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Canterbury: 11 Entrants Drawn For $150,000 Mystic Lake Derby On June 23

Canterbury Park's Northern Stars Racing Festival on June 23 has attracted several of the top trainers in the country as well as the Shakopee, Minn. racetrack's best local trainers in pursuit of $610,000 in purses spread across six stakes.

The tenth running of the $150,000 Mystic Lake Derby drew a field of 11 when entries were taken Wednesday. Represented in the one mile turf stake is trainer Brad Cox with 3-year-old T D Dance. Cox is the second leading trainer nationally in purses earned in 2021 with $13.6 million, recently winning the Belmont Stakes with Essential Quality and training Kentucky Derby second-place finisher Mandaloun.

Michael Maker, sixth in the nation in purses with $5.9 million, entered both Grade 3 winner Chess's Dream and Shady McGee. Maker won the Mystic Lake Derby in 2018 and 2019.

Bodenheimer has two turf wins, a maiden race at Canterbury in July of last year and the Indian Summer at Keeneland in October. Trained by Valorie Lund and ridden by Ruben Fuentes, Bodenheimer, who drew post 11, will try a route of ground for the first time in the Derby.

Ian Wilkes attempts to win the Mystic Lake Derby for the second time having trained Giant Payday to a win in 2017 for owner Robert Lothenbach of Wayzata, Minn. Chris Landeros rode then and will have the mount June 23 on Modern Science for Wilkes and Lothenbach.

Two of the sport's top jockeys will also compete. Florent Geroux, fifth in the nation in purses earned with $8.7 million, will ride three entries for Cox. Ricardo Santana, Jr., currently seventh in earnings, will ride four for Maker who has a lengthy history at Canterbury dating back to the 2008 Claiming Crown. Maker has won with 16 of 50 starters at Canterbury and earned $1.08 million in purses.

The $100,000 Curtis Sampson Oaks and the $100,000 Lady Canterbury Stakes each has a field of nine and are run at one mile on the turf. The $100,000 Dark Star Turf Sprint at five furlongs has eight. The $60,000 MTA Stallion Auction Stakes, at 6 1/2 furlongs on the main track, also has eight entrants.

Giant Payday, still owned by Lothenbach but now trained by Joel Berndt, will face the 2020 Mystic Lake Derby winner Summer Assault, trained by Michele Boyce, in the $100,000 Mystic Lake Mile along with defending champion Tut's Revenge who is ridden by Roimes Chirinos and trained by Clint Stuart.

Robertino Diodoro, three times the leading trainer at Canterbury and currently fifth in the nation in total wins with 116, has entries in the Mile and the Sprint. Diodoro is leading the current Canterbury meet with a record of 14 wins from 40 starts.

A night of stakes cannot go by without the involvement of Mac Robertson, 13-time training champion at Canterbury and leader in all-time purse earnings and wins. Robertson has entries in the Lady Canterbury, the Sprint and the Oaks.

The 10-race June 23 program begins at 5:10 p.m. CT. Canterbury offers an industry low 10 percent takeout on its non-jackpot $1 Pick Six and 50 cent Pick Five wagers with each concluding on the final race of the program.

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Mandaloun Holds Off Weyburn To Win Pegasus Stakes

Squeezed to last place in the race's opening strides, Mandaloun had more than enough to do in the 1 1/16-mile Pegasus Stakes at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J. Florent Geroux settled the son of Into Mischief into stride at the back of the small field, waited patiently for the right moment, and then sent his mount sprinting to the front on the final turn, passing Weyburn and Dr. Jack to take the lead. As Mandaloun closed in on the wire, Mandaloun held off a determined Weyburn to win the Pegasus by a neck.

As the second horse under the wire in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby on May 1, Mandaloun opted to bypass the last two Triple Crown classics in favor of training up to the Pegasus Stakes with the ultimate goal of the G1 Haskell Stakes at Monmouth in July. Six weeks after the Derby, the Juddmonte colt, trained by Brad Cox, showed that he could overcome a troubled trip and a fast-closing Weyburn to win and gain experience over the Monmouth surface.

Entering the as the 3-10 favorite, Mandaloun broke from post two and was squeezed by Brooklyn Strong and Dr. Jack in the first furlong out of the gate, visibly checking as the field got into stride. Lugamo took a one-length lead over Weyburn, with Dr. Jack just behind them and then Brooklyn Strong and Mandaloun another length and a half back. With fractions of :24.67 for the first quarter and then 48.61 for the half-mile, Lugamo's pace set up for Mandaloun to overcome that early trouble.

On the backstretch, Geroux moved his colt into fourth, positioning Mandaloun for a move on the final turn. As Lugamo gave way to Weyburn and Dr. Jack, Mandaloun loomed up on the outside and picked up speed entering the stretch. In the final furlong, Mandaloun put more space between himself and Weyburn and Dr. Jack, but jockey Dylan Davis pushed Weyburn for another go at the eventual winner, closing the gap between them quickly. Geroux and Mandaloun were able to hold them off to cross the wire in front by a neck, with Dr. Jack in third. Brooklyn Strong and Lugamo rounded out the field. The final time was 1:44.63.

View the race's chart here.

Mandaloun paid $2.60, $2.10, and $2.10. Second-place Weyburn paid $3.00 and $2.20. Dr. Jack paid $2.60 to show.

After the race, Brad Cox was pleased with Mandaloun's performance in his first post-Derby start.

“We didn't expect that (being pinched at the start). We thought he might be on the lead or tracking a couple. We found ourselves last going into the first turn. But overall it was a big effort. I think he closed into a soft pace. He probably had to start his run a touch early given the fact that he was last. He ran a big race. Florent (Geroux) made the comment that he may have been looking around late. But he made the lead by himself. Overall it was a good effort for him to ship over here.”

“I think ultimately we're going to figure out what toll it took on him once we get back home (to Churchill Downs). The ship over for the race, the ship back. Things such as that. We'll put it all together and process it and let him tell us where he is over the next couple of weeks.”

“He made the lead and it looked like he was going to go on. Obviously the horse on the lead was setting softer fractions. You kind of expect that (he was forced to fight late). I don't think that's something that is totally unexpected. Overall it was a big race and we're proud of the effort. He responded when asked and was carried a touch wide and floated through the turn. But overall it was a good effort and hopefully he can bounce out of it in good order and be ready in five weeks (for the TVG.com Haskell Stakes).”

Florent Geroux, who has ridden Mandaloun in all of his starts, knew what his colt had left even after that uncertain start.

“Yes (he was pinched) a little bit (at the start). I didn't want to rush him. He was nice and relaxed during the race. It was nice to see that he was able to settle down on his own and everything worked out great. The important thing was not to rush him too hard (after the start).”

“I had a lot of horse. He was passing horses one by one. At the end when he made the lead maybe he was looking around a little. It was a new thing for him not having the whip for encouragement. I saw the other horse (Weyburn) coming inside of us. But he was still running pretty good at the end. He had to work for it but I don't think it was a really hard race on him. He did not come back blowing hard at all.”

Mandaloun is by Into Mischief out of the Empire Maker mare Brooch. He is bred and owned by Juddmonte Farms. His win in the Pegasus brings him to a record of four wins in seven lifetime starts, with $1,051,252 in earnings.

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Mandaloun Overcomes Tough Trip in Monmouth’s Pegasus

Juddmonte Farms' Mandaloun (Into Mischief), who may yet be named this year's GI Kentucky Derby winner should Medina Spirit (Protonico) be disqualified, held off a determined Weyburn (Pioneerof the Nile) to kick off the second half of his sophomore campaign with a win in the TVG.com Pegasus S. at Monmouth Park Sunday.

Sent off the 1-5 favorite while facing just four rivals, Mandaloun was squeezed back to last soon after the break and trailed the compact field as longshot Lugamo (Chitu) set a leisurely pace up front with Weyburn a threatening presence to his outside. Weyburn, upset winner of the GIII Gotham S. in March, took command on the far turn, but Mandaloun was making progress of his own under energetic handling from jockey Florent Geroux. The bay colt charged into the lane with a three-wide move and, despite being floated out farther on the track as Weyburn drifted at the top of the stretch, looked set to power clear to an easy victory. But he seemed to idle in deep stretch as Weyburn re-rallied to just miss catching the favorite in the final jumps.

“We didn't expect that [being pinched at the start],” said winning trainer Brad Cox. “We thought he might be on the lead or tracking a couple. We found ourselves last going into the first turn. But overall it was a big effort. I think he closed into a soft pace. He probably had to start his run a touch early given the fact that he was last. He ran a big race. Florent made the comment that he may have been looking around late. But he made the lead by himself. Overall it was a good effort for him to ship over here.”

Geroux added, “He was nice and relaxed during the race. It was nice to see that he was able to settle down on his and everything worked out great. The important thing was not to rush him too hard [after the start]. I had a lot of horse. He was passing horses one by one.”

Geroux said that Monmouth Park's new stringent whip rules may have led to Mandaloun idling in deep stretch.

“At the end when he made the lead maybe he was looking around a little,” Geroux said. “It was a new thing for him not having the whip for encouragement. I saw the other horse [Weyburn] coming inside of us. But he was still running pretty good at the end. He had to work for it but I don't think it was a really hard race on him. He did not come back blowing hard at all.”

Mandaloun came up just a half-length short when second behind Medina Spirit in the May 1 GI Kentucky Derby, but the results of that race remain in limbo following the first-place finisher's subsequent betamethasone positive.

The Juddmonte homebred was tabbed a 'TDN Rising Star' following his debut win at Keeneland last October and concluded his two-for-two juvenile campaign with an optional-claimer victory at Churchill Downs in November. He opened 2021 with a third-place effort as the 7-5 favorite in the Jan 16 GIII Lecomte S. and rebounded with a win in the Feb. 13 GII Risen Star S. He was a 26-1 longshot in the Derby off a dull sixth-place effort in the Mar.20 GII Louisiana Derby.

Mandaloun could be making a return trip to the Jersey Shore for the July 17 GI TVG.com Haskell S.

“I think ultimately we're going to figure out what toll it took on him once we get back home [to Churchill Downs],” Cox said of future plans for Mandaloun. “The ship over for the race, the ship back, things such as that. We'll put it all together and process it and let him tell us where he is over the next couple of weeks. It was a good effort and hopefully he can bounce out of it in good order and be ready in five weeks [for the Haskell].”

Pedigree Notes:
Mandaloun is a fourth-generation homebred for the late Juddmonte principal Prince Khalid Bin Abdullah. Juddmonte purchased his fourth dam Queen of Song (His Majesty) for $700,000 in foal to Seattle Slew at Keeneland November back in 1989. Mandaloun's dam Brooch is a two-time group winner in Europe and a half-sister to MSW & MGSP Caponata (Selkirk). The 10-year-old mare has a yearling full-brother to Mandaloun and produced a colt by War Front this year. This is also the family of Irish Highweight Emulous (GB) (Dansili {GB}) and group winner First Sitting (GB) (Dansili {GB}).

Sunday, Monmouth Park
TVG.COM PEGASUS S., $147,500, Monmouth, 6-13, 3yo,
1 1/16m, 1:44.63, ft.
1–MANDALOUN, 122, c, 3, by Into Mischief
        1st Dam: Brooch (MGSW-Ire, $217,059), by Empire Maker
        2nd Dam: Daring Diva (GB), by Dansili (GB)
        3rd Dam: Aspiring Diva, by Distant View
'TDN Rising Star' O/B-Juddmonte Farms Inc (KY); T-Brad H.
   Cox; J-Florent Geroux. $90,000. Lifetime Record: GSW & GISP,
   7-4-1-1, $1,051,252.
2–Weyburn, 122, c, 3, Pioneerof the Nile–Sunday Affair, by A.P.
Indy. O/B-Chiefswood Stables Limited (ON); T-James A.
Jerkens. $30,000.
3–Dr Jack, 116, c, 3, Pioneerof the Nile–Marion Ravenwood, by
A.P. Indy. ($250,000 Wlg '18 KEENOV; $170,000 2yo '20
OBSAPR). O-Harrell Ventures, LLC; B-Ashview Farm & Colts
Neck Stables (KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher. $15,000.
Margins: NK, 2HF, 15HF. Odds: 0.30, 4.90, 5.30.
Also Ran: Brooklyn Strong, Lugamo. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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Mandaloun Looks to Fly High in Pegasus

Juddmonte homebred and GI Kentucky Derby runner-up Mandaloun (Into Mischief) tops a small field set for Sunday's TVG Pegasus S., the local prep for the $1-million GI TVG.com Haskell Invitational S. at Monmouth July 17.

Opening his account with a pair of wins in Kentucky, the 'TDN Rising Star' was third as the 4-5 favorite in the GIII Lecomte S. Jan. 16 and rebounded to win that venue's GII Risen Star S. Feb. 13. A puzzling sixth as the favorite in the GII Louisiana Derby Mar. 20, Mandaloun got back on track in a big way on the first Saturday in May, coming up just a half-length short of Medina Spirit (Protonico), earning a field-best 101 Beyer Speed Figure.

Mandaloun could be elevated to first in the Derby after a split sample confirmed the prohibited corticosteroid betamethasone in Medina Spirit earlier this month.

“I want him to get some experience at Monmouth and I'm looking to use the race as a fitness tool, as a prep from the Haskell,” said trainer Brad Cox, who also won last weekend's GI Belmont S. with Essential Quality (Tapit). “I didn't want to go 11 weeks without a race. This was the race we thought made the most sense on the calendar.”

Cox continued, “He's doing great. Obviously we wouldn't be coming if he wasn't doing well.”

Also exiting the Derby is Brooklyn Strong (Wicked Strong), who finished 15th that day and bypassed GI Belmont S. in favor of this spot. Capturing the NY-bred Sleepy Hollow S. last October, the gelding won the GII Remsen S. at Aqueduct Dec. 5 and made his next appearance at that oval Apr. 3, finishing fifth in the GII Wood Memorial S.

Wood Memorial fourth-place finisher Weyburn (Pioneerof the Nile) makes his first start since here. The dark bay narrowly captured the GIII Gotham S. prior to that last-out effort.

Todd Pletcher saddles the undefeated Dr Jack (Pioneerof the Nile). A debut winner at Gulfstream Apr. 2, the bay captured a two-turn Pimlico optional claimer May 14.

Rounding out the field is Lugamo (Chitu), who was 12th in the G2 UAE Derby when last seen Mar. 27.

The post Mandaloun Looks to Fly High in Pegasus appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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