brickyard ride | Horse Racing Free Tips

Trainers’ Concerns ‘Surface’ On Eve Of ‘Win And You’re In’ Pat O’Brien

It's a common, everyday factor in Thoroughbred racing magnified by the size of the purse and the importance of the event.

How will the track be playing? Will it favor speed horses or come-from-behind types? Because one trainer's “too fast” is another's “not fast enough.”

Case in point, Saturday's Grade 2, $200,000 Pat O'Brien Stakes, the seven-furlong follow-up to the Grade 1, $300,000 six-furlong Bing Crosby Stakes four weeks ago in Del Mar's handicap division sprint graded event series.

The Crosby victory having assured a spot in the $2 million Breeders' Cup Sprint here on Nov. 6, winner Dr. Schivel is not entered in the O'Brien. But three of the next four Crosby finishers are set to run, fully aware that the O'Brien is a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the $1 million Breeders' Cup Big Ass Fan Dirt Mile on the same day.

And for two of them – defending race champion C Z Rocket trained by Peter Miller and California-bred speedster Brickyard Ride trained by Craig Lewis – how the track plays on Saturday is of foremost concern.

In the immediate aftermath of the Crosby, in which C Z Rocket closed from fifth to third in the stretch, nearly making up a four-length deficit to lose only by a neck, Miller said he'd pass on the O'Brien. Which, the trainer said this morning, could still happen.

“We're still not 100 percent sure,” said Miller, who has consistently expressed concerns over what he considers a speed-favoring track throughout the meeting. “We're going to keep an eye on the track and see how it's playing. The post (No. 9) is good. I just don't want to run him if it's not a fair track. I'm just trying to be fair to the horse, and the public, that's all.”

Claimed for $40,000 in April of 2020, the O'Brien win, followed by a victory in the Santa Anita Sprint Championship and runner-up in the Breeders' Cup Sprint were keys to a nine-race campaign in 2020 that produced $651,901 in earnings. The seven-year-old gelded son of City Zip has added $536,000 from four 2021 starts for career earnings of more than $1.4 million.

Brickyard Ride overcame a bobble at the break to go straight to the lead in the Bing Crosby through early fractions of :21.80 and :44.60 on a track that the Daily Racing Form analysts rated as favoring closers, before being passed by four horses in the stretch.

The 4-year-old son of Clubhouse Ride, an Alfred Pais homebred, has career earnings of $470,477. Of that, $300,200 has been accumulated via three wins in six starts this year, highlighted by a victory in the Grade II San Carlos Stakes at Santa Anita in March.

“I'd like to see a little better start and a little more glib track (than the Crosby), but you can't control that,” Lewis said of his O'Brien hopes. “Certain horses like it certain ways and he (Brickyard Ride) wants to go the speed route. We'd like a quick track, that's the bottom line.

“Other than that, he's good to go. We just need things to go our way, which is asking for a lot. There's a lot of nice horses in a very competitive race.”

The field for the Pat O'Brien from the rail with jockeys and morning line odds in parentheses: Ginobili (Drayden Van Dyke, 6-1); Howbeit (Kyle Frey, 6-1); Surfing Star (apprentice Jessica Pyfer, 30-1); Mo Mosa (Ramon Vasquez, 10-1); Eight Rings (Abel Cedillo, 6-1); Classier (Mario Gutierrez, 12-1); Brickyard Ride (Juan Hernandez, 8-1); Flagstaff (Joe Bravo, 3-1); C Z Rocket (Peter Miller, 5-2), and California Street (Wayne Barnett, 30-1).

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Many Chances in Deep Bing

Handicappers will have a tough time tossing many horses from their tickets as a competitive nine-horse field lines up for Saturday's six-furlong GI Bing Crosby S. at Del Mar, a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint.

Given a slight nod on the morning line at 5-2 is C Z Rocket (City Zip). Claimed for $40,000 last spring at Oaklawn by Peter Miller, the gelding has been a new horse since, winning seven of nine races while finishing second in the other two. That streak includes a score in last summer's GII Pat O'Brien S. over this oval. The 7-year-old most recently was second when stretching out in the GIII Steve Sexton Mile S. May 31 at Lone Star.

California-bred Brickyard Ride (Clubhouse Ride) rates a big chances breaking from the outermost stall. Earning a shot at open company after a convincing score in the California Cup Sprint S. Jan. 16 at Santa Anita, the Alfred Pais homebred didn't disappoint, cruising to an impressive four-length victory despite setting a scorching pace in the GII San Carlos S. Mar. 6. Well-beaten in his next two, he rebounded with a 4 3/4-length success in the Cal-bred Thor's Echo S. last out June 12.

Dr. Schivel (Violence) takes on older horses in just his fifth career start. Taking three tries to break his maiden, he came right back to annex the GI Runhappy Del Mar Futurity for Luis Mendez, but went unseen for over nine months after that before eventually returning with a narrow allowance/optional claiming tally for new trainer Mark Glatt June 18 at Santa Anita.

Defending Bing Crosby champion Collusion Illusion (Twirling Candy) makes his 4-year-old debut here. Runner-up in the GII Santa Anita Championship S. after his local heroics, he was 12th in the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint before rebounding some to be third in the GI Runhappy Malibu S.

Other contenders include Vertical Threat (Tapiture), last seen romping by 7 1/2 lengths with a 102 Beyer in last November's Steel Valley Sprint S. at Mahoning Valley, Quick Tempo (Tapizar), who did his name justice when setting splits of :21.44 and :43.35 before setting for second in the Iowa Sprint S. at Prairie Meadows July 3, and Eight Rings (Empire Maker), who's winless in four starts since capturing the GI American Pharoah S. as a juvenile but shows a sharp worktab for Bob Baffert that includes a five-furlong bullet in :58 3/5 (1/91) July 10 in Arcadia.

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C Z Rocket Slight Favorite In Contentious Bring Crosby

Nine of the fastest racehorses on the grounds will step on the accelerators at Del Mar Saturday for a six-furlong battle royale in the 76th edition of the Grade 1 Bing Crosby Stakes.

The race offers a $300,000 purse and, additionally – as part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series – an all-expenses paid ticket into the $2-million Breeders' Cup Sprint, which will be contested at Del Mar on Saturday, November 6.

The race is deep in talent, deep in contention and crack full of speed. Picking a favorite is tough, but Del Mar's morning line man, Jon White, had made a call for the running machine known as C Z Rocket and hung him at 5/2. To underline the extent of the friction that rises with a dash like this, White has put 7/2 listings on both Dr. Schivel and Brickyard Ride, as well as a 4-1 tab on Collusion Illusion, the race's defending winner.

C Z Rocket has proven to be one of the great claims of recent times since he was haltered for his current connections by trainer Peter Miller at Oaklawn Park in Arkansas in April, 2020. The now 7-year-old gelding by City Zip has since run nine times – the last six in stakes – and won seven of them, along with a pair of seconds. In the process he's banked more than $1 million and improved his career marks to 26-11-3-2 with total earnings of $1,391,641.

Dr. Schivel's main claim to fame so far is winning the Del Mar Futurity last September, after which he was sold to his current outfit and sent to the barn of trainer Mark Glatt, who then put him on the shelf for nine months. The 3-year-old son of Violence made a comeback start in June at Santa Anita in an allowance race and won it in a photo.

Brickyard Ride is a seriously fast horse whose style is to go to the front and dare his rivals to come catch him. Trainer Craig Lewis has campaigned the 4-year-old by Clubhouse Ride both in California-bred races and against open company and has come away a winner in both circumstances. He's captured eight of 16 starts and banked $464,477.

Collusion Illusion won the Crosby as a 3-year-old, getting up in the very last jump to score by the proverbial whisker. The Twirling Candy offspring has proved a winner in five of his nine trips to the post and will be making his first start since last December at Santa Anita. He, too, is trained by Glatt, while the conditioner also calls the shots for Crosby entrant Law Abidin Citizen.

Here's the full field for the Crosby from the rail out with riders and morning line odds: Exline-Border Racing and ERJ Racing or Hudock's Shooters Shoot (Trevor McCarthy, 15-1); Slam Dunk Racing or MyRacehorse's Vertical Threat (Joe Bravo, 8-1); Madaket Stables, Barber or Kagele's C Z Rocket (Florent Geroux); Agnew, Schneider or Xitco's Law Abidin Citizen (Wayne Barnett, 12-1); Dare to Dream Stable's Quick Tempo (Umberto Rispoli, 12-1); MyRacehorse, Agnew, Orr, et al's Collusion Illusion (Tyler Baze); Coolmore Stud, Madaket Stables or Starlight Racing, et al's Eight Rings (Abel Cedillo, 10-1); Red Baron's Barn, Rancho Temescal or Reeves, et al's Dr. Schivel (Flavien Prat), and Alfred Pais' Brickyard Ride (Juan Hernandez).

The Crosby goes as the 10th race on an 11-race program with a first post of 2 p.m.

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Bing Crosby Nominations Promises Deep Field Of Sprinters At Del Mar

Seventeen horses, encompassing virtually all the top sprinters on the West Coast, have been nominated to Saturday's $300,000 Grade 1 Bing Crosby Stakes, assuring that the field will be a stellar one when it is set and post positions are drawn on Wednesday.

Trainer Mark Glatt finished first and third in the 2020 Crosby with Collusion Illusion and Law Abidin Citizen. He has those two plus Dr. Schivel nominated and said Sunday he might run all three.

Other marquee speedsters on the nomination list include 2020 Pat O'Brien winner C Z Rocket for Peter Miller; the trio of Ax Man, Eight Rings, and Gamine from the Bob Baffert barn; graded stakes winner Flagstaff from the John Sadler stable; and the double-quick Cal-bred Brickyard Ride out of the Craig Lewis barn.

Sadler said Flagstaff will skip the Bing Crosby and instead go in the seven-furlong Pat O'Brien here on August 28.

Baffert said the 4-year-old filly Gamine, a winner of six graded stakes in her last seven starts – four of them Grade 1s – is more likely to continue competing against her own gender elsewhere than take on males in the Bing Crosby.

But Gamine is one of 11 older fillies and mares nominated to next Sunday's Clement L. Hirsch, as is stablemate As Time Goes By. A 4-year-old daughter of Baffert-trained Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, As Time Goes By is one of three stakes winners at Santa Anita that are possibles for the Hirsch, a 1 1/16-mile main track event that usually determines the top older filly or mare of the meeting.

The others are Venetian Harbor and Warren's Showtime.

The 6-furlong Bing Crosby is a “Win & You're In” qualifier for the $2 million Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Sprint at Del Mar on November 6. The Clement L. Hirsch is likewise designated for the $2 million Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Distaff that same day.

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