Mandate Earns 94 Beyer Speed Figure, First Stakes Victory In Saturday’s Artie Schiller

Mandate rallied three-wide under Andrew Wolfsont to secure a 44-1 upset in Saturday's $150,000 Artie Schiller, a one-mile inner turf test for 3-year-olds and up at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

The victory marked a first stakes win for both Mandate and his 48-year-old conditioner Robert Johnston, who is based at Penn National as private trainer for owner Bruno Schickedanz.

“When I saw him make his move at the three-eighths pole, my wife and I were screaming,” Johnston said. “The further he came down the lane I could see he had found his best stride and was kicking on.”

Johnston said the victory was made all the more special given the company he was keeping in a field with horses trained by Hall of Famers Todd Pletcher, Mark Casse, and Shug McGaughey as well as four-time Eclipse Award-winner Chad Brown.

“When you come up from Penn National, you're the underdog,” Johnston said. “Going up against those guys was a little overwhelming. You need everything to go right – and it did.”

The victory also continued a lucky streak for the trainer-jockey combo that Johnston said he is hopeful will continue in Mandate's next start in the $95,000 Claiming Crown Emerald on December 4 at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

“Andrew has rode four horses out of town for me and won all four,” Johnston said. “Hopefully, we can keep that going. He won two at Delaware, one at Laurel, and one at Aqueduct now.”

Mandate exited the outermost post in the Artie Schiller and although last-of-9 at first call, he was handled confidently throughout by Wolfsont as Rinaldi led a closely-bunched field through moderate splits over good going.

Wolfsont edged Mandate closer through the final turn and rallied outside of graded-stakes winner Tell Your Daddy to notch a 1 3/4-length win, garnering a career-best 94 Beyer Speed Figure.

“Once they straightened up on the backside, everybody grouped up and it was probably only six lengths from first to last,” Johnston said. “He said he was dragging him there and he had a lot of horse. He's just a good, happy horse right now.”

Mandate made his stakes debut in the Artie Schiller out of a rallying starter allowance score on October 10 traveling 1 1/16-miles over firm turf at Laurel Park in Laurel, Md. That score, at odds of 16-1, was also accomplished from the outermost post 9 with Wolfsont at the helm.

“We had him six weeks up until to that Laurel race and Andrew breezed him twice and both times were like, 'Wow,'” Johnston said. “He won that race at Laurel and then he breezed him before the Aqueduct race about 10 days out and he came off the track and said, 'This is the best horse I've worked in my life.' He had a lot of confidence in the horse and how well he was doing. He gave him a great ride.”

A 4-year-old son of Blame out of the Empire Maker mare Bonnie's Empire, Mandate was purchased for $200,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

Initially campaigned by Pletcher, Mandate was claimed by trainer Wayne Potts for Schickedanz for $25,000 out of a runner-up effort in May at Belmont. Mandate made five starts for Potts before Schickedanz sent him to Johnston for a freshening.

“When he came to my barn we gave him a couple weeks of downtime before we got him back training. He's for sure the best horse I've ever had in my barn,” Johnston said.

Johnston said Mandate is more than just the star of his 18-horse stable.

“This horse was a $200,000 baby and meant to be good, but he's also a barn favorite,” Johnston said. “He's in the first stall and my wife's first two steps into the barn each morning she has to go cuddle and hug him. He's just that kind of horse and he's cool to be around.”

Johnston entered Mandate in the Laurel race in preparation for the Claiming Crown, but he credits Schickedanz with the vision to try their luck in New York.

“I thought if he was competitive at Laurel he could go down there [for the Claiming Crown] – but he won it. So, Bruno said, 'Let's look for a stakes in New York,' – and that's why he's the boss,” Johnston said, with a laugh.

[Story Continues Below]

Johnston, the son of Woodbine and Fort Erie-based trainer C.R. Johnston, launched his career under his father's tutelage before expanding his horizons under Woodbine-based conditioner Mike DePaulo.

“I always say that from my dad I learned the old school and from Mike I learned the new school,” Johnston said. “I worked for Mike for years and went to a lot of tracks for him. He was the first one to call me yesterday when he went by the wire.”

Johnston said Mandate traveled home to Penn National on Saturday evening and was in good order Sunday morning. The newly-minted stakes-winning trainer said he will follow the advice of his mentor and ship Mandate to Florida in the very near future.

“Mike has spent a lot of winters in Florida and he told me shipping 10 days before isn't enough time,” Johnston said. “You need to go early to adjust to the weather, so I'd rather go sooner than later and be there.”

The post Mandate Earns 94 Beyer Speed Figure, First Stakes Victory In Saturday’s Artie Schiller appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Mandate Pulls Upset In Artie Schiller At Aqueduct

Longshot Mandate with jockey Andrew Wolfsont went to the far outside to find running room and sealed the deal with a late move for the lead to win the Artie Schiller at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

The gelded son of Blame sat toward the back of the pack early in the one-mile turf stakes, content to wait for the far turn to make a move for position. Wolfsont took Mandate three-wide on the turn, with leader Rinaldi still on the front as they hit the stretch.

In the Aqueduct straight, though, Rinaldi could not hold on, with Tell Your Daddy gaining ground to bid for the lead as Mandate built up momentum on their outside. In late stretch, the longshot took over, pulling away to win by 1 3/4 lengths. Tell Your Daddy was second and Flavius got up at the end to take third.

The final time for the Artie Schiller was 1:39.07. Find this race's chart here.

Mandate paid $91.50, $30.40, and $10.00. Tell Your Daddy paid $4.50 and $2.60. Flavius paid $2.80.

“He made that outside move and in that same position as in his last race at Laurel. It just looked like a replay of his last race. When I saw those white blinkers making up ground on the outside, I got excited. I had faith in the horse, he was doing everything well,” trainer Robert Johnston said after the race. “His last race made him eligible for the Claiming Crown so we could still go there. Laurel still has grass, too. If we went to the Claiming Crown, we would go and come back. We're team players so if he needs to stay down there with someone else, so be it. Whatever is best for the horse.”

“I'm on cloud nine. This is the biggest stakes race I've won in my career. I won a few other state-bred stakes up in Pennsylvania, so this is pretty special for me, ” Wolfsont told the NYRA Press Office after the Artie Schiller.

Bred in Kentucky by International Equities Holding Inc., Mandate is out of the Empire Maker mare Bonnie's Empire. He is owned by Bruno Schickedanz. The 4-year-old gelding was consigned by Gainesway and sold to Michael C. Stinson for $200,000 at the 2018 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

The post Mandate Pulls Upset In Artie Schiller At Aqueduct appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights