breeders' cup sprint | Horse Racing Free Tips

Keeneland Opens With a Trio of Breeders’ Cup Qualifiers

Keeneland opens its highly anticipated fall meet Friday with a trio of graded stakes that each provide the winners with a spot in the gate for the Breeders' Cup World Championships to be held in Lexington the first weekend of November.

The highlight of the day will be the GI Darley Alcibiades S., a qualifier for the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies. Ken McPeek and Brad Cox have taken turns the last few years, each winning two of the last four, and McPeek has the morning-line favorite in last-out GIII Pocahontas S. winner Fun and Feisty (Midshipman).

McPeek also saddles longshot Stellar Lady (Shackleford), who broke her maiden on grass last out at Kentucky Downs Sept. 8. The aforementioned Cox also saddles a grass filly in unbeaten Chop Chop (City of Light), who enters off a win in the Kentucky Downs Juvenile Fillies S. Sept. 3.

DJ Stable's Wonder Wheel (Into Mischief) will likely challenge Fun and Feisty for favoritism. Opening her account with a pair of wins including a dominant score in Churchill's Debutante S. in July, the dark bay checked in second in Saratoga's GI Spinaway S. Sept. 4.

Chad Brown sends out one worth a look at a price in Alpha Delta Stables homebred Raging Sea (Curlin). She rallied to victory in her debut going seven panels at Saratoga Aug. 7. Both her running style and her pedigree suggest she will only improve with more distance.

Juvenile grass fillies get their chance to secure a spot in the Breeders' Cup starting gate one race earlier in the GII J.P. Morgan Chase Jessamine S. Chop Chop would have been favored in this event, but now that will likely go to Towhead (Malibu Moon), who came up a nose short of that foe in the Kentucky Downs Juvenile Fillies S.

Jonathan Thomas saddles a live on in Augustin Stable's Delight (Mendelssohn). The $400,000 OBSMAR buy earned her diploma at Delaware last out Aug. 27 after a pair of thirds in her first two tries.

G. Watts Humphrey's Bling (American Pharoah) took a huge step forward when switched from dirt to turf in her second start at Ellis Aug. 20, earning her diploma by 3 3/4 lengths.

Also worth a look at what is sure to be a juicy price for bettors is NY-bred Recognize (Bolt d'Oro). Her freshman sire now has two graded winners on turf and her Hall of Fame conditioner Bill Mott is known for his patience and ability to get horses to peak at the right time. The bay graduated by 5 1/4 lengths at third asking against fellow Empire-breds at Saratoga in Aug. 18 and checked in third after setting the pace in that venue's P.G. Johnson S. Sept. 1.

Rounding out Friday's Breeders' Cup qualifiers is the GII Stoll Keenon Ogden Phoenix S. for male sprinters. With champion Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) and Cody's Wish (Curlin), who defeated the divisional leader in the GI Forego S., waiting for the first weekend in November, this event lacks star power. However, the horse who may be improving at just the right time is Sibelius (Not This Time), who enters off a pair of strong victories and triple-digit Beyers, including the Lite the Fuse S. at Pimlico Sept. 10, for which he warned a 106 Beyer Speed Figure.

Special Reserve (Midshipman) captured this event last year, but could only manage fourth in the Breeders' Cup. Off the board in his seasonal debut in the DeFrancis Memorial Dash July 16, he wired the Senator Robert C. Byrd Memorial S. in the slop at Mountaineer last out Aug. 6.

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In-Form Sibelius Sets His Sights on Breeders’ Cup Sprint

After airing in front-running fashion in Pimlico's Lite the Fuse S. with a career-high 105 Beyer Speed Figure earlier this month–his second straight triple digit rating–progressive 4-year-old sprinter Sibelius (Not This Time) is getting good at the right time.

Just how good, exactly? That question will be answered in Keeneland's 'Win and You're In' GII Stoll Keenon Ogden Phoenix S. on opening day Oct. 7.

“I'm a big believer in horses getting confident when they win,” trainer Jerry O'Dwyer said. “When they back it up, back-to-back like he has, he's walking around there with his chest out and looking and feeling good.”

The Jun H. Park and Delia Nash colorbearer ended a five-race losing skid with a sharp victory over a trio of next-out winners while cutting back to six furlongs in an optional claimer at Saratoga Aug. 10, good for a 100 Beyer, prior to his aforementioned 7 1/2-length romp in Baltimore Sept. 10.

The chestnut gelding also ran well in defeat in his two previous trips to the post while third with first-time blinkers behind subsequent GIII Monmouth Cup winner Highly Motivated (Into Mischief) going a one-turn mile at Belmont May 28 and also filled that same slot behind GISP Baby Yoda (Prospective) in upstate New York going seven furlongs July 16, respectively.

“He's a horse that we've always liked and he's always shown some natural ability,” O'Dwyer said. “I think now being a 4-year-old, he's reaching his peak performance, maturity and strength wise. Mentally, he's in a great place. He couldn't have been any more impressive in his last win at Pimlico. Just the way he jumped out and traveled nicely and opened up in hand. After running a big number in Saratoga the time before, you like to see them back it up to something equivalent. He stepped up again, which is nice.”

The six-furlong Lite the Fuse was Sibelius's first attempt versus stakes company since a trio of disappointing stakes tries last season, including a distant fifth in a sloppy renewal of the rained-off GIII Penn Mile S. in his first go versus winners last May. He was previously a big-figure maiden winner at second asking at Keeneland, site of this year's GI Breeders' Cup Sprint.

“I think it took him a little while to get his confidence back,” O'Dwyer said. “His works at home were always very good. You could tell he had a lot of ability. I started stretching him out a bit because in the sprint races, he wasn't traveling strongly on the bridle like he is now. Even when we stretched him out, he ran super [finishing second] over the one-turn mile at Aqueduct [Apr. 2].

O'Dwyer continued, “But then his works just started getting so much stronger and sharper. He's been giving us all the right signals. We started gradually cutting him back in distance and he's been showing us that he's just an out-and-out sprinter now. Super fast and sharp.”

With six starts at three and already eight attempts under his belt this season, Sibelius isn't the kind of horse that needs a lot of work in between starts. Currently residing at the Thoroughbred Training Center in Kentucky, Sibelius is slated to join the South Florida-based O'Dwyer's Keeneland string Friday.

Bred in Kentucky by Taylor Brothers Properties LLC, Pollock Farms, Patrick H. Payne, et al, Sibelius brought $100,000 as a KEENOV weanling. He subsequently RNA'd twice–for $62,000 at KEEJAN and for $75,000 at KEESEP. Out of the unraced Pulpit mare Fierey Pulpit, he is a half-brother to MSP Dypsy (Broken Vow), dam of MSW & MGISP Edwards Going Left (Midnight Lute). Sibelius is one of 22 stakes winners for promising young sire Not This Time.

“He's very straightforward,” O'Dwyer said. “He's not a big, robust horse. He looks very muscular and doesn't carry too much excess flesh. He'll get a lot out of his gallops if you let him. So, we keep him under wraps a little bit. He'll just have a blowout on Friday, maybe an easy half mile in :49 or something like that. I'll see how he is over the next couple of days.”

After beginning his career as a jockey in Ireland and England, O'Dwyer came to the U.S. to gallop for trainer Al Stall, Jr. He also worked under trainers Bill Mott, Michael Matz and Andrew McKeever before going out on his own in 2014. Shotski (Blame) became the first graded winner for O'Dwyer with an upset victory in the 2019 GII Remsen S. at Aqueduct.

Should Sibelius earn his way to the Breeders' Cup Sprint via next week's Phoenix, it would be the first starter in the World Championships for O'Dwyer.

“We want to be there on the big days,” O'Dwyer said. “We're fortunate that he's given us a bit of a highlight this year. We're hoping he can continue to do that.”

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American Pharoah’s American Theorem Takes ‘Win and You’re’ In Bing Crosby

American Theorem (American Pharoah), a narrow last out winner of the GII Triple Bend S. at Santa Anita May 29, punched his ticket to the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint with an upset victory in the 'Win and You're In' GI Bing Crosby S. at Del Mar.

Away at 7-1 while looking to provide trainer George Papaprodromou with a first Grade I victory, the runner-up in the 2019 GI American Pharoah S. kept the early leaders within his scope from his outside draw in sixth. He ranged up while five-wide rounding the far turn, hit the front at the top of the stretch and was never seriously threatened by the late rally of Get Her Number (Dialed In). Letsgetlucky (Munnings) was third.

A debut winner at two over the Del Mar main track, the gray ended a nine-race losing streak when cutting back in distance for the seven-furlong Triple Bend. He was a well-beaten sixth in both the GII San Pasqual S. and GI Santa Anita H. earlier this year.

Pedigree Notes:

In four North American crops of racing age, Horse of the Year and Coolmore stallion American Pharoah has 14 graded winners among his 27 black-type winners. American Theorem is the newest of his six Grade I winners, joining that highest-level group of As Time Goes By, Harvey's Lil Goil, Van Gogh (in France), Above the Curve (in France), and Cafe Pharoah (in Japan). A number of different broodmare sire lines are represented among American Pharoah's GISWs, with American Theorem his lone black-type winner out of a Maria's Mon mare. The late Maria's Mon, the source of American Theorem's gray coloring, was a sneaky-good sire who was responsible for two GI Kentucky Derby winners and is broodmare sire of 65 stakes winners.

The unraced Mighty Renee has produced five black-type performers out of her seven foals to race, including another Del Mar graded winner in 2011 GIII Sorrento S. victress Mighty Caroline. Her most recent foal is $210,000 Keeneland September yearling Captain Choochies (Classic Empire), an unraced now-2-year-old colt who worked July 28 at Del Mar, getting three panels in :36.60 (6/15). Mighty Renee's dam was also unraced, while her granddam was MGISW Over All (Mr. Prospector). Over All's extended family includes another Mr. Prospector star in Conquistador Cielo, 1982's Horse of the Year.

Saturday, Del Mar
BING CROSBY S.-GI, $402,000, Del Mar, 7-30, 3yo/up, 6f, 1:08.67, ft.
1–AMERICAN THEOREM, 124, r, 5, by American Pharoah
                1st Dam: Mighty Renee, by Maria's Mon
                2nd Dam: Margy, by Theatrical (Ire)
                3rd Dam: Over All, by Mr. Prospector
1ST GRADE I WIN. ($190,000 RNA Ylg '18 KEESEP). O-Kretz
Racing LLC; B-Sierra Farm (KY); T-George Papaprodromou;
J-Joe Bravo. $240,000. Lifetime Record: 12-4-3-0, $531,967.
*1/2 to Viel Spass (Kitten's Joy), SP-Jpn, $336,462; 1/2 to
Mighty Caroline (Stormy Atlantic), GSW, $140,000; 1/2 to
Cyclogenisis (Stormy Atlantic), MSW, $198,750.
Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*.
   Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Get Her Number, 122, c, 4, Dialed In–Fancier, by Bernstein.
($45,000 2yo '20 OBSAPR). O-Gary Barber; B-Philip & Brenda
Robertson (KY); T-Peter Miller. $80,000.
3–Letsgetlucky, 122, g, 4, Munnings–My Cinsation, by Cindago.
1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. O-Brown, Edward Rusty J., Klein, Alan P.
and Lebherz, Philip; B-Premier Thoroughbreds LLC (CA);
T-Brian J. Koriner. $48,000.
Margins: 1HF, 4 1/4, 3/4. Odds: 7.80, 7.20, 9.40.
Also Ran: Shaaz, Principe Carlo, Drain the Clock, Diamond Oops, Bagboss, Howbeit. Scratched: Desmond Doss. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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Champ and BC Winner Meet Again at Churchill

Champion Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) and GI Breeders' Cup Sprint upsetter Aloha West (Hard Spun) face off once again Saturday in the GI Churchill Downs S. Winner of the GII Pat Day Mile on this card last year, Jackie's Warrior came up a neck short in Belmont's GI Woody Stephens S. in June and romped in Saratoga's GII Amsterdam S. next out Aug. 1. Defeating MGISW Life is Good (Into Mischief) by a neck after a gritty duel in the Spa's GI H. Allen Jerkens Memorial S. 27 days later, the bay demolished his competition in the GII Gallant Bob S. at Parx Sept. 25. Favored in the BC Sprint, Jackie's Warrior did the heavy lifting early, but came up empty in the stretch, fading to sixth. He had done enough to earn the Eclipse Award as top male sprinter and kicked off this term with a front-running score in a sloppy renewal of Oaklawn's GIII Count Fleet Sprint H. Apr. 16. Jackie's Warrior's Amsterdam win was also in the slop and he may face a similar conditions Saturday given the current weather predictions.

Aloha West captured a pair of optional claimers at Saratoga last summer and rallied to be a neck second in Keeneland's GII Phoenix S. Oct. 8. Dispatched at 11-1 in the Breeders' Cup Sprint, the dark bay closed strongly to spring the upset by a nose at Del Mar Nov. 6.

Godolphin's 'TDN Rising Star' Prevalence (Medaglia d'Oro) enters this of a good-looking score in a sloppy renewal of Keeneland's GIII Commonwealth S. Apr. 9. Fifth afer a bad start and wide trip in his seasonal bow at Gulfstream Feb. 5, he romped in a one-mile event there exactly one month later.

Also worth a look here are GI Carter H. second- and third-place finishers Reinvestment Risk (Upstart) and Mind Control (Stay Thirsty). 'TDN Rising Star' Reinvestment Risk was second to Jackie's Warrior in both the GI Hopeful S. and GI Champagne S., while Mind Control is a two-time Grade I winner.

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