The Oklahoma Training Track at Saratoga Race Course will open Thursday, Apr. 18, officials at the New York Racing Association (NYRA), with the barn area opening to licensed trainers and staff from Monday, Apr. 15.
As Saratoga prepares to host the 2024 Belmont Stakes Fesitval June 6-9, the main track will open one month earlier than customary on Monday, May 6.
Due to the ongoing construction at Belmont Park, there will be significant changes to the usual NYRA training schedule. The Belmont main track will remain closed for training through the spring and summer as NYRA reconstructs the dirt surface and both turf courses while finishing the installation of a new one-mile synthetic surface. The Belmont training track, synthetic pony track and a jogging barn will be open for daily training throughout the spring and summer.
In light of the construction, NYRA is waiving all stall rental fees at Saratoga for the spring training season beginning May 6, assuming all trainer accounts are current through the end of 2023.
The spring/summer and fall meets normally scheduled for Belmont Park will be run at Aqueduct, as previously announced.
In this series, the TDN takes a look at notable successes of European-based sires in North America. This column is highlighted by the victory of Granny Budgie in California.
Massaat Filly Sparkles At Santa Anita
Mickley Stud-bred Granny Budgie (GB) (Massaat {Ire}) won a Santa Anita contest for trainer Phil D'Amato earlier this month. The 3-year-old filly races in the colours of David Bernsen, Omar Aldabbagh and Jeffrey Lambert (video).
Originally an £18,000 Goffs UK Premier & Silver yearling on the bid of JS Bloodstock, the bay won on debut for owner/trainer George Scott and earned two more wins for Knights & Kings Racing Stable from a total of five UK starts before changing hands again privately and running sixth in the Listed Sweet Life S. locally in February. Her dam raced until she was six and earned her lone win that year. A half-sister to Group 3 winner Caledonia Lady (GB) (Firebreak {GB}), Caledonia Duchess (GB) (Dutch Art {GB}) has been bred exclusively to Massaat. Her juvenile colt brought £21,000 at the 2023 edition of the Goffs UK sale from Compas Equine/Iain Jardine, while she also has a yearling filly.
Mickley stallion Massaat, a son of Teofilo (Ire) who won the G2 Hungerford S. and was second in both the G1 2000 Guineas and G1 Dewhurst S., has a flawless North American record with two winners from two runners. His Mas Rapido (GB) was also second in Santa Anita's Listed John Shear S. in 2023.
Bull's Lil Bro Shines At Tampa
White Birch homebred Kubrick (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), a half-brother to multiple Grade I winner and Gainesway stallion Raging Bull (Fr) (Dark Angel {Ire}), earned his Making Waves badge at Tampa Bay Downs earlier this month for trainer Chad Brown (video).
The 2022 G3 Prix des Chenes hero is out of the stakes-placed Rosa Bonheur (Mr. Greeley), the dam of three winners overall, who also has a 3-year-old filly named Roseannadanna (Ire) (No Nay Never) and a yearling filly by Wootton Bassett (GB). His granddam Rolly Polly (Ire) (Mukaddamah), well regarded in Italy, and a graded/group winner in France, the US, Italy and England, is also the ancestress of G3 Prix de Seine-et-Oise heroine Exxtra (Fr) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}).
Darley stalwart Dubawi now has 41 winners (51%) from 80 runners in the US and Canada. His 22 stakes winners (28%) in that jurisdiction include 17 graded winners with 10 Grade I winners among them. His best has been In Italian (GB), Dubawi Heights (GB) and Modern Games (Ire), all of which have at least two top-level victories to their names.
Repeat Honoree
Madaket Stables, Michael Dubb and Michael Kisber's Chili Flag (Fr) (Cityscape {GB}) added the GIII Honey Fox S. to her resume for trainer Ian Wilkes in the first week of March (video). The 5-year-old was making her second start this term following a sixth in the GII Pegasus World Cup Filly & Mare Turf Invitational S. in January and taking the Forever Together S. in 2023.
The GI Beholder Mile is being renamed the B. Wayne Hughes Beholder Mile in honor of the multiple champion's late owner, who passed away in August 2021.
Hughes, the founder of the Public Storage company and whose silks carried the same purple-and-orange color scheme, owned horses for five decades and was the proprietor of Spendthrift Farm from 2004.
Beholder, a daughter of Henny Hughes, was purchased for $180,000 at the 2011 Keeneland September sale and won a record 13 stakes races at Santa Anita, including the 2012 GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies and Breeders' Cup Distaffs in Arcadia in 2013 and 2016. A four-time Eclipse Award winner, she registered 12 Grade I victories and retired with earnings of $6,156,600. She was inducted into Racing's Hall of Fame in 2022.
“Santa Anita is proud to honor someone who gave so much to the sport,” said Nate Newby, Santa Anita Senior Vice President and General Manager. “Mr. Hughes was a true sportsman who made contributions in every aspect of the game. It only seems appropriate that his name stands alongside his greatest racemare in Santa Anita's most prestigious race for fillies and mares.”
Added current Spendthrift owner Eric Gustavson: “The team at Spendthrift, including Wayne's daughter Tammy and me, would like to sincerely thank Santa Anita for renaming the Beholder Mile. To have B. Wayne Hughes's name attached to such a prestigious race, named after his best race mare at his favorite place is an amazing way to honor him.”
