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Blue Grass-Bound Pair Fire Keeneland Bullets

Finnick the Fierce (Dialed In) and Man in the Can (Can the Man) were the recipients of Saturday morning bullets at Keeneland as each wrapped up their serious work ahead of next Saturday’s GII Toyota Blue Grass S. in Lexington.

The one-eyed Finnick the Fierce drilled a half-mile in :46.20, the fastest of 90 works at the distance Saturday morning. The gelding, an adjudicated allowance winner at Oaklawn Apr. 4, was a sound third to the now-retired Nadal (Blame) in the GI Arkansas Derby May 2. He exits a third in Churchill allowance company June 13 in which Blue Grass hopeful Art Collector (Bernardini) was allowed to set a moderate pace and kicked home much the best.

Arkansas-bred Man in the Can won the state-bred restricted Rainbow S. Apr. 17 and the Arkansas Breeders’ Championship S. May 1 before besting next-out GIII Ohio Derby upsetter Dean Martini (Cairo Prince) in a June 12 allowance beneath the Twin Spires. The bay zipped five furlongs in :59.60 (1/18) Saturday in Lexington.

“He handled the track really well,” trainer Ron Moquett said. “I was really glad to see that. It should set him up well for the race.”

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Stall-Side Test For Equine Disease May Assist With COVID-19 Detection

Scientists have discovered a way to use a cell phone's camera to detect respiratory diseases like equine influenza in horses; that same technology could help identify COVID-19 in humans. These easily spread diseases can cause large death tolls, as well as economic loss and disruption of daily life.

One complication to slowing the spread of diseases like these are the is the lack of widely available testing that can offer speedy and accurate results, reports The Horse. This means that communities are unable to make informed recommendations regarding quarantines that can help control the spread of the disease.

Early diagnosis of disease, whether in horses or humans, is key to controlling the spread of disease, notes Dr. Brian Cunningham, an electrical and computer engineering professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. If obtaining results takes days, whether because of a backlog of samples or lab closures because of holidays, the virus has already spread before a positive result is even given. Adding to the potential delay in diagnosis and implementation of control strategies is that some affected patients may have more than one disease.

Cunningham has developed a testing technique for a variety of equine respiratory pathogens, including Streptococcus equi, EHV-1 and EHV-4, and equine influenza. The test uses nasal swabs to detect viral RNA, which is converted to DNA and then amplified in compartments on a silicon chip. Each compartment on the chip can be used to test for a different virus. The chemical reaction it produces replicates billions of copies of the original viral nucleic acid sequence. Fluorescent markers bind to the DNA during amplification, which can be seen on smartphone cameras as green light.

The entire test takes about 30 minutes and can be done stall side, eliminating the need to send samples to a lab and wait, possibly days, for results. With modification, the test could also be used to detect contagious human respiratory viruses like COVID-19.

Into Mischief Filly Finally Makes the Grade in Quickly Run Victory Ride

TDN Rising Star Frank’s Rockette (Into Mischief) wasn’t given the easiest of tasks in the early going of Saturday’s GIII Victory Ride S., but she showed her grit and class late with a hard-fought head score over the well-meant Reagan’s Edge (Competitive Edge).

Off a hair slow, the Bill Mott trainee raced out to take an early advantage from her inside draw and was closely attended by Reagan’s Edge, an allowance winner at Churchill in May, and Center Aisle (Into Mischief), a $1.5-million Fasig-Tipton Florida sale graduate who scored first out at Gulfstream in March before finishing fifth in a Churchill allowance May 22.

Pursued by those rivals through initial fractions of :23.11 and a half in :45.52, Frank’s Rockette maintained a comfortable edge turning for home, and while her two rivals gave it their best shot, the 2-5 favorite held on to post the narrow victory over Reagan’s Edge, with Center Aisle 3/4 of a length third. The final time of 1:14.47 was 0.01 off the track record for 6 1/2 furlongs.

“When you looked at the race on paper, it looked like we’d be the clear speed and probably be a length or two in front on the backside,” said trainer Bill Mott. “There was a horse hanging right with her. She didn’t break quite as sharp as I’ve seen her in the past, but she was able to open up a bit when she turned for home and had enough courage to hold them off. She had to work at it a little bit. It was not an easy win.”

Mott indicated the Aug. 8 GI Longines Test S. at Saratoga might be next.

“”That’s what I’ve had my eyes on,” Mott said of the Test. “It’s a big challenge. The Test is a great race. We’ve won it a couple of times and it’s a very important race for 3-year-old fillies. If she’s doing well, I’d like to give her a try in there.”

A runaway first-out winner at Churchill Downs last term, Frank’s Rockette recorded a pair of runner-up finishes at Saratoga behind Perfect Alibi (Sky Mesa) in the GII Adirondack S. in August and the GI Spinaway S. the following month before playing the bridesmaid once again, this time to Wicked Whisper (Liam’s Map), in the GI Frizette S. in October. An easy front-running seven-length winner in her sophomore debut in Gulfstream’s Any Limit S. Feb. 22, she was second to Kimari (Munnings) in Oaklawn’s Apr. 4 Purple Martin S. before returning to the winner’s circle following a May 25 optional claimer in Louisville.

Pedigree Notes:

With the win in the Victory Ride, Frank’s Rockette becomes the 30th graded stakes winner for Spendthrift marquee sire Into Mischief. Rocket Twentyone, a $300,000 OBS March purchase who evolved into the winner of the GIII Arlington-Washington Lassie S., is also responsible for the stakes-placed duo of Firewater Rocket (Macho Rocket) and Rocknroll Rocket (Curlin). This represents the family of 2-year-old champion filly and champion female sprinter Indian Blessing (Indian Charlie).

A half-sister to graded-placed Bear’s Conductor (Congaree), the 11-year-old mare hasn’t produced a foal of record over the past two seasons and was bred to American Pharoah earlier this spring.

Saturday, Belmont Park
VICTORY RIDE S.-GIII, $97,000, Belmont, 7-4, 3yo, f, 6 1/2f, 1:14.47, ft.
1–FRANK’S ROCKETTE, 120, f, 3, by Into Mischief
1st Dam: Rocket Twentyone (GSW, $136,149), by Indian Charlie
2nd Dam: Symphonic Lady, by Blare of Trumpets
3rd Dam: Wavering Lady, by Wavering Monarch
1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. TDN Rising Star O-Frank Fletcher Racing Operations, Inc.; B-Frank Fletcher (KY); T-William I. Mott; J-John R. Velazquez. $55,000. Lifetime Record: 8-4-4-0, $413,603. Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Reagan’s Edge, 120, f, 3, Competitive Edge–Dayienu, by Sunday Break (Jpn). ($45,000 Wlg ’17 FTKNOV; $30,000 Ylg ’18 FTKJUL; $77,000 2yo ’19 OBSAPR). O-David Ingordo; B-Mauk One Farm (KY); T-Cherie DeVaux. $20,000.
3–Center Aisle, 120, f, 3, Into Mischief–Specification, by Empire Maker. ($165,000 Wlg ’17 KEENOV; $450,000 Ylg ’18 KEESEP; $1,500,000 2yo ’19 FTFMAR). O-OXO Equine LLC; B-Breffni Farm (KY); T-Chad C. Brown. $12,000.
Margins: HD, 3/4, 4 1/4. Odds: 0.45, 13.10, 4.10.
Also Ran: Up in Smoke, Miss Peppina.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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Serpentine, Love Continue O’Brien’s Dominance Of Oaks, Derby At Epsom

Aidan O'Brien scored his third Group 1 Oaks-Derby double on Saturday at Epsom Downs in the United Kingdom, with Serpentine giving him a record eighth triumph in the Investec Epsom Derby shortly after Love won the Investec Epsom Oaks for the Wizard of Ballydoyle's eighth victory in that classic as well.

Both winners of the mile and one-half British classics campaign for Coolmore partners Michael Tabor, Mrs. John Magnier and Derrick Smith and both were sired by Galileo, who gave O'Brien his first Epsom Derby win in 2001. Serpentine became Galileo's fifth winner of the Epsom Derby.

O'Brien previously won the Oaks and Derby in the same year in 2001 and 2012. This year, because of the coronavirus pandemic, the races were delayed from their traditional date on the calendar and, in another departure from tradition, run on the same afternoon in front of an empty grandstand.

Love, ridden by Ryan Moore, crushed her seven opponents as the favorite, coming from off the pace to win by nine lengths over O'Brien stablemate Ennistymon (also by Galileo). Frankly Darling, the Group 2 Ribblesdale winner at Royal Ascot on June 16 for John Gosden and Frankie Dettori, finished third.

Love, now five for nine, was coming off a victory in the Group 1 One Thousand Guineas at Newmarket on June 7. The Irish-bred Oaks winner was produced from the Pivotal mare, Pikaboo.

Love winning the Investec Oaks under Ryan Moore

Serpentine, one of six runners for O'Brien in the 16-horse Derby field, was a 25-1 outsider whose only previous win came in a June 27 maiden race at the Curragh in his native Ireland – just one week before the Derby.

Ridden by Emmet McNamara, Serpentine darted straight to the lead in a role some suspected as a pacemaker, then opened an insurmountable advantage that was whittled down to six lengths at the winning post.

Andrew Balding-trained Khalifa Sat finished second, with O'Brien-trained Amhran Na Bhfiann third and co-favorites Kameko and English King finishing fourth and fifth, respectively.

Serpentine was produced from Remember When, a Danehill Dancer mare out of Lagrian, herself the producer of Group 1 winners Dylan Thomas, Queen's Logic and Homecoming Queen.

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