Famed Hopes to Live Up to Her Name in Golden Rod

'TDN Rising Star' Famed (Uncle Mo), currently best known as the half-sister to champion Essential Quality (Tapit), looks to forge her own path as she takes on stakes company in the GII Golden Rod S. at Churchill Downs Saturday. Runner-up in her six-panel debut at Churchill Sept. 26, the dark bay broke through next out with a 7 3/4-length decision going seven furlongs at Keeneland Oct. 30.

Famed will have to contend with impressive Rags to Riches S. winner Sandstone (Street Sense). Third behind next-out Debutante S. winner and stablemate Behave Virginia (Unified) in her Churchill unveiling May 28, the dark bay romped by nine lengths next out when extended to a mile beneath the Twin Spires Oct. 3. She ran away with the Rags to Riches last time Oct. 31, cruising home a 10 3/4-length winner over the re-opposing Yuugiri (Shackleford), who adds blinkers this time. McPeek also saddles Hal's Dream (Exaggerator), who rallied from last to first to graduate at first asking at Keeneland Oct. 20.

Dream Lith (Medaglia d'Oro) looks to make amends after finishing fifth in both the Sept. 5 GI Spinaway S. and Oct. 8 GI Darley Alcibiades S. The well-bred filly captured her career bow at Saratoga Aug. 8 and adds blinkers for this start.

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Half-Sister To Essential Quality, Famed Headlines Saturday’s Golden Rod Stakes

Godolphin's 2-year-old filly Famed, the half-sister to champion colt Essential Quality, will face off against Susan Moulton's dominant 10 ¾-length winner of the $200,000 Rags to Riches Sandstone in Saturday's $400,000 Golden Rod (Grade 2), a race on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs.

The 1 1/16-mile Golden Rod will award the Top 4 fillies points on a 10-4-2-1 scale toward the May 6 Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1). The Golden Rod, which goes as Race 10 at 5:27 p.m., is one of four stakes events on the “Stars of Tomorrow II” program from Churchill Downs. The others are the $400,000 Kentucky Jockey Club (G2), $200,000 Lively Shively and $200,000 Fern Creek. First post is 1 p.m.

Trained by Brad Cox, Famed has been well-backed in both of her two-career starts. She broke her maiden last out at Keeneland by 7 ¾ lengths at odds of 2-5. In her debut, the Uncle Mo filly finished second as the 4-5 favorite against 45-1 longshot Sweet Dani Girl. Famed will be ridden by Florent Geroux from post the rail.

The Kenny McPeek-trained Sandstone has won her last two races by a combined 19 ¾ lengths under jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. The filly by Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense debuted at 5 ½ furlongs in late May and finished fifth, beaten 7 ¾ lengths to stablemate and eventual $150,000 Debutante Stakes winner Behave Virginia. In her second start, at one-mile, Sandstone dusted her rivals at odds of 5-1. Her first start around two-turns was the Rags to Riches, the local prep to the Golden Rod, where she was the slight 5-2 upset winner over Yuugiri. Hernandez will once again have the call from post No. 4.

The full field for the Golden Rod from the inside out (with jockey and trainer):

  1. Famed (Geroux, Cox)
  2. Cancel This (Joel Rosario, Dale Romans)
  3. Secret Oath (David Cohen, D. Wayne Lukas)
  4. Sandstone (Hernandez, McPeek)
  5. Hal's Dream (Corey Lanerie, McPeek)
  6. Yuugiri (Tyler Gaffalione, Rodolphe Brisset)
  7. Dream Lith (Ramon Vazquez, Robertino Diodoro)
  8. Code for Success (Rafael Bejarano, Vicki Oliver)

Wagering is available online at www.TwinSpires.com, the official ADW of Churchill Downs Incorporated.

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Famed Steps Out in Golden Rod

Famed (Uncle Mo), likely best known as champion Essential Quality (Tapit)'s younger half-sister, began to make her own reputation with a 'TDN Rising Star' graduation at Keeneland in October and the Godolphin homebred could take another step towards living up to her name when she goes postward in the GII Golden Rod S. at Churchill Downs Saturday.

Always well thought of by Sheikh Mohammed's operation, Famed's career nonetheless started with a defeat. The Brad Cox trainee was in the mix early as the 4-5 favorite in the six-furlong affair at Churchill Sept. 26 only to come up a length short of 44-1 longshot Sweet Dani Girl (Jess's Dream). That filly came back to win the Myrtlewood S. Oct. 29 at Keeneland.

“She really did run a winning race, but ran into an absolute buzz saw who was a longshot that day, but was a short shot when she won the stakes at Keeneland in her next start,” Godolphin's Jimmy Bell said of Famed's runner-up debut effort. “So that form held up. But obviously, in Brad's mind, that first start was just time to get going. There is nothing like that afternoon race versus two or three more works in the morning and getting that experience. While she ran a winning race, six furlongs was never going to be her best distance. But these individuals who have talent, show talent and that was the case that day.”

Famed had another furlong to work with when she made her second start at Keeneland Oct. 30 and romped home to win by a geared-down 7 1/2 lengths (video).

“She came back, stretching out to seven-eighths at Keeneland and that suited her a lot better,” Bell said. “We had all along been looking forward to stretching her out and seeing what she could really do at a distance that we felt would suit her style.”

Famed tuned up for the 1 1/16-mile Golden Rod with a five-furlong work in 1:00.00 (3/12) at Churchill Downs Sunday.

“She is a nice, growthy filly and she's certainly beginning to fill out nicely,” Bell said of Famed's development. “She's doing very, very well. We've tried to get her races to be a building process and it's been very straightforward for us so far.”

Famed will be trying two turns for the first time in the Golden Rod and connections are eager to see how she takes both the stretch-out and the jump in class.

“What we are looking for is the obvious, the step up in competition and seeing if Brad's feeling of two turns is really going to be what she's all about,” Bell said. “That's really what he's been wanting to do since before the first race. We are going to get that opportunity on Saturday.”

Godolphin has enjoyed a banner year across the globe in 2021 and the operation could add to its 10 North American Grade I wins when Maxfield (Street Sense) makes his final career start in Friday's GI Clark H.

“Most of the time we get to have a joyful moment occasionally, but it's just been a very strong year,” Bell said of the team's 2021 success. “And everybody has contributed so much; Eoin Harty, Billy Mott, Brendan Walsh, Mike Stidham, and of course Brad. Everybody has had a major horse who had a major contribution. That made it all the more enjoyable that so many people have played such a major role in the success we've had this year.”

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Essential Quality Half-Sis Splashes to ‘Rising Star’ Honors

A half-sister to 'TDN Rising Star' and GI Breeders' Cup Classic hopeful Essential Quality (Tapit), Ch. 2yo Colt, MGISW, $4,215,144, Famed (Uncle Mo) followed in the latter's hoofprints with a 'Rising Star'-worthy romp of her own in the fall meet finale from Keeneland Saturday afternoon.

The dark bay was bet down to 90 cents on the dollar for her much-anticipated debut at Churchill Sept. 26 and was in the thick of it from the start, but ultimately dropped a one-length decision to Sweet Dani Girl (Jess's Dream), who franked the form of the race with a 3/4-length success in Friday's Myrtlewood S. at Keeneland.

Getting blinkers off for this second go, Famed jumped alertly beneath Florent Geroux and showed the way from Bunduki (Gun Runner) through an opening couple of furlongs in :22.54. Left alone up front when Bunduki bolted approaching the five-sixteenths, tossing Brian Hernandez, Jr. in the process, Famed cornered a touch wide into the stretch while firmly in front, raced on her incorrect lead into the final 100 yards and was wrapped up late. Hernandez, Jr. was uninjured in the incident. Famed is the eighth 'TDN Rising Star' for Uncle Mo.

The victory allowed trainer Brad Cox to drop his nose down on the wire just ahead of Wesley Ward in the fall meet's trainers' premiership, prevailing by a count of 14 winners to 13. It also got Godolphin even with Calumet Farm for meet-leading owner honors with four wins apiece.

On behalf of Sheikh Mohammed's operation, John Ferguson parted with $3 million for Famed's second dam Contrive at the 2005 Fasig-Tipton November Sale a matter of days after her daughter Folklore (Tiznow) won the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies at Belmont Park. Contrive's fifth foal was Delightful Quality, a two-time winner at the races who placed in seven black-type events for trainer Tom Albertrani, including the GIII Bed 'O Roses H. Delightful Quality's first three foals made a grand total of one trip to the races, but Eclipse Award winner Essential Quality has done his part to ensure the family's longevity, with eight wins from nine starts, including last year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile and the GI Belmont S. and GI Runhappy Travers S. this season. He figures a strong second favorite in next Saturday's GI Longines Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar. Contrive is also the second dam of Japanese Triple Crown winner Contrail (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), who is expected to start favorite for Sunday's G1 Tenno Sho (Autumn) at Tokyo Racecourse.

Delightful Quality was barren to Uncle Mo for 2020 and to Nyquist for this season and was most recently bred back to Tapit.

10th-Keeneland, $83,921, Msw, 10-30, 2yo, f, 7f, 1:28.42, sy, 7 3/4 lengths.
FAMED, f, 2, by Uncle Mo
1st Dam: Delightful Quality (GSP, $253,900), by Elusive Quality
2nd Dam: Contrive, by Storm Cat
3rd Dam: Jeano, by Fappiano
Lifetime Record: 2-1-1-0, $74,400. O-Godolphin LLC; B-Godolphin (KY); T-Brad H Cox. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG. Click for the free Equineline.com catalog-style pedigree.

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