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Vergara Repels Challenge From She’s A Mia To Win Tepin At Aqueduct

Gary Broad's Vergara made a strong move from the outside at the top of the stretch to overtake Tasweya and Solib before out-dueling She's a Mia in the final sixteenth to post a win by three-quarters of a length in Sunday's $100,000 Tepin for 2-year-old fillies competing at 1 1/16 miles on the inner turf course at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

Vergara, who graduated with a 1 1/4-length win at second asking last out in October at Laurel Park in Laurel, Md., shipped to an out-of-state track for the first time and displayed the ability to both travel and handle stakes company.

Departing from post 3 under Luis Saez, the Noble Mission filly tracked in third position as Tasweya led a 10-horse field through the opening quarter-mile in :23.73 and the half in :50.10 over firm going in the fourth running of the Tepin.

In the final furlong, Vergara responded to Saez's left-handed encouragement by surging past Tasweya from the outside while She's a Mia, at 25-1, gamely fought on from the rail under rider Jalon Samuel. In the final sixteenth, Vergara drew away to complete the course in a 1:44.50 final time.

“She broke pretty badly but after the second jump she was right there,” Saez said. “She was running a little green at the three-eighths and she came in behind heels, but when she came into the stretch, she started running.

“We were looking to cover up and relax. She was a little green,” Saez added. “She came in behind horses and I don't want to be at the top of the stretch trying to come out. That's why I did that before the stretch and she responded really well.”

Off at 6-1, Vergara paid $14.60 on a $2 win wager. Purchased for $130,000 at the 2020 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, Vergara improved her career earnings to $87,200.

Trainer Graham Motion breezed Vergara at the Maryland-based Fair Hill facility and kept her local for her first two starts, which saw her run third in a 5 1/2-furlong sprint at Laurel on September 30 before her win last month at the same track when stretched out to 1 1/8 miles. She handled going two turns again, showing a strong turn-of-foot.

“She ran better,” Saez said. “She had good speed to break and be right there. It was a great race. Graham said to ride her however you want. I stayed with the pony [during the post parade] because going long, I don't want to be too rank.”

She's a Mia, who won her turf debut in her second overall career start last out going six furlongs on October 16 at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., for trainer Cleveland Johnson, again teamed with Samuel and earned a placing, edging Mischievous Kiss by a neck for runner-up status.

“She had a very nice trip. It's the first time she's ever gone the distance and the winner had gone a mile and an eighth already,” Samuel said. “I was trying to track them, but the winner got an edge on me at the distance.”

The favorite Caironi, Anador, Solib, Determined Star, Louella Street, Tasweya,photos and Kingdom Queen completed the order of finish. Main-track only entrant Waters of Merom scratched.

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Live racing resumes Thursday at the Big A with a nine-race card. First post is 12:20 p.m. Eastern.

America's Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the fall meet at Aqueduct Racetrack on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule.

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Aqueduct Racetrack, and the best way to bet every race of the fall meet. Available to horseplayers nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.

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Change Of Control Rides Rail To Victory In Autumn Day At Aqueduct

Perry Harrison's Change of Control overtook pacesetter Athwaaq when straightened for home and repelled 6-5 favorite Too Sexy's deep-stretch bid to post a victory by three-quarters of a length in Sunday's $150,000 Autumn Days for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up going six furlongs on the outer turf at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

Change of Control, who already registered a pair of graded stakes wins in her 5-year-old campaign, including a last-out score in the Grade 3 Franklin County in October at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky., made a successful debut at the Big A, tallying her fourth stakes win of 2021 for trainer Michelle Lovell.

The fifth running of the Autumn Days saw Athwaaq break on top from post 6, leading the eight-horse field through an opening quarter-mile in :23.26 and the half in :46.28 over firm going. Jockey Colby Hernandez tucked Change of Control in third position near the rail, with the pocket position enabling her to move up to second out of the turn.

Once straightened for home, Change of Control capitalized with the open seam from the inside, overtaking a tiring Athwaaq. Hernandez kept his charge to task as Too Sexy rallied to pass three rivals, gaining in the shadow of the wire before Change of Control completed the course in a 1:09.14 final time to improve to 4-2-3 in 10 starts this year.

Hernandez's rail-riding trip earned Change of Control, off at 7-2, a winner's circle trip, returning $9.90 on a $2 win bet. She improved her career earnings to $739,257.

“She gave us a good break and I was right there,” Hernandez said. “I tried to pop out and run second but they weren't letting me out. I saw the horse on the front looked like she was going to come out at the top of the stretch and we stayed there and it ended up working out perfect.

“Every single time she runs, it's like she gets better,” he added. “She's just a cool horse, does nothing wrong, and anything you ask her, she does. She's a very cool horse to ride.”

Change of Control, bred in Kentucky by John O' Meara, is 2-for-2 at NYRA-operated tracks this year after winning the G3 Intercontinental in June at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

“Colby rode her perfect. He never panicked,” Lovell said. “He stayed right there on the inside and she just looked awesome. She did well in New York when we sent her up to Belmont in the summer, so I just thought this race was a really good spot. The owner gave us a lot of time finding the best races for her. She's really thriving and coming into her own.”
Lovell said Change of Control will now winter in Louisiana in preparing for her 6-year-old year in 2022 before embarking on the next phase of her career.

“She'll go to Fair Grounds for the winter. We'll try to map out her races really well over the winter, spring, and summertime, and then she'll go to the breeding shed,” Lovell said. “I'm not really sure what our plan is from here, but she'll come back to Churchill and come to Fair Grounds with the rest of my barn.”

Too Sexy, trained by Christophe Clement, topped the slow-starting Love And Thunder by one length for second. Jockey Jose Lezcano, who was aboard for Too Sexy's last-out win in the Floral Park in October at Belmont, said the outcome might have been different with a slightly more advantageous trip.

“She broke well and I had to wait a little bit until the eighth pole,” Lezcano said. “She gave a very good race and ran strong. She did everything right, the winner is just a very good horse. I think she also got a better trip than I got. I had to go between horses and she got through on the inside.”

Miss Majorette, Piedi Bianchi, Athwaaq, Raven's Cry, and Secure Connection completed the order of finish.

[Story Continues Below]

Live racing resumes Thursday at the Big A with a nine-race card. First post is 12:20 p.m. Eastern.

The post Change Of Control Rides Rail To Victory In Autumn Day At Aqueduct appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Change Of Control Rides Rail To Victory In Autumn Days At Aqueduct

Hernandez's rail-riding trip earned Change of Control, off at 7-2, a winner's circle trip, returning $9.90 on a $2 win bet. She improved her career earnings to $739,257.

“Every single time she runs, it's like she gets better,” he added. “She's just a cool horse, does nothing wrong and anything you ask her, she does. She's a very cool horse to ride.”

Change of Control, bred in Kentucky by John O' Meara, is 2-for-2 at NYRA-operated tracks this year after winning the G3 Intercontinental in June at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

Lovell said Change of Control will now winter in Louisiana in preparing for her 6-year-old year in 2022 before embarking on the next phase of her career.

Miss Majorette, Piedi Bianchi, Athwaaq, Raven's Cry, and Secure Connection completed the order of finish.

Live racing resumes Thursday at the Big A with a nine-race card. First post is 12:20 p.m. Eastern.

The post Change Of Control Rides Rail To Victory In Autumn Days At Aqueduct appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Hopeful Treasure Passes Chateau Late To Win Fall Highweight Handicap

Hopeful Treasure shipped in from Parx Racing in Bensalem, Penn., for the Grade 3 Fall Highweight Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack and he made the van ride north worth it with a narrow victory over a surging Green Light Go and a tiring Chateau.

Out of the gate in the six-furlong stakes, the favored Chateau, carrying 131 pounds, grabbed a two-length lead, with Rough Entry, War Tocsin, and Hopeful Treasure stalking the pace down the backstretch. Hopeful Treasure, carrying 128 pounds, moved up to second after a first quarter-mile in :22.51, maintaining his second-place position around the far turn as Chateau continued to lead by two lengths. Fifth early, Green Light Go, carrying 129 pounds, switched from the rail to the outside on the turn, with Chateau going into the stretch still on the lead, Hopeful Treasure and Green Light Go chasing.

Down the stretch at the Ozone Park, N.Y., racetrack, Chateau dug in, trying to hold onto the lead, but Hopeful Treasure's closing bid gave him enough to catch the former frontrunner in the last sixteenth. Green Light Go was able to get by Chateau in the waning strides before the wire, but was too late to catch Hopeful Treasure, who won by a head.

The final time for the six furlongs was 1:11.19. Find this race's chart here.

Hopeful Treasure paid $38.00, $11.40, and $6.30. Green Light Go paid $5.90 and $5.40. Chateau paid $3.50.

“The horse is a nice horse. He ran a monster race last out and he was just starting to come into himself. He was feeling great, and this was his owner's [Tony Como] idea. He said, 'Let's give this horse a shot'. Tony has had the confidence in him from Day One. He ran a couple of good races in his past, he just needed some time to mature into himself and grow. He got a great ride from his jockey in his last start and today, he got the same ride. It just worked out,” trainer Michael Catalano Jr. said after the race.

“I know him really well even though it's only been my second time riding him. I've worked him since he was a baby. I told the trainer and owner that he was going to compete and run his best race. They just had him ready,” jockey Mychel Sanchez told the NYRA Press Office after the Fall Highweight. “I broke awesome and got in good position early in the race. I was always confident. I knew I could go by the one horse [Chateau] any time. I was only concerned if anyone else was going to close better than him, but he got it done.”

Bred in Kentucky by Calumet Farm, Hopeful Treasure is by Oxbow out of the Giant's Causeway mare Elle Special. He is owned by Just In Time Racing. The 4-year-old ridgling was consigned by Ballysax Bloodstock and purchased by Mike Pino, agent, for $6,000 at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale. With his win in the G3 Fall Highweight, Hopeful Treasure has three wins in six starts in 2021, for a lifetime record of six wins in 14 starts and career earnings of $282,402.

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