English Channel | Horse Racing Free Tips

Channel Maker Wires Joe Hirsch

Winner of the 2018 GI Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Invitational S., Channel Maker (English Channel) made amends for a close second in last year’s renewal with a front-running score in the 2020 edition Saturday at Belmont. Taking up his preferred position at the head of affairs, the chestnut clicked off splits of :22.89, :49.44 and 1:14.45. Still in front turning for home, the hard-knocking gelding kept on finding in the lane, rolling clear to victory.

“We would have wanted to envision it working out this way and it worked out,” said winning trainer Bill Mott. “It doesn’t always work out as planned, but it did today and it did last time [in the GI Sword Dancer S.] He had a little pressure early from Cross Border, but he was able to sneak away from him.”

“I just felt like when he made that jump turning for home, I didn’t think they could come get him,” part-owner Dean Reeves said. “He’s that kind of horse. He’s just tough.Bill has him so fit. When he came back, it looked like he could he could go another lap. He had a lot left in the tank turning for home.”

Scoring his lone win of 2019 in the GI Man o’ War S., Channel Maker was fourth in the GII Mac Diarmida S. Feb. 29 and was eighth in both the GII Mervin Muniz Memorial S. Mar. 21 and Tiller S. June 4. Completing the superfecta in the GI Manhattan S. over this course on Independence Day, he crossed the line fourth in the GII Bowling Green S. Aug. 1, but was promoted to third via DQ. The 6-year-old entered this event off a wire-to-wire triumph on soft ground in Saratoga’s GI Sword Dancer S. Aug. 29.

Pedigree Notes:

The winner’s full-brother is Sovereign Award winner Johnny Bear, who captured consecutive renewals of Woodbine’s GI Northern Dancer Turf S. Their stakes-winning half-sister Court Return (Court Vision) is the final foal out of their stakes-winning dam In Return and both of them set new course records with their black-type scores. Channel Maker hails from the family of Grade I winner Auntie Mame (Theatrical {Ire}).

Saturday, Belmont Park
JOE HIRSCH TURF CLASSIC S.-GI, $250,000, Belmont, 10-3, 3yo/up, 1 1/2mT, 2:25.99, fm.
1–CHANNEL MAKER, 126, g, 6, by English Channel
                1st Dam: In Return, by Horse Chestnut (Saf)
                2nd Dam: Bartered Bride, by Shadeed
                3rd Dam: Lady Vixen, by Sir Ivor
($57,000 RNA Ylg ’15 KEESEP). O-Wachtel Stable, Barber, Gary,

R. A. Hill Stable and Reeves Thoroughbred Racing; B-Tall Oaks

Farm (ON); T-William I. Mott; J-Manuel Franco. $137,500.
Lifetime Record: 36-7-5-4, $2,631,551. *Full to Johnny Bear,
Ch. Turf Male-Can, MGISW, $702,706; and 1/2 to Court Return
(Court Vision), SW & GSP, $139,106. Werk Nick Rating: A+++
*Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Laccario (Ger), 126, c, 4, Scalo (GB)–Laccata (GB), by Lomitas
(GB). O-Manfred Ostermann; B-Gestut Hof Ittlingen (GER);
T-Andreas Wohler. $50,000.
3–Sadler’s Joy, 126, h, 7, Kitten’s Joy–Dynaire, by Dynaformer.
O/B-Woodslane Farm (KY); T-Thomas Albertrani. $30,000.
Margins: 2 1/4, HF, 1HF. Odds: 2.80, 9.30, 4.50.
Also Ran: Master Piece (Chi), Rockemperor (Ire), Cross Border, Highland Sky. 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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Voodoo Song Retired

Sheryl and Barry Schwartz’s Voodoo Song (English Channel -Mystic Chant, by Unbridled’s Song) has been retired from racing. Bred by Stonewall Farm, the six-year-old stallion prospect, who recorded his most important career victory in Saratoga’s 2018 GI Fourstardave H., retires with eight career wins and lifetime earnings of $954,350.

“There’s been a lot of great horses who have raced at Saratoga over the years, but if he can win six races in a row up here in two years, I’ve never heard of anything like that, except for Native Dancer [a Hall of Famer who won four races there in 1952 and was 6-for-6 at the Spa from 1952-54],” said Barry Schwartz. “You breed a lot of horses, and with each crop you hope you have a good one. It’s not that you’re surprised to get a good one. You’re thrilled that he’s grown into the kind of horse you can get excited about.”

During his sophomore season, the New York-bred defeated eventual 2019 Horse of the Year Bricks and Mortar in the GIII Saranac S. and was runner up in the GIII Commonwealth Derby at Laurel.

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Channel Maker Leads All The Way In Soggy ‘Win And You’re In’ Sword Dancer

Wachtel Stable, Gary Barber, R.A. Hill Stable and Reeves Thoroughbred Racing's multiple Grade 1-winner Channel Maker led at every point of call to capture Saturday's Grade 1, $500,000 Sword Dancer, a 12-furlong inner turf test for older horses at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, the 6-year-old English Channel gelding flourished on the soft going and earned an automatic berth to the Grade 1, $6 million Breeders' Cup Turf on November 7 at Keeneland Race Course.

Saturday's blockbuster card offered four graded events, including a last-to-first score by Win Win Win in the Grade 1, $300,000 Forego presented by America's Best Racing at seven furlongs on the main track for older sprinters; a gate-to-wire effort by Yaupon in the Grade 2, $150,000 Amsterdam at six furlongs for sophomore sprinters; and Bye Bye Melvin started the stakes action with a dramatic nose score over favored Don Juan Kitten in the Grade 3, $100,000 Saranac at one mile on the Mellon turf for 3-year-olds.

Channel Maker, making his third appearance in the Sword Dancer following a runner-up effort in 2018 and a fourth last year, was sent straight to the lead by jockey Manny Franco to mark the opening quarter mile in 25.10, with Marzo racing inside in second position and Corelli in third.

Bred in Ontario by Tall Oaks Farm, the hard-knocking chestnut maintained a length and a half advantage as he led the field past the finish line for the first time with Marzo and Corelli continuing to chase.

Channel Maker dictated the pace through a mile in 1:42.33 with Corelli making a run up the rail and Aquaphobia, last-out winner of the Grade 1 United Nations at Monmouth Park, following suit as Marzo gave way.

Cross Border, the lukewarm 3-1 mutuel favorite, brought a perfect 5-for-5 record at Saratoga into the Sword Dancer and jockey Jose Ortiz gave the New York-bred his cue to follow Aquaphobia as Channel Maker took the field around the final bend.

Boasting a 5 ½-length advantage at the stretch call, Channel Maker continued to find more, easily covering the soft going with strong, smooth strides. Sadler's Joy, the 2017 Sword Dancer champ, launched his trademark move from the back of the pack but there was no reeling in a runaway Channel Maker, who strode through the wire a 5 ¾-length winner in a final time of 2:34.86.

Cross Border found his best stride late to complete the exacta by 3 1/2-lengths over Aquaphobia, who was four lengths clear of Sadler's Joy. Rounding out the order of finish were Corelli, Pedro Cara and Marzo. Highland Sky was scratched.

Channel Maker, who captured the 2018 Grade 2 Bowling Green at the Spa, broke through at the top flight in the 2018 Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at Belmont and doubled up in the Grade 1 Man o' War in May 2019, which was his last winning effort prior to the Sword Dancer.

“He was strong throughout the stretch. He ran a powerful race,” said Mott. “He loves the going. He likes it here. He's tough when he turns for home on the lead.”

Mott credited Franco for making a winning move early in the race.

“We thought Marzo could be on the lead and we might be laying second, but opportunity presented itself for him to be on the lead and the jockey accepted the opportunity and it worked out very well,” said Mott. “Sometimes, you make the right decision and it worked out well today.

“He's very tricky to ride,” continued Mott. “You could see how level he was coming through the stretch and he was straight as an arrow, but if he gets in crowded, sometimes he'll get his head up or bear away from horses. So, he's not an easy horse. He wouldn't be what every rider wants, but in this particular case, everything went well for him and he finished up straight and strong.”

Last out, when elevated to third in the Grade 2 Bowling Green, Channel Maker was caught behind horses in the stretch run which saw Sadler's Joy demoted from first to fourth for lugging in late in the lane and Cross Border elevated to first.

Today, Franco said he was intent on dictating his own terms.

“I made the lead and tried to open up to let them know I wanted to go and they let me go. It worked out good for me,” said Franco.

Mott said he will take a wait-and-see approach with regard to the Breeders' Cup Turf, a race in which the gelding has finished off-the-board in the last two years.

“That water gets very deep. We've tried it a couple times and it hasn't worked out with him,” said Mott. “You get a whole different group of horses. But who knows? There was a year at Keeneland where it was a bottomless ground and if that situation came up, maybe he would benefit from it.”

Ortiz gave full credit to the classy winner.

“We were facing a Grade 1-winner and he got loose today on the soft turf and he liked it. It was hard for everybody to catch up,” said Ortiz. “It was very hard to get going from the half-mile to the three-eighths pole. The second time we passed the three-eighths pole, it was getting very messy, but Aquaphobia made a good move and I tried to follow him. But he struggled, too, and it was hard to make up ground. My horse gave me a little kick, but it was really late passing the three-sixteenths pole when he finally got a good grip on the outside part of the course and gave me a good run. But it wasn't good enough.”

Channel Maker banked $275,000 in victory while improving his record to 35-6-5-4. He returned $18 for a $2 win ticket.

Live racing resumes Sunday at Saratoga with a 10-race card that features the Grade 3, $125,000 Shuvee for older fillies and mares going 1 1/8 miles in Race 9 at 5:46 p.m. Eastern. First post is 1:10 p.m.

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Cross Border Gets The ‘W’ In Bowling Green After DQ Of Sadler’s Joy

The 62nd running of the Grade 2, $250,000 Bowling Green at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., was not without some anxious moments during the stretch run, but Cross Border, 10 days removed from a victory in the Lubash, was awarded the victory and kept an unbeaten record at Saratoga intact for leading owner Three Diamonds Farm and trainer Mike Maker.

The dark bay son of English Channel was named the winner of the 1 3/8-mile event over the Mellon turf following the disqualification of four-time graded stakes winning millionaire Sadler's Joy, who was placed fourth due to interference within the final eighth of a mile. Cross Border arrived at the Bowling Green off a 6 1/4-length victory in the Lubash on July 22.

Stable mate Marzo established command heading into the first turn and opened up by five lengths past the Saratoga grandstand through an opening quarter-mile in 25.30 seconds and a half in 50.38 seconds over a firm turf course.

Meanwhile, jockey Jose Ortiz had Cross Border tucked along the rail in fourth with Sadler's Joy just to his outside. Approaching the far turn, Ortiz gave Cross Border his cue while Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano did the same aboard Sadler's Joy. At the top of the stretch, Cross Border was five wide in between horses with Sadler's Joy in pursuit.

In the final furlong, Sadler's Joy assumed command with Cross Border and Channel Maker to his inside coming in close quarters and crossed the wire first by a neck in a final time of 2:14.77.

Highland Sky, who crossed the wire third, was subsequently elevated to second.

Following the race, the stewards ruled that Sadler's Joy would be disqualified from first to fourth due to lugging into the path of Cross Border and Channel Maker who crossed the wire second and fourth respectively. Following the ruling, Channel Maker was elevated to third.

The official remaining order of finish was Sadler's Joy, Marzo and Dot Matrix. Pillar Mountain was scratched.

The triumph was a fifth victory in as many starts over the Saratoga turf for Cross Border, who joined Maker's stable last year.

“We weren't sure which horse would be the pacesetter, but Marzo coming off the layoff was up there. I thought Marzo ran an incredible race. When it comes down to a street fight, Cross Border is awfully tough,” Maker said.

The victory pushed Cross Border's lifetime earnings past the half-million mark to $534,471 after banking $137,500 in victory. He returned $6.40 for a $2 win wager.

The Bowling Green marked a fifth win of the meet for current leading owners Three Diamonds Farm.

“This is just a gutsy New York bred and it's good for the game that they can breed a New York bred that can win a Grade 2 at Saratoga,” said Three Diamonds Farm owner Kirk Wycoff. “We love the Bowling Green. We were second in it three years ago with Bigger Picture. It was a calculated risk to come back in 10 days and we weren't all in agreement, but Mike Maker made the decision and obviously it was the right one.”

The win was a third stakes victory of the meet for Maker, who also saddled Somelikeithotbrown to victory in Sunday's Grade 2 Bernard Baruch over the inner turf.

Bred in New York by Berkshire Stud and B.D. Gibbs, Cross Border is out of the Empire Maker broodmare Empress Josephine and comes from the same family as leading New York sire Central Banker.

Castellano, aboard Sadler's Joy, stated his case and said the contact was incidental.

“You could see I hit the hole when it opened and I saw the [other] horse, but I never came over,” Castellano said. “We were all on the same line and I think the inside horses was involved a little bit and we all ended up caught in an overreaction. Of course, that put everyone under pressure and they were going to blame the horse on the outside [Sadler's Joy]. It was a decision for the stewards.”

Live racing returns on Sunday with a 10-race card which features the $100,000 Birdstone for 4-year-olds and upward going 1 ¾ miles over the main track. First post is 1:10 p.m. Eastern.

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