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German Runner Torquator Tasso Shocks In Arc With 71-1 Odds, Gutsy Closing Kick

The 100th edition of the Group 1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe belonged to German contender Torquator Tasso, who stunned horseplayers at odds of 71-1. The race was the first time rider Rene Piechulek had contested the Arc, and gave trainer Marcel Weiss his first win in the race. Weiss hung out his shingle just two years ago.

Heavy rains in Paris Saturday night changed the going of the turf to the advantage of the 4-year-old colt, who sat well off the early pace and closed through the Longchamp stretch, hitting his best gear in the very last furlong, passing Tarnawa and Hurricane Lane just before the wire. Adayar was fourth.

The win was the third for a German horse in the Arc, after Danedream in 2011 and Star Appeal in 1975.

Torquator Tasso was Horse of the Year in his native Germany last year, and prepped for the Arc with a winning effort in the Grosser Preis von Baden last month.

“I have no words. I can't believe I won,” Weiss told French media. “I started to think about the Arc during the winter because it had already shown class at three years old. He behaved very well this year, winning a Group 2 and a Group 1. But given the range of this 100th edition, we would have already been delighted to be fourth or fifth. The terrain helped him. He was able to attack on the outside as we had planned. I have been training for two years in Mulheim (Germany) but I have been working for Gestüt Auenquelle for many years. The owners of Torquator Tasso have turned down important offers for the horse and I am delighted to be able to train him. He's a star. We will discuss next week his future program, which will perhaps pass through Japan.”

The Arc, contested at 1 1/2 miles, is a Win and You're In race for the Breeders' Cup Turf. Though it remains unclear whether Torquator Tasso will come to Del Mar for the race, Racing Post reported that Tarnawa, last year's winner, could return to defend her title.

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Velazquez Guides Medina Spirit To Front-Running Victory In Awesome Again

Bet down to 6-5 favoritism, Zedan Racing Stables Inc.'s Medina Spirit went to the front at the start, controlled the pace and romped to a daylight victory under Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez in the Grade 1, $300,000 Awesome Again Stakes on Saturday at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.

Stilleto Boy, at 50-1 the longest shot in the field of eight, finished second, followed by Express Train in third, Tripoli (5-2 second choice) in fourth and Tizamagician in fifth.

Medina Spirit and Stilleto Boy were the only two 3-year-olds in the race taking on older horses. Medina Spirit paid $4.60 for the win and combined with Stilleto Boy to pay $83.30 on a $1 exacta.

Medina Spirit covered the 1 1/8 miles on a fast track in 1:49.67 after recording sectional times of :23.39, :47.72, 1:11.76 and 1:37.05.

The Awesome Again is a Win and You're In Challenge Series race for the Breeders' Cup Classic, to be contested at Del Mar on Nov. 6. The winner gets an automatic fees-paid berth in the Classic, but Medina Spirit's participation is uncertain because trainer Bob Baffert's participation in the Breeders' Cup World Championship is being reviewed by the organization's board of directors in the wake of five medication violations over a one-year period, culminating with a failed drug test by Medina Spirit after his first-place finish in the G1 Kentucky Derby on May 1.

Medina Spirit's post-race sample from the Derby tested positive for betamethasone, a corticosteroid that Baffert claims was administered to the horse via an ointment used to treat a rash after the Protonico colt's second-place finish in the G1 Santa Anita Derby on April 3. While the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission has yet to conduct a hearing on the matter, Churchill Downs officials have notified Baffert that he is suspended from participating at any of their tracks through the end of the 2023 spring meeting. The New York Racing Association also has scheduled a hearing in an attempt to deny Baffert's participation at its tracks.

Medina Spirit, bred in Florida by Gail Rice, sold for just $1,000 as a yearling at the OBS Winter Mixed Sale, then brought $35,000 at the OBS July 2-year-old sale. The Awesome Again was his fifth career victory from nine starts (though he may be disqualified from his Kentucky Derby win), including the G3 Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita in January and the listed Shared Belief Stakes at Del Mar on Aug. 29. He ran third behind Rombauer in the G1 Preakness.

The Awesome Again was inaugurated in 1982 as the Goodwood Handicap when the Oak Tree Racing Association conducted a fall meet at Santa Anita. It has been won by such older runners as Lord At War (twice), Ferdinand, Silver Charm, Plealsantly Perfect, Lava Man, Game On Dude (twice), Mucho Macho Man, California Chrome and Accelerate. Three-year-old winners include Shared Belief and Tiznow.

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Going To Vegas Holds Off Luck In Rodeo Drive Stakes

Like a casino sending gamblers home empty handed, Going to Vegas refused to let the furious rush of Luck prevail on Saturday in the Grade 1 Rodeo Drive Stakes at Santa Anita Park.

Going to Vegas, a 4-year-old Goldencents filly got out early in the 1 1/4-mile turf race, and quickly got to the rail under jockey Umberto Rispoli, and she crossed over from the downhill course to the main oval ahead of Dogtag on the inside and longshot Neige Blanche on her outside hip.

Going to Vegas held a comfortable 1 1/2-length lead over Neige Blanche after an opening quarter-mile in :24.35 seconds, and she maintained that margin as the field went past the finish for the first time. The top three positions went unchanged as they headed into the backstretch, with Rispoli keeping Going to Vegas under light restraint.

The race started to percolate after the three-quarters mark in 1:13.49, with jockey Flavien Prat starting to rouse Luck from the middle of the field. Luck got up to third place behind Going to Vegas and Neige Blanche heading into the final turn, and she was in second after a mile in 1:36.35.

Rispoli started urging Going to Vegas in the straightaway with a right-handed crop, as they worked to hold off a pair of LNJ Foxwoods-owned runners in ground-saving Dogtag and outside-moving Luck.

Luck was gaining ground on Going to Vegas as the wire approached, but she ran out of time and real estate, finishing a head behind the winner. Stablemate Dogtag carried on for third.

Going to Vegas stopped the clock in 1:58.84 over a fast main track. She paid $4.20 as the post-time favorite.

Richard Baltas trains Going to Vegas for owners Abbondanza Racing, Medallion Racing, and MyRacehorse. Saturday's victory improved the filly's record to seven wins in 22 starts for earnings of $634,151.

Bred in Kentucky by J. Kirk and Judy Robison, Going to Vegas is out of the stakes-winning Johannesburg mare Hard to Resist.

To view the Equibase chart, click here.

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Dr. Schivel Survives Rein Troubles, Dissects Foes In Santa Anita Sprint Championship Stakes

What looked like an evenly-matched edition of the Grade 2 Santa Anita Sprint Championship Stakes turned into a clinic on Saturday when the 3-year-old Dr. Schivel bested older foes for a third straight time in what was his most visually impressive effort to date.

The effort will certainly improve Dr. Schivel's standing among the contenders for this year's Breeders' Cup Sprint on Nov. 6 at Del Mar. He'd already earned a Breeders' Cup Challenge “Win And You're In” berth to the Sprint by virtue of his victory in the G1 Bing Crosby Stakes on July 31 at Del Mar, and Saturday's race was another “Win And You're In” event.

It was eventful start from the inside post for Dr. Schivel, after a buckle on his rein broke off in the opening jumps. Jockey Flavien Prat grappled with the rein across the backstretch, while also putting his mount in a forward position pressuring early leader Vertical Threat, who started from the second post.

Dr. Schivel went past his foe after an opening quarter in :21.87 seconds, and he never relinquished the lead from that point. Vertical Threat remained within a length of the leader as they passed the half-mile point in :45.07 seconds, well ahead of the rest of the field.

Dr. Schivel was well clear heading into the stretch, and after some mild urging at the top of the straightaway, Prat essentially hand rode the colt to the wire, gearing down at the finish to cross the line 3 1/4 lengths ahead of Flagstaff, who took an inside trip and held on by a nose ahead of a dogged C Z Rocket in third.

Over a fast main track, Dr. Schivel stopped the clock for the six-furlong Santa Anita Sprint Championship in 1:09.44.

Saturday's victory improved Dr. Schivel's record to five wins in seven career starts, and a perfect three-for-three in 2021, with lifetime earnings of $536,000. Mark Glatt trains the colt for owners Red Baron's Barn, Rancho Temescal, Reeves Thoroughbred Racing and William A. Branch.

Dr. Schivel was bred in Kentucky by William A. Branch and Arnold R. Hill, out of the winning Mining For Money mare Lil Nugget.

To view the full Equibase chart, click here.

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