Month: August 2023

Winchell Has Three ‘Legitimate’ Chances To Dethrone Champions At The Spa

Lining up against three defending Eclipse Award-winning Champions at Grade 1 level is no easy task, but Winchell Thoroughbreds will have three golden opportunities on Saturday's loaded Travers Day program at Saratoga Race Course.

Winchell Thoroughbreds will be well-represented as they send out Grade 1 winner Gunite for a rematch against 2022 Champion Male Sprinter Elite Power in the Grade 1, $500,000 Forego. Echo Zulu, a Champion in her own right, will be joined by stakes-winning millionaire Wicked Halo, as they square off against Goodnight Olive – last year's Champion Female Sprinter – in the Grade 1, $500,000 Ballerina.

After winning last year's Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers with eventual Champion 3-Year-Old Male Epicenter, Winchell Thoroughbreds will seek their second straight Travers triumph with graded stakes winner Disarm, who will face three American Classic winners and 2022 Champion 2-Year-Old Forte. All the Winchell-owned horses are by 2017 Horse of the Year and leading North American sire Gun Runner and conditioned by Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen.

“It's unusual for us to run in three Grade 1s on the same day, especially at Saratoga, but to win those three races and you have to beat a Champion in every race to win – that's pretty tough. It'll be a good day and hopefully things go our way in a couple of those races,” said Winchell Thoroughbreds' racing manager David Fiske.

Gunite, who captured the Spa's 2021 Hopeful and the Grade 2 Amsterdam last year, has finished second to Elite Power twice this season. After a four-length seasonal debut triumph in Oaklawn Park's King Cotton, Gunite shipped to Saudi Arabia to finish 3 1/4 lengths behind Elite Power in the Group 3 Riyadh Dirt Sprint on February 25 at King Abdulaziz Racecourse. The earner of over $1.8 million enters from a narrow runner-up effort to Elite Power in the Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt on July 29 over sloppy and sealed conditions at the Spa. He held a 1 1/2-length advantage in the stretch drive, but was unable to stave off Elite Power's late advance and was beaten a head.

“Gunite seems to be getting bigger and faster as a 4-year-old. Hopefully, at some point, we can see him turn the tables,” Fiske said. “Those two seem pretty evenly matched at the moment. With a small field it can be strategic and it turns into a rider's race.”

When asked if he would like to see anything different this time around, Fiske quipped: “I'd like to see him win, that would be the first thing.

“Somewhere in upper stretch, I thought we had a big chance to win but Elite Power tipped out at the top of the stretch. He is a formidable individual, which is why he's the Champion,” Fiske added.

Although there is still ground to cover for the remainder of the season, Fiske said there is a “possibility” that Gunite could return to action for his 5-year-old year.

Winchell Thoroughbreds, in partnership with L and N Racing, campaign 2021 Champion 2-Year-Old Filly and Ballerina aspirant Echo Zulu, who enters the prestigious seven-furlong test from a career-high 112 Beyer Speed Figure earned when capturing the Grade 2 Honorable Miss on July 26 at the Spa.

The 4-year-old bay has never lost at Saratoga, earning a debut win in July 2021 before capturing the Grade 1 Spinaway at the end of the year en route to prominent scores in the Grade 1 Frizette at Belmont Park and the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies at Del Mar.

After rounding out her sophomore season with a second-place finish behind Goodnight Olive in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint at Keeneland, Echo Zulu returned with vigor when capturing the Grade 3 Winning Colors on May 29 at Churchill Downs.

Echo Zulu's 112 Beyer is the co-leading figure of any thoroughbred this year, tying the number registered by Cody's Wish in the Grade 1 Hill 'n' Dale Metropolitan on June 10 at Belmont.

“I believe she's been training better this year than she ever has before. We gave her a little time off over the winter and worked on her ankles a little bit and she's come back fantastic,” Fiske said. “Of course, just like Gunite, she has run well at Saratoga since she was a 2-year-old. Both of them are stakes winners at 2, 3 and 4 and I think they both have a chance. It should be interesting.”

Wicked Halo, a 4-year-old gray filly, was cross-entered in the Ballerina as well as Friday evening's seven-furlong Pink Ribbon at Charles Town. She was last seen posting a seventh overall stakes triumph in the Twin Bridges on July 23 at Ellis Park. Like Echo Zulu, Wicked Halo also is unbeaten at the Spa, having captured the 2021 Grade 2 Adirondack – a race won by her Tapit-sired dam Just Wicked in 2015 – before returning to Saratoga the following summer to win the Grade 2 Prioress. She followed with another graded score in the Grade 2 Raven Run in October at Keeneland before rounding out the trifecta in the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint.

Fiske expressed hope that adding blinkers will result in the change he is hoping to see with Disarm as he faces Forte, Grade 1 Kentucky Derby-winner Mage, Grade 1 Preakness-winner National Treasure and Grade 1 Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets-winner Arcangelo.

Fourth in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby, Disarm returned to action to capture the Grade 3 Matt Winn on June 11 at Ellis Park before finishing fourth behind Forte in the Grade 2 Jim Dandy presented by DK Horse on July 29 at Saratoga. In all aforementioned starts, Disarm was piloted by Joel Rosario, who maintains the mount for the Travers.

“I think he was a little immature in the Derby. Joel said he wasn't appreciating the kickback going down the backside all that much. He was kind of starting and stopping,” Fiske recalled. “He's trained well, his speed figures no matter whose scale you use, seem to be getting better, and he seems to be getting better. The Travers looks like it'll be the premiere 3-year-old race of the year. It's unusual that you get the Derby, Preakness and Belmont winners; the horse that would have been the favorite in the Derby [Forte]. It's pretty deep. I'm not surprised that it's only seven horses, but they all have a legitimate chance to show up.”

Fiske said the addition of blinkers was made to get Disarm “a little more focused.”

“He's always been relatively prominent and tends to be about three or four lengths off the pace, but Steve thinks there's more talent there to pull out of him,” Fiske said. “I don't know if that will appear on Saturday or if we'll wait until next year to see it. Hopefully, the blinkers will make a difference.”

Gun Runner was campaigned by Winchell and Asmussen through an illustrious career that included six Grade 1 wins, earnings in excess of $15 million, as well as 2017 Champion Older Male and Horse of the Year honors. Gun Runner, North America's leading third crop stallion, has already produced a Champion in Echo Zulu, last year's Grade 1 Preakness winner Early Voting, as well as Grade 1 winners Taiba and Cyberknife.

“I think as fast as they were at two, it's scary to think they get faster at 3 and 4,” Fiske noted. “He's the gift that keeps on giving. Steve said one day that he's done everything that we've asked him to and done it easily. Whether it was on the racetrack or in the breeding shed … I don't even have the adjectives anymore to describe what he does for and means to all of us.”

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‘She Could End Up At The Breeders’ Cup’: Warm Heart Earns Free Berth In ‘Classy’ Yorkshire Oaks Win

Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Westerberg's Warm Heart (IRE) narrowly got the better of Free Wind (IRE) Thursday in a stirring finish to the 1 1/2-mile Pertemps Network Yorkshire Oaks (G1) at York. The daughter of Galileo (IRE) earned an automatic starting position in the $2 million Maker's Mark Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G1) through the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In.

The Breeders' Cup Challenge Series is an international series of 80 Graded/Group stakes races whose winners receive automatic starting positions and fees paid into a corresponding race of the Breeders' Cup World Championships, scheduled to be held Nov. 3-4 at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California.

After finishing behind stable companion Savethelastdance (IRE) and Bluestocking (GB) on soft ground in the July 22 Juddmonte Irish Oaks (G1), Warm Heart, ridden by James Doyle, bounced back to the form which saw her win the Ribblesdale Stakes (G2) at Royal Ascot in June.

After 10-3 favorite Savethelastdance set the pace under Ryan Moore, Warm Heart, off at odds of 9-1, traveled powerfully up the York straight and took up the running from her stable companion after passing the 2-furlong marker. Her main danger appeared to be the John and Thady Gosden-trained Free Wind, a 5-year-old mare who was also bouncing back from a poor run on heavy ground at Goodwood last time out. The duo locked horns but it was Warm Heart who found plenty to win by a head. Savethelastdance finished 2 1/4-lengths back in third.

Warm Heart completed the 1 1/2 miles in 2:25:86 over nine rivals on a surface listed as good to firm.

Aidan O'Brien, who won the £500,000 contest for the seventh time, said: “It just didn't happen in the Irish Oaks. The ground was a little bit on the slow side. She was lovely today. She's a very classy filly and you saw what she did in the Ribblesdale.”

O'Brien also suggested Warm Heart she could end up at Santa Anita in November.

“Warm Heart handles the better ground very well, so it's not a problem with her,” he said. “She can do anything. She could end up at the Breeders' Cup.”

O'Brien saddled Tuesday (IRE) to win last year's Maker's Mark Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf at Keeneland.

As part of the benefits of the Challenge Series, Breeders' Cup will pay the entry fees for Warm Heart to start in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf at Santa Anita, which will be run at 1 1/4 miles. Breeders' Cup will also provide a travel allowance for all starters based outside of North America to compete in the World Championships. The Challenge winner must be nominated to the Breeders' Cup program by the Championships' pre-entry deadline of Oct. 23 to receive the rewards.

The post ‘She Could End Up At The Breeders’ Cup’: Warm Heart Earns Free Berth In ‘Classy’ Yorkshire Oaks Win appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Attorneys: Track Relationship With State Racing Commissions Complicates Facility’s Right To Exclude Trainers

For the last two years, the topic of racetrack bans against trainers has been widely discussed among people who are both fans of horse racing and legal minutiae. The subject was a focus of one session at the recent Racing And Gaming Conference at Saratoga, where four attorneys examined the question of how these exclusions work, and how the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority may change them in the future.

The question of whether or not a racetrack can ban a trainer on the basis of its private property rights has become one of greater interest since Churchill Downs and the New York Racing Association chose to exclude trainer Bob Baffert after Medina Spirit's positive drug test in the 2021 Kentucky Derby.

Historically speaking, it's uncommon for a racetrack to choose this course of action, according to panelist Alan Foreman, who is chairman and CEO of the Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and general counsel to the Maryland THA.

“It very rarely happens and it's usually done for political purposes,” said Foreman. “Most of them were reactions to media coverage or public interest in the image of the industry, so tracks would act out. Typically a track, if they wanted to exclude somebody but they knew what the implications of that would be, they'd call the trainer and say, 'Look, you've got to get out of here. We're not going to say anything but you go somewhere else. We don't want you here.' … That was part of the undercurrent for why we have HISA, because bad actors were going around to other places.”

Like almost anything else in horse racing, private property exclusions are not handled uniformly around the country.

“Exclusion at racetracks depends on what jurisdiction you're in,” said panel moderator Bennett Liebman, government lawyer in residence at Albany Law School in New York. “At some racetracks it's virtually impossible to exclude licensees. Traditionally that's been the case in Louisiana. In others it's been fairly easy, such as Ohio. It can even vary within the jurisdiction. It's extremely difficult and time-consuming, although not impossible as we've seen, for NYRA to exclude a licensee but it's far easier for the New York harness tracks to exclude licensees.”

Foreman recalled the landmark Maryland case of trainer Nick Lemberos, who he described as a “thorn in the side” of racetracks in the state. Lemberos applied for stalls at Timonium and was granted a single stall, and was then told to vacate the stalls he had at Laurel. Lemberos moved his horses to the receiving barn and when the stewards suspended him, he sued seemingly everyone – the state commission, the stewards, the racetracks, and a number of individuals. His argument was that he was entitled to a due process hearing from the racetrack before the property could exclude him, because the trainer's license he'd been issued by the state gave him a right to be on the property. Because he didn't get a due process hearing, he believed he was not only entitled to an injunction against the ban but to damages.

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The judge applied two tests to the case to determine whether Lemberos had a valid point, analyzing the history of racing and racetracks in Maryland to understand the relationship between the facilities and the state regulators

“They ended up concluding there was no relationship that would cause the track owners to be what are called state actors,” said Foreman, which upheld the track's right to exclude the trainer.

The court did find that the stewards should have given the Lemberos a hearing before suspending him, however.

In subsequent cases about private property exclusions, similar questions have been posed about whether a racetrack may be considered an agent of the state. Several panelists expressed surprise that in the case between Bob Baffert and NYRA, the racing organization didn't offer him a due process hearing at the jump to avoid the inevitable legal argument about it later. Liebman believes that, since a judge required this process take place in the Baffert case, NYRA will probably be less likely to take action against other licensees in the future, now that it understands how time-consuming and complicated the hearing process would be.

None of the panelists were sure how the implementation of HISA would change the ability or interest of tracks to exclude trainers.

“I think HISA takes the position that as it relates to medication, safety and welfare, which is their space, that they preempt state law, so therefore the track does not have the right of exclusion,” said Foreman. “I'm not sure that's a correct interpretation.”

Regardless, Foreman believes that national, uniform regulation via HISA may, in some cases, negate tracks' appetite to take similar actions to the Baffert case.

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“At the time of the Baffert case there was extraordinary frustration among a number of track owners that the regulatory system was not dealing with frequent violators,” said Foreman.

Before the Baffert exclusion, trainer Jerry Hollendorfer was excluded from Stronach Group racetracks after the ownership group noted concerns about the number of catastrophic breakdowns his barn experienced during the Santa Anita fatality spike in 2019. It remains unclear, Foreman said, whether HISA would or could initiate a similar action against Hollendorfer were the same situation to occur today.

Louis Trombetta, executive director of the Florida Gaming Control Commission, expressed concern about whether exclusion was still an option in cases where HISA is taking enforcement action. As has been previously reported, trainers on provisional suspension by HISA see no change to their state license status and can still access the backstretch, although they're not allowed to enter their horses in races.

“We're worried about how someone who is suspended under HISA would be treated if we were worried about them being a paper trainer and HISA wasn't taking care of it,” said Trombetta. “That's a situation where, in the past, we might look towards exclusion in that type of case.”

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Del Mar Community Bouncing Back From Tropical Storm Hilary

Things are getting back to normal at Del Mar following last Sunday's rain from Tropical Storm Hilary. There are still some remnants of the storm. Large puddles of water and mud remain in parts of the stable area but, for the most part, everything has dried out nicely and the pens and walking rings are back in use.

Rain gauges on the backside measured 2 ½ inches of liquid by the time Hilary exited Del Mar, enough to flood some areas between the stables, though the stalls and the horses themselves remained dry.

“We were pretty fortunate,” trainer Peter Eurton says. “Being on this end (of the backside) is flat and has a little better drainage.”

“We did have a little water in between,” trainer Marcelo Polanco says about his barn, “but on the sides nothing happened.”

About 80 horses were transported off the grounds and sent to either Los Alamitos or San Luis Rey. These were horses who are normally kept outside in pens and were vulnerable to the weather conditions. Some were moved inside but once the empty stalls were filled, the excess had to be shipped out temporarily.

Both dirt tracks were open Tuesday but only for jogging, no galloping or works were allowed. Training resumed Wednesday. Racing returns on Thursday.

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