July, 2023 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Proxy ‘Putting Things Together As A 5-Year-Old’; Targets Include Jockey Club Gold Cup, Breeders’ Cup Classic

After a triumphant gate-to-wire score in Saturday's Grade 3 Monmouth Cup, Godolphin's Proxy will shift his focus to the Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup on September 2 going 1 1/4 miles at Saratoga Race Course. The JCGC is a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Classic in November at Santa Anita Park.

The 5-year-old Tapit bay emerged from only three week's rest to capture the nine-furlong Monmouth Cup at its namesake Jersey Shore oval, setting a moderate pace down the backstretch with Calibrate applying some pressure nearing the far turn and Whelen Springs joining the fray approaching the quarter pole. But Proxy kicked clear of them both to win by 2 1/2 lengths while securing a 96 Beyer Speed Figure.

The winning effort followed a disappointing eighth in the Grade 1 Stephen Foster on July 1 at Ellis Park, an effort that trainer Michael Stidham said was due to a speed-favoring track.

“I knew going into the Stephen Foster that the track was a conveyer belt for speed. We drew the one-hole with tons of speed outside of us,” Stidham said. “We knew we were going to get a ton of dirt in our face and on that track, it was just impossible to make up any ground. That's exactly what happened. We got checked around the first turn, got ourselves way back and were unable to make up any ground, so it was a race we just draw a line through.”

Proxy has now won three graded stakes over as many racetracks, capturing the Grade 1 Clark in November at Churchill Downs before narrowly defeating Last Samurai in the Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap in April. During his sophomore season, he ran against Mandaloun and Midnight Bourbon in Fair Grounds Race Course's Kentucky Derby prep series, including runner up finishes in the Grade 3 Lecomte and Grade 2 Risen Star. Stidham opted to put Proxy on the shelf following that spring and brought him back for a 4-year-old season, which resulted in a 6-2-2-2 record.

“If you go back to his 3-year-old year, where we were running in some of the Derby preps, I made comments that I didn't think he was quite where he needed to be to keep pushing forward to try to make the Derby,” Stidham recalled. “So we backed off, gave him time, brought him back for his 4-year-old year which was decent. Now, he seems to really be putting things together as a 5-year-old.”

Stidham said the Monmouth Cup was not initially the plan, but that he didn't want to run Proxy in a race like the Jockey Club Gold Cup from a two-month respite.

“Now, we have almost five weeks going into the Jockey Club Gold Cup with a horse coming off a nice win,” Stidham said. “We wanted to get his confidence back up. He's doing well. He came out of that race in good shape. Now our focus is the Jockey Club Gold Cup and hoping he runs well there, and we can start thinking about Breeders' Cup Classic.”

The Jockey Club Gold Cup will be Proxy's first 10-furlong start since finishing a late-closing second to Stiletto Boy in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap in March.

Through an 18-6-6-2 record, Proxy boasts earnings of $2,024,970. A Kentucky homebred, Proxy is out of the dual Grade 1-winning millionaire Include mare Panty Raid. He is a half-sister to Micheline, a graded stakes winner on the grass.

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Travers-Bound Arcangelo Has ‘Definitely Come Forward’ Since Belmont Stakes Win

Blue Rose Farm's Arcangelo worked five-eighths in 1:01.23 Wednesday over the Saratoga Race Course main track in preparation for the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers slated for August 26.

Trained by Jena Antonucci and piloted through the work by Hall of Famer Javier Castellano, the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets-winner was caught by NYRA Clockers through splits of 24 1/5 and 36 2/5 before galloping out in 1:14 2/5 and 1:27 flat.

“He was great. It was a beautiful work. Javier was very pleased,” Antonucci said.

It was the third breeze over the main track here for the Arrogate grey.

“He loves it. We're so blessed with him, he doesn't seem to care what's underneath him,” Antonucci said of the Saratoga surface. “He handles it beautifully. Facilities has done a great job of keeping it very consistent and he's thriving off of that.”

Antonucci said Arcangelo has enjoyed breezing on a 10-day schedule as opposed to the more common every seven days routine.

“You have to pay attention to your horse and understand who they are,” Antonucci said. “This horse just needs that space because with his cruising speed and how he trains, he's thrived on more of a 10-day schedule. My job is to listen and stay out of his way.”

Antonucci, who became the first female trainer to win a Triple Crown race, said Arcangelo maintained his weight coming out of the grueling 12-furlong “Test of the Champion” and has thrived at Saratoga.

“He held really good. He's a good doer. He definitely hasn't regressed at all. He's definitely come forward,” Antonucci said. “Everything else is there – my job is to make sure that the happy and full-of-himself horse stays there.”

The $35,000 Keeneland September Yearling Sale purchase graduated at third asking in March traveling a one-turn mile at Gulfstream Park with Castellano aboard for the first time.

The talented colt stalked a sharp pace of 23.17 seconds and 45.55 set by Jonas' Dream before making a seven-wide bid in the stretch run en route to a 3 1/2-length score in a final time of 1:34.82. The winning effort garnered a then career-best 84 Beyer Speed Figure.

He has improved his Beyer in each start since, taking the nine-furlong Grade 3 Peter Pan [97] by a head over Bishops Bay ahead of his memorable run in the 12-furlong Belmont Stakes [102], overtaking the Grade 1 Preakness Stakes-winner National Treasure at the stretch call and holding off the reigning

Champion 2-Year-Old Colt Forte to secure a 1 1/2-length score.

Antonucci said Arcangelo, who will breeze twice more before the Travers, should have no trouble with the turnback in distance.

“We were one of the fastest miles at Gulfstream breaking his maiden, so cruising speed is definitely not an issue with him,” Antonucci said.

Out of the Tapit mare Modeling, Arcangelo's third dam is Better Than Honour, who produced two Belmont Stakes winners in Jazil [2006] and Rags to Riches [2007].

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Bloodlines Presented By McKenna Thoroughbreds Broodmare Reduction: Geaux Rocket Ride Forges New Paths For Best, Bernhards

When trainer Richard Mandella sent three-time starter Geaux Rocket Ride (by Candy Ride) all the way across the country to Monmouth Park for the Grade 1 Haskell Stakes, perceptive handicappers and racing fans took note. However, with Kentucky Derby winner Mage (Good Magic) and the unbeaten Arabian Knight (Uncle Mo) headlining the race lineup, the wagering public made the once-beaten Geaux Rocket Ride only the sixth choice of eight.

So, he won by 1 3/4 lengths from Mage and paid $27.40, with favored Arabian Knight third, Extra Anejo (Into Mischief) fourth, and classic-placed Tapit Trice (Tapit) fifth.

Now a winner in three of his four starts, Geaux Rocket Ride was bred in Kentucky by Larry Best's OXO Equine LLC and is the second foal from his dam, Beyond Grace (Uncle Mo). The dam was bred in Kentucky by Machmer Hall, which sold the filly as a foal at the 2015 Keeneland November sale for $50,000 to Nitiosagan Farm.

The buyer resold Beyond Grace as a yearling at the Fasig-Tipton July sale for $250,000 to Cary Frommer, and she brought the filly back to the market at the Fasig-Tipton March sale of 2-year-olds in training of 2017 and smacked the ball straight down the fairway for a hole-in-one. Beyond Grace sold to OXO Equine for $1.5 million.

At the races, Beyond Grace was unplaced in a pair of starts at two, then repeated that finish in her final start, a maiden special at Gulfstream in January of her 3-year-old season. The mare was subsequently sent to the farm and bred, then produced her first foal in 2019 and Geaux Rocket Ride in 2020. Beyond Grace is a full-sister to Mighty Mo, who ran second in the Woodhaven Stakes at Aqueduct and third in the Better Talk Now Stakes at Saratoga.

Now as the dam of Geaux Rocket Ride, Beyond Grace is looking more like sum she cost as a juvenile, and she also repaid some of that cost with the sale of Geaux Rocket Ride, who was a $350,000 Fasig-Tipton July yearling two years ago, selling to James Bernhard.

That purchase was part of the Bernhards' initial involvement in the sport, and last fall, James and Dana Bernhard make considerably larger news with the purchase of Pin Oak Farm north of Versailles, Ky.

This historic nursery had been owned by Josephine Abercrombie, who had started breeding and racing in the early 1950s. Pin Oak is a distinguished property that incorporates breeding and training over nearly 900 acres.

Clifford Barry, Pin Oak's general manager for Ms. Abercrombie, remains an adviser to the Bernhards and said that “when the Bernhards looked over the farm last fall, one of the most important things to them was revitalizing Pin Oak for the future.”

Jeff Danford came in as farm manager for the new owners in January, and the program to elevate the farm to its historic best continues apace. Now the Pin Oak Stable has a star of Grade 1 magnitude who has the pedigree and conformation to make a stallion, and “standing stallions,” Barry recalled, “the right kind of stallions, was a key component of the Bernhards' plan to put fresh blood in the farm and energize it for the future.”

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Geaux Rocket Ride seems tailor made for the job. The Haskell winner is by leading sire Candy Ride, who also is the sire of the wildly popular young stallion Gun Runner, a Horse of the Year and the leading sire of his generation with his first, second, and third season of racers.

The broodmare sire of Geaux Rocket Ride is champion Uncle Mo, who likewise was leading freshman sire and sire of champion and Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist from his first crop. Nyquist became the leading freshman sire of his group, and other young sons of Uncle Mo newly at stud include Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint winner Golden Pal, Belmont Stakes winner Mo Donegal, and G1 winner Yaupon.

The combination of stallion power in Geaux Rocket Ride's pedigree makes him a very appealing prospect and virtually begs for mating to mares by Tapit and other branches of the Nasrullah – Bold Ruler – A.P. Indy clan of sires.

The colt has a race record that would be quite attractive to breeders today, and how he finishes out his racing career will determine the parameters of his stallion career such as stud fee and breadth of demand.

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Paramount Prince Taking Ontario Breeder On Ride Of A Lifetime

Paramount Prince was dominant in the $150,000 Plate Trial on Sunday July 23 at Woodbine Racetrack, one of the last key preps for the King's Plate on August 20, and his victory was thrilling for all the connections, including breeder Ericka Rusnak.

Rusnak, a resident of Stouffville, Ont., has been breeding Thoroughbreds for close to 20 years, and Paramount Prince is the first of her horses that if all goes right will be a major contender in the opening jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown pres. by OLG.

“I'm almost getting emotional thinking about that,” said Rusnak. “I mean how many breeders are there in Ontario, and they only get to compete once as 3-year-olds. It really is astounding. Even the chance to get there is magical and a dream.”

Paramount Prince's story begins in 2017 at the Keeneland January Sale, where Rusnak purchased his dam Platinum Steel from the Denali Stud consignment for $25,000 USD. She liked the look of the mare after seeing her in the back walking ring and went to the limit of her budget to bring her home.

Rusnak brought her back to Ontario, foaled out her Kantharos baby, and bred her to Giant Gizmo in 2018, before sending her to Society's Chairman in 2019. That 2020 Society's Chairman foal was Paramount Prince.

“I was trying to stay away from Storm Bird bloodlines, but I wanted to get Northern Dancer.,” said Rusnak. “I like Society's Chairman, and of course he's had a lot of success as a stallion here in Ontario. I liked his pedigree, and I liked how it crossed with hers.”

From the outset Paramount Prince had a strong temperament. He was the instigator with her only other foal from that year, and was strong willed. He also showed his athleticism early, and Rusnak thought she might have a special one.

Michael Langlois purchased Paramount Prince at the 2021 Canadian Premier Yearling Sale, after he didn't meet his $24,900 reserve price. Rusnak was worried about having to take care of the big strong colt all by herself and they settled on a price of $21,000 CAD.

For many breeders, the direct financial gain from a horse ends at the sale, but thanks to Ontario Racing's Thoroughbred Improvement Program's Breeders Awards Rusnak has continued to profit from Paramount Prince's on-track achievements. His Plate Trial win was worth $14,400 CAD.

“With his success he's paying it forward constantly, and every time he's picking up a cheque it helps,” said Rusnak. “That aside, the black type is a huge benefit for the mare. It makes her pedigree so much stronger. Her half-brother is very successful in Kentucky, but to see her producing black type that'll never go away and will help all of the siblings it's fantastic.”

With two previous on the board finishes in stakes races, Paramount Prince had already put black type on his dam's page, but the Plate Trial was his first stakes win, and Rusnak didn't truly process the meaning of the victory until she was driving home from Woodbine Racetrack on Sunday evening.

“It really hit me what he had achieved and all the emotions that really run through you,” said Rusnak. “It brought me to tears truly. It's magical. It's what everyone wants. Everyone in the industry that is associated with these amazing animals wants to be a part of a horse that is this good.”

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