Civil Union | Horse Racing Free Tips

Grade I Winners Return in Beaugay

Grade I winners Harvey's Lil Goil (American Pharoah) and Civil Union (War Front) kick off their 2021 campaigns in Saturday's GIII Beaugay S. at Belmont Park.

Harvey's Lil Goil followed a win in Keeneland's GI Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup S. Oct. 10 with a huge third–beaten only a neck at 20-1–in the GI Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf at Keeneland last time Nov. 7.

Civil Union, winner of last term's GI Flower Bowl S. over this course, had a four-race winning steak snapped, finishing another two slots back in fifth in the Filly and Mare Turf.

Lemista (Ire) (Raven's Pass), a dual group winner in her native Ireland, including the 2020 G2 Kilboy Estate S., makes her North American debut for Chad Brown after winning four of seven starts for trainer G.M. Lyons. She was last seen finishing 10th in the G2 Blandford S. Sept. 13.

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‘She’s Gotten Better And Better’: Civil Union Preps For Filly & Mare Turf

Allen Stable's homebred Civil Union worked a half-mile in 51 seconds flat in company with older allowance horse Sentry on the inner turf Sunday at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., in preparation for Saturday's Grade 1, $2-million Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky.

“The company carried her along,” said Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey. “She worked good. She's gotten better and better and stronger and stronger.”

The 5-year-old War Front mare extended her streak to four wins with a head score last out in the Grade 1, $250,000 Flower Bowl Invitational. The turf specialist arrived at the 10-furlong Widener turf test on a winning run-of-form that launched in a June 21 allowance tilt at Belmont and continued through scores in the 12-furlong River Memories on July 12 at Belmont and the 11-furlong Grade 2 Glens Falls at Saratoga.

Racing from sixth position early under Joel Rosario in the Flower Bowl, Civil Union advanced gamely to notch a narrow head score over Filly and Mare Turf-rivals My Sister Nat and Nay Lady Nay.

McGaughey said Civil Union, who ran second in a turf allowance in October 2018, in her lone Keeneland start, has the ability to be tactical if needed.

“In the Flower Bowl she was back a little further than usual,” said McGaughey. “If she gets a decent post and breaks good and depending what some of the others do, I know Joel will have her where he wants her to be. She's pretty versatile. She can settle in behind or if she needs to be up close she can be up close.”

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Civil Union Earns Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Berth With Hard-Fought Flower Bowl Victory

Joseph Allen's homebred Civil Union, a 5-year-old mare by War Front, surged to the lead in deep stretch under Joel Rosario and held off a fast-finishing My Sister Nat to win Saturday's Grade 1, $250,000 Flower Bowl Stakes at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

Victory in the 1 1/4-mile turf fixture for fillies and mares earned Civil Union a fees-paid spot in the starting gate for the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf as part of the Win and You're In Challenge Series. The Breeders' Cup will be held at Keeneland in Lexington, Ky., on Nov. 6-7.

Trained by Shug McGaughey, Civil Union was timed in 2:01.28 for the 10 furlongs on firm turf and paid $8.10 for the win. Chad Brown, who's trained five of the last six Flower Bowl winners and six overall, took the next three positions, with My Sister Nat second, Nay Lady Nay third and Cambier Parc fourth in the field of seven.

Civil Union had only My Sister Nat beat in the early going as longshot Lovely Lucky set the pace – under intermittent pressure from Cambier Parc – through fractions of :24.62, :48.93 and 1:14.36 for the first six furlongs.

Rosario moved Civil Union into contending position along the rail heading toward the far turn, with Jose Ortiz opting for the overland route aboard My Sister Nat.

Turning into the stretch, after a mile in 1:38.27, Cambier Parc poked her head in front as Lovely Lucky fought back along the rail. Rosario switched off the rail aboard Civil Union and found a seam to the outside of Cambier Parc, and began their drive for the wire.

Ortiz was forced to go wide into the stretch, making a bold but belated run with My Sister Nat in deep stretch but ran out of ground.

The win was the fifth from eight starts and the first in a Grade 1 race for Civil Union, produced from the Unbridled's Song mare, Photograph, the latter a granddaughter of Andover Way, a G1 winner for Allen who was the dam of successful sire Dynaformer. Andover Way's grandam is Darby Dan Farm foundation mare Golden Trail.

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War Front’s Civil Union Finishes Fastest in Flower Bowl

The 3-1 third choice in a field of seven, Joseph Allen’s progressive Civil Union (War Front) built on her last-out success in the GII Glens Falls S. at Saratoga with a breakthrough top-level tally in Saturday’s GI Flower Bowl S. at Belmont Park, securing a berth in the gate for the GI Maker’s Mark Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf in the process.

Allowed to settle last but one beneath Joel Rosario, with only G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner Sottsass (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr})’s French and American Group 3/Grade III winner My Sister Nat (Fr) (Acclamation {GB}) behind her, Civil Union was content to bide time from a ground-saving position as longshot Lovely Lucky (Lookin At Lucky) set a modest pace in advance of favored Cambier Parc (Medaglia d’Oro). Always traveling sweetly, Civil Union was short of room entering the final 2 1/2 furlongs, but accelerated three off the inside once La Signare (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) vacated that spot. With one of the best finishers in the business at the controls, Civil Union came calling for the lead nearing the sixteenth pole and was home first as My Sister Nat attacked the line down the center of the course. Nay Lady Nay (Ire) (No Nay Never), who was relegated to second favoritism in the last few clicks of the tote, could not quite match strides with the top two and settled for third, one spot ahead of a disappointing Cambier Parc.

It was the second Flower Bowl win in the last four years for Allen, trainer Shug McGaughey and War Front, whose daughter War Flag landed the spoils at 9-1 in 2017 before finishing a respectable sixth behind Wuheida (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) in the Filly & Mare Turf at Del Mar.

“When she started off this winter in Florida, I never imagined that she would be a Grade 1 winner,” the Hall of Fame conditioner admitted. “She’s progressed the right way. It’s fun. She’s a nice mare to train and nice to be around. She ran under some different tactics today on Joel [Rosario’s] part, but that’s why he’s such a great rider. He knows what to do.”

A debut winner from three starts for the Chad Brown barn in 2018 and 2019, Civil Union took a course-and-distance allowance in her second appearance for this barn ahead of a facile score in the 12-furlong River Memories S. July 12. With Rosario in the irons for the first time in the Sept. 5 Glens Falls, Civil Union sat handy to a walking pace, then covered her final three furlongs in a smart :34.97 to best My Sister Nat by a length.

Pedigree Notes:

Civil Union becomes the 23rd Grade I/Group 1 winner for her Claiborne-based stallion and is the 25th top-level scorer out of a daughter of the late Unbridled’s Song, three of which–Contrail (Jpn) and Volatile–have come this season.

Photograph is an unraced daughter of Black Speck, whose produce include the aforementioned War Flag as well as the former G2 UAE Derby hero Lines of Battle (War Front), who won the G1 Champions & Chater Cup in Hong Kong (then named Helene Super Star) en route to honors as that jurisdiction’s champion stayer. Civil Union’s third dam produced influential sire Dynaformer (Roberto) as well as the dam of GISW sire Offlee Wild (Wild Again).

A full-sister to the 2-year-old colt Battle of Britain, Civil Union has a weanling full-brother named Operation Torch. Having produced her first eight foals by War Front, Photograph was most recently bred to Tapit.

Saturday, Belmont Park
FLOWER BOWL S.-GI, $250,000, Belmont, 10-10, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 1/4mT, 2:01.28, fm.
1–CIVIL UNION, 124, m, 5, by War Front
1st Dam: Photograph, by Unbridled’s Song
2nd Dam: Black Speck, by Arch
3rd Dam: Andover Way, by His Majesty
1ST GRADE I WIN. O-Allen Stable Inc; B-Joseph Allen LLC (KY); T-Claude R McGaughey III; J-Joel Rosario. $137,500. Lifetime Record: 8-5-1-1, $396,810. *Full to War Dispatch, GSW & G1SP-Fr, $765,320; and George Patton, GSP-Fr, $105,521. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–My Sister Nat (Fr), 122, m, 5, by Acclamation (GB)
1st Dam: Starlet’s Sister (Ire), by Galileo (Ire)
2nd Dam: Premiere Creation (Fr), by Green Tune
3rd Dam: Allwaki, by Miswaki
(€20,000 Ylg ’16 ARQFEB). O-Peter M Brant; B-Ecurie Des Monceaux (FR); T-Chad C. Brown. $50,000.
3–Nay Lady Nay (Ire), 122, f, 4, by No Nay Never
1st Dam: Lady Ederle, by English Channel
2nd Dam: Bright Generation (Ire), by Rainbow Quest
3rd Dam: New Generation (Ire), by Young Generation (Ire)
(€44,000 Wlg ’16 GOFNOV; €50,000 Ylg ’17 GOFOR; $210,000 2yo ’18 OBSMAR). O-First Row Partners & Hidden Brook Farm; B-Stephen Sullivan (IRE); T-Chad C Brown. $30,000.
Margins: HD, 3/4, 2 3/4. Odds: 3.05, 5.20, 2.90.
Also Ran: Cambier Parc, La Signare (Fr), Beau Belle, Lovely Lucky.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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