Tag: charles town classic

Joseph-Trained Pegasus Hopefuls Gear Up

Skippylongstocking (Exaggerator) and O'Connor (Chi) (Boboman) each turned in works Saturday morning at Palm Meadows towards an intended appearance in the $3-million GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational S.

Owned by Daniel Alonso, Skippylongstocking won this year's GII Charles Town Classic and was last seen finishing third to Cody's Wish (Curlin) in the GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile Nov. 4. The soon-to-be 5-year-old covered a half-mile in :49.40 (20/64).

O'Connor, campaigned by Mike Iavarone and partners, was a sound fourth in last year's Pegasus and is arguably in better form this season, having taken out Keeneland's GII Fayette S. Oct. 28. The Southern Hemisphere 6-year-old also went four furlongs Saturday, stopping the clock in :49.45 (22/64).

Also on the Palm Meadows tab was Ny Traffic (Cross Traffic), who went a half in :49.50 in preparation for the Dec. 30 GIII Harlan's Holiday S.

The post Joseph-Trained Pegasus Hopefuls Gear Up appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Exaggerator Colt ‘Skips’ to $1-Million Charles Town Classic Win

Last year's GI Belmont S. third Skippylongstocking (c, 4, Exagggerator–Twinkling, by War Chant), a three-time graded winner since, added Friday's late-night $1-million GII Charles Town Classic S. to his steadily growing CV. Under Tyler Gaffalione, the 7-5 favorite hustled straight to the front, set fractions of :24.82 and :48.88, and wasn't for catching, drawing clear in the stretch by five lengths. The winner's Saffie A. Joseph, Jr.-trained stablemate O'Connor (Chi) (Boboman), a Group 1 winner in his native Chile, closed from the rear of the field to finish second, while Dash Attack (Munnings), who had rated not far off the winner all the way, was third. Skippylongstocking's win marked the 15th running of the Classic.

One of three runners in the Classic coming out of the July 8 GIII Cornhusker H. at Prairie Meadows, where he was runner-up to Friday night's sixth-place finisher Giant Game (Giant's Causeway), Skippylongstocking was notching his fourth graded win in the past year. He took Tampa Bay's GIII Challenger S. in March, Gulfstream's GIII Harlan's Holiday S. in late December, and Mountaineer's GIII West Virginia Derby last August. The first half of his 3-year-old campaign featured a third in the aforementioned Belmont, as well as in the GII Wood Memorial, and a fifth in the GI Preakness S.

 

Pedigree Notes:

Skippylongstocking is the sole North American-bred graded winner for Classic winner Exaggerator, who also has nine black-type winners. A son of the all-conquering Curlin and a former Kentucky sire, Exaggerator has stood for the past two seasons at Elite Thoroughbreds in Louisiana.

Skippylongstocking is also one of 34 stakes winners out of mares by Breeders' Cup winner War Chant, whose daughters have also produced GI Kentucky Derby winner Country House (Lookin At Lucky) and English/French MG1SW Shalaa (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}).

The Charles Town Classic winner is Twinkling's best runner, although she also has SW Olivia Twist (Mshawish), who was third in April's GIII Fantasy S., and SW Moonlite Strike (Liam's Map), who was third in the 2021 GII Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby. She has an unraced 2-year-old filly named Winking (Take Charge Indy) and a yearling filly named Mia's Mom (Maclean's Music), who sold earlier this month at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale for $275,000 to August Dawn Farm. Her 2023 foal, a filly by Authentic, was born May 5. Twinkling was bred back to Not This Time.

Friday, Charles Town
CHARLES TOWN CLASSIC S.-GII, $1,000,000, Charles Town, 8-25, 3yo/up, 1 1/8m, 1:51.37, wf.
1–SKIPPYLONGSTOCKING, 121, c, 4, by Exaggerator
                1st Dam: Twinkling, by War Chant
                2nd Dam: Unhurried, by Out of Place
                3rd Dam: Laughing Erin, by Irish Castle
($15,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP; $37,000 2yo '21 OBSAPR). O-Daniel
Alonso; B-Brushy Hill, LLC (KY); T-Saffie A. Joseph, Jr.; J-Tyler
Gaffalione. $576,000. Lifetime Record: GISP, 19-6-2-3,
$1,507,185. *1/2 to Olivia Twist (Mshawish), SW & GSP,
$177,449; 1/2 to Moonlite Strike (Liam's Map), SW & GSP,
$174,455. Werk Nick Rating: A.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–O'Connor (Chi), 119, h, 6, Boboman–Torrente de Agua (Chi),
by Touch Gold. O-Fernando Vine Ode and Michael and Jules
Iavarone; B-Haras Carioca (Chi); T-Saffie A. Joseph, Jr.
$192,000.
3–Dash Attack, 119, g, 4, Munnings–Cerce Cay, by Hard Spun.
1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. O-Magdalena Racing (Sherri
McPeek), Catalyst Stable, Kevin J. Pollard and Patty Slevin;
B-Catalyst Stable & Magdalena Racing (KY); T-Kenneth G.
McPeek. $96,000.
Margins: 5, 1HF, 1 1/4. Odds: 1.40, 10.50, 23.60.
Also Ran: Muad'dib, Call Me Fast, Giant Game, Double Crown, Doppelganger, Perfect Flight, Eastern Bay. Scratched: Martin Man.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

The post Exaggerator Colt ‘Skips’ to $1-Million Charles Town Classic Win appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Showdown at the Spa as Personal Ensign Heads Friday’s Graded Action

A compelling Grade I race with year-end title implications and it's not even a Saturday? Such is the magic of Saratoga.

Friday's $500,000 GI Personal Ensign S. at nine furlongs has attracted older mare division leaders Nest (Curlin) and Clairiere (Curlin). Both are multiple Grade I winners with stellar records; the two will meet for the third time.

Nest, last year's Eclipse champion 3-year-old filly, is the 4-5 choice after besting Clairiere in a bang-up GII Shuvee S. July 23 over track and trip. It was her first start of the season after ending last year with a fourth as the favorite behind Clairiere's third in the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff at Keeneland. Nest is undefeated in three tries at Saratoga, including last year's GI Alabama S. and GI CCA Oaks. She was featured earlier this week in TDN.

“She had a spectacular season as a 3-year-old and I think her Coaching Club American Oaks and Alabama wins were two of the most impressive races we saw at Saratoga last year. It earned her a championship and she's come back and is training even better at four,” said Nest's Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher.

“She has that rare ability to quicken at the end of a dirt race–you don't see a lot of horses show that display of turn of foot at the top of the stretch like we see her do,” continued Pletcher. “She's just a very, very special filly.”

Clairiere, second choice at 5-2, is no slouch either. She finished behind Nest in the Shuvee after a less-than-ideal trip and was also second in her first start of the year–Oaklawn's Mar. 11 GII Azeri S. behind fellow Personal Ensign entrant Secret Oath (Arrogate)–but in between she captured the GI Apple Blossom H. at Oaklawn and the GI Ogden Phipps S. at Belmont. She's a four-time Grade I winner who has age and experience on her side, not to mention seven triple-digit Beyer Speed Figures.

“I'm very happy with how she's training,” said fellow Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen. “Obviously, Nest is a very tall order. We'll see how we do, but we couldn't be happier with Clairiere going in. She's a four-time Grade I winner of $3 million. She's covered plenty of ground.”

Clairiere's dam, Cavorting (Bernardini), won the 2016 edition of the Personal Ensign.

GI Kentucky Oaks winner Secret Oath has beaten both of the top contenders and Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas is never shy about putting her in tough spots, including tries against the boys last year, where she finished third in the GI Arkansas Derby and fourth in the GI Preakness S. When she's on her game, she is very, very good. Secret Oath skipped the Shuvee to await the Personal Ensign.

Brad Cox's Juddmonte homebred Idiomatic (Curlin), on a two-race win streak that covers the GII Delaware H. and GIII Shawnee S.; Tom Amoss trainee and GSW Sixtythreecaliber (Gun Runner), an optional allowance winner July 19 over this surface; and Wayne Catalano's last-out Hawthorne allowance winner Malloy (Outwork) complete the field.

Show Me the Money at Charles Town

Night owls are in for a treat as Charles Town hosts two rich late-night graded races Friday. The $1-million GII Charles Town Classic, won the last two years by the late Art Collector (Bernardini), attracts a field ages three and up going nine furlongs. Among the top choices are Giant Game (Giant's Causeway), winner two back of the GIII Cornhusker H. at Prairie Meadows over the re-opposing MGSW Skippylongstocking (Exaggerator) and Call Me Fast (Dialed In). A Dale Romans trainee, Giant Game was fifth behind White Abarrio (Race Day)'s monster effort in the GI Whitney S. Aug. 5. This spring's GI Carter H. winner Doppelganger (Into Mischief) and West Virginia-bred Muad'dib (Fiber Sonde), second to Art Collector in last year's Classic, are among the others looking to make some noise.

Also on tap at Charles Town Friday night is the GIII Charles Town Oaks offering a $750,000 purse for sprinting sophomore fillies going seven furlongs. All eyes will be on Hoosier Philly (Into Mischief), the Tom Amoss trainee who captured the GII Golden Rod S. in her third straight last year but faltered since in disappointing efforts. In her last out June 17, she appeared to be getting back on track in the Monomoy Girl S. at Ellis Park, which she captured over subsequent GI CCA Oaks winner Wet Paint (Blame).

The post Showdown at the Spa as Personal Ensign Heads Friday’s Graded Action appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Multiple Grade I Winner Art Collector Euthanized after Developing Laminitis

Art Collector (Bernardini), a winner of eight stakes, including the 2023 GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational and the 2021 GI Woodward S., was euthanized Thursday in Saratoga after developing laminitis.

Horse Racing Nation was first with the story.

“This was sudden and a tough experience for me and my wife,” said owner-breeder Bruce Lunsford. “I can summarize this pretty easily. He gave me my highest highs in this business and now my lowest low. That's as simple as I can put it. He will be in my brain and my thoughts for the rest of my life. He was very special. The biggest win of my life was in the Pegasus down in Miami, so this was a really big loss. And he was going to be a great sire.”

Trainer Bill Mott said the problems started only a few days ago but became more serious by the day.

“He started to develop laminitis a couple of days ago and he went in a hurry,” Mott said. “He had a very good work on the fifth of August and was fine the next day. Then he developed what appeared to be a small foot abscess two days later. We were soaking it and treating it. We didn't think it was going to be anything serious, but it developed into laminitis in all four feet. He was with us in Saratoga and was in his stall. He started to get real uncomfortable on Tuesday. Yesterday was a bad day and it was getting worse and we had to make the decision to put him asleep.”

Art Collector was originally trained by Joe Sharp. He was transferred to trainer Tom Drury for his 3-year-old campaign. His first graded stakes win came for Drury in the 2020 GII Blue Grass S., which, because of the pandemic, was run on July 11. He returned with a win in the Ellis Park Derby before finishing fourth in the GI Preakness S., which began a three-race losing streak.

In July of 2021, Lunsford made the decision to turn the horse over to Mott, who helped turn around the horse's career. He won his first three starts for Mott in a streak that included the Alydar S., the GII Charles Town Classic and the Woodward. He scored another win in the Charles Town Classic in 2022. After winning this year's Pegasus, he finished his career with second-place finishes in the GII New Orleans Classic and the GII Alysheba.

He was being pointed for a return visit to this year's Charles Town Classic. Lunsford said the plan was to retire Art Collector after the Charles Town race and then to send him to Claiborne Farm, where he was to stand at stud.

Art Collector won 11 of 21 starts and earned $4,231,290.

“To win the Pegasus, what a brilliant race that was for him,” Mott said. “It may be the biggest race of the year so far in North America. We all have great memories of that. He won 50% of his races. He wasn't just an average race horse. He was pretty special.”

The post Multiple Grade I Winner Art Collector Euthanized after Developing Laminitis appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights