But he hasn't had a starter since Bravazo (Awesome Again) in 2018 and hasn't had a winner since Charismatic in 1999. But the drought is over as the 88-year-old training legend has managed to accumulate enough points (65) with GI Arkansas Derby runner-up Just Steel (Justify) that the colt, barring injury, is guaranteed a spot in the Derby starting gate.

“I'm really excited about being back, but I don't want to be back without a legitimate chance,” Lukas said. “I've already heard 'My Old Kentucky Home' and seen our silks out there on the track. I don't need to go through that. I am interested in trying to get a good horse there.”

Just Steel was seventh, beaten 10 lengths, in the GII Rebel S. and looked to be in over his head that day facing some of the best in the division. But he ran a much-improved race in the Arkansas Derby, finishing second behind Muth (Good Magic) at odds of 32-1.

It was just the type of effort Lukas was looking for from his colt.

“I've been managing this horse a little bit and trying to get him really good,” he said. “He stands 17 hands and he weighs 1,300 pounds. He's a big growthy horse that I didn't want to push a lot in March and April. I wanted to have him good enough so that I could sneak in on the points. But I didn't want to push hard on him.”

With Lukas yet to fully tighten the screws, he is expecting a much-improved performance come Derby Day.

“I finally put a mile work into him to get him ready,” Lukas said. “He's got some quality about him. If I can use the next month to tighten on him a little bit I think he will keep the race honest. I think he will take a quantum leap forward. I could see him improving something like 10 points from the last race to this race. I expect him to jump forward quite a bit.”

That Lukas is back in the Derby isn't necessarily a surprise. For the first time in a few years he has deep-pocketed clients that are spending serious money at the sales. Just Steel runs for BC Stables LLC, the stable name for the partnership of John Bellinger and Brian Coelho.

“I'm very happy for those clients,” he said. “These are my new guys and they have really stepped up financially. They are our No. 1 clients. The yearlings they bought last year are outstanding. I'm more interested in getting them to the Derby than I am getting myself back there. I was really happy after the Arkansas Derby knowing we have gotten them into the Derby.”

Lukas is also holding out hope that Seize the Grey (Arrogate) will earn enough points in Saturday's GI Blue Grass S. to also make it into the Derby field. Owned by MyRacehorse, he was third last time out in the GIII Jeff Ruby Steaks.

“He's a solid horse. And he's got 600 owners, so if we can get him in we'll make a lot of people happy.”

While Lukas will be the oldest trainer taking part in this Derby, his 25-year-old jockey, Keith Asmussen, the son of Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen, will be among the youngest and the least experienced. But Lukas has taken a liking to him and is using him not only on Just Steel but his GI Kentucky Oaks candidate Lemon Muffin (Collected). Asmussen started his riding career in 2020 and this will be his first mount in a Triple Crown race.

“I go back a long way with his family,” Lukas said. “His grandfather and grandmother and I are very close friends. We went from South Dakota to Laredo, Texas together. We combined our stables. We've been close family friends forever. The young Keith has got such a good horse background and he is a really smart rider. He's got a master's degree, for crying out loud. He listens and he does what you want him to do. He makes very good decisions in the race. I understand experience-wise he is lacking but he's a real cool customer. He doesn't get all caught up in it. He is very solid. I will not be changing jockeys.”

Just Steel won't be one of the favorites, but Lukas has won plenty of big races with horses few people gave a chance to. He's won four Derbies but never lost the desire to win a fifth. It's just taken him a while to get back there, and he plans to make the most of the opportunity.

The post Lukas Relishing His Return to the Kentucky Derby appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Lukas turns 88 Saturday and the beat goes on. He will get up at 3 a.m. and within an hour will arrive at his barn located a couple of hundred yards from the Oklahoma training track. As usual, he will be in the saddle on his pony accompanying his horses as they go out for their morning exercise. In the afternoon, with a big cowboy hat on his head, he will be in the paddock at Saratoga Race Course to saddle a couple more starters.

Forget about a party. Lukas said he has to make sure that his wife Laurie is in line with his desire to treat Sept. 2 as pretty much just another day. He doesn't want any surprises.

“What we do here is we get a big old cake and we put it out there on the picnic table, let everybody get one of those plates over there and just have at it,” he said. “That's it.”

It is impossible to know who has been the oldest trainer to send a horse to the track since Thoroughbred racing commenced at Saratoga in 1863. At this point, Lukas is definitely not the oldest. The legendary James “Sunny Jim” Fitzsimmons reached his 88th birthday before the 1962 Saratoga season. In one of those can-you-believe-this Saratoga stats, Fitzsimmons was the leading trainer at Saratoga that summer, his finale upstate before retiring the following June. He locked up the title, which only took nine victories during the 24-day season, with three wins on the next-to-last day of the meet, Aug. 24. As the trainer for the Phipps family, Fitzsimmons had top-quality stock in his barn. Four of his nine wins were in stakes: the Schuylerville, Adirondack, Bernard Baruch and Seneca.

Fitzsimmons, who died at the age of 91 in 1966, switched from an undistinguished career as a jockey to training horses and continued on with distinction in parts of eight decades. He was the leading trainer at Saratoga four times and the national earnings leader five times. His record of 13 of Triple Crown race victories, stood for 56 years until Lukas picked up his 14th in 2013.

Lukas was a school teacher and coach before going full-time into training Quarter Horses in 1969. Equibase stats show him starting his career training Thoroughbreds in 1974. He has 4,910 victories and over $292 million in purse earnings. Once he got rolling with his nationwide Thoroughbred stable, he became the gold standard and among his many other successes, led the nation in earnings 14 times in a span of 15 years.

Decades ago, Lukas made it clear that he had no intention to retire and has continued on. While he is in Saratoga, he likes to play the machines at the nearby Saratoga Casino.

“If I get an afternoon off, I'm so bored,” he said. “That's why I end up in the casino. I've got to have another challenge so I go in there and try to beat them where the odds are really bad. I don't even handle an afternoon off very good let alone if I woke up at nine o'clock and had breakfast and wondered what the rest of the day was going to be.”

Lukas said continuing to do what he has been doing all these years–getting up in the middle of the night, climbing into the saddle and operating his stable–are elements of the elixir that has kept him going. He's not about to stop.

“I think those people that back off, every one of my friends colleagues and so forth that I saw retire and back off, at say, 70, every one of them went downhill,” he said.

In the last 30 years, five of his top owners have died, which has forced him to restructure his business. He said he is proud that at his age he is still able to compete at the top at tracks in Kentucky, New York and Arkansas.

“But here's the thing: I've eliminated the big stable,” he said. “I've limited it to 40 head. That allows me to be hands-on and personal with every horse, much different than when I had the assistants like Todd [Pletcher] and Mark Hennig and all these kids underneath me. So, I limit it to 40. It gives me great satisfaction. I see every horse.”

After a long run at Saratoga, Lukas skipped the 2020 and 2021 seasons due to a combination of the Covid-19 pandemic and a drop in quality of his stable. He returned last summer, compiled a solid 7-6-2 record from 31 starters and had purse earnings of $774,927. His GI Kentucky Oaks winner Secret Oath (Arrogate) was the star of the stable, but ended up second to Nest (Curlin) in the GI Coaching Club American Oaks and the GI Alabama S. Secret Oath is still with Lukas, was second in the GI Personal Ensign S., and he is confident she will run well in the GI Juddmonte Spinster S. at Keeneland.

Not only did he have success on the track in 2022, but with new owners, John Bellinger and Brian Coelho, who operate as BC Stables, he was active at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale.

“We went through a lull there,” Lukas said. “Even though we kept the barn full, we didn't have the quality. Now we have picked up Bellinger and Coelho and we should finish up here in the next couple of years–finish up, I mean until I die–we should finish up pretty good.”

The stable hasn't been quite as strong this summer at Saratoga. Entering Friday it has three wins and 10 seconds from 32 starts and Lukas is hoping for a couple more victories. He will send out a pair of runners on his birthday. On Sunday, he will try to win the GI Spinaway S. for the seventh time with BC's maiden Lady Moscato (Quality Road). Just Steel (Justify) will carry the BC colors in the GI Hopeful S. on closing day Monday. He will be Lukas's 34th starter in the Hopeful, a race he has won a record eight times.

Always looking ahead, Lukas said he expects to have a better-balanced barn in 2024. This year he is heavy with 2-year-olds–14 of the 39 horses he is training–and some of them might put him back on the road to the Triple Crown.

“That's building for the future,” he said. “We've already bought some really good yearlings. If we come back next year and bring 20 to 25 head, there will be some good 3-year-olds in there and some good 2-year-olds in there. We'll be building more to where we used to be.”

If he has his way, Lukas will win a race at Saratoga after his 89th birthday and step past Fitzsimmons again.

The post At 88, Lukas Aiming For Future Success appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – With bids ricocheting from all directions both inside and outside the Humphrey S. Finney Pavilion, the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale of Selected Yearlings opened with a strong session topped by a pair of million-dollar babies Monday night in upstate New York.

“I thought it was a tremendous start to the 2023 Saratoga Yearling Sale,” Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning, Jr. said at the close of business Monday. “The numbers are essentially on par with last year's opening session, which was a remarkable, even historic, evening.”

During Monday's session, 74 yearlings sold for $30,785,000. The average was $416,014 and the median was $350,000.

Those figures were largely equal to the auction's 2022 opening session, which set the table for a record-smashing renewal. During last year's first session, 69 horses grossed $28,930,000 for an average of $419,275 and a median of $350,000.

“We saw a very fair marketplace,” Browning said. “It wasn't insanity, but there was a great diversity of buyers. There was a very, very good mix of buyers tonight and a very good mix of bidders. The love was kind of spread around. We did almost $30 million tonight and that money was spread really across the board amongst a whole lot of horses, which is really good long-term for this marketplace.”

The top 10 lots of Monday's session were purchased by 10 distinct buying entities. Leading the way was a colt by Quality Road who was purchased for $1.1 million by Alex Elliott and Ben McElroy on behalf of Amo Racing. The yearling was consigned by Gainesway on behalf of Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings.

Also bringing seven figures during the session was a filly by Curlin who sold for $1.05 million to David Lanigan as agent for Heider Family Stables. The filly was consigned by Denali Stud.

During last year's first session, four yearlings brought seven figures. The following evening, during a lights-out second session, a further 10 yearlings reached that milestone.

“Any time you start at Saratoga, you always have a little trepidation and a little bit of anxiety,” Browning admitted. “Are we going to be able to sustain the market? Are we going to be able to improve? We came off an unbelievable year in 2022 and had massive increases over 2021. I will sleep better tonight than I did last night knowing there is a viable marketplace. It was a great start, a fantastic start. I'm ecstatic with the first night and I can't wait to start selling tomorrow.”

Amo Aims for Quality

Kia Joorabchian's Amo Racing, which has been expanding its foothold in the U.S. sales ring and on its racetracks, topped Monday's session of the Saratoga sale when purchasing a colt by Quality Road (hip 77) for $1.1 million. The yearling was consigned by Gainesway on behalf of his breeder, Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings.

“I think Kia is looking for Derby horses in the States and he has size and scope and he's by the right sire,” bloodstock agent Alex Elliott, who did his bidding inside the pavilion alongside Ben McElroy, said. “He's got a great pedigree. Obviously, a lot of people wanted him for him to bring what he brought.”

The bay colt is out of graded winner I'm a Looker (Henny Hughes) and from the family of Grade I winner Dortmund (Big Brown). Stonestreet purchased the mare as a 5-year-old for $475,000 at the 2017 Keeneland November sale. Her colt by Curlin sold for $525,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

This year in the U.S., Amo Racing was represented by recent GII Amsterdam S. winner New York Thunder (Nyquist), and the operation went to this year's GI Kentucky Oaks with GII Gulfstream Park Oaks winner Affirmative Lady (Arrogate).

In Europe, Amo Racing's 2-year-old Valiant Force (Malibu Moon) won the G2 Norfolk S. at 150-1 and King of Steel (Wootton Bassett {GB}) was second in the G1 Betfred Derby before winning the G2 King Edward VII S. at Royal Ascot. He was most recently third in the G1 King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Diamond S.

All four were purchased by Amo Racing at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

“Amo Racing has been really lucky buying horses out of America recently,” Elliott said. “I think this horse will go back to Ireland to be broken and then he will come back to America. That's the program for Amo. We have to cross our fingers now.” @JessMartiniTDN

@FasigTiptonCo Saratoga Sale – Monday: Hip 77, a colt by Quality Road (@LanesEndFarms) out of I'm a Looker, sells for $1.1 million to Elliott/McElroy, agent for @amoracingltd from the @Gainesway consignment, agent for @StonestreetFarm!

From the family of DORTMUND. pic.twitter.com/rvjVulj6Fh

— TDN (@theTDN) August 8, 2023

Dilworths Find Homebred Success

Scott and Evan Dilworth have enjoyed plenty of success over the years as pinhookers, but the couple had their first million-dollar sale as breeders Monday in Saratoga when David Lanigan purchased a filly by Curlin (hip 87) for $1.05 million on behalf of Heider Family Stables.

The seven-figure yearling is the first foal out of Lady T N T (Justin Phillip). Purchased for $335,000 at the 2018 OBS March sale, the mare won the 2019 GIII Charles Town Oaks in the Dilworths' colors.

“She's classy, classy,” Scott Dilworth said of the yearling. “Her momma is a beautiful mare and had a super amount of speed. Hopefully this filly will carry that speed on, being by Curlin. When I bred her for the first time, I said, 'Well, we are going to the best.' And there is nothing better than a Curlin filly.”

Among the Dilworths' home runs in the pinhooking arena was subsequent graded winner and recent GI Haskell S. third-place finisher Arabian Knight (Uncle Mo). The couple purchased the colt for $250,000 at the Keeneland September sale before topping the 2022 OBS April sale when selling him for $2.3 million to Amr Zedan.

“Yes, this is definitely my top sale from a breeding standpoint,” Dilworth said. “I've only got about five or six mares. And we primarily sell [the foals].”

The yearling was consigned by the Bandoroff family's Denali Stud and after watching him sell out back, Conrad Bandoroff came over to congratulate Dilworth and to remind the breeder he owed him a dinner.

“We had an over/under bet,” Dilworth said with a big smile. “I lost the bet. But with pleasure.”

Lady T N T was bred to Munnings this year. @JessMartiniTDN

BOOM! Hip 87, a filly by Curlin (@HillnDaleFarm) out of Lady T N T , sold for $1,050,000 to David Lanigan, agent for Heider Family Stables! @FasigTiptonCo pic.twitter.com/gsrRuTMucB

— Denali Stud (@DenaliStud) August 8, 2023

Back to the Well

It's a good bet when an attractive yearling by two-time Horse of the Year Curlin steps into the ring, that fireworks are likely to ensue. And that is just what happened Monday evening in Fasig-Tipton's Humphrey S. Finney Pavilion in Saratoga Springs moments after hip 87 entered the ring. When the dust had finally settled, it was David Lanigan, bidding from the back ring on behalf of Scott and Cindy Heider, that stood atop the chestnut's list of admirers with a $1.05 million final bid.

Consigned by Denali Stud, the Jan. 12 filly is the first foal out of Grade III winner Lady T N T (Justin Phillip), a half-sister to GSW and GISP Sweet Hope (Lemon Drop Kid).

“We had a top with her–It is good to have her,” said Lanigan. “The [Heiders] have some horses [in Ireland] with Joseph O'Brien and they have some other fillies here, too. So we just wanted to have some more horses to race on the dirt.

“Hopefully, this one can do something special. Most of the stable is grass horses, so we're trying to get some more dirt fillies in it.”

According to Lanigan, the filly will be sent to Keith Asmussen's Texas-based training center for pre-training before joining trainer Steve Asmussen.

“Steve and I both really liked this filly,” added Lanigan. “Both of us agreed we should give her a good go. Hopefully, we will buy one or two more in September.”

It would seem that the Heiders have a very good chance to develop a productive team of dirt runners with Asmussen at the fore of their U.S. contingent. Asmussen, who stood nearby during the bidding for the filly, was understandably pleased with the purchase.

“She's an absolutely beautiful daughter of Curlin,” said Asmussen. “You couldn't ask for any more than that. I am extremely fortunate to get the opportunity with her.”

The Hall of Famer had reason to be excited about getting another high-class daughter of Curlin, whom he led to victories in the GI Preakness S. and GI Breeders' Cup Classic en route to Horse of the Year honors. Highlighting his roster of fillies by the standout stallion is Clairiere, a four-time Grade I winner, including wins in this season's Ogden Phipps S. and Apple Blossom H.

“We've had some exceptional fillies by Curlin, and she looks like one of the really good ones.”

The Hill 'n' Dale stallion was also represented by Hip 110, also consigned by Denali Stud, who realized $825,000 from Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners during the initial session.

“Of all of our accomplishments, that is as special as it gets,” explained Asmussen when asked about all the success at stud that former trainees Curlin and fellow Horse of the Year Gun Runner have been enjoying. “Because growing up in it, I realize when we're far gone they are still going to leave their mark in horse racing. Curlin and Gun Runner will be at the top of the breed for generations.”–@CBossTDN

“She got up to the back ring and the lights, camera, action came on and she just was a queen.”

Hear more from Conrad Bandoroff on Hip 87, a Curlin filly, that sold for $1,050,000 at #FasigSaratoga! @DenaliStud @CBandoroff pic.twitter.com/xzhgJ9QzFP

— Fasig-Tipton (@FasigTiptonCo) August 8, 2023

Constitution Filly Proves Worth the Wait

The first session of the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale was winding down and the rain was picking up outside the Humphrey S. Finney Pavilion when bloodstock agent Mick Wallace, bidding through the raindrops out back, acquired a filly by Constitution (hip 118) for $900,000 on behalf of Brook Smith's Rocket Ship Racing and Kuldeep Singh Rajput's Gandharvi Racing.

Smith and Rajput were all smiles after celebrating their first partnership together on the filly, who was consigned by Hunter Valley Farm.

“You have to find the right partners and we are fast partners,” Brook said while nodding at Rajput. “When you see a beautifully bred filly–and granted this is the sale where the prices are going to go up–but if you pay a 10 or 20% premium because it's the first major sale of the season, but you get the right filly or colt, then it's the right thing to do.”

Rajput, who made his first trip to the Saratoga sale just two years ago, added, “Gandharvi is all about bringing partners together and having fun racing. And I think it's a match made in heaven. We agreed on the same filly. It's all about partnerships and we are looking forward to it.”

Hip 118 is out of stakes-placed Nina Fever (Borrego) and is a half-sister to Grade I winner Nickname (Scat Daddy). She was bred by Newstead Corp. The mare was purchased by Blandford Bloodstock, with the filly in utero, for $500,000 at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton November sale.

Courtlandt Farm purchased the yearling's half-sister by Into Mischief for $1.35 million at last year's Keeneland September sale.

Smith admitted he was already looking ahead to breeding the filly once her days at the track are over.

“If you're going to be in this industry for a long time, you have to decide whether or not you are going to have broodmares,” he said. “It's a tough trigger to pull, but you have to do it. And this is the type of filly that would obviously be an incredible broodmare even if she runs mediocre. But we think she is going to run good. She's beautiful. And we thank all the connections and our partners who helped us make the selection. They know a lot more than we do.”

Asked if the partners expected to make any more purchases at the boutique sale, Smith said, “There is another night, so we will find out.” @JessMartiniTDN

Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale – Monday: The final hip through the ring tonight, Hip 118 – a filly by Constitution (@WinStarFarm) out of Nina Fever, sells for $900,000 to @mickwallace, agent for Rocket Ship Racing/Ghandarvi! Consigned by @HunterValleyKY.

A half-sister to GI… pic.twitter.com/JHeOT1G9uh

— TDN (@theTDN) August 8, 2023

SF/Starlight/Madaket Back in Action

The stallion-making partnership of SF Racing/Starlight Racing and Madaket, which has helped reshape the yearling sales market with major purchases of two-turn colts in recent years, was back in action Monday in Saratoga, purchasing a pair of yearlings.

Bloodstock agent Donato Lanni and SF's Tom Ryan, bidding at the top of the stairs inside the pavilion, went to $875,000 to acquire a colt from the first crop of champion Authentic (hip 56). The yearling was consigned by Four Star Sales, as agent for his breeder, Spendthrift Farm, which stands his Kentucky Derby-winning sire.

“His yearlings are going to be very good to Spendthrift Farm,” Ryan said of Authentic. “He's a horse that is after bringing a lot of joy to a lot of people, considering the MyRacehorse connection, and Into Mischief being such a good-looking sire. I think Authentic has a good chance to step into big shoes. The quality of stock that he is putting on the ground is a good example of what can happen with a horse of his quality.”

Spendthrift had already enjoyed success in the sales ring with Authentic's first crop of yearlings. The farm topped the Fasig-Tipton July sale with a filly by the sire who sold for $475,000 to Alex and Joann Lieblong.

The Saratoga colt is out of graded-placed Golden Domer (Quality Road), a mare Spendthrift purchased for $340,000 at the 2019 Keeneland November sale. Her Bolt d'Oro colt sold for $275,000 at last year's Saratoga sale.

Earlier in Monday's session, the SF/Starlight/Madaket partnership purchased a colt by Quality Road (hip 49) for $650,000 from the Bedouin Bloodstock consignment. Out of Frolic's Dream (Smoke Glacken), the yearling was bred by SF Bloodstock.

Two years ago, SF/Starlight/Madaket purchased another son of Quality Road for $500,000 at the Saratoga sale. Named National Treasure, the bay colt went on to win this year's GI Preakness S. The group purchased a son of Speightstown for $950,000 last year in Saratoga. Prince of Monaco was tabbed a 'TDN Rising Star' following his eight-length debut victory at Los Alamitos in July and is expected to make his graded stakes debut in the Aug. 13 GIII Best Pal S. at Del Mar.

“The sale has been very good to us,” Ryan said. “We walked away from here with a Classic winner [in 2021]. We are excited about Prince of Monaco–he was the only horse that we bought here last year. We bought two horses here tonight. So we are very happy. If this is all we can buy, we are happy. If we can get some more, we will be happy. If they can jump through the hoops, we will try our best.”

@FasigTiptonCo Saratoga Sale – Monday: Hip 56, a colt from the first crop of Authentic (@spendthriftfarm) out of Golden Dormer, sells for $875,000 to @DonatoLanni, agent for SF/@StarlightRacing/@MadaketStables. Consigned by @FourStarSales, agent for Spendthrift! pic.twitter.com/R0lZUuvs7G

— TDN (@theTDN) August 8, 2023

Heading into the yearling sales this fall, Ryan said the team's approach would remain the same.

“We are just trying to buy very fast horses for as little as possible,” he said. “We have a great team. I can't thank Donato Lanni and Bob Baffert, all our team, from our veterinarians to the people who break these horses. It's an amazing team. These things don't happen without a great team.”

As for a targeted number of yearlings to buy this year, Ryan said, “Not particularly, the number has fluctuated over the years. We are definitely up into the double digits.” @JessMartiniTDN

Lukas Firing at Fasig-Tipton on Day 1

It just wouldn't feel like Saratoga in the summer without D. Wayne Lukas haltering one of the top-priced yearlings during Fasig-Tipton's Select Yearling sale. Late in the session, the Hall of Fame trainer, sitting beside BC Stables' Brian Coehlo at the back of the pavilion, broke out the big guns to land hip 106, a colt by Into Mischief for $850,000.

“We bought [a horse with] a lot of conformation,” said Lukas. “Not only do we have a hot sire with Into Mischief, but he also has very good balance.”

Consigned by Mulholland Springs, the Apr. 12 foal is out of the Malibu Moon mare Meal Ticket.

When asked if the price was expected, he added, “He is the first foal out of a young mare so we thought he might bring a little less than that, but people find them.”

Team Lukas celebrates the purchase of Hip 106, an Into Mischief colt, for $850,000! #FasigSaratoga pic.twitter.com/K863LwnHfN

— Fasig-Tipton (@FasigTiptonCo) August 8, 2023

Earlier in the session, Lukas extended to $650,000 for hip 47, a colt by City of Light. Also secured for BC Stables, the colt is the first foal out of Fly Time (Mr Speaker), a half-sister to Preakness winner Rombauer (Twirling Candy).

Lukas, who made famous his 10-point rating system when selecting yearlings at the sales, didn't miss a beat when asked what he thought of his pair of day 1 purchases.

“Both were rated 8s,” he affirmed. “They were both right up there.

“The horses that are attractive and have a little bit of pedigree are selling very well. People are getting much more sophisticated on what they buy and reject. The days are gone when you could just bring one, that if it doesn't look good, it would still sell well. Now you have to have both conformation and pedigree. People are definitely getting better at that they're doing.”

BC Stables came into this year's Saratoga sale buoyed by a timely score when Just Steel (Justify) out-dueled favored Be You (Curlin) on the Whitney Day undercard last Saturday. The colt was purchased for $500,000 at Keeneland last September.

“When we bought him, we thought he was just a beautiful colt,” he recalled. “And Justify probably wasn't as hot as he is right now. We got a little ahead of the curve there.”

Never one to shirk away from facing the big kids on the field, he added, “We're looking at the [Sept. 4 GI] Hopeful S. with him.” Lukas would be looking for his ninth win in Saratoga's closing weekend feature for juvenile colts should the horse make it into the starting gate. “I think he fits very well and would have a good shot to win.”–@CBossTDN

Lows Justify the Trip

Robert and Lawana Low, sitting alongside bloodstock advisor Jacob West in the front row of the pavilion, acquired a colt by Justify (hip 103) for $850,000 from the Bluewater Sales consignment Monday night in Saratoga. The colt, out of Marketplace (Stormy Atlantic), is a half-brother to stakes winner Dreamer's Disease (Laoban).

“We looked at 35 on Jacob's short list and he was our pick,” Robert Low said after signing the ticket on the youngster. “So we got the one we wanted. We will send him to J. J. Pletcher in Ocala and find out if he can run. We hope he can.”

The couple has long targeted two-turn colts at the auctions and Robert Low admitted competition was fierce in that part of the market.

“I think there is a lot of competition here,” he said. “I think the sale has been strong. Maybe there have been some disappointments and some RNA's, but overall, I think it's really good.” He added with a smile, “I mean. Good for the sellers.”

The yearling was bred by Cypress Creek Equine. Bluewater Sales purchased the dam for $87,000 at the 2015 Keeneland November sale. @JessMartiniTDN

Thank you to our buyers and consignors for supporting The Saratoga Sale. Session 1 has ended. Session 2 will begin tomorrow at 6:30pm ET.⁣
⁣
Results https://t.co/UhSSHGyS4u #FasigSaratoga pic.twitter.com/ZoSonJiGRI

— Fasig-Tipton (@FasigTiptonCo) August 8, 2023

The post $1.1-Million Quality Road Colt Paces Competitive Fasig Saratoga Opener appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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After she turned in an uncharacteristic dull performance in the June 10 GI Ogden Phipps S., Lukas and the 4-year-old filly's breeder-owners Robert and Stacy Mitchell are using a little-bit-less-is-more approach at Saratoga Race Course.

“She's really, really doing well,” Lukas said Wednesday morning, “but we have made a decision to run here only once. We're trying to space her program so it leads to the Breeders' Cup. What we've got mapped out is the [Aug. 25 GI] Personal Ensign and then the [GI] Spinster at Keeneland. [The Mitchells] live in Louisville, so the Spinster is like the Kentucky Derby to them, and then the Breeders' Cup. That's the program that they have asked me to follow and that's not bad.”

Lukas, who will turn 88 on Sept. 2, brought 19 horses–10 of them 2-year-olds–to Saratoga this summer. Typically, he has been active at the entry box. Through the first four days of the meet, he has three seconds from five starters.

It's a very safe bet that by the time Secret Oath goes into the gate for the Personal Ensign, the other 18 horses in the stable will have made at least one start. Lukas said that Saratoga is the ideal spot for Secret Oath to get ready for the Personal Ensign, where she is likely to re-engage with standouts Clairiere (Curlin), Nest (Curlin) and Played Hard (Into Mischief), who are headed to the Shuvee.

“She thrives here because we don't have an opportunity to graze for an hour every afternoon like we do here,” he said. “We've got a chance to get her out every afternoon.”

Last year, Secret Oath won the GI Kentucky Oaks and finished fourth in the GI Preakness S. At Saratoga, Nest avenged her loss in the Kentucky Oaks and trounced Secret Oath in the GI Coaching Club American Oaks and the GI Alabama S. Secret Oath was third in the GI Cotillion S. and fifth in the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff.

Beginning this season at Oaklawn Park, Secret Oath beat Clairiere by 2 3/4 lengths in the GII Azeri S. and was beaten a neck by that foe in the GI Apple Blossom. On Oaks Day, May 5 at Churchill Downs, Secret Oath and Tyler Gaffalione were second by a neck to Played Hard. In the Phipps on June 10 at Belmont Park, she never was able to muster her off-the-pace run. It was just the fourth off-the-board finish in her 17-race career.

“The other day, I definitely think it was the track, and so does Tyler, that she had a sub-par race,” Lukas said. “He said it was rolling underneath her. Every time he gathered her up, she moved. Every time he asked her to run, he said she didn't get a hold of it. What happens here in the Personal Ensign, who knows?”

Lukas saddled his first starters at Saratoga in 1984, launching a run of 36 consecutive years at the track. He skipped 2020 and 2021 because of Covid-19 and a downturn in the quality of his stable. With Secret Oath as the centerpiece of the stable, he returned last summer and compiled a 7-6-2 record from 31 starts. He picked up his 61st stakes win at Saratoga with Naughty Gal (Into Mischief) in the GIII Adirondack S.

Secret Oath breezed five furlongs in 1:01 Monday over the Oklahoma training track in the midst of her longest break between races this season.

“I think it helps her,” Lukas said. “She's a better horse this year. If you want to know the truth, she can probably take more, but we're not going to test that. We're just going to space it out and come into the Breeders' Cup. We're skipping the Shuvee. It would be pretty easy to drop into the Shuvee, test the waters and see how she handles the track. We're going to just go for broke in the Personal Ensign.”

The Mitchells had planned to sell Secret Oath last fall, though Lukas urged them to keep her in training as a 4-year-old. He said he told them Secret Oath could earn millions more in purses this season and still bring a multi-million price at auction. They did pull her out of the sale and she has earned $576,350 this year.

“Well, if she never did anything more that would be pretty good,” Lukas said, “but she's going to get more. Three more and they're all big [purses].”

Lukas picked up a pair of seconds with his 2-year-olds on opening day–Lady Moscato (Quality Road) in a maiden special weight and Saratoga Secret (Arrogate) in the GIII Schuylerville S. His third second came Sunday with Just Steel (Justify), a $500,000 yearling purchase, making his second career start.

An easy winner in her debut at Ellis Park, Lukas said that BC Stable's Saratoga Secret showed in the Schuylerville that she is a promising filly.

“I thought her race was good,” he said. “She's another Arrogate and she's very immature, even more so than Secret Oath was. She's small and slight. She will benefit from the time. She's going to go in the [Sept. 3 GI] Spinaway.”

Lukas never lacks enthusiasm for his young horses and he is high on this crop.

“I think it's the best bunch we've had since probably the mid-'80s or '90s when we were a lot stronger than most,” he said.

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2nd-BEL, $100K, OC $62,500, 3yo/up, f, 7f, 3:36p.m.
Peter Brant's Good Sam (Good Samaritan) makes her seasonal debut for trainer Chad Brown at Belmont Thursday. A $310,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase, the was the highest priced produce by the sire sold in 2021, when the WinStar stallion's yearling average was $36,190 with a median of $25,000 for 63 sold. A debut winner over flashy next out winner Seduction (Bernardini) sprinting in the slop at the Big A last October, the granddaughter of GISW Twist Afleet remained perfect with another confident score in Aqueduct's one-mile Tempted S. Nov. 6. TJCIS PPs

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The Hall of Fame trainer, who turned 87 Friday, will saddle Holy Cow Stable's Naughty Gal (Into Mischief) Sunday in the GI Spinaway S. The next afternoon, Lukas will send out BC Stable's Bourbon Bash (City of Light) and Western Ghent (American Pharoah) in the GI Hopeful, the final stake of the 154th season of Saratoga racing.

Lukas skipped the last two years because of a combination of Covid-19 and a downturn in the quality of his stable, but came back to Saratoga this summer with 16 horses for what has been a productive meet. Through Friday, the Lukas stable had a record of 4-6-2 from 23 starts with earnings of $607,889. During the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale, he signed the tickets for five yearlings for $2.725 million.

Three of Lukas' Saratoga wins came from his stakes starters. Bourbon Bash handled a maiden special weight field by eight lengths Aug. 13. Western Ghent, co-owned by Lukas and his wife Laurie, won a $75,000 maiden claimer Aug. 25. Naughty Gal, the GIII Adirondack winner Aug. 7, prevailed by 2 1/4 lengths despite running greenly and drifting out in the stretch under Luis Saez.

“She's corrected that, for sure, and I feel comfortable,” Lukas said, “And, of course, Luis is going to be a lot more familiar with who she is. The power steering kicked in and she overreacted to what he was trying to do. We wanted to be in the four or five-hole and we didn't want to be an eight or nine He ended up there so quick it surprised him.”

Lukas and his former assistant and fellow Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher top the Spinaway trainers's standings with six victories each. In 23 starts, Lukas has a 6-5-3 record in the seven-furlong race. He won with Tiltalating (Tilt Up) in 1984, the first year he ran at the track. His most recent winner was Golden Attraction in 1995.

Figuring out who belongs in a graded stake, Lukas said, comes down to experience.

“Well, if you've been doing it for 60 years, you get a pretty good cross section of what works and what won't,” he said.  “I've been guilty my whole career of entering in stakes that I have no idea what the competition's ability is. That goes for everyday races. I'll enter in non-winners of two and somebody will say this or that about the race and I have no idea. But I know what wins non-winners of two. I've seen it enough that I know that I'm competitive in a non-winners of two unless Secretariat shows up or Ruffian.”

Before the 40-day meet July 14, Lukas expected BC Stable's Summer Promise (Uncle Mo) to be his Spinaway horse. However, she finished second in the GIII Schuylerville on opening day and Naughty Gal moved up in the pecking order in the stable with her Adirondack triumph.

“She's going into it and the other one's not,” Lukas said. “I'm running the best one I've got at this point.”

Lukas said Naughty Gal is an obvious standout.

“Awful strong. Big, powerful filly,” he said. “One of the best horsemen I know called me the other day and said 'Boy, that's a good-looking (SOB) you ran in the Adirondack. He was watching on television. She's a picture of conformation. For her age, her development, strength, size is incredible. She's really a study. You want to study one how they're supposed to look, she's it in every way. That's why I say the seven furlongs should just be right in her wheelhouse.”

Never shy about promoting his horses, Lukas said Naughty Gal is a filly with a future.

“Big time. And I'm anxious to run her two turns,” he said. “That's where I really want to see her run.”

If things go well in the Spinaway, Lukas said Naughty Gal is on the road to the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies in November at Keeneland.

“No bones about it,” he said. “I'm pointing her right there.”

Lukas is the career leader in Hopeful wins with eight from 32 starts. Pletcher and Steve Asmussen are next with three each.

Bourbon Bash was a well-beaten second to the Chad Brown-trained Blazing Sevens (Good Magic) in his first try July 24, but earned his trip to the Hopeful with the romp in his second start.

“He's a real immature colt, but I think he'll also relish the seven-eighths,” Lukas said. “He was getting in cruise control the other day. The only thing that is a little bit disturbing is the race was slow. Of course, it wasn't slow for him. When they say the race was slow, I always say, 'Well, he beat everybody that showed up.' I wondered about the time a little bit. I'm talking to Chad Brown and he said, 'You know, my colt is the one that beat yours' when I first started him. I said, 'well, it will be interesting the next time.'”

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