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Guarana Has Sights On Fourth Grade 1 In ‘Win And You’re In’ Ballerina At Saratoga

Following a gritty effort to win the Grade 1 Madison on July 11 at Keeneland, Three Chimneys Farm and Hill n Dale Equine Holdings' Guarana is scheduled to seek a fourth career Grade 1 triumph in the $300,000 Ballerina presented by NYRA Bets on August 8 at Saratoga.

The seven-furlong event over the main track for older fillies and mares is a Breeders' Cup “Win And You're In” event and provides an automatic entry towards the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint on November 6 at Keeneland.

“I think that's a logical target,” said Doug Cauthen, Vice Chairman of Three Chimneys Farm. “Like with all of them, we let them guide us there but it's definitely on the radar. Hopefully, she can have a good summer and fall.”

Trained by Chad Brown, Guarana boasts a consistent 6-5-1-0 record with three of her victories taking place against Grade 1 competition. In her most recent effort, the Ghostzapper filly commanded the pace early on and was confronted to the outside by Mia Mischief at the top of the stretch who appeared to be in winning contention at the three-sixteenths. Guarana refused to be denied and battled back along the rail to win by a half-length.

“I think she gained even more fans for her courage,” said Cauthen. “It's hard to get passed up and then come back. She was definitely more than game that day. She's really a very special filly and special to everybody here because she's a homebred and she's just brilliant.”

Following a sensational career debut last April at Keeneland, Guarana followed up by defeating Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks winner Serengeti Empress in the Grade 1 Acorn at Belmont Park en route to a two-turn score in the Grade 1 Coaching Club American Oaks at the Spa.

“She's multi-dimensional,” Cauthen said. “She showed that talent last year winning one turn races and winning going two turns at Saratoga as well.”

Guarana is out of the Distorted Humor broodmare Magical World whose dam was the 2005 Breeders' Cup Distaff winner Pleasant Home. Her fourth dam was Grade 1-winner Maplejinsky, who produced Hall of Famer and 1994 Champion Older Female Sky Beauty.

“She's got a lot of the scope and the mare has plenty of scope and quality,” Cauthen said. “She [Magical World] is a Distorted Humor mare that's bigger than most Distorted Humor mares. Just quality and class that runs through the line.”

Fans of Guarana can look forward to seeing her Pioneerof the Nile half-brother debut later in the year. This year, her dam gave birth to a Gun Runner colt and is currently in foal to Quality Road.

“She has a Pioneerof the Nile 2-year-old with Chad that from all hopes is special, but he's got to go out there and prove it. I think he'll be a late summer, early fall horse if all goes well,” Cauthen said.

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Horologist Co-Owner Banned For Appearing In Winner’s Circle

Cameron Beatty, a co-owner of Horologist (Gemologist), has been banned from Monmouth Park for the remainder of the 2020 meet after he appeared in the winner’s circle following her win in the June 18 GIII Molly Pitcher S. Because of the coronavirus, Monmouth is not allowing owners in the winner’s circle or in the paddock.

Dennis Drazin, who heads the management team that runs Monmouth, said that, for now, the suspension means only that Beatty is not allowed on the premises. However, he said further disciplinary actions could be taken after reviewing whether or not Beatty has also been violating rules by going on the backstretch.

“We have rules and they have to be followed,” Drazin said. “We have strict COVID-19 protocols that we submitted to the state and they submitted them to the department of health and they were signed off on by the racing commission and the governor’s office. We were told we need to enforce our rules. Here you have an owner that decided to disregard the rules. He admits he disregarded the rules. It’s not like he says he didn’t know. He deliberately violated the rules.”

Beatty tells a different story, that he was not aware of the rules and was simply caught up in the moment after the horse he owns along with Parkland Thoroughbreds, Medallion Racing and Abbondanza Racing, LLC, won an important race.

“[Monmouth Racing Secretary] John Heims told me that I put the sport of horse racing in New Jersey at risk,” Beatty said. “I didn’t intend to do that at all. I went down to the area of the winner’s circle and I was excited. They told me grab your horse and bring her into winner’s circle and I did that.”

Drazin was not sympathetic.

“He’s gone out he posted things on social media and seems to be blaming everyone but himself,” he said. “But he’s the one who violated the rules.”

Beatty, 28, acknowledges that he should have read up on the protocols in place at Monmouth, which are posted on the track’s website, but insisted he did not intentionally break any rules.

“I’m not the type of person who starts trouble or ever gets into trouble or breaks a rule,” he said. “I try to do the right thing when no one is looking.”

Beatty and Drazin also disagree on how the process unfolded. Beatty said he asked Heims for a hearing and that Heims told him not to bother because there was no chance the suspension would be overturned. Drazin says that Beatty declined to have a hearing.

“We first wrote to him and offered him an opportunity to come in and discuss it,” Drazin said. “He elected not to. He admitted he violated our rules and told John Heims to do what he had to do.”

“They said I wanted no part of a discussion or wanted no part of a hearing and that is completely false,” Beatty said. “It makes me sick to my stomach because Dennis Drazin is someone with a ton of authority and I’m just a little guy here. I’m trying to do right thing for the industry and Jersey-bred racing, which is one of the reasons we brought Horologist back, to give a Jersey-bred a chance to win a graded stakes. I want a hearing. I want to give my side of the story.”

Drazin said that, in the aftermath of the incident, he heard from several people that Beatty had been violating additional rules by sneaking onto the Monmouth backstretch, which could lead to additional sanctions.

“We’ve told him he’s not allowed here for the balance of the 2020 meet,” Drazin said. “Since he started posting things on social media, I have gotten a number of calls suggesting he’s been violating our rules and sneaking on to the backside. I don’t know if that is accurate or not. We’re going to have to have a hearing on that.”

Drazin added that an additional penalty could be that Beatty will not be allowed to race anymore horses during the meet.

Beatty said that because of the incident, Horologist is no longer being considered for the Aug. 30 Charles B. Hesse III H. for New Jersey breds.

“Me and my partners agreed after this happened that we’re not going to run here her in the Hesse,” he said. “This has put a bad taste in my mouth and makes me take a step back. I’m a big believer that the punishment should fit the crime. I didn’t commit a crime. It was just me, the jockey and the horse in the winner’s circle.”

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‘Nothing Fazes Him’: Tiz The Law Turns In Sharp Breeze At Saratoga

Sackatoga Stable's Grade 1 Belmont Stakes champ Tiz the Law breezed five-eighths in 1:00.48 Saturday morning on the Saratoga Race Course main track in preparation for the Grade 1, $1 million Runhappy Travers slated for August 8 in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Under mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the low 70s, the son of second crop sire Constitution recorded splits of 24.20 and 36.00 before galloping out in 1:13.80 over a fast main track with exercise rider Heather Smullen aboard.

“He does exactly what you tell him to do,” Smullen said. “It was a little different this week just because there was some traffic right off the rail and last week there was no one around and nothing for him to look at. This week, there were a couple horses down the stretch and he just buzzed right by them. I never moved my hands or asked him to do anything. He just stays on his own course, does his job, and gallops out great. I just sat there, and he did it on his own. Everything today was just easy and comfortable on his part.”

A three-time Grade 1 winner, Tiz the Law won the Grade 1 Champagne in October at Belmont following a victory on debut against fellow New York-breds in his lone start at Saratoga. He rounded out his juvenile campaign with a close third in the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club at Churchill Downs, which was his only defeat in six starts.

Trainer Barclay Tagg, who watched the work aboard his stable pony, was pleased but unsurprised with how well his horse trained.

“Nothing fazes him. I don't know that I've ever had a horse quite like him,” Tagg said. “His breathing was perfect. You could tell he just worked, but it was nothing like most horses. He's got three nice races under him. He's good and fit and he's trained perfectly.

“He seems willing to want to do more,” Tagg added. “Whenever we do more, he blazes off just as fast. He's a great horse to have. We try not to take anything away from him.”

Tiz the Law made his seasonal bow at Gulfstream Park with a three-length score in the Grade 3 Holy Bull in February en route to a dominating effort in the nine-furlong Grade 1 Florida Derby by 4 ¼ lengths on March 28. Last out, in the nine-furlong Belmont Stakes, Tiz the Law again proved dominant with a 3 ¾-length score in the first leg of the Triple Crown under regular pilot Manny Franco.

“He's been good everywhere we went,” Tagg said. “He was just like this in Florida and did everything we asked him to. You can follow the book so to speak, but if you miss a couple of days because of weather, he can just pick it right back up again.”

Sackatoga Stables operations manager Jack Knowlton was present for the breeze and said the Runhappy Travers' mile and a quarter distance should be no issue for Tiz the Law.

“It's just what we need,” Knowlton said. “He's fit and he just shows that. Time really doesn't matter. If you look at the way he gallops out, that to me is more meaningful. He works five-eighths then gallops out six, gallops out seven and gallops out a mile and still keeps going. There just seems to be no end to the energy he has, so I'm looking forward to a mile and a quarter race. I think he'll really relish the added distance.”

Bred in New York by Twin Creeks Farm, Tiz the Law is out of the graded stakes winning Tiznow broodmare Tizfiz. He has accumulated earnings of $1,480,300.

Tiz the Law, who leads all contenders with 272 Derby qualifying points, will contest a unique Triple Crown scenario that will continue with the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby, rescheduled from Saturday, May 2 to Saturday, September 5, as the second leg of the Classic series. The Grade 1 Preakness, originally slated for May 16, will close out the Triple Crown on October 3 at Pimlico Race Course.

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‘She Is Back In Top Order’: Enable Cruises To Third King George VI & Queen Elilzabeth Victory

Under rainy skies, Prince Khalid Abdullah's 6-year-old mare Enable (GB), ridden by Frankie Dettori, overpowered Sovereign (IRE) and Japan (GB) en route to a record third win in Saturday's 1 ½-mile King George VI & Queen Elizabeth QIPCO Stakes (G1) at Ascot in the United Kingdom. The 5 ½-length victory earned Enable a guaranteed starting position into the $6 million Longines Breeders' Cup Turf (G1) through the international Breeders' Cup Challenge.

The Breeders' Cup Challenge is an international series of stakes races whose winners receive automatic starting positions and fees paid into a corresponding race of the Breeders' Cup World Championships, which is scheduled to be held at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky, on Nov. 6-7.

Enable becomes the fourth horse this year to gain a “Win and You're In” berth for the Longines Breeders' Cup Turf. She joins Nao Da Mais (BRZ), who won the Gran Premio Carlos Pellegrini (G1) in Argentina, Lord North (IRE), who captured the Prince of Wales's Stakes (G1) at Royal Ascot and Chrono Genesis (JPN), who took the Takarazuka Kinen (G1) in Japan.

Enable, the 2018 Longines Breeders' Cup Turf winner and a two-time champion of the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1), trained by John Gosden, improved her record to 14 wins in 17 starts. She captured the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes in 2017 and in 2019.

Dettori also tied Lester Piggott with a record seven wins in the King George VI.

Making her second start of the year since her defeat to Ghaiyyath (IRE) in the Coral-Eclipse (G1) at Sandown on July 5, Enable faced just two Aidan O'Brien-trained rivals in Japan, last year's Juddmonte International (G1) winner, and Sovereign, the 2019 Irish Derby (G1) winner. A third Ballydoyle runner, 2019 Investec Derby (G1) winner Anthony Van Dyck (IRE), was scratched earlier Saturday morning.

Sent off as the 4-9 favorite, Enable raced in second behind Sovereign, who extended to a six-length in the early going. On the turn for home, Dettori began to urge Enable. Closing the gap into the final furlong, Dettori peered over his left shoulder at Japan, who was not responding to encouragement from jockey Ryan Moore. The daughter of Nathaniel then swept past Sovereign to a commanding victory.

“Enable has really, really trained beautifully for this race,” said Gosden. “I made it very clear to everyone that she wasn't tuned properly for a mile and a quarter [in the Eclipse] at that pace, but the race put her right. I told Frankie to ride her with a lot of confidence and travel for a long as he could, and she did.

“She is back in top order, no doubt about that. We have been thrilled with her at home. I never expect things like that but I was expecting to see that, but life can be full of disappointments.”

“Obviously, we knew Sovereign was going to make the running and it was a bit of a cat and mouse situation with me and Ryan for the first couple of furlongs,” said Dettori. “He was happy to let me go, so I followed the pacemaker and, in fairness, it was a very even gallop. I was trying to time it so I did not hit the front too early and I couldn't hear a lot, so I looked around and I saw Ryan in trouble. Then it was a matter of hoping that, if I pressed the button, she would pick up and she did.”

In winning her 11th Group 1 race, Enable covered the 1 ½ miles in 2:28.92 over a course listed as good to firm.

As part of the benefits of the Challenge Series, Breeders' Cup will pay the entry fees for Enable to start in the Longines Breeders' Cup Turf, which will be run at 1 ½ miles over the Keeneland turf course. Breeders' Cup also will provide a travel allowance of US$40,000 for all starters based outside of North America to compete in the World Championships.

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