News | Horse Racing Free Tips

Jackie’s Warrior Outlegs The Competition In Saratoga Special

Kirk Robison's Jackie's Warrior broke sharply from the gate and never looked back, making the grade in the 115th running of the Grade 2, $150,000 Saratoga Special presented by Miller Lite at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

The son of Maclean's Music joined the likes of champions Colin (1905), Regret (1914), Morvich (1921), Blue Larkspur (1928), Top Flight (1931), Whirlaway (1941), Native Dancer (1952), Nearctic (1956), Bold Forbes (1975), Conquistador Cielo (1981), and Favorite Trick (1997) as winners of the historic six-furlong event for 2-year-olds.

Piloted by Joel Rosario, Jackie's Warrior was swift in breaking from his outside post and was sent straight to the lead, recording fractions of 22.06 seconds for the opening quarter-mile and the half-mile in 44.85.

At the top of the stretch, Jackie's Warrior was still in command with Therideofalifetime unleashing a bid to his outside. But Jackie's Warrior prevailed and crossed the wire under a hand ride to win by three lengths in a final time of 1:09.62 on the fast main track.

Therideofalifetime finished another four lengths ahead of third-place finisher Momos.

Completing the order of finish were Garoppolo, Cazadero, Papetu, Market Alert, Pickin' Time and Hold the Salsa. Roderick and Caramel Chip were scratched.

Returning $8.20 for a $2 win ticket, Jackie's Warrior arrived off a 2 ½-length debut win at Churchill Downs over subsequent Saratoga Special runner-up Therideofalifetime. He boosted his earnings to $127,564.

The victory was a fifth triumph in the Saratoga Special for Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, who is just one short of Hall of Famer James Rowe Sr.'s record six Saratoga Special wins.

“With babies, I just wanted a clean break as he did in his first race and let his talent take over,” Asmussen said. “Being Saratoga, there were a lot of nice forms coming into it but when you get to Saratoga, not everybody likes the circumstances. I'm glad to see that he does. Good final time. Watching today's races, I think the track played fair. I don't think it [the lead] was anywhere he had to be, it's just where he was.”

The victory marked the meet-leading seventh stakes score for Rosario, who said he felt confident throughout aboard Jackie's Warrior.

“He [trainer Steve Asmussen] wanted me to get him out of there where he put himself,” Rosario said. “He broke well and we were just hanging on the lead, so I just rode it from there. He was looking really nice and he was enjoying that. He had his going ears back and forth and he looked like he was going easy even though the fractions were fast. He was having no problem with that. When they came close to him he wanted to go, and I felt even more confident at that point. I knew he had something left.”

Bred in Kentucky by J & J Stables, Jackie's Warrior is out of the A.P. Five Hundred mare Unicorn Girl.

Live racing returns on Saturday with an action-packed 12-race program for Runhappy Travers Day. Spearheaded by the 151st running of the Grade 1, $1 million Runhappy Travers, the enticing undercard includes the Grade 1, $300,000 Longines Test for sophomore fillies; the Grade 1, $300,000 Ballerina presented by NYRA Bets, a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint; the Grade 3, $200,000 Troy for 4-year-olds and up on Mellon turf and the Grade 3, $150,000 Waya for older fillies and mares on the inner turf. First post is 12 p.m. Eastern.

The post Jackie’s Warrior Outlegs The Competition In Saratoga Special appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Texas Red Filly too Fast in Sorrento

My Girl Red, who became the first winner from her freshman sire (by Afleet Alex)’s small first crop when she aired by 4 1/4 lengths at Santa Anita June 14, ran to short odds in Friday evening’s GII Sorrento S. to become his first stakes and graded stakes winner as well. Campaigned by the same connections who raced the 2014 GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile S. winner and 2015 GII Jim Dandy S. winner, the bay out-footed her five rivals in the early scramble for position to take a narrow advantage into the turn. She posted splits of :22.17 and :45.88, and was not for catching as she kicked on wrapped up and clear of buzzed-about firster Get On the Bus, who did well from the rail draw and raced like a horse who would benefit from Friday’s experience.

“I didn’t have any special instructions; just ride her with confidence,” said winning rider Flavien Prat. “She showed speed away from there, then we got a nice breather on the turn. From there she just went on and won in hand.”

Trainer Keith Desormeaux added, “Flavien was telling me how she was looking around and kind of lost interest the last eighth. What was nice to me was that she was doing that the first quarter. I know it’s still early and the time is average. But I think she can go even quicker and I sure don’t want to complain. She has always shown signs of class and it’s nice to see one duplicate in the afternoon what we see in the mornings.

My Girl Red will be pointed towards the GI Del Mar Debutante S. Sept. 6.

Friday, Del Mar
SORRENTO S.-GII, $150,500, Del Mar, 8-7, 2yo, f, 6f, 1:12.12, ft.
1–MY GIRL RED, 120, f, 2, by Texas Red
                1st Dam: Morakami (SP, $145,532), by Fusaichi Pegasus
                2nd Dam: Astrid, by Concern
                3rd Dam: Mescalina, by Smarten
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($70,000
RNA Ylg ’19 OBSOCT). O/B-Erich Brehm (KY); T-J. Keith
Desormeaux; J-Flavien Prat. $90,000. Lifetime Record: 2-2-0-0,
$120,000. *1/2 to Over Thinking (Overanalyze), SP, $261,081;
Oh Marvelous Me (Bluegrass Cat), GSP, $207,558; and Gold
Street (Street Boss), MSW, $229,468. Werk Nick Rating: B.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Get On the Bus, 118, f, 2, Uncle Mo–Storybook (UAE), by
Halling. ($150,000 Ylg ’19 FTSAUG; $340,000 2yo ’20
OBSMAR). O-Reddam Racing LLC; B-Mr. Joseph Allen LLC (KY);
T-Doug F. O’Neill. $30,000.
3–Exchange Vows, 118, f, 2, Tapiture–Champagne Exchange, by
Exchange Rate. ($6,000 Ylg ’19 FTCAYR). O-Tricar Stables, Inc.;
B-Bar C Racing Stables Inc (CA); T-Sal Gonzalez. $18,000.
Margins: 4 3/4, 5, 1HF. Odds: 0.90, 2.80, 19.90.
Also Ran: Scat’s Choice, September Secret, Scaterra. Scratched: Trip to Seoul. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

Pedigree Notes:
Just a $17,000 KEESEP yearling, Texas Red missed by a neck from far back in his sprint debut before breaking through third out on the Del Mar synthetic in August of his juvenile season. He was third behind eventual champion American Pharoah in Santa Anita’s GI FrontRunner S. that September, and with that one absent crushed his competition in the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at a tick under 14-1, besting fellow young sires Carpe Diem and Upstart in the process. He added the GII Jim Dandy S. at Saratoga the following year with a narrow defeat of Frosted, and eventually took up stud duties at Crestwood Farm.

Dam Morakami, meanwhile, was just a $21,000 pick-up at the 2017 Keeneland January sale while carrying a Street Boss colt. That colt was later sold for $150,00 at Keeneland September and would go on to take a pair of stakes (thus far) as Gold Street. Morakami produced another Texas Red filly last May and a Kitten’s Joy filly this year before visiting Into Mischief for 2021.
Prominent owner/breeder G. Watts Humphrey has a connection to both of Friday’s Grade II-winning juveniles. He raced Morakami, and bred GII Saratoga Special S. winner Jackie’s Warrior’s dam sire A. P. Five Hundred.

The post Texas Red Filly too Fast in Sorrento appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Beat Ray At Del Mar: A Little Red Feather In My Cap?

After nosing out TVG analyst Christina Blacker last week when Collusion Illusion held off Lexitonian in the Grade 1 Bing Crosby Stakes, my friends at Del Mar rounded up a confidence builder in Little Red Feather managing partner Billy Koch for this Saturday's edition of the Beat Ray online handicapping contest.

It's the equivalent of going up against Grade 1 competition and then dropping into an entry-level allowance race.

I'm only kidding, of course. Billy, who grew up on the mean streets of Beverly Hills, was reading the Daily Racing Form instead of See Spot Run as a toddler and cutting kindergarten classes to go racing at Hollywood Park with his movie mogul grandfather, Howard Koch. He never left the track, turning his passion for the game into a career, founding Little Red Feather Racing partnerships that he now manages with Gary Fenton.

This week's contest race is the G2 Yellow Ribbon Stakes, the ninth of 11 on Saturday. First post is 2 p.m. PT, and the Yellow Ribbon is scheduled to go at 6:10 p.m. PT.

Billy will join fellow handicapper Michelle Yu and me on Saturday at 11 a.m. PT on Del Mar's social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Youtube) to handicap the Yellow Ribbon, whose seven-horse field includes last year's winner, the Irish-bred Beau Recall, trained by Brad Cox. Tune in to hear our handicapping strategies and bets for the contest.

Beat Ray Everyday is an online contest offered every racing day of the Del Mar summer meet. It's free to play and you can sign up here. Bet a mythical $100 each day on the selected contest race in win, place or show bets on any horse or horses. At the end of the meet, the player with the highest bankroll from those wagers becomes the “Beach Boss” and wins two VIP tickets to the 2021 Breeders' Cup at Del Mar. Other prizes are available to top finishers and anyone who finishes ahead of me is entered in a drawing for even more prizes.

Every Saturday, a racing or sports celebrity will be a guest handicapper for the contest race.

Ray's Beat Ray Everyday plays:
July 10: $100 win on Hit the Road. Result: Won and paid $5.20 ($260 total)
July 11: $100 win on Voodoo Song. Result: Fifth as 2.90-1 favorite
July 12: $100 win on Going to Vegas. Result: Sixth at 6.10-1
July 24: $50 win/place on Surrender Now. Result: Seventh at 9.60-1
July 25: $40 win/place Croughavouke. Result: fifth at 7.30-1. $20 win Over Attracted. Result: eighth at 13.90-1
July 26:$60 to win Camino Del Paraiso. Result: lost rider at 4.20-1.$20 to win Desmond Doss. Result: fourth at 49.00-1. $20 to win Ultimate Bango. Result: eighth at 12.70-1.
July 27: $100 win Hootie. Result: Won and paid $7.80. ($390 total)
July 31: $25 win and place on Mr. Paytience. Result: fourth at 14.10-1. $25 win and place on Square Deal. Result: ninth at 19.80-1
Aug. 1: $100 win Collusion Illusion. Won and paid $5.80 ($290 total)
Aug. 2: $100 win Savvy Gal. Result: sixth at 3.20-1
Aug. 7: $100 win Lavender.
Aug. 8: ???

The post Beat Ray At Del Mar: A Little Red Feather In My Cap? appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Maclean’s Music Colt Turns in ‘Special’ Performance at the Spa

J. Kirk Robison’s Jackie’s Warrior (Maclean’s Music), the “other” Steve Asmussen runner signed on for Friday’s GII Saratoga Special S., out-footed them all and never looked back en route to a powerful score at the Spa. The imposing bay took his Churchill debut by 2 1/2 lengths June 19, and was flattered when the runner-up that day, re-opposing Therideofalifetime (Candy Ride {Arg}) returned to romp at Keeneland and earn ‘TDN Rising Star‘ status. He was less proven on paper than stablemate, GIII Bashford Manor S. winner and ‘Rising Star‘ Cazadero (Street Sense), but if their work together on July 26 (5f, 1:01.72, 16/31, XBTV Video) was any indication, 3-1 Jackie’s Warrior may have been coming into this class test better than 8-5 Cazadero. After a gate incident that prompted the scratch of a longshot and reload, the outside-drawn Jackie’s Warrior broke on top and quickly cleared with ‘Rising Star‘ Momos (Distorted Humor) and Therideofalifetime in hot pursuit through splits of :22.06 and :44.85. The leading trio were far in front of the rest of the field–including a hard-ridden Cazadero–at the top of the stretch, but Jackie’s Warrior was in a race of his own as he bounded away with impressive strides to prevail by a geared-down three lengths in 1:09.62. Momos held third, while Cazadero could only manage fifth.

Friday, Saratoga
SARATOGA SPECIAL S. PRESENTED BY MILLER LITE-GII, $150,000, Saratoga, 8-7, 2yo, 6f, 1:09.62, ft.
1–JACKIE’S WARRIOR, 120, c, 2, by Maclean’s Music
1st Dam: Unicorn Girl, by A. P. Five Hundred
2nd Dam: Horah for Bailey, by Doneraile Court
3rd Dam: Horah for the Lady, by Rahy
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($95,000 Ylg
’19 KEESEP). O-J. Kirk Robison; B-J & J Stables (KY); T-Steven M.
Asmussen; J-Joel Rosario. $82,500. Lifetime Record: 2-2-0-0,
$127,564. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus* Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Therideofalifetime, 120, c, 2, Candy Ride (Arg)–Cosmic
Evolution, by Proud Citizen. ‘TDN Rising Star’ O/B-Stephen
Lawrence Fidel (KY); T-Ignacio Correas, IV. $30,000.
3–Momos, 120, c, 2, Distorted Humor–Inspeight of Us, by
Speightstown. ($75,000 Ylg ’19 OBSWIN; $180,000 2yo ’20
OBSMAR). ‘TDN Rising Star’ O-Ironhorse Racing Stable LLC &
Secure Investments; B-Tami D. Bobo & Distorted Humor
Syndicate (KY); T-Christophe Clement. $18,000.
Margins: 3, 4, 1 3/4. Odds: 3.10, 3.75, 7.50.
Also Ran: Garoppolo, Cazadero, Papetu, Market Alert, Pickin’ Time, Hold the Salsa. Scratched: Caramel Chip, Roderick.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

“[Trainer Steve Asmussen] wanted me to get him out of there where he put himself,” said winning rider Joel Rosario. “He broke well and we were just hanging on the lead, so I just rode it from there. He was looking really nice and he was enjoying that. He had his going ears back and forth and he looked like he was going easy even though the fractions were fast. He was having no problem with that. When they came close to him he wanted to go, and I felt even more confident at that point. I knew he had something left.”

This was Asmussen’s fifth Saratoga Special win (Cuvee 2003, Kodiak Kowboy 2007, Kantharos 2010, Copper Bullet 2017).

“With babies, I just wanted a clean break as he did in his first race and let his talent take over,” he said. “Being Saratoga, there were a lot of nice forms coming into it but when you get to Saratoga, not everybody likes the circumstances. I’m glad to see that he does.”

The Hall of Famer added, “I think this was a new test for him. He won first time out at five-eighths of a mile and obviously was sharp. [Sire] Maclean’s Music is a horse that we had that was brilliantly quick but we always thought from training him that he would stretch out.”

Asmussen said the GI Runhappy Hopeful S. here over seven panels Sept. 7 would likely be next on the agenda for Jackie’s Warrior. As for the beaten favorite: “[Jockey] Ricardo [Santana, Jr.] didn’t think [Cazadero] handled the racetrack at all. Most likely, with him being two-for-two at Churchill Downs, we’ll get him back there.”

Pedigree Notes:

Jackie’s Warrior is the 18th black-type winner and fourth graded stakes winner for Hill ‘n’ Dale resident Maclean’s Music, whose half-brother Uncle Chuck (Uncle Mo) will look to play the role of spoiler in Saturday’s GI Runhappy Travers S. Trained by Asmussen for Cazadero’s owner/breeder Stonestreet, Maclean’s Music made just one start–a 7 1/4-length romp at Santa Anita as a March 3-year-old, good for a 114 Beyer Speed Figure, the fastest ever earned by a debuter. The horse Maclean’s Music beat that day was named Flightofalifetime–no relation to Therideofalifetime.

Maclean’s Music’s most accomplished performer, GI Preakness S. hero Cloud Computing, is out of a mare by Jackie’s Warrior’s maternal grandsire, A.P. Indy. Jackie’s Warrior is the first graded winner out of a mare by A.P. Five Hundred, who began his stud career in Florida before quickly being exported to Chile.

Jackie’s Warrior’s hard-knocking dam Unicorn Girl was far and away A. P. Five Hundred’s most productive U.S.-sired runner–she was a 19-time winner who racked up $483,508 before being claimed out of her last lifetime start for $16,000 at the age of eight. Jackie’s Warrior is her third foal.

Unicorn Girl was bought back for $110,000 at KEENOV ’18 carrying a Candy Ride (Arg) filly and produced an American Pharoah colt this Mar. 8 before being bred to Into Mischief for 2021. Unicorn Girl is out of SW Horah for Bailey, making her a half to MSW Bernie the Maestro (Bernstein), GSP Richard the Great (Distorted Humor) and MSP juvenile Awesome Mass (Brethren).

The post Maclean’s Music Colt Turns in ‘Special’ Performance at the Spa appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post