Bet to win.
Catterick 2.30 Atailof Two Cities – win bet.
Southwell 7.20 Mackelly – win bet.
Code Of Honor Still Possible For Breeders’ Cup Classic After Kelso Defeat
Following a runner-up performance in Saturday's Grade 2 Kelso at Belmont Park, Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey did not rule Code of Honor out of contention for the Grade 1, $6 million Breeders' Cup Classic.
McGaughey said if Code of Honor does go to the Breeders' Cup, he would prefer the 10-furlong Classic rather than the Dirt Mile.
“We'll have to wait and see how he comes out of it, but I'd be more inclined to run him a mile and a quarter,” McGaughey said. “A mile at Keeneland they start right on the turn and if you draw an outside post you're probably done.”
McGaughey used the Kelso as a Breeders' Cup Classic prep for Honor Code in 2015, who finished third in both races en route to Champion Older Horse honors.
A William S. Farish homebred, the 4-year-old Noble Mission chestnut colt was beaten 2 ¼ lengths to post time favorite Complexity in the one-turn mile Kelso.
McGaughey said Code of Honor is more suited for the classic distance of a mile and a quarter, having won last year's Grade 1 Runhappy Travers at Saratoga and Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park [via the disqualification of Vino Rosso].
“I thought he ran fine,” McGaughey said of the Kelso effort. “The first quarter wasn't that fast. I think the way the race set up with a four-horse race got us out of our game plan. I thought he ran well. They ran fast and the winner is a nice horse and he kind of had it his way. It made it a sprint to the end and we're probably not a sprinter.”
Code of Honor has not won since making his 4-year-old debut in the Grade 3 Westchester on June 6 at Belmont Park. Prior to the Kelso, he finished fourth in the Grade 1 Whitney and was a late-closing third in the Grade 1 Runhappy Met Mile.
McGaughey said that Code of Honor could race next year as a 5-year-old.
“All things being equal, I think he will run next year,” he said.
McGaughey worked a handful of stakes contenders on the turf on Sunday morning, including Phipps Stables' Breaking the Rules, who is scheduled to make his next start in the Grade 2, $150,000 Knickerbocker on October 12.
The 5-year-old son of War Front out of the graded stakes-placed A.P. Indy mare Protesting went five furlongs in 1:00.80.
“I thought he worked really well,” McGaughey said. “He eased away from the pole and finished up really well. He'll go to the Knickerbocker.”
Breaking the Rules was a last out fourth as the beaten favorite in the Lure following back-to-back allowance victories at Belmont and Saratoga.
McGaughey said that one can expect to see a different horse show up in his upcoming engagement.
“He ran well up there [at Saratoga], but he came back fourth in the stakes,” said McGaughey, who won the Knickerbocker with Boisterous in 2011-12. “I think he'll be a different horse this time. I don't think he was real comfortable down on the inside. Johnny [Velazquez] had been riding him on the outside, but he was at the Derby and couldn't ride.”
Allen Stable's Civil Union worked five furlongs in 1:02.22 in preparation for Saturday's Grade 1, 250,000 Flower Bowl Invitational, which McGaughey won with War Flag in 2017.
“She went just fine this morning. She went 1:02 and change and did it well. She's going to go to the Flower Bowl,” McGaughey said.
McGaughey also reported that Emory Hamilton's two-time allowance winner Hungry Kitten, who worked five furlongs in 1:02.22, will target the Grade 3, $125,000 Dowager on October 18 at Keeneland going 1 ½ miles on the turf.
The post Code Of Honor Still Possible For Breeders’ Cup Classic After Kelso Defeat appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
With Derby Moved to September, A Good Month for Handle
According to Equibase figures, total wagering on U.S. races in September was $1,039,737,336, a 29.64% increase over 2019 numbers.
The handle for the GI Kentucky Derby day card at Churchill Downs fell dramatically this year. A total of $128.3 million was bet on the 14 races. In 2019, $250.9 million was wagered on the card. Nonetheless, the $128.3 million was the most bet on any racing program this year and was a major factor in the overall increase for September.
With the increase in numbers during September, total handle for the year is off just 2.86% from the numbers posted in 2019, when COVID-19 did not affect racing schedules.
There was more discouraging news when it came to purses. Because of the coronavirus, almost all betting is being done through ADWs, which contribute a lower percentage to purses than brick-and-mortar betting. Some tracks have also had to go several months without receiving contributions from casinos.
Purses were $110,251,841 in September, a 6.75% percent decline. For the year, they are down 29.61% , with $264.7 million less having been paid out this year when compared to 2019.
The lower purse total is also related to the reduction in racing days. Through September, there were 2,509 race cards held during the year. Through September 2019, that number was 3,515.
The average field size in September was 7.88, a modest increase. For the year, the field size has averaged 7.87 for a 6.53% increase.
The post With Derby Moved to September, A Good Month for Handle appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.
In The Stud Presented By Kentucky Equine Research: Collected, First Crop Weanlings Of 2020
Collected did an admirable job preserving the memory of his late sire City Zip on the racetrack, and he'll aim to continue that pattern as he sets course on his stallion career at Airdrie Stud.
In the 2020 season premiere of the In The Stud video series, Airdrie Stud's Cormac Breathnach discusses what makes the 7-year-old Collected an attractive prospect for breeders, prior to the stallion's first weanlings going through the ring at this year's fall mixed sales.
Collected started his career on the turf, and he ran second in the Grade 3 Cecil B. DeMille Stakes as a juvenile. The colt was then moved to the dirt at three, where he found his true footing with victories in the G3 Lexington Stakes and Sham Stakes.
At four, Collected became one of the top older males in his division, racking up wins in the G1 Pacific Classic, G2 Californian Stakes, and G3 Precisionist Stakes. He also finished second in the Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar. In total, Collected retired with eight wins in 15 starts for earnings of $2,975,500.
The In The Stud series, put together by our friends at EquiSport Photos, features up-and-coming names in the stallion ranks, with a focus on those whose first foals are weanlings of 2020. Paulick Report bloodstock editor Joe Nevills interviews farm staff about the stallion's appealing qualities and what mares might work best with him, while giving viewers and potential breeders a chance to see the stallion on the walk and on the racetrack.
The post In The Stud Presented By Kentucky Equine Research: Collected, First Crop Weanlings Of 2020 appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
