Month: June 2023

Belmont Stakes: Angel Of Empire Attempting To End 132-Year Drought

The last time a Pennsylvania-bred horse won the “Test of the Champion,” there was no Triple Crown and Belmont Park did not yet exist. But that could all change when Keystone State native colt Angel of Empire goes into the gate for Saturday's 155th renewal of the Grade 1, $1.5 million Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets.

Trained by Brad Cox and owned by Albaugh Family Stables, Angel of Empire enters off a late-closing third as the lukewarm favorite in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby on May 6 at Churchill Downs. The son of 2016 Champion 2-Year-Old Colt Classic Empire has already covered plenty of ground during his sophomore season with scores in the Grade 2 Risen Star on February 18 at Fair Grounds Race Course and the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby on April 1 at Oaklawn Park.

The last Pennsylvania-bred horse to capture the Belmont Stakes was C.E. Rand's Foxford, who captured the 1891 renewal with a winning ride by future Hall of Famer Edward “Snapper” Garrison. The Belmont Stakes was run at 1 1/4 miles that year at the defunct Morris Park in the Bronx. The other Pennsylvania-breds to win the Belmont are Saunterer [1881] and Panique [1884].

For Pennsylvania breeder Christian Black, Angel of Empire has become the pride and joy of Forgotten Land Investment and Black Diamond Equine Corp., which he operates with his wife Cristina. Black is also a partner in the leading Pennsylvania breeding operation Blackstone Farm, who bred three-time graded stakes-winning millionaire Tom's Ready.

“You put a lot of time and effort into these horses, so it's very, very exciting. The fact that it's been over a hundred years since a P.A. bred won the Belmont Stakes just makes it even more exciting,” Black said. “There are a lot of people that have had a hand in this for all of this to happen and we're very appreciative for all of our staff at the farm as well as Mr. [Dennis] Albaugh for buying the horse and trusting in a P.A.-bred.”

Black, a native of Copenhagen, Denmark, spent time mucking stalls at a standardbred track while at school. He emigrated to the United States in 2006.

“I started studying Thoroughbred pedigrees,” Black said. “If I wanted to try myself out in the industry, I wanted to go to a market that I thought was the most commercial and challenging and that would be the U.S. market. That's how I ended up over here.”

Angel of Empire's dam Armony's Angel, by To Honor and Serve, never found the winner's circle in eight lifetime starts. Black acquired the chestnut mare for $67,000 at the 2019 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale while she was in foal with Angel of Empire.

Armony's Angel, out of the Carson City mare Seeinisbelieven, is a half-sister to graded stakes winner Conquest Big E. Her third dam, Coragil, produced graded stakes winners Softly and Coragil Cat as well as stakes-placed Spring Eclipse. She is also a direct descendant of prolific broodmare Sister Satan – an ancestress of dual Breeders' Cup Classic winner Tiznow.

To Honor And Serve – who won the nine-furlong Grade 1 Woodward at Saratoga in 2012 – boasts a strong pedigree, being a full brother to graded stakes winner Angela Renee and a half-brother to Grade 1-placed Elnaawi. His fifth dam, Golden Trail, was a foundation mare for prominent commercial breeding operation Darby Dan Farm.

“[To Honor and Serve] himself was not that successful as a stallion, but looking at his female family it's one of the better female families in the American stud book,” Black said. “The mare was a half to a graded stakes winner and if you go further down it gets a little bit deeper. There's a lot of speed in that family, but at the same time To Honor and Serve won going a mile and an eighth. She's a beautiful and straightforward mare.”

Black described a young Angel of Empire as immature physically, but a horse that was willing to do what was asked of him.

“He was always mature mentally, it was all about the body. He's a big, leggy horse, not a small horse by any means,” Black said. “He's not a 'let's go from 0-to-60' type. He can do that, he just needs a little more ground to do that than some of the others that might be more handy. When he gets there, he just keeps going and that's one thing that's required to be able to go the mile and a half. Not coming from way off-the-pace, you just have to be able to sustain. Some horses, you can get them to show some speed but they can't sustain it. With him, when he gets up there, he'll keep sustaining.

“He didn't take much time as a foal. He was an easy foal to be around,” Black continued. “His weaning process was a little hard on him. He was always an immature horse in that he still has a lot of frame and body to grow into. He's always been like that and Brad had kind of alluded to that saying that he's a horse that just keeps maturing better and filling out.”

Angel of Empire was sold in Book 4 at the 2021 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, which generally does not offer as commercially-friendly yearlings as the first few catalogs.

Black expressed a sense of pride in having a prominent owner like Dennis Albaugh and his racing manager Jason Loutsch take an interest in his horse. Angel of Empire was bought by Albaugh for $70,000.

“They usually buy in the early books at the Keeneland sale. They were a little short on numbers and Jason was going through the catalog looking for pedigrees and physicals and horses that might take them to where Angel of Empire ended up going,” Black recalled. “His pedigree was probably better than a lot of Book 4 or 5, but he was there because he was an immature yearling. I think they were looking for something that would at least be a two-turn horse. When we buy or breed horses, we're all thinking and dreaming that they could be the next superstar. Obviously, it doesn't always work that way, but at least we have the dream until we're proven wrong.

“We're very grateful that they purchased the horse and that he ended up in Brad Cox's hands,” added Black. “When you get those kind of connections, there's a chance it all comes together. The horse has to be talented to do it and he's shown that he's at the top end of the 3-year-old crop this year.”

The post Belmont Stakes: Angel Of Empire Attempting To End 132-Year Drought appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Played Hard Carries the Rigney Motto to Ogden Phipps

One short elevator ride from the top of the Churchill Downs grandstand down to the ground floor was all the time it took for Phil Bauer to officially become a Grade I-winning trainer.

On Kentucky Oaks Friday, Bauer was watching from upstairs as his trainee Played Hard (Into Mischief) took the lead going into the stretch of the GI La Troienne S. and, with Johnny Velazquez aboard, fought off last year's Oaks victress Secret Oath (Arrogate) to win by a neck. When Bauer and an elated crew of Rigney Racing supporters raced to the elevator to get their picture taken, they unknowingly avoided the hair-raising anxiety of sitting through an objection raised by Secret Oath's rider Tyler Gaffalione. By the time the group made it to the winner's circle, it had been determined that there would be no change. Richard and Tammy Rigney's Rigney Racing and their trainer Phil Bauer had just earned their first Grade I win.

“It was such a special day, I guess a dream come true,” reflected Bauer, who grew up in Louisville. “You obviously strive to reach that level and to finally do it was just, I don't want to say a relief because relief is almost expecting something. You dream about it and then once it's real, it's something you can reflect on and be proud of. It all boils down to the team and how everybody came together. You think back to when we first bought the  filly and then to get there, it's so satisfying and you're very happy for the Rigneys for what they've put into the game. It's long overdue and hopefully many more to come.”

Much of Played Hard's success, and the rise of Rigney Racing in the past few years, Bauer credits to a change in game plan.

Bauer was working as an assistant for Kenny McPeek when Richard Rigney–owner of the Louisville-based beverage company Clarendon Flavor Engineering–offered him the opportunity to become the private trainer for Rigney Racing. The operation launched in 2013 and, despite winning their very first race, saw very little success in their early years together. After earning only 27 wins from 250 starts in their first five years, they decided to enlist the help of bloodstock agent John Moynihan.

Played Hard, a $280,000 Keeneland September purchase, was part of one of the first Rigney Racing crops put together with Moynihan's assistance.

“John Moynihan was a big piece of the puzzle and made a world of difference in the last five years with bringing in quality racehorses,” explained Bauer. “The proof is in the pudding. You can see in the last five years for us, we've really started to excel and it boils down to the horse. [Richard and I] go to the sales, look at the short list and pick the ones that we like the most, but John is driving the boat and it has helped a lot.”

Bauer had high hopes for Played Hard when they took her home after the Keeneland sale and his faith in the daughter of Into Mischief grew after each trip to Ocala to visit the youngster. The filly didn't make the races at two and was unsuccessful in her first three starts at six furlongs, but once she stretched out, she stepped up to a new level. She ran second in the GIII Comely S. as a sophomore and at four, she bookended a third-place finish in the GI Spinster S. with two Grade III wins at Churchill Downs. Her victory in the La Troienne, where she went off at close to 9-1, was her first start since winning the GIII Falls City S. last November.

“I was a little nervous that she wasn't tight enough, but I think she has matured into a racehorse that knows the game now,” Bauer explained. “Just in daily training, she hates horses in front of her and she'll want to get to them. With her overall demeanor as an athlete, she's a competitor. It's something that some horses lack, but she's got plenty of it.”

Bauer is hoping that the 5-year-old's winning ways will continue on into this weekend, when she'll have another matchup with Secret Oath in the GI Ogden Phipps S. Played Hard will once again team up with John Velazquez to face a six-horse field that also includes last year's Ogden Phipps winner Clairiere (Curlin), plus GISW Search Results (Flatter).

“We originally thought, 'Well, let's just come back in the Fleur de Lis at the end of the Churchill meet,'” said Bauer. “We kept an eye on the Ogden Phipps and while it's not coming up light, it's just coming up with a reduced field. The fact that she's got the grade one, we felt like in the big picture if we can win or be extremely competitive in it, it's only going to help her credentials as the year comes to an end and hopefully keep her name in the conversation for an Eclipse Award or hopefully the Breeders' Cup.”

The Rigney Racing operation comes into Belmont weekend riding a hot streak at Churchill Downs.

GISP Xigera returns a winner in her 3-year-old debut on June 2 at Churchill Downs | Coady

Xigera (Nyquist) got the ball rolling last Friday when she took an allowance contest going a mile on the turf in her 3-year-old debut. A maiden winner last summer in Saratoga, the filly was third in the GI Darley Alcibiades but then finished last in a field of 14 when she took her connections to their first Breeders' Cup for the Juvenile Fillies Turf.

“We felt so confident going into the Breeders' Cup and to run as bad as she did was just a hard pill to swallow,” Bauer admitted. “She never grabbed the bit that day and there was no major excuse that we could point at, so we decided to give her the winter and let her develop. She came back much more mature physically and mentally. We were anxious to get a start in her and hoping she would return to form so when she did, it was just like a sigh of relief. We're hopeful that she can continue to climb the ladder and hopefully produce some stakes wins for us this year.”

Bauer said that everything, quite literally, is on the table for the filly's next start. While Xigera has always shown an affinity for turf, she trains well on the main track in the morning and performed well in the Alcibiades on dirt last fall.

Xigera's efforts were followed up with a win on Sunday from Warrior Johny (Cairo Prince). The 4-year-old gelding came in off a seven-month layoff to take an allowance optional claimer by four lengths.

Also last weekend, Bauer had two second-place finishes with Anna's Arabesque (Munnings), who was third last month in an overnight stake at Churchill Downs, and Little Prankster (Practical Joke), a $425,000 yearling purchase who has now finished second in her first two career starts.

“I think she's one to definitely keep an eye on,” reported Bauer. “She actually works in company with a lot of the horses we've already covered, so you know her ability is there.”

Phil Bauer and Richard Rigney | Keeneland

With 27 horses currently stabled at Churchill Downs and more trainees returning off layoffs or joining the barn as 2-year-olds this summer,  Bauer said they have high hopes for Rigney Racing this year. They'll have to work hard to meet last year's achievements, when they were the leading owner at the Churchill Downs spring meet, took home six of their 13 starts at Saratoga and finished the year with a record 21 wins.

“It's something that we felt was coming,” Bauer said as he reflected on their recent achievements. “You don't always anticipate extreme success in this game, but you have a general idea that you can at least be competitive in certain areas based on what horses you have in the barn and how they're training. That has been the case the last couple of years. The whole program has finally gotten legs and taken off. It's what we were striving for and for it to be here, it's been a lot of fun.”

Bauer's connection with the Rigneys runs much deeper than a trainer-owner relationship.

“[Richard] is one of my best friends,” he shared. “We golf together all the time. I'm very fortunate and blessed that [the Rigneys] stuck with me and continued to build around what we started out together. That means a lot to me. They're great people and they care about everybody and want to have a family atmosphere here at the barn. It's a pleasure to train for them and it's even sweeter when we're able to be victorious.”

Played Hard's name originated from what has come to be a meaningful adage for the Rigneys.

“The name came from their motto of life of if you lived well, you played hard,” Bauer explained. “And they enjoy life. I think when their time is gone, people will be able to look back and say, 'Well they did about all you can do.' At the same time, they make everyone's lives around them better.”

While there was a host of over 60 of the Rigneys' closest friends and family present at their home track in Louisville for the La Troienne victory, come this weekend it will be a much different experience as Bauer and Richard Rigney take on Belmont together for Played Hard's bid in the Ogden Phipps.

“I don't know if I'll ever be able to top the feeling of our first grade one being at home with the cast that Richard had present at the races, but obviously winning a grade one at Belmont on Belmont Day would be surreal as well,” Baur said. “Richard and I are the only ones going up Saturday, that was just the way it kind of worked out, so maybe it would be even sweeter if we can celebrate together and focus how we started and where we've gotten to be.”

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Wednesday’s Belmont Stakes Report: Rush Hour

ELMONT, NY – With the rising sun attempting to make its way through hazy skies as air quality health advisories remain in effect throughout the New York City area due to the Canadian wildfires, eight of the nine GI Belmont Stakes runners were in action during the first hour of training on a cool Wednesday morning.

Angel of Empire (Classic Empire) and Tapit Shoes (Tapit), both equipped with white bridles and NYRA's commemorative 50th Anniversary Secretariat Belmont S. saddle towels, made a favorable impression in their first day of training for Brad Cox over Big Sandy at 6:12 a.m. Cox, represented by 2021 Belmont winner Essential Quality (Tapit), will also tighten the girth on the handsome gray Hit Show (Candy Ride {Arg}), who galloped with good energy nearly three hours later following the break.

Arabian Lion (Justify), cutting back to seven furlongs for the GI Woody Stephens S. on Saturday's loaded undercard, was among the first to stretch his legs over the freshly manicured surface. His Bob Baffert-trained stablemate and GI Preakness S. winner National Treasure (Quality Road) had a light day of training, jogging the wrong way along the outer rail at 6:23 a.m. The expected Belmont S. pacesetter posted a five-furlong bullet in Elmont two days earlier.

Il Miracolo (Gun Runner), the longest shot on the Belmont morning line at 30-1, made his presence felt a few minutes later for trainer Antonio Sano while sporting a blue pair of 'AS' blinkers along with a matching shadow roll and wraps.

The imposing duo of champion Forte (Violence) and Tapit Trice (Tapit), meanwhile, were both on their toes after a 1 1/4-mile gallop and gate schooling session for Todd Pletcher on the nearby training track at 6:48 a.m. Pletcher needs one more win in the 1 1/2-mile Classic to reach even terms with the late, great Hall of Famer Woody Stephens, who won an unthinkable five straight renewals of the Belmont from 1982-86.

Red Route One (Gun Runner) also took to the training track earlier, galloping 1 1/2 miles at 6:00 a.m.

The 'morning rush' concluded with Arcangelo (Arrogate)–who was back at it galloping on the main track a day after being credited with an unplanned four-furlong bullet workout in :48.94 (1/11)–while a small group of media assembled outside of Pletcher's barn to get a closer look at the two aforementioned likely favorites in the final leg of the Triple Crown.

With the Air Quality Index (AQI) hovering around an 'Unhealthy' 160 a day before the three-day Belmont Stakes Racing Festival is slated to get underway, NYRA's Vice President of Communications Pat McKenna said in a statement, “NYRA utilizes external weather services and advanced on-site equipment to monitor weather conditions and air quality in and around Belmont Park. Training was conducted normally (Wednesday), and NYRA will continue to assess the overall environment to ensure the safety of training and racing throughout the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival.”

When the AQI is at 175 or higher, live racing could be canceled, according to HISA's air quality guidelines.

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Rosalie Avery Swann Passes Away

Owner and breeder Rosalie Avery Swann passed away Monday. She was preceded in death by her husband John Swann, Jr., with whom she founded Cygnet Farm in 1979. The couple bred French group-placed Seaton Delaval (Seattle Dancer).

Following her husband's death in 1993, Swann continued to breed and race horses with her children. She raced 2022 Tremont S. winner Two of a Kind (Overanalyze) in partnership and co-bred multiple stakes winner Offering Plan (Spring At Last) with her son, Christopher.

Swann was the first principal of the Bluegrass School, a pioneering special education institution. After retiring as a principal, she was a partner in Amato's Restaurant and renovated and owned West Jefferson Place in Lexington.

She owned and operated the Swann's Nest at Cygnet Farm, a popular bed and breakfast near Keeneland, for 20 years.

Swann is survived by her sons John Swann, III (Kelly) and Christopher (Anne Marie), and daughter Julilynn Swann Beeghly (Andrew), as well as seven grandchildren and one great grandchild.

There will be a private graveside funeral at Lexington Cemetery, where she will be interred next to her husband, Thursday at 1 p.m.

A celebration of life will be held Thursday evening from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Thoroughbred Club of America where she hoped all of those who knew her would come and share stories and memories.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to Old Friends Equine Retirement (www.oldfriendsequine.org).

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