Juddmonte's fourth generation homebred maiden winner Jungfrau could target a rescheduled edition of the $250,000 Withers (G3) at Aqueduct Racetrack, now to be run on Saturday. The son of Arrogate is also possible for the following Saturday's Risen Star (G2) at Fair Grounds, according to Juddmonte General Manager Garrett O'Rourke.
The Withers is a local qualifier on the Road to the Kentucky Derby awarding the top-five finishers 20-8-6-4-2 qualifying points, while the Risen Star carries point value of 50-20-15-10-5. Both are nine-furlong events.
“We've talked about the Risen Star and the Withers. I don't know which one it's going to be yet, but both are in play,” O'Rourke said.
Jungfrau, a gray or roan son of Arrogate, broke his maiden on New Year's Eve at Gulfstream Park going 1 1/16 miles, finishing a nose behind Expect More but was elevated to first via disqualification. Passing the quarter pole, Expect More floated outwards into the path of an advancing Jungfrau, who still managed to find another gear in the stretch drive and hit the finish line in tandem with his foe.
The victory came after a pair of fourth-place efforts at maiden level on the NYRA circuit, finishing 3 1/2 lengths behind subsequent graded stakes winner Champions Dream on debut in September at Saratoga Race Course. In November, he finished 5 1/4 lengths in arrears of possible Withers aspirant Classic Catch going nine furlongs at the Big A.
Jungfrau is trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, who swept the exacta in Saturday's Derby-qualifying Grade 3 Holy Bull at Gulfstream Park with Rocket Can and New York-bred Shadow Dragon.
“He was the deserved winner last time because he was the one that did everything professionally,” O'Rourke said. “In the stretch, the horse that finished ahead of him to the wire swung out and gave him a big old bump which knocked him off his momentum. But he came back and was only beaten a nose and found another stride.”
O'Rourke said he believes Jungfrau will end up being a router.
“He runs and looks like a two-turn type of horse,” O'Rourke said. “He's a big, strong galloping horse. When he was an early 2-year-old, the exercise riders really liked him. He was just a bit quirky in his first couple of starts. He was a bit green, stopping and going. Bill says he's perfectly sound, he's just been a bit goofy I think.”
Boasting strong Juddmonte-influenced bloodlines, Jungfrau is out of the Tapit mare South Bank, whose dam Special Duty was a three-time Group 1 winner. His second dam Quest to Peak is a full sister to seven-time Grade 1-winning main track distaffer Sightseek and a half sister to multiple graded stakes winner Tates Creek, a dual Grade 1 winner on turf. She is a direct descendant of 1974 champion 3-year-old Chris Evert, a member of the Racing Hall of Fame and an influential broodmare.
The post ‘He Runs And Looks Like A Two-Turn Type Of Horse’: Juddmonte Maiden Winner Jungfrau Could Start On Road To Kentucky Derby In Withers Or Risen Star appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
