have taken off like it did. But Baffert, because he is highly visible, trains a lot of very good horses, and has had his problems, is under the microscope like no other trainer.

A day after the Preakness, the Baltimore Sun, never known to be an anti-racing publication, was at it again. This time the subject was Baffert. The headline read “After a record-setting victory, Bob Baffert remains a messy figure atop a messy sport.” The story included this take on the Hall of Famer: “No one does a better job preparing horses to meet their potential on the most-watched stages in racing. No one inspires greater distaste from those who see racing as corrupted by drugs and death.”

Does Baffert deserve to have all the fingers pointed at him? He has had a spotless medication record since coming back from suspension and Havnameltdown was the first horse of his to break down in a race since he came back. Pimlico officials were extra careful to check every horse racing on the card from head to toe and their vets found nothing wrong with Havnameltdown. That Baffert would never have another horse break down was never going to happen. This one just happened to happen at the worst time possible.

In the aftermath of his roller-coaster day, the sport saw a side of him rarely seen. He was obviously very troubled by the death of the horse and during at least one interview was fighting back tears. It was more of the same Sunday when he spoke to the Pimlico media team.

“To me, the memory of this race would be that I lost Havnameltdown,” he said. “It was nice to win the race, but to me it was a pretty sad day.” He continued: “I'm still upset about losing that horse yesterday. My memory of this race is going to be about him. It just took all the fun out of it.”

None of what he said either Saturday or Sunday seemed contrived or an act. You could tell that he was really hurting.

But this shouldn't be about Baffert. It is much bigger than that. It is about what happened at Santa Anita in 2019. It is about the deaths at the Derby. It is about the two horses that died just down the road at Laurel on the April 20 card. It is about those horses you never heard of who have died in races, like Hair of the Dog (Hangover Kid), who died in a $4,500 claimer on April 1 at Charles Town, while no one was paying any attention.

Yes, we can and have done a better job protecting these horses. We could do better still, starting with changing all dirt tracks to the much-safer synthetic surfaces that are out there. That would make a huge difference. But I won't waste much more time on that argument because that's never going to happen. Then there's HISA. It is not a magic bullet, but it should make things better. It goes into effect Monday.

But here's the real problem. We will not ever eliminate breakdowns that lead to horses being euthanized. We still have a social license to operate, but will that last forever? The best we can do right now is to ask the public to accept that horses dying in races is inevitable and that we are working on the problem. That's a tough sell.

Then we cross our fingers, move on to the next big race and hope and pray that nothing goes wrong. It's a terrible position to be in.

The post The Week In Review: So Many Storylines On Preakness Day But None Bigger Than Another Tragedy appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post