‘Very Special Mare’ Got Stormy Records Final Breeze For Breeders’ Cup Mile

On a crisp, fall morning beneath the Twin Spires, $2 million Breeders' Cup Mile (Grade 1) contender Got Stormy along with $2 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) competitor Juju's Map logged their final works at Churchill Downs on Friday prior to the world championship event at Del Mar on Nov. 5-6.

Owned by My Racehorse Stable and Spendthrift Farm, Got Stormy had her final career breeze at 7:30 a.m. (all times Eastern) under jockey Declan Carroll. The duo cruised a half-mile in :48.60. Two hours earlier, Albaugh Family Stables' Juju's Map clipped five furlongs in :59.60 with jockey Florent Geroux in the saddle outside of stablemate Matera (five furlongs, :59.80).

Got Stormy, a multiple Grade 1-winning mare by Get Stormy, finished second in the 2019 Breeders' Cup Mile at Santa Anita.

“We had some rain in the area but the track was really good so I decided to move her work up a day,” trainer Mark Casse's assistant David Carroll said. “Sometimes you see with older mares that they may take a step back from their younger campaigns but she has been doing great. I'm really excited the way she's coming into the Breeders' Cup. She's a very special mare to all of us.”

Got Stormy, along with about 12 other locally-based Breeders' Cup contenders, will ship to Del Mar on Monday.

Juju's Map completed her major preparation for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies for trainer Brad Cox. A recent winner of the $400,000 Alcibiades (G1) at Keeneland, Juju's Map is one of six local contenders for Cox.

“Today's work was with an older horse in Matera,” Cox said. “She's a stakes winner in her own right so she's a pretty tough workmate. 'Juju' sat just off her and maybe broke about a length behind. She was well in hand throughout the work and it was exactly what we were looking for at this stage. This filly seemed to improve a little bit since her win in the Alcibiades, which is what these horses need to do this time of year leading into the Breeders' Cup.”

Cox won the 2019 Juvenile Fillies with British Idiom but Geroux will be searching for his first victory in the race.

“She worked a really solid five furlongs and it was a really nice move being a week out from the race,” Geroux said. “She was able to stay relaxed throughout the work, which was important when you're working in company. She seems to be coming into the race in great shape.”

There are six Breeders' Cup contenders scheduled to work Saturday morning at Churchill Downs: Essential Quality (Classic), Knicks Go (Classic), Shedaresthedevil (Distaff), Rattle N Roll (Juvenile), Ready to Purrform (Juvenile Turf) and Turnerloose (Juvenile Fillies Turf).

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Got Stormy, Juju’s Map Highlight BC Workers Friday

Grade I winners Got Stormy (Get Stormy) and Juju's Map (Liam's Map) put in their final works for their respective Breeders' Cup races at Churchill Downs Friday morning.

MGISW turfer Got Stormy had her final career breeze at 7:30 a.m. under jockey Declan Carroll, cruising a half-mile in :48.60 in preparation for the GI Breeders' Cup Mile.

“We had some rain in the area but the track was really good so I decided to move her work up a day,” trainer Mark Casse's assistant David Carroll said. “Sometimes you see with older mares that they may take a step back from their younger campaigns but she has been doing great. I'm really excited the way she's coming into the Breeders' Cup. She's a very special mare to all of us.”

Got Stormy, along with about 12 other locally-based Breeders' Cup contenders, will ship to Del Mar on Monday.

Two hours earlier, GI Darley Alcibiades S. winner and GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies contender Juju's Map clipped five furlongs in :59.60 with jockey Florent Geroux in the saddle outside of stablemate Matera (Tapit) (five furlongs, :59.80).

“Today's work was with an older horse in Matera,” Cox said. “She's a stakes winner in her own right so she's a pretty tough workmate. 'Juju' sat just off her and maybe broke about a length behind. She was well in hand throughout the work and it was exactly what we were looking for at this stage. This filly seemed to improve a little bit since her win in the Alcibiades, which is what these horses need to do this time of year leading into the Breeders' Cup.”

There are six Breeders' Cup contenders scheduled to work Saturday morning at Churchill Downs: Essential Quality (Tapit) (Classic), Knicks Go (Paynter) (Classic), Shedaresthedevil (Daredevil) (Distaff), Rattle N Roll (Connect) (Juvenile), Ready to Purrform (Kitten's Joy) (Juvenile Turf) and Turnerloose (Nyquist) (Juvenile Fillies Turf).

Working toward the Breeders' Cup elsewhere in the country:

KEENELAND:
Trainer Chad Brown sent out three of his Keeneland-based runners who were pre-entered in the Nov. 5-6 Breeders' Cup World Championships at Del Mar for works on a fast main track Friday morning. The trio was headed by Peter Brant's Dunbar Road (Quality Road) (Distaff), who covered five furlongs in 1:00.40. Keeneland clockers caught her in splits of :13, :25.20, :36.80, 1:00.40, galloping out in 1:13.20. On Oct. 10, the 5-year-old was second to Letruska in Keeneland's GI Juddmonte Spinster S. Fellow Brant runner, Blowout (GB) (Dansili {GB}) (Mile), worked four panels in :49.80. Winner of the Oct. 9 GI First Lady posted fractions of :12.80, :24.40, :49.80 before galloping out in 1:03.60. Rounding out Brown's trio, Bradley Thoroughbreds, Belmar Racing and Breeding, Tim Cambron, Anna Cambron and Team Hanley's Haughty (Empire Maker) (Juvenile Fillies Turf), maiden winner Oct. 17, worked four furlongs in :47.60. Her fractions were :12.80, :24.60, :47.60 and out in 1:01.

Also, trainer Jack Sisterson worked a pair of Calumet Farm's Breeders' Cup pre-entrants on dirt: Channel Cat (English Channel) (Turf and Mile), four furlongs in :50, and Lexitonian (Speigtstown) (Sprint), four furlongs in :48.40. Brad Grady's Fast Boat (City Zip) (pre-entered in the Turf Sprint) worked three furlongs in :37 on dirt for trainer Joe Sharp.

 

BELMONT:
On Friday morning, Pletcher worked several Breeders' Cup contenders over the Belmont training track. Shadwell Stables' three-time Grade I-winner Malathaat (Curlin) breezed five-eighths in company with 3-year-old allowance-winning colt Vindictive in her final breeze for the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff.

“She's outstanding. She looked great and seems to be in really good form,” Pletcher said.

CHC Inc. and WinStar Farm's Life Is Good (Into Mischief), an easy last-out winner of the GII Kelso, breezed a half-mile in preparation for the GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile.

“He's an exceptional workhorse and very talented,” Pletcher said. “He did what we've become accustomed to seeing him do, which was put in an impressive move. He did it very easily.”

Red Oak Stable homebred Mind Control (Stay Thirsty), also targeting the Dirt Mile, recorded a half-mile breeze.

“It was a good solid work. He seems to have maintained form,” Pletcher said.

Spendthrift Farm's GII Vosburgh winner Following Sea (Runhappy) worked a solid half-mile, however, Pletcher indicated plans to contest the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint are still in flux.

“He did really well. He's been training great. I'll get with the Spendthrift guys and make a final decision, but the horse is doing well,” Pletcher said.

Working on Thursday for Pletcher, Bass Stables homebred Annapolis (War Front), a last-out winner of the GII Pilgrim S., worked in tandem with Nest (Curlin), clocking a half-mile in :50.26. Initially targeting the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf, Pletcher confirmed Annapolis has been sidelined due to a hind ankle chip.

“It's a minor injury and unfortunate timing,” Pletcher said. “We'll look forward to a spring and summer campaign.”

Repole Stable, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Michael House Juvenile Fillies contender Nest most recently recorded a five-length debut win going 1 1/16 miles in September at Belmont.

“She worked well [Thursday] morning,” Pletcher said. “It's something we talked about after her debut. When the race came up a little bit of a shorter field, we felt like it was something worth taking a look at. She's a two-turn filly for sure, it's just a matter of if she has enough experience.”

Also working at Belmont Friday, Shortleaf Stable's GIII Matron S. winner Bubble Rock (More Than Ready, conditioned by Brad Cox, breezed a half-mile in :49.09 over the inner turf rated good in preparation for the GI Juvenile Fillies Turf. The homebred was piloted in her breeze by assistant trainer Dustin Dugas.

“I thought her breeze this morning went pretty well. There was just a little bit of give in it this morning and the turf had a nice bounce to it. We were pretty far out there with the dogs out,” Dugas said. “For a filly that's going to be stretching out for the first time, she did it right. She broke away from the pony and threw her ears up and really relaxed around the turn. She had a decent breeze thereafter down the lane and a good gallop out. I was happy with the way she did it.”

Dugas said Bubble Rock will jog one mile Saturday at Belmont before shipping to California Sunday.

Trainer Christophe Clement watched a trio of his Breeders' Cup contingent breeze over the Belmont Park inner turf led by Otter Bend Stable's dual Grade I winning Gufo (Declaration of War), third in the GI Joe Hirsch Turf Classic three weeks ago at Belmont. The 4-year-old completed an easy half in :53.40 in preparation for the Turf.

“He looked good,” Clement said. “It was a lazy work, as usual, but he had a very strong work last week. He worked on his own. It was slow by design, but he looked well. He is very sound and he's ready to go.”

Jump Sucker Stable's GIII Futurity S. scorer Slipstream (More Than Ready) completed his final breeze for the Juvenile Turf, going a half-mile in :50.20.

Although Slipstream captured the Futurity, a “Win And You're In” for the five-furlong Juvenile Turf Sprint, Clement is opting for the one-mile Juvenile Turf with the colt.

“He worked on his own,” Clement said. “It was a slow work, but he finished very well and was moving well. He came back in good shape.”

Rounding out his Breeders' Cup-bound team, GISP Pizza Bianca (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) went an easy :54.20 in preparation for the Juvenile Fillies Turf. Owned and bred by celebrity chef Bobby Flay, the took her debut going 1 1/16 miles in July at Saratoga and followed with a runner-up effort in the GI Natalma S. in September at Woodbine.

“She's very fit. She's running a week from today so it was an easy work, a two-minute lick and finished up a bit quicker,” Clement said.

Clement indicated his Breeders' Cup contenders are scheduled to depart on Sunday morning.

“[Their works] were slow by design, especially on the ground which I think it's very soft,” Clement said. “I was happy with all them. We just want to keep them happy and sound.”

Also breezing on Belmont's inner turf Friday, Klaravich Stables' GISW Domestic Spending (GB) (Kingman {GB}) [1:01.56] covered five-eighths in company with fellow GI Breeders' Cup Turf hopeful Tribhuvan (Fr) (Toronado {Ire}) [1:01.96], who is owned by Michael Dubb, Madaket Stables, Wonder Stables and Michael J. Caruso. Madaket Stables, Michael Dubb, Wonder Stables, Michael Kisber and Michael J. Caruso's Rockemperor (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}) worked a solo half-mile in 50.98.

The Klaravich Stables-owned duo of Portfolio Company (Kitten's Joy) [1:02.96 – Juvenile Turf] and Consumer Spending (More Than Ready) [1:02.87 – Juvenile Fillies Turf] worked together through five-eighths.

Juddmonte's Pocket Square and Peter Brant's My Sister Nat (Fr) (Acclamation {GB}) breezed five-eighths in 1:01.95 in company for the Filly and Mare Turf, while Peter Brant's Raging Bull (Fr) (Dark Angel {Ire}) breezed a half-mile solo in :49.88 in preparation for the Mile. Brown also sent a number of Breeders' Cup hopefuls to breeze on the main track, including Jack Christopher (Munnings) [1:00.82, Juvenile], Verbal (Flintshire) [50.19, Juvenile Turf] and Royal Flag (Candy Ride {Arg}) [1:01.55, Distaff].

Mr. Amore Stable's Firenze Fire (Poseidon's Warrior), trained by Kelly Breen, worked Friday over the dirt training track in preparation for the Sprint, while Treadway Racing Stable's homebred Grade II winner Sail By (Astern {Aus}), trained by Leah Gyarmati, breezed three-eighths in :38.09 over the inner turf in preparation for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.

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Churchill’s ‘Stars Of Tomorrow I’ Card Features Street Sense, Rags To Riches Stakes

Trainer Dale Romans' promising duo of Iroquois Stakes (Grade 3) third-place finisher Red Knobs, along with impressive maiden winner Howling Time, top an ultra-competitive field of nine 2-year-olds that were entered in Sunday's ninth running of the $200,000 Street Sense at Churchill Downs.

Sunday's 17th annual “Stars of Tomorrow I” program, which features all 2-year-old races, kicks off the 21-day Fall Meet. First post is 1 p.m. (all times Eastern). The 1 1/16-mile Street Sense shares the Sunday spotlight with the $200,000 Rags to Riches, which will also be run at 1 1/16 miles for 2-year-old fillies. The Street Sense was carded as Race 10 at 5:36 p.m. while the Rags to Riches will go as Race 5 at 3:03 p.m.

Inaugurated in 2005, Churchill Downs' “Stars of Tomorrow” programs have helped launched the careers of numerous graded stakes winners, including more than 50 future Grade 1 winners led by Horse of the Year champions Gun Runner (2017) and Rachel Alexandra (2009), Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver (2010), Kentucky Oaks winners Rachel Alexandra (2009), Believe You Can (2012) and Monomoy Girl (2018), Preakness winners Shackleford (2011), War of Will (2019) and Swiss Skydiver (2020), Belmont winner Creator (2016) as well as 2012 Breeders' Cup Classic and 2013 Stephen Foster hero Fort Larned and 2013 champion 3-year-old Will Take Charge.

Albaugh Family Stables' Howling Time, a 2-year-old son of Not This Time, broke his maiden on Sept. 25 at Churchill Downs by 1 ½ lengths in a six-furlong maiden special weight contest. The $200,000 purchase from the 2020 Keeneland September Yearling Sale stopped the teletimer in 1:10.15 to earn a stout 91 Brisnet Speed Rating. Howling Time will be ridden by Joe Talamo from post position No. 6.

Meanwhile, his stablemate, Jim Bakke and Gerald Isbister's Red Knobs, was only defeated by one-length in the $300,000 Iroquois to Major General and Tough to Tame. The chestnut son of Union Rags broke his maiden this summer at Ellis Park by an impressive 6 ¼ lengths. He'll be ridden by James Graham from post 9.

Among the other top contenders in the Street Sense field are Silverton Hill's Kentucky Downs Juvenile Sprint winner Red Danger; Paradise Farms Corp., Skychai Racing and David Staudacher's Kentucky Downs Juvenile Mile runner-up Kiss the Sky; Lucky Seven Stable's Ellis Park Juvenile runner-up Lucky Boss; and Daniel Alonso's 10 ½-length maiden breaker Skippylongstocking.

The complete field for the Street Sense from the rail out (with jockey and trainer): Guntown (Ricardo Santana Jr., Steve Asmussen); Luni Sima (Adam Beschizza, Jack Sisterson); Skippylongstocking (Tyler Gaffalione, Saffie Joseph Jr.); Red Danger (Julien Leparoux, Brian Lynch); Kiss the Sky (Corey Lanerie, Mike Maker); Howling Time (Talamo, Romans); Lucky Boss (Brian Hernandez Jr., Kenny McPeek); Sport Pepper (Florent Geroux, Kerry Zavash); and Red Knobs (Graham, Romans).

The Street Sense and Rags to Riches both serve as the local prep races to the $400,000 Kentucky Jockey Club (G2) and $400,000 Golden Rod (G2), respectively, as part of the “Stars of Tomorrow II” program on Saturday, Nov. 27.

After Sunday's opener, live racing will be conducted on a Wednesday-Sunday schedule with dark days on Mondays and Tuesdays. Most race days feature 10 live races. There will be 11 on Sunday's opener plus a trio of Saturdays: Nov. 6, 13 and 20. Twelve-race cards are scheduled over the final four days, Nov. 25-28.

Meanwhile, Susan Moulton's nine-length maiden winner Sandstone, along with Sekie and Tsunebumi Yoshihara's 7 ¼-length debut hero Yuugiri, headline a compact field of five 2-year-old fillies that were entered in Sunday's ninth running of the $200,000 Rags to Riches at Churchill Downs.

The Rags to Riches, run at 1 1/16 miles, will go as Race 5 of 11 with a post time of 3:03 p.m.

Sandstone, a daughter of Street Sense, broke her maiden on Oct. 3 at Churchill Downs over a “sloppy” surface. The Kenny McPeek-trained filly covered the one-mile distance in 1:37.43 and earned a 90 Brisnet Speed Rating.

Two weeks prior to Sandstone's open-length maiden score, the Rodolphe Brisset-trained Yuugiri cruised to a decisive victory. The homebred-daughter of Shackleford completed the six-furlong maiden special weight contest in 1:09.55 and earned a 95 Brisnet Speed Rating.

Brian Hernandez Jr. will have the return mount on Sandstone from post No. 3 while September Meet leading rider Tyler Gaffalione will pilot Yuugiri from post 4.

The Rags to Riches field also includes Harold Lerner, AWC Stables, Scott Akman, Nehoc Stables, Paul Braverman and Magdalena Racing's Pocahontas Stakes (G2I) runner-up Mama Rina; Joe Sharp's Ellis Park Debutante third-place finisher Manasota Sunset; and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Jessamine Stakes (G2) fourth-place finisher Dressed.

Here's the field for the Rags to Riches in order of post position (with jockey and trainer): Manasota Sunset (Ricardo Santana Jr., Sharp); Mama Rina (Julien Leparoux, Kenny McPeek); Sandstone (Hernandez, McPeek); Yuugiri (Gaffalione, Brisset); Dressed (Florent Geroux, Catalano).

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2022 Kentucky Race Dates Set

Kentucky's live racing schedule for 2022 will largely mirror this season's template of race dates according to a calendar approved Tuesday by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission.

The following three tweaks stand out from 2021: 1) Churchill Downs will race through July 4 instead of closing in late June; 2) Kentucky Downs was granted a seventh racing date, up from six; 3) Keeneland Race Course will host the Breeders' Cup the first Friday and Saturday in November, directly book-ended by live racing at Churchill on the dates right before and after the championships.

Here's a chronological look at the 2022 schedule:

  • Turfway Park: Jan. 1-Apr. 3 on a largely a Thursday-Sunday schedule, with the Thursdays that are shown all marked “optional” on the calendar provided by a KHRC spokesperson.

Keeneland Race Course: Apr. 8-29 on a Wednesday-Sunday schedule.

  • Churchill Downs: Apr. 30-July 4, Wednesday-Sunday. With the exception of the first Wednesday that falls during GI Kentucky Derby week, the Wednesday programs are “optional.” Derby week will also feature a Tuesday, May 3 card but no racing on Sunday, May 8. Other additions are two Monday holiday cards on May 30 (Memorial Day) and July 4 (Independence Day).
  • Ellis Park: July 5-Aug. 28. The KHRC calendar at this stage has Ellis penciled in for a seven-day weekly template, but every date except for Friday-Sunday during the entire meet is marked “optional.”
  • Kentucky Downs: Sep. 1, 3, 4, 8, 10, 11, 14
  • Churchill: Sep. 15-Oct. 2 on a Thursday-Sunday schedule.
  • Keeneland: Oct. 7-29 on a Wednesday-Sunday schedule.
  • Churchill: Oct. 30-Nov. 27 on a Wednesday-Sunday schedule, with the exception of Nov. 4-5 when Keeneland hosts the Breeders' Cup.
  • Turfway: Nov. 30-Dec. 31on a Wednesday-Sunday schedule; Wednesdays “optional” and no racing Dec. 24 and 25.

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