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Cox: Kentucky Derby Runner-Up Mandaloun Using Pegasus To Build Fitness, Prep For Haskell

Trainer Brad Cox is looking for Sunday's TVG.com Pegasus Stakes at Monmouth Park to serve a dual purpose for Kentucky Derby runner-up Mandaloun.

One is to get some added fitness into his speedy 3-year-old, who has been idle since May 1. The other is to give the son of Into Mischief a race over the track.

Both are key elements in setting up Mandaloun's next start: The $1 million TVG.com Haskell Stakes on July 17, the Grade 1 race that serves as the centerpiece to the Monmouth Park meet.

“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 Cox, who plans to fly in from Kentucky on Sunday morning to watch the race in person. “I didn't want to go 11 weeks without a race. This was the race we thought made the most sense on the calendar.”

The 40th edition of the Pegasus Stakes, at a mile and a sixteenth for 3-year-olds, has a recent history that suggests Cox's horse will have to earn whatever he gets.

Two years ago, disqualified Kentucky Derby winner Maximum Security finished second as the 1-20 favorite to King for a Day in the Pegasus Stakes before going on to win the Haskell.

Mandaloun, a Kentucky-bred colt owned by Juddmonte, sports a 3-1-1 line from six career starts with earnings of $961,252. He will enter the Pegasus off a six-week layoff.

“He's doing great,” said Cox. “Obviously we wouldn't be coming if he wasn't doing well. He ships today (Thursday) and hopefully he will get settled in quickly and be ready for Sunday.”

These are heady times for Cox, who is also mapping out a schedule for Belmont Stakes winner and last year's 2-year-old champion Essential Quality. Cox's plans have Essential Quality shipping to Saratoga in July and pointing to the Travers Stakes.

As hectic as it is for him, Cox would not have it any other way.

“I love everything about it,” he said. “It's why you get up and do this and spend so much time and effort and basically dedicate your life to it. It's the big stage.

“For me, 3-year-olds on the dirt going two turns, that's what it is all about. This is the division I like. The Triple Crown is a challenging thing for horses and it takes special horses to compete at that level. I feel very fortunate to be a part of it.”

Mandaloun's stalking, close-to-the pace running style looks to be well suited for Monmouth Park, too.

“He is usually forwardly placed,” said Cox. “Any time you have speed like he does it's a big advantage. I'm not saying he is going to be on the lead in this race but he will be near the lead I'm sure. Any time you have his running style it normally puts you in a good position.”

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Grade 1 Winner Juliet Foxtrot Headlines Mint Julep, Saturday’s Downs After Dark Feature

Juddmonte's Grade 1-winning homebred Juliet Foxtrot (GB) leads a field of 11 fillies and mares that were entered in Saturday night's $150,000 Old Forester Mint Julep (Grade 3) at Churchill Downs.

The 1 1/16-mile Old Forester Mint Julep, run over the Matt Winn Turf Course, is carded as Race 9 with a post time of 10:11 p.m. (all times Eastern). The 11-race Downs After Dark program gets underway at 6 p.m.

Juliet Foxtrot, trained by Brad Cox, cruised to a two-length victory in the April 10 Jenny Wiley (G1) at Keeneland. The daughter of Dansili (GB) was transferred to the care of Cox in 2019 from European-based conditioner Charles Hills. Since arriving stateside, Juliet Foxtrot has run some of her best races including victories in the 2019 Modesty (G3) and the 2020 Gallorette (G3).

The six-time winner will be ridden by Tyler Gaffalione from post No. 2.

Other top horses that entered the Mint Julep are Robert and Lawana Low's four-time stakes heroine She'sonthewarpath and Stonestreet Stables' $150,000 Indiana Grand Stakes winner Hendy Woods.

The complete field for the Old Forester Mint Julep from the rail out (with jockey and trainer):

Mintd (IRE) (Ricardo Santana Jr., Brendan Walsh)
Juliet Foxtrot (GB) (Gaffalione, Cox)
Hendy Woods (Florent Geroux, Mark Casse)
Vezpa (BRZ) (Joe Talamo, Paulo Lobo)
Lashara (GB) (Julien Leparoux, Mark Casse)
Dominga (Shaun Bridgmohan, Cox)
Flash n' Dance (Marcelino Pedroza, Marcus O'Donnell)
Tuned (GB) (David Cohen, Graham Motion)
Crystal Ball (James Graham, Rodolphe Brisset)
Sister Hanan (Corey Lanerie, Ben Colebrook)
She'sonthewarpath (Adam Beschizza, Steve Margolis)

Wagering is available online at www.TwinSpires.com, the official ADW of Churchill Downs Incorporated.

Saturday is Downs After Dark – Rock the Downs presented by Budweiser. The evening of entertainment features live racing, music from Rock United on the Plaza Stage, themed cocktail specials, LED jugglers and stilt walkers from CirqueLouis and music performances from the Pagoda. Guests are encouraged to break out their best rocker wear including vintage band shirts, leather jackets, denim, plaid or even glam.

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Belmont Winner Essential Quality On Top Of Final NTRA 3-Year-Old Poll

The winner of the Grade 1, 153rd Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets and the final No. 1 ranking in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association Top Three-Year-Old Poll, was on the line in deep stretch of Saturday's 1 ½-mile Test of the Champion until Essential Quality, the 6-5 favorite, edged past Hot Rod Charlie to prevail by 1 ¼ lengths.

As a result, in the final Top 3-year-old poll of national media, Godolphin's Essential Quality, trained by Brad Cox, gained the top spot, earning all 37 first-place votes for a total of 370 points. Boat Racing, Gainesway Stable, Road Runner Racing and William Strauss' Hot Rod Charlie, trained by Doug O'Neill, finished second with 298 points.

The 1-2 Belmont finish of Essential Quality and Hot Rod Charlie was the same result as last November's Grade 1 TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance at Keeneland when Essential Quality defeated Hot Rod Charlie by three-quarters of a length. This year, Essential Quality won both the Grade 3 Southwest at Oaklawn Park and the Grade 2 Toyota Blue Grass at Keeneland before finishing fourth as the 5-2 favorite in the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve. After a third-place finish in the Grade 3 Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita to open the season, Hot Rod Charlie won the TwinSpires.com Louisiana Derby at the Fair Grounds in March, and finished third in the Kentucky Derby.

John and Diane Fradkin's Rombauer was the poll leader going into the final week off his upset win in the Grade 1 Preakness Stakes at Pimlico on May 15. Trained by Michael McCarthy, Rombauer finished third in the Belmont Stakes and third in the poll with 282 points.

Juddmonte's Mandaloun, also trained by Cox, who crossed the wire second in the Kentucky Derby, finished in the fourth place with 227 points. Shadwell Stable's undefeated filly, Malathaat, winner of the Grade 1 Longines Kentucky Oaks, wound up in fifth place with 177 points. Zedan Racing's Medina Spirit, third in the Preakness after winning the Kentucky Derby, finished in sixth place with 164 points.

Winchell Thoroughbreds' Midnight Bourbon, second in the Preakness, finished in seventh place with 147 points. Two horses entered the top 10 in the final week. Klaravich Stables' dark bay filly Search Results, winner of Saturday's Grade 1 Acorn Stakes at Belmont, received 74 votes to reach eighth place, and Slam Dunk Racing, Madaket Stables, Wonder Stables and Michael Nentwig's Drain the Clock, who won Belmont's Grade 1 Woody Stephens Stakes, claimed the ninth spot with 66 points. CHC Inc. and WinStar Farm's Life Is Good, winner of the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes, finished 10th with 48 points.

Godolphin's 4-year-old Mystic Guide continues atop the NTRA National Thoroughbred Poll for older horses, but there was a shake up in the rankings after him. Winner of the Group 1 Dubai World Cup at Meydan on March 27, Mystic Guide, trained by Mike Stidham, received 27 first place votes and 337 points. Winchell Thoroughbreds and Willis Horton Racing's 4-year-old Silver State has jumped from 13th to second place this week following his 1-length victory in Saturday's Grade 1 Hill 'N' Dale Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont Park. Trained by Steve Asmussen, Silver State, a winner of all four of his starts this year, has one-first place and 242 points. St. George Stable's Letruska (240 points), who captured Belmont's Grade 1 Ogden Phipps for trainer Fausto Gutierrez, rises from seventh to third place.

Another Klaravich runner on the move is Domestic Spending (234 points), who jumped from 10th to fourth place after winning Saturday's Grade 1 Resorts World Casino Manhattan Stakes at Belmont for trainer Chad Brown. The 4-year-old Charlatan, runner-up in the Group 1 Saudi Cup, drops to fifth place with 161 points. Godolphin's 4-year-old Maxfield, trained by Brendan Walsh, remains in sixth place with one first-place vote and 134 points. My Racehorse, Spendthrift Farm LLC and Madaket Stables' Monomoy Girl, the 2020 older dirt female Eclipse Award-winner, is now in seventh place with 131 points. The 4-year-old Gamine (121 points), last year's champion female sprinter, stays in eighth place. Essential Quality enters the National Poll this week with one first-place vote and 118 points. Knicks Go (49 points), fourth in the Metropolitan Handicap, drops from a second-place tie last week to 10th place.

The NTRA Top Thoroughbred polls are the sport's most comprehensive surveys of experts. Every week eligible journalists and broadcasters cast votes for their top 10 horses, with points awarded on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. All horses that have raced in the U.S., are in training in the U.S., or are known to be pointing to a major event in the U.S. are eligible for the NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll. Voting in the Top Thoroughbred Poll is scheduled to be conducted through Nov. 6.

The full results for the NTRA Thoroughbred Polls can be found on the NTRA website at: https://www.ntra.com/ntra-top-thoroughbred-poll-june-7-2021/

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Louisiana-bred Picks Up Pieces to Stay Unbeaten in Jersey Girl

GI Belmont S.-winning conditioner Brad Cox grabbed one more stakes win for the road Sunday as unbeaten Australasia rallied past rivals to earn a first black-type victory out of Louisiana-bred company. An 8 1/4-length MSW winner at Fair Grounds last November, the dark bay reeled off a pair of dominant stakes scores at Delta Downs before annexing the two-turn Crescent City Oaks back in NOLA Mar. 20. She picked up another big check when shortening up for a GI Kentucky Oaks day allowance at Churchill Apr. 30, but was facing four talented foes who each owned a recent figure edge over her.

Australasia caboosed the field early after a brief delay when favorite Miss Brazil broke through the gate. Bella Sofia clicked off splits of :22.55 and :45.68 and the chalk challenged that one in upper stretch as Australasia still had work to do out wide. It still looked like it'd be one of those two to midstretch, but Australasia soon caught the eye and came flying with a well-timed ride to score by a widening margin.

“She broke good and Brad told me to take my time with her,” said winning rider Joel Rosario. “I had to tip her out a little bit and she came with a nice run at the end.

“She covered a lot of ground and was able to get there. For a second, I was worried they had gotten away from me and I wasn't going to be able to get there, but she did it. It was a very good performance.”

Cox added, “Her last two works gave me the confidence to nominate her. Her last two works were phenomenal, not that she's ever been a bad work horse. It worked out. Joel did a great job, saved some gas and let her roll down the lane.

“I'm not sure she's a six-furlong horse. I think things have to set up for her to win going three-quarters. I think she's more like middle distance. I was uncertain she'd be able to compete outside the Louisiana-bred company. Obviously, she won the open '1X' last time but at the stake level, when you cross the Hudson, the water gets deep. She was able to swim though, so I was proud of her.”

As for whether the GI Longines Test S. at Saratoga Aug. 7 could be on the agenda, the Eclipse-winning conditioner said, “Maybe. That could be a race where things could set up for her too.”

The winner, who breezed in :10 1/5 last year at OBSAPR, is out of a half-sister to GSW High Strike Zone (Smart Strike). She has a 2-year-old half-sister named I Have a Deal (El Deal)–who brought $17,000 at Fasig-Tipton Midlantic–and a yearling half-sister named Tap Iron Fist (Iron Fist). Her dam most recently visited One Liner.

JERSEY GIRL S., $145,500, Belmont, 6-6, 3yo, f, 6f, 1:09.19, ft.
1–AUSTRALASIA, 120, f, 3, by Sky Kingdom
                1st Dam: Ayala Strand, by Tiznow
                2nd Dam: Danzig Island, by Danzig
                3rd Dam: Angel Island, by Cougar II
($13,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP; $130,000 2yo '20 OBSAPR).
O-Magnifico Stable; B-J. Adcock & Hume Wornall (LA); T-Brad
Cox; J-Joel Rosario. $82,500. Lifetime Record: 6-6-0-0,
$320,388.
2–Bella Sofia, 118, f, 3, Awesome Patriot–Love Contract, by
Consolidator. ($20,000 2yo '20 OBSOPN). O-Michael Imperio,
Vincent S. Scuderi, Sofia Soares, Gabrielle Farm, Mazel Stable
Partners, LLC & Matthew J. Mercurio; B-Two Tone Farms (KY);
T-Rudy R. Rodriguez. $30,000.
3–Miss Brazil, 120, f, 3, Palace Malice–Baytree, by Forestry.
($170,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-Team D & Madaket Stables LLC;
B-Haymarket Farm LLC (KY); T-Anthony W. Dutrow. $18,000.
Margins: 1, HD, 6 3/4. Odds: 4.30, 3.10, 0.90.
Also Ran: Decade, Dr B. Scratched: Shop Girl.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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