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Uncle Mo Colt Graduates in Style at the Spa

Golden Pal, still diploma-less despite two runner-up finishes and plenty of hype, put it all together Friday in Saratoga’s Skidmore S. A close second at 1-2 odds on the Gulfstream main track Apr. 17, the son of turf sprinting phenom Lady Shipman was just tagged late after showing the way in Royal Ascot’s

G2 Norfolk S. June 19. He and stablemate Fauci (Malibu Moon) appeared to have this compact field at their mercy, and the public got it right in installing Golden Pal as the 2-5 chalk. Blasting out of his outside stall to immediately clear off, the Randall Lowe homebred doled out splits of :21.99 and :44.37 with Fauci in closest pursuit. The race already appeared won as they straightened for home, and Irad Ortiz, Jr. just gave Golden Pal a couple of shoulder taps as he cruised home well clear of Fauci while stopping the timer in a sharp 1:00.88.

“He’s something special, this guy. I think we just got a little peek at it,” trainer Wesley Ward said of the winner. “From everything we’ve seen here, they’re coming into his home court like Michael Jordan in the United Center in the Breeders’ Cup this year. He’s a very, very nice colt. I’m very thankful for the owner [Randy Lowe]. He’s afforded me the time that myself and my team has needed, and this horse had some issues and my team has really worked hard on this guy. He’s so fast and he’s so gifted. To get him to this point is special.”

Ward indicated that Golden Pal would most likely train up to the GII Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint, to be held at Keeneland Nov. 6.

Golden Pal is the first foal to race out of brilliant 13-time winner Lady Shipman (Midshipman), who missed by a neck in the 2015 GI Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. Lady Shipman has not produced a live foal since Golden Pal and was bred back to Omaha Beach for 2021. For more on Golden Pal and owner/breeder Randy Lowe, see Second Chances.

SKIDMORE S., $85,000, Saratoga, 8-21, 2yo, 5 1/2fT, 1:00.88, fm.
1–GOLDEN PAL, 118, c, 2, by Uncle Mo
1st Dam: Lady Shipman (GSW-Can, MSW & GISP-USA, $902,387), by Midshipman
2nd Dam: Sumthingtotalkabt, by Mutakddim
3rd Dam: Nannetta, by Falstaff
($325,000 RNA Ylg ’19 KEESEP). 1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN. O-Ranlo
Investments LLC; B-Randall E Lowe (FL); T-Wesley A. Ward;
J-Irad Ortiz, Jr.. $46,750. Lifetime Record: 3-1-2-0, $73,056.
2–Fauci, 122, c, 2, Malibu Moon–Tashzara (Ire), by Intikhab.
($175,000 Ylg ’19 KEESEP). O-Lindy Farms & Ice Wine Stable;
B-Spendthrift Farm LLC (KY); T-Wesley A. Ward. $17,000.
3–Sky’s Not Falling, 122, g, 2, Seville (Ger)–Sky Copper, by Sky
Mesa. ($9,000 RNA Wlg ’18 EASDEC). O-R. Larry Johnson & R.
D. M. Racing Stable; B-R. Larry Johnson (MD); T-Michael J.
Trombetta. $10,200.
Margins: 3HF, 4, 3 1/4. Odds: 0.45, 3.40, 5.20.
Also Ran: Sunny Isle Beach, Kentucky Knight, Baytown Bear.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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New Items Available Through NYRA Cares

Racing fans now have the opportunity to win new Saratoga hospitality experiences and memorabilia with the addition of a series of items to the NYRA Cares charitable program, which supports local non-profit organizations.

Featured new items include a table for four in the Turf Terrace on GI Whitney Day for the 2021 meet and seating for four next summer at The Rail at the 1863 Club on GI Alabama Day. Also included is a Saratoga Springs Monopoly game signed by Barclay Tagg and Saratoga banners which are featured on Broadway.

Each item will be awarded via drawing. Fans can purchase entry tickets at NYRACares.org. Entry tickets are $10 and provide one entry for the corresponding item. There is no limit on the number of tickets a fan can purchase per item. Tickets may be purchased until 11:59 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 3. Winners will be selected by the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce Friday, Sept. 4.

All proceeds benefit the Adirondack Trust Company Community Fund, which will distribute grants from the funds that are generated to local non-profit organizations. Established in 2009, the Adirondack Trust Company Community Fund serves as a source of philanthropic support for local charities.

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‘One Of Those Races You Aspire To Win’: Motion Readying Mean Mary, Secret Message For Diana

Trainer Graham Motion has reached the heights of the sport, winning four Breeders' Cup races along with the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby. But the Diana, for older fillies and mares on turf at Saratoga, is one prestigious race that has eluded him.

After saddling the runner-up finisher on five occasions, Motion will look to break through, sending out two contenders in Mean Mary and Secret Message in Sunday's 82nd running of the Grade 1, $500,000 Diana going 1 1/8 miles on the Mellon turf course.

Motion has come as close as possible to training the winner of the Diana without having a horse cross the wire first, with Ultra Brat losing by a nose to Sistercharlie in 2018. Quidura (2017), Shared Account (2010), and Sweet Talker (2006) all lost by a head, while Aruna was beaten 1 1/2 lengths in a second-place effort in 2011.

Even before his training career, Motion experienced bad beats in the Diana. Working for trainer Jonathan Sheppard, Motion was the exercise rider of the filly Wooing, who as a 32-1 shot finished first in the race in 1989 but was disqualified for interference and placed behind Glowing Honor.

“Since I've worked for Jonathan Sheppard, it's been a race I've always pointed horses towards,” Motion said. “I even galloped a filly that got disqualified in this race, so it's been a bit of a nemesis for me. It's one of those races that you aspire to win. It's a race that has amazing history and with me training turf horses, and specifically turf fillies, it's always been a race that I've wanted to try and win and try to compete in every year.”

Motion's contenders make up one-third of the small-but-accomplished six-horse field that features the Chad Brown-trained duo of 3-2 favorite Rushing Fall and Sistercharlie [5-2], who will be looking to become the first horse in the Diana's history to win it three consecutive years.

Alex G. Campbell, Jr.'s Mean Mary drew the outside post with Luis Saez aboard. Listed at 3-1, she enters 3-for-3 in her 4-year-old campaign and with four consecutive wins overall dating to a December victory over optional claimers at Gulfstream Park.

In her 2020 bow, she wired a 10-horse field going 1 ½ miles to win the Grade 3 La Prevoyante by five lengths in January at Gulfstream and again won over the track in the 1 3/8-mile Grade 3 Orchid in March. Last out, she was shortened to 1 ¼ miles and responded with a stellar 5 ¼-length score in the Grade 2 New York that netted Mean Mary her first career triple digit Beyer Speed Figure at 101.

Since making her debut running fifth on dirt in September, Mean Mary has won five of her six turf starts and came in second in the other; a one-mile allowance contest in November at Aqueduct Racetrack.

“She impressed me when she broke her maiden and she's just continued to improve,” Motion said. “When she ran in the stake the first time [the La Prevoyante], it was more about the races that were available to her, and I just had a feeling she'd handle the extra distance and she handled it well.”

After proving she likes longer distances, Motion said the 1 1/8-mile Diana will be a good indicator as he prepares her for a potential start in the Grade 1, $2 million Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf at 1 3/16-miles in November at Keeneland.

“She's been pointing to this race for a long time,” Motion said. “With the Breeders' Cup, I need to find out if she can handle these shorter distances. She certainly did before we started running her at these longer races, but not at this level. She's trained really well for this race and hasn't really missed a beat.”

Secret Message, owned by Madaket Stables, Heider Family Stables, ERJ Racing, Elayne Stables Five and Steve Bouchey, is the longest shot on the board in the Diana at 20-1, drawing post 2 with Irad Ortiz, Jr. aboard.

The 5-year-old daughter of Hat Trick is also coming off a short turnaround after running third in last week's Perfect Sting at the Spa. After running sixth in the Grade 1 Jenny Wiley on July 11 at Keeneland, won by Rushing Fall, Secret Message earned blacktype in the 1 1/16-mile Perfect Sting on August 14 and will wheel right back.

“The racing this year has been different because it's come up so competitive even though it's listed races,” Motion said. “We feel like we haven't been able to run her as much as we normally would. The fact that she's a big, robust filly; we felt she could handle a quick turnaround. She really ran the last quarter-mile last weekend and really sprinted home. She sprinted home as fast as anyone.”

Motion is approaching 2,500 career wins [2,477 entering Friday] and won the 2011 Grade 1 Kentucky Derby with Animal Kingdom, who also ran second in that year's Grade 1 Preakness. He has earned placing in the other two American Classics, saddling runner-up Irish War Cry in the 2017 Grade 1 Belmont Stakes and Icabad Crane to a third-place effort in the 2008 Preakness. He won last year's Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf with Sharing and is a two-time winner of the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Turf with Main Sequence (2014) and Better Talk Now (2004). Shared Account won the 2010 Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf.

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Pletcher ‘Very Happy’ With Dr Post’s Friday Work At Saratoga

Grade 1 Belmont Stakes runner-up Dr Post resumed serious preparations for the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby on Friday morning at Saratoga for trainer Todd Pletcher.

Under mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-60s, the 3-year-old son of Quality Road went to the track following the renovation break, and completed his five-eighths work in company with stablemate Money Moves in 1:00.75 over a fast main track.

“It was a good work for him today. He galloped out well and I was very happy with what I saw out of him,” said Pletcher, who won the Kentucky Derby with Super Saver (2010) and Always Dreaming (2017).

Pletcher said that Dr Post would work once more next Friday, August 28 over the Saratoga main track before shipping to Churchill Downs.

Owned by Vincent Viola's St. Elias Stable, Dr Post will arrive at the Kentucky Derby off a third-place finish in the Grade 1 Haskell Invitational on July 16 at Monmouth Park after running second to likely Kentucky Derby favorite Tiz the Law in the Belmont Stakes. His lone stakes victory to date took place in the Unbridled on April 26 at Gulfstream Park, where he was a 1 ½-length winner.

Pletcher holds the record for the most Kentucky Derby contestants, having saddled 54 contenders dating back to 2000, where he sent out Impeachment (third), More Than Ready (fourth) and Trippi (11th). He has finished second twice and third on four occasions, and his total number of starts is five more than the next-closest competitor in Hall of Famer and Pletcher mentor D. Wayne Lukas, who has sent out 49 starters.

Also on Friday, Pletcher sent out Robert and Lawana Low's Sweet Melania for a breeze over the Oklahoma training turf course, where she completed a half-mile move in 48.72 seconds in preparation for an attempt at a third graded stakes win in the Grade 3, $100,000 Lake George on Friday, August 28.

The daughter of 2015 Triple Crown winner and second crop sire American Pharoah was an easy gate-to-wire winner of the last out Grade 3 Wonder Again over the Widener turf at Belmont Park. As a 2-year-old, she won the Grade 2 Jessamine at Keeneland en route to a third-place finish in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Santa Anita.

“She worked well and finished up nicely,” Pletcher said.

Bred in Kentucky by St Elias Stables, Sweet Melania is out of the Discreet Cat mare Sweet N Discreet and is a direct descendant of prolific broodmare Lassie Dear. She was bought for $600,000 from the 2018 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, where she was consigned by Gainesway.

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