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Tom’s D’Etat Tops First Week Of Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings

GMB Racing's 7-year-old Tom's d'Etat, winner of the Stephen Foster Stakes (G2), leads the first week of tabulated votes for the 2020 Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings, a weekly rating of the top 10 horses in contention for the $7 million Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington on November 7.

The Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings are determined by a panel of leading Thoroughbred racing media, horseplayers and members of the Breeders' Cup Racing Directors/Secretaries Panel. Rankings will be announced each week through October 13. A list of voting members can be found here.

In the Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings, each voter rates horses on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 system in descending order.

Tom's d'Etat, a Kentucky-bred son of Smart Strike, trained by Al Stall Jr., topped all Classic contenders this week with 292 votes. Earning a “Win and You're In” berth into the Breeders' Cup Classic with his runaway 4 ¼-length victory in the 1 1/8-mile Stephen Foster on June 27 at Churchill Downs, Tom's d'Etat scored his second triumph of 2020, following a win in the Oaklawn Mile Stakes on April 11.

Gary and Mary West, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith's 4-year-old Maximum Security (243 votes) is in second place. Now trained by Bob Baffert, Maximum Security won the inaugural $20 million Saudi Cup in February. A bay son of 2013 Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) winner New Year's Day, Maximum Security was the 2019 3-year-old Male Eclipse Award winner. Maximum Security is expected to start in this Saturday's San Diego Handicap (G2) at Del Mar. Baffert won the Breeders' Cup Classic in consecutive years with Bayern (2014), American Pharoah (2015) and Arrogate (2016).

Sackatoga Stable's Tiz the Law (210 votes) is one of two 3-year-olds in the top 10. Ranked third, Tiz the Law is unbeaten in three starts this year, taking the Holy Bull (G3), the Florida Derby (G1) and the 1 1/8-mile Belmont Stakes (G1) on June 20. Trainer Barclay Tagg has pointed the New York-bred son of Constitution to the Runhappy Travers Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course on Aug. 8.

W.S. Farish's 4-year-old Code of Honor is ranked fourth with 200 votes. Winner of the Westchester Stakes (G3), and a third-place finisher in the Metropolitan Handicap (G1), Code of Honor won both the Travers Stakes and The Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) before finishing seventh in last year's Breeders' Cup Classic for trainer Claude R. “Shug” McGaughey.

Garnering the fifth-most votes in the poll is Bloom Racing, Madaket Stables and Allen Racing's 5-year-old mare Midnight Bisou. The Steve Asmussen-trained dark bay daughter of Midnight Lute stormed from the back of the pack against male rivals in the Saudi Cup in January and finished second, just three-quarters of a length behind Maximum Security at the wire. Midnight Bisou (174 votes) continued her solid form in her return to the races last month, dominating the Fleur de Lis (G2) at Churchill Downs, for fillies and mares, romping to an 8 ¼-length victory.

CRK Stable's Honor A. P. is the second 3-year-old in the top 10 of this week's rankings, taking the sixth position. Trained by John Shirrreffs, who saddled Zenyatta to victory in the 2009 Breeders' Cup Classic, Honor A. P. (125 votes) won the Runhappy Santa Anita Derby (G1) on June 6.

Allied Racing Stable's By My Standards (122 votes) is next in seventh place. By My Standards has won two Grade 2 stakes this year for trainer Bret Calhoun. The 4-year-old bay son of two-time Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) winner Goldencents registered victories in the New Orleans Handicap and the Oaklawn Handicap before finishing second to Tom's d'Etat in the Stephen Foster.

Juddmonte Farms' 4-year-old Tacitus (92 votes), in eighth place, ended a long winless drought in his last start, rolling to a 8 ¾-length victory in the Suburban Stakes (G2) at Belmont Park on July 4. His trainer, Bill Mott, has saddled Breeders' Cup Classic winners Cigar (1995) and Drosselmeyer (2011).

R.A. Hill Stable and Gatsas Stable's 4-year-old Vekoma, is next in ninth place with 83 votes. Trained by George Weaver, Vekoma is unbeaten in three starts this year, two of those being Breeders' Cup Challenge Series races at shorter distances. The chestnut son of Candy Ride (ARG) won both the Runhappy Carter Handicap (G1), for the Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1), and the Runhappy Metropolitan Handicap (G1), for the Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1).

Rounding out the top 10 is the 4-year-old Improbable (82 votes), owned by WinStar Farm, China Horse Club International and SF Racing. Trained by Bob Baffert, Improbable won the 1 ¼-mile Hollywood Gold Cup (G1) at Santa Anita on June 6.

Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings – July 21, 2020*

RANK	HORSE	TOTAL VOTES	FIRST-PLACE VOTES
1	Tom's d'Etat	292	17
2	Maximum Security	243	9
3	Tiz the Law	210	2
4	Code of Honor	200	2
5	Midnight Bisou	174	3
6	Honor A. P.	125	0
7	By My Standards	122	0
8	Tacitus	92	0
9	Vekoma	83	1
10	Improbable	82	0

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Freshman Sire Charming Thought Off the Mark at Great Yarmouth

Darley stallion Charming Thought (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}), who operated out of Dalham Hall Stud for a fee of £5,000 this year, became the latest European freshman sire off the mark when the Tick Tock Partnership’s Alicestar (GB) claimed a debut score going a shade over six furlongs in Wednesday’s Southwold Novice Auction S. at Great Yarmouth.

5th-Great Yarmouth, £5,400, Nov, 7-22, 2yo, 6f 3yT, 1:13.47, g/f.
ALICESTAR (GB) (f, 2, Charming Thought {GB}–Atheera {Ire}, by Shamardal) found cover in fifth from the outset of this unveiling. Angled into the clear approaching the quarter-mile marker, the 4-1 second favourite was ridden to go second entering the final eighth and pushed out late to assert by 1 1/4 lengths from Soldier Lions (Ire) (Equiano {Fr}), becoming the first winner for her freshman sire (by Oasis Dream {GB}). She is the latest of four winning foals produced by a winning granddaughter of G1 Irish 1000 Guineas heroine Mehthaaf (Nureyev), herself a half-sister to G1 July Cup-winning sire Elnadim (Danzig). Sales history: 8,000gns RNA Wlg ’18 TATFOA; £10,000 Ylg ’19 TASAYG. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $4,448. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
1ST-TIME STARTER. O-Tick Tock Partnership; B-Lordship Stud (GB); T-David Simcock.

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Moscato Aims for Sweet Win in A. P. Smithwick

The spring steeplechase season was compressed by the coronavirus pandemic into 21 races at two June race meets, but it had some sweet moments.

Perhaps none was as satisfying as the GIII Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase H. victory by Bruton Street-US’s Moscato (GB) (Hernando {Fr}), named after the sweet Italian wine. Moscato will have an opportunity to make his season even sweeter in Saratoga Race Course’s GI A. P. Smithwick Memorial Steeplechase H. Thursday.

Second in the weights to Rosbrian Farm’s Optimus Prime (Fr) (Deportivo {Fr}), 9-year-old Moscato very likely will be favored in the 2 1/16-mile Smithwick off his 11-length victory in the Temple Gwathmey June 13.

The victory was everything that was expected of Moscato since his arrival in leading trainer Jack Fisher’s barn in early 2017. Bred by Kirsten Rausing and formerly trained by Oliver Sherwood, Moscato bolted through the novice division with three New York stakes victories and was American jump racing’s leading earner going into the fall season.

Fisher and the Bruton Street partners-Maryland neighbors Charles Fenwick Jr., Mike Hankin, and Charles Noell entered Moscato for the GI Grand National, but he was scratched on the eve of the Far Hills, N.J., race with an injury that kept him off the racecourse for all of 2018.

He won his comeback race, the 2019 Temple Gwathmey, but did not return to the winner’s circle until his repeat victory last month.

In between, he was unplaced only once, an eighth-place finish in Belmont Park’s GI Lonesome Glory H. behind Wendy Hendriks’ Surprising Soul (Perfect Soul {Ire}), the likely pacesetter in Thursday’s Smithwick.

Bruton Street also entered Pravalaguna (Fr) (Great Pretender {Ire}), a front-running mare formerly trained by Willie Mullins. Shipped in for last fall’s Far Hills meet, she demolished an overmatched group of fillies and mares in the Peapack S.

The 8-year-old has not started since the Peapack. Fisher also entered Riverdee Stable’s Gibralfaro (Ire) (Dalakhani {Ire}), who found a sweet spot in the International Gold Cup’s GII David L. “Zeke” Ferguson Memorial Hurdle S. last October.

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Breeders’ Cup Turf Winner Magician Relocated To Italy

Magician, the winner of the 2013 Breeders' Cup Turf and Irish 2,000 Guineas, has been relocated once again, this time to stand in Italy, according to the French racing publication Jour de Galop.

A farm and fee will be determined later for the 10-year-old son of Galileo, whose career will be managed by the partnership of Mattia Cadrobbi, Marco Bozzi and Guido Berardelli.

Magician began his stallion career in 2015 at Coolmore's Ashford Stud in Versailles, Ky., and he was relocated to Coolmore's Castlehyde Stud in Ireland prior to the completion of the 2018 breeding season. He was then moved to Haras de Corlay in France in 2019, where he stood for two seasons.

The stallion's oldest foals are 4-year-olds of 2020, led by Chilean Group 1-placed Calmate, English Group 2-placed Cardini, and stakes winner Miss My Rose.

Magician won four of 15 starts during his racing career for earnings of $2,580,402. His strongest campaign came at age three, in which he won the English G3 Dee Stakes as a prep for a score in the Irish 2,000 Guineas. He finished his sophomore campaign with a half-length triumph in the Breeders' Cup Turf at Santa Anita Park.

At four, Magician picked up a win in the Irish G3 Mooresbridge Stakes, and finished second in the G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup, Prince of Wales's Stakes, and Arlington Million.

Magician is out of the Group 3-placed stakes-winning Mozart mare Absolutelyfabulous, making him a full-brother to Grade 3 winner Apple Betty and Grade 1-placed stakes winner Outstanding.

Multiple European classic winner Henrythenavigator is in his extended family, along with Irish champion Listen, Group 1 winner Sequoyah, and Group 3 winner Queen Cleopatra.

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