Tag: Breeders’ Cup

Stephen Foster Win Propels Olympiad To Third Position In Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings

Following his convincing win in Saturday's Stephen Foster Stakes (G2) at Churchill Downs, Grandview Equine, Cheyenne Stable, LLC, and LNJ Foxwoods' Olympiad has risen from seventh place to third in the latest Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings, a weekly rating of the top 10 horses in contention for the $6 million Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky, on Nov. 5.

Hronis Racing LLC, Siena Farm LLC, Summer Wind Equine LLC, West Point Thoroughbreds, and Woodford Racing, LLC's undefeated 4-year-old Flightline remains at No. 1 in the rankings with 260 votes, which includes 21 first-place votes. CHC, Inc. and WinStar Farm LLC's 4-year-old Life Is Good, a 6-length winner in Saturday's 7-furlong John A. Nerud Stakes (G2) at Belmont Park, improved from third to second place in the poll, with 201 votes.

Olympiad, a 4-year-old son of Speightstown, is now five for five this year. His 2 ¼-length victory over Americanrevolution in the Stephen Foster was his second consecutive score at Churchill Downs, having won the Alysheba Stakes (G2) on May 6. Olympiad earned 192 votes, including three first-place votes.

Country Grammer, owned by Commonwealth Thoroughbreds, LLC, WinStar Farm LLC, and Zedan Racing Stables, Inc., dropped one spot to fourth place. Winner of the Dubai World Cup (G1), the 5-year-old son of Tonalist registered 185 votes. Boat Racing, LLC, Gainesway Stable, Roadrunner Racing and William Strauss' 4-year-old Hot Rod Charlie (127 votes), runner-up in the Dubai World Cup, dropped one spot to fifth place.

Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC's 3-year-old Epicenter (83 votes), second in both the Kentucky Derby (G1) and the Preakness Stakes (G1), jumped two spots from eighth place to sixth this week. Also moving up two spots is Klaravich Stables Inc.'s 3-year-old Early Voting, who won the Preakness Stakes. Early Voting is now in seventh place with 75 votes. Jim Bakke, Gerald Isbister, Coolmore Stud, and Peter Brant's undefeated 3-year-old Jack Christopher, winner of both the Pat Day Mile (G2) at Churchill Downs and the Woody Stephens (G1) at Belmont Park this year, is now in eighth place with 70 votes.

Three new horses entered the top 10 this week, beginning with CRK Stable LLC's 5-year-old Express Train. Winner of the Santa Anita Handicap (G1), Express Train comes into the rankings in ninth place with 43 votes. Tied for 10th place with 37 votes apiece are CHC Inc. and WinStar Farm LLC's 4-year-old Americanrevolution, and Jeff Drown's 3-year-old Zandon, who captured the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G1) at Keeneland, and finished third in the Kentucky Derby.

Godolphin's Mandaloun, fourth in the Stephen Foster, and Donegal Racing and Repole Stable's Mo Donegal, who has been taken out of training due bone bruising, have both dropped out of the top 10.

The Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings are determined by a panel of leading Thoroughbred racing media, horseplayers, and members of the Breeders' Cup Racing Directors/Secretaries Panel. Rankings will be announced each week through Oct. 11. A list of voting members can be found here.

In the Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings, each voter rates horses on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 system in descending order.

Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings – July 5, 2022*

 

Rank Horse Votes First-Place Votes Previous Week
1 Flightline 260 21 1
2 Life is Good 201 2 3
3 Olympiad 192 3 7
4 Country Grammer 185 1 2
5 Hot Rod Charlie 127 0 4
6 Epicenter 83 0 8
7 Early Voting 75 0 9
8 Jack Christopher 70 0 9
9 Express Train 43 0 11
10 Americanrevolution 37 0 Not rated
10 Zandon 37 0 12

The post Stephen Foster Win Propels Olympiad To Third Position In Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Clement Puts Faith In Pizza Bianca Bouncing Back From Ascot Disappointment

Christophe Clement has revealed that his first runners at Royal Ascot did not perform as he had hoped but shared how G1 Coronation S. disappointment Pizza Bianca (Fastnet Rock) could bid to bounce back to form at Saratoga later this month.

Pizza Bianca, whose owner-breeder is celebrity chef Bobby Flay, has returned to America after her eighth-place finish in the Coronation. 

Clement admitted that he was “slightly disappointed” with that effort but is confident that there is more to come from his Breeders' Cup winner back on home soil.

“Of course, I was slightly disappointed, but I do not think she ran that bad a race,” Clement reflected. “I just thought she was a few lengths behind the form I was expecting her to show.

“She's back in the States and is doing well. I'm planning on giving her her first work back in the coming week and we will go from there.”

On last season's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf heroine, he added, “There are plenty of races for her to run in, but at the moment she will most probably run in a group race at Saratoga, the first one is the Lake George, which is a group 3 on July 22 and also a race maybe on August 1.”

Clement had no luck with his other runner at the royal meeting as Slipstream (More Than Ready) finished down the field in the G1 Commonwealth Cup.

However, he had nothing but praise for the experience and was grateful for all the assistance he received during his time in the United Kingdom, which included reliving his days as assistant to Luca Cumani as both Pizza Bianca and Slipstream were stabled in the Bedford House Stables his former boss operated from.

“Everything was done to make our life as easy as possible and it was a great experience,” he explained.

“I had five days in Newmarket to train the horses, everything was very smooth and both horses were stabled at Bedford House, which I know very well having spent four years there before and everything was as easy as could be.

“Unfortunately, the two horses were just a bit below form, so if I come back, I will need to find a way to be more competitive.”

The post Clement Puts Faith In Pizza Bianca Bouncing Back From Ascot Disappointment appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Mott Reveals A Major Goal For Stephen Foster Winner Olympiad

Olympiad is set to head back to his summer home of Saratoga in the coming days after his impressive 2 ¼-length score in $750,000 Stephen Foster (G2) Saturday at Churchill Downs

Trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott for Grandview Equine, Cheyenne Stable, and LNJ Foxwoods, Olympiad recorded his fifth-consecutive victory with his win in the Stephen Foster.

The talented 4-year-old son of Speightstown was doing well Sunday morning, according to Mott's longtime assistant Kenny McCarthy.

Olympiad was stabled next to fellow Saratoga-based shipper Cody's Wish, who will start in $175,000 Hanshin Stakes at Churchill. Both colts are slated to van back to Saratoga after Monday's card.

Mott reported Olympiad is likely to target the Aug. 6 Whitney (G1) as his next start.

“The goal is to get him a Grade 1 win,” Mott said. “We've always thought about running him in the Whitney. So I'd say that would be the next likely target.”

The victory in the Stephen Foster, a Breeders' Cup Challenge “Win and You're In” qualifier, earned Olympiad a guaranteed spot in the starting gate for the $6 million Longines Classic (GI), which is scheduled for November 5 at Keeneland

Olympiad earned a stout 109 Brisnet Speed Rating, the highest rating of a Stephen Foster winner since Noble Bird recorded the same figure in 2015. Olympiad's Stephen Foster was the fastest Brisnet Speed Rating of his career.

The Stephen Foster ended its 17-year run as Grade 1 race in 2019. In the last 10 years, the winners of the Stephen Foster have won or placed in 28 Grade 1 races (not including their wins in the Foster). Some of the top horses of the last decade that have won the Stephen Foster include Maxfield, Ron the Greek, Seeking the Soul, Tom's d'Etat, and 2017 Horse of the Year Gun Runner.

The post Mott Reveals A Major Goal For Stephen Foster Winner Olympiad appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

‘She’s Back’: Shedaresthedevil Scores First Win Of Year In Fleur de Lis

Shedaresthedevil, winner of the 2020 Kentucky Oaks (G1), improved her Churchill Downs record Saturday to six wins in seven starts when she ran down pacesetter Super Quick in deep stretch to win the $350,000 Fleur de Lis (G2) by 1 ¾ lengths.

Shedaresthedevil clocked 1 1/8 miles in 1:49.17 under Florent Geroux, who rode the winner for trainer Brad Cox and owners Whisper Hill Farm LLC, Qatar Racing Ltd., and Flurry Racing Stables LLC. It was her first win three starts this year.

“We're really proud of the race she ran today,” Cox said of the 4-year-old Daredevil filly. “We've targeted this race for a long time. She loves it here at Churchill Downs and Florent gave her a perfect ride. It was a tough field but I had confidence in her when I saw her position going around the turn that she'd have enough left to chase down (Super Quick).”

Super Quick, runaway winner of the Allaire duPont Distaff (G3) at Pimlico on Black-Eyed Susan Day, went straight to the front and led the field of five fillies and mares through moderate fractions of :24.13, :47.83 and 1:12.09 for six furlongs as Shedaresthedevil stalked in second. Shedaresthedevil drew even with the weary pacesetter with a furlong to go and edged clear through the final sixteenth of a mile.

“We sat in a perfect position the entire way around the track,” Geroux said. “Inside the eighth pole she started to find her best stride and drew away late. She's back.”

Shedaresthedevil paid $4.80 as the slight 7-5 favorite. Super Quick, with jockey Joe Talamo aboard, was 3 ½ lengths in front of third-place finisher Pauline's Pearl, the 7-5 second betting choice ridden by Joel Rosario.

She's All Wolfe and Ava's Grace rounded out the field.

Shedaresthedevil, out of the Congrats mare Starship Warpspeed, improved her overall record to 10-3-5 in 20 starts, and the $216,000 first prize boosted her career earnings to $2,729,458. She was bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm.

The Fleur de Lis marks the eighth graded stakes win of Shedaresthedevil's career. At 3, she won the Honeybee (G3), Indiana Oaks (G3) and Kentucky Oaks. Her 2021 campaign featured wins in the Azeri (G2), La Troienne (G1), Clement L. Hirsch (G1) and Locust Grove (G3).

The Fleur de Lis is part of the Breeders' Cup Dirt Dozen where a portion of entry fees will be paid to the top three finishers toward the $2 million Distaff (G1) held on Nov. 5 at Keeneland.

The post ‘She’s Back’: Shedaresthedevil Scores First Win Of Year In Fleur de Lis appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights