David Fiske | Horse Racing Free Tips

Fiske Pondering Next Step For Silver State

After running his win streak to six with a conquest of the Grade 1, $1 million Hill 'N' Dale Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., Silver State has plenty of options on the table said co-owner Ron Winchell's racing and bloodstock advisor David Fiske.

Trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, the son of Hard Spun carried five straight triumphs into the prestigious one-turn mile event, including three stakes wins at Oaklawn Park. He made his seasonal bow with a narrow victory in the Fifth Season on January 23 going a two-turn mile before notching wins in the Essex on March 13 and the Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap on April 17.

Silver State began his six-race tear off a seven-month layoff when defeating winners going seven furlongs on October 22 at Keeneland. He produced a career-best 101 Beyer when traveling the same distance next out at Churchill Downs.

Given Silver State's versatility, Fiske said he is still determining a target for the 4-year-old bay colt, who earned an automatic entry into the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile in capturing the Met Mile.

“He's in that spot where we could stretch him out again, or we could shorten him up,” Fiske said. “He seems to be effective at seven [furlongs], a mile, a mile and a sixteenth and a mile and an eighth, He can go just about anywhere. We'll probably talk about whether we want to go in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile and keep him at a middle distance or if we want to stretch him out again.”

Campaigned on the Fair Grounds division of the Kentucky Derby trail last year, Silver State was put on the shelf following a distant seventh in the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby. Fiske said his mental maturity has been highly instrumental.

“He's always had a lot of talent and we always thought a lot of him,” Fiske said. “We had him on the Triple Crown trail last year and maybe he was a little immature for that. We did some body work on him and sent him to the sidelines after the Louisiana Derby. With the pandemic, there was a lot of uncertainty as to when. We brought him back in the fall. He was a bigger, stronger version of himself.

“He's always been a large extremely good-looking horse,” he added. “He probably would have gotten good sooner with a more consistent pattern of racing. He may have been victimized by the pandemic a bit.”

Additionally, Fiske expressed delight in seeing Tapit, who was campaigned by Winchell, sire a fourth Belmont Stakes winner. The influential stallion put himself on even terms with Lexington, who sired General Duke [1868], Kingfisher [1870], Harry Basset [1871] and Duke of Magenta [1878].

“Ron and I joke that he hasn't gotten a Derby win because it's too short,” Fiske quipped. “No one has done that in the modern era. We were hoping he would get a Derby winner this year, if not for a slightly troubled trip for Essential Quality.”

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Silver State May Bring Five-Race Win Streak To Met Mile On Belmont Stakes Card

While Grade 1 Preakness Stakes runner-up Midnight Bourbon will likely take his show on the road, red-hot Silver State could give Winchell Thoroughbreds and trainer Steve Asmussen noteworthy representation on Belmont Stakes Day in the Grade 1, $1 million Hill 'N' Dale Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

Silver State would bring a five-race win streak to New York for the Met Mile for Winchell and Asmussen. Owned by Winchell in partnership with Willis Horton Racing, the 4-year-old Hard Spun colt was given an extended break following a run in the series of Kentucky Derby prep races at Fair Grounds Race Course last year and has done no wrong since returning to action.

Following two allowance triumphs at seven furlongs at Keeneland and Churchill Downs, Silver State began building a prominent resume with a trio of stakes victories at Oaklawn Park this winter, capturing the Fifth Season on January 23, the Essex on March 13, and the Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap on April 17.

“We've got the Met Mile under consideration,” said David Fiske bloodstock and racing adviser for Winchell Thoroughbreds. “He went seven-eighths in 1:21 and some change when he won at Churchill, so we feel that anything around seven-eighths to a mile and an eighth would be within his ability.”

Should he make the trip to New York for the Met Mile, Silver State would aim to give Asmussen his third victory in the prestigious race. He previously won back-to-back editions with Bee Jersey [2018] and Mitole [2019].

Fiske added that dual graded stakes-placed Whiskey Double could ship to Belmont Park later in the summer for the Grade 3, $250,000 Dwyer on July 5 if performs well in a Thursday allowance race at Churchill Downs. The son of Into Mischief was second in the Grade 3 Bay Shore at Aqueduct before finishing third to stable mate Jackie's Warrior in the Grade 2 Pat Day Mile at Churchill Downs.

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Courses Charted For Classic Runners-Up Mandaloun, Midnight Bourbon

Neither Mandaloun, second behind Medina Spirit in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby, nor G1 Preakness runner-up Midnight Bourbon are bound for Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., on June 5 for the Belmont Stakes or undercard races.

Daily Racing Form reports that Juddmonte Farms' Mandaloun will be pointed by trainer Brad Cox toward the June 13 TVG.com Pegasus Stakes at Monmouth Park, a prep for the G1, $1-million Haskell Invitational at the Oceanport, N.J., track on July 17. Winner of the G2 Risen Star Stakes at Fair Grounds, the Into Mischief colt could wind up as the official Kentucky Derby winner if a split sample confirms the presence of a corticosteroid and stewards disqualify Medina Spirit from the victory.

Trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, Winchell Thoroughbreds' Midnight Bourbon, a son of Tiznow, finished sixth after a rough start in the Kentucky Derby and then second in the Preakness. Winchell Thoroughbreds racing and bloodstock advisor David Fiske said Midnight Bourbon could also wind up in the Haskell or in the G2, $600,000 Jim Dandy on July 30 at Saratoga.

Midnight Bourbon defeated Mandaloun winning the G3 Lecomte, then finished third behind that colt in the Risen Star.

“He came out of the Preakness great, but he may have put the groundskeepers out of a job he was eating so much grass,” Fiske told the New York Racing Association media office. “He shipped back to Churchill and has been jogging great. There aren't any big target races after the Belmont prior to the Jim Dandy or Haskell, so we'll focus on those races for now.”

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The Show Continues in Preakness

BALTIMORE, MD–Immediately after the May 1 GI Kentucky Derby, it appeared that the GI Preakness S. two weeks hence would be a routine affair. Trainer Bob Baffert would be heading to Pimlico with a record seventh Derby victory under his belt and he would be in the enviable position of trying to collect his eighth win in the second jewel of the Triple Crown. And then the unthinkable happened. The Derby winner, Medina Spirit (Protonico), tested positive for Betamethasone, a substance banned on race day. That single event sparked a week of drama, statements, interviews and a ton of speculation. Initially, the public was told the horse did not receive the drug. Then, it was discovered the colt, who had been wrestling with a skin condition, required an anti-fungal. Enter Otomax, said anti-fungal which contains, you guessed it, Betamethasone. As the week progressed, the speculation continued, lawyers racked up billable hours and later in the week, the local officials gave the green light for the Baffert horses to race after early testing came back negative for any prohibited substances. While many must have given a sigh of relief, the next hurdle remains, can Medina Spirit follow up with a win Saturday? Will a victory silence his detractors or will it simply give the media more fodder for the ensuing three weeks to the June 5 GI Belmont S.? And while the morning line favorite appears to be, at least on paper, the one to beat, nine rivals will try to stand in his way.

Team Spirit
Which ever way you cut the cake, Zedan Racing's Medina Spirit and stablemate TDN Rising Star Concert Tour (Street Sense) enter Saturday's Classic with the deepest credentials. Medina Spirit took his debut at Los Alamitos last December before finishing second in the Jan. 2 GIII Sham S. to another Baffert monster, TDN Rising Star Life Is Good (Into Mischief). That duo met again in the Mar. 6 GII San Felipe S. and once again, Medina Spirit had to settle for second–beaten eight lengths–while the early Derby favorite was forced to the sidelines after suffering a leg injury in training later in the month. Medina Spirit forged on the Apr. 3 GI Santa Anita Derby, and finished runner-up behind Rock Your World (Candy Ride {Arg}). Sent off no better than 12-1 for the Derby, Medina Spirit went to the front and never looked back en route to a half-length victory over 26-1 chance Mandaloun (Into Mischief).

Taking a difference approach early in his 3-year-old season, Gary and Mary West's Concert Tour earned his Rising Star status with an emphatic score going six panels at Santa Anita before making it two straight with a victory in the seven-furlong GII San Vincente S. Feb. 6. Back on top in the Mar. 13 GII Rebel S. over 8 1/2 furlongs, he finished third in the Apr. 10 GI Arkansas Derby.

Medina Spirit, accompanied by a returning John Velazquez, exits the three hole, while Concert Tour breaks from the 10. Mike Smith gets the call.

“[Concert Tour] is a speed horse, so he will get out of there and get a position and be on the outside somewhere,” said Baffert assistant Jimmy Barnes. “I think we're fine with both our positions. They are both front-running horses, so they will probably will be up there in the clear, hopefully. He's one that is placed forwardly in the racing. Being on the outside should be fine.”

Chad Brown offers up two in this year's Preakness renewal, Crowded Trade and Risk Taking (Medaglia d'Oro). The former won at first asking at the Big A before coming up a nose short in the Mar. 6 GIII Gotham S. Mostly recently, the chestnut came from off the pace to finish third behind a pair of longshots in the Apr. 3 Wood Memorial S. Risk Taking came home a winner in two consecutive starts, including the Feb. 6 GIII Withers S. before offering little when seventh as the 2-1 choice on the Wood. Javier Castellano climbs aboard Crowded Trade for the first time, while Jose Ortiz joins Risk Taking.

“Crowded Trade ran a really good race in only his third start,” Brown said. “He did hang a little bit in the lane, but he made up a lot of ground after breaking bad. Risk Taking was quite a disappointment that day. He was coming into the race in excellent form and his numbers were heading the right way. He just didn't fire.”

According to Brown, Risk Taking took a lot of kickback in the Wood, causing the colt to have one eye closed the following day.

“Clearly, the kickback impacted him to some degree,” Brown said. “Whether that fully explains why he just quit in that race, I will never be certain of it. I am just going to draw a line through that race. I just hope he can get back to his race in the Withers, which would put him in contention here.”

Midnight Bourbon (Tiznow), winner of the Jan. 16 GIII Lecomte S., followed up with a third behind Mandaloun in the GII Risen S. before finishing second in the GII Louisiana Derby Mar. 20. Typically on or near the engine in his races, the imposing bay broke slowly after the ground gave away under him at the start of the Kentucky Derby, leaving him uncharacteristically far back in the early going. He rallied to finish a respectable sixth.

“We're expecting a very good run from him,” said trainer Steve Asmussen, who previously won the Preakness with Curlin in 2007 and Rachel Alexandra in 2009. “I thought he was in great physical shape going into the Derby..everything was going extremely well. Missing the break did not put him in the position necessary for him to have success. From where he was, he ran reasonably well but not good enough. Here we are with a lot of horse going into the Preakness and expecting a better outcome.”

Midnight Bourbon exits Post 5 with Irad Ortiz Jr. in the irons for the first time.

GII Kentucky Jockey Club winner Keepmeinmind (Laoban) has failed to hit the board in a trio of starts this term, including a seventh in the Kentucky Derby, but his trainer Robertino Diodoro thinks the late-closing colt can turn things around Saturday.

“The only thing is, the race is run on dirt and not paper,” he said. “You know how that goes sometimes. But on paper, I think there's definitely enough pace and the smaller field helps. I think we drew well [Post 2], and will stay on the rail as long as we can..You got to worry about your own horse, and we're not going to change our running style. We tried that once a couple of starts ago, because of the lack of speed and it didn't turn out [fifth in the GII Blue Grass S. Apr. 3]. We're going to go back to our normal way of just worrying about our horse and hoping he's doing well–and definitely don't take him out of his element.”

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