Popular At Claim Box, Cupid’s Claws Finds Marathon Distance To His Liking In Tokyo City Cup

Claimed out of his last three starts on turf, 5-year-old gelding Cupid's Claws tried dirt for the first time Sunday, waltzing to a 7 1/4-length win in the marathon Grade 3, $100,000 Tokyo City Cup at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.  Ridden by Flavien Prat, who collected his second stakes win on the day, he got a mile and one half in 2:30.12.

With the starting gate set at about the half mile pole, Cupid's Claws was unhurried in the initial run to the far turn and was fourth, about two lengths off of favored pacesetter Tizamagician as the field crossed under the wire for the first time.  From there, Prat was able to save ground while in close attendance to the pace and shifted three-wide outside of Tizamagician and Combatant with a quarter mile to run.

Full of run at the top of the lane, Cupid's Claws gained the advantage a furlong out and darted clear late as much the best.

Claimed out of a third-place finish for $50,000 going a mile and one eighth on turf Sept. 5, Cupid's Claws was trying stakes company for the first time and paid $17.00, $6.20 and $3.00.

Owned by Flawless Racing, Masino Racing Stable, Brian Flanagan and Michael Jarvis, Cupid's Claws, a 5-year-old Kitten's Joy gelding, picked up $60,000 for the win, boosting his earnings to $172,296.  A winner of two turf starts and one race on synthetic Tapeta, Cupid's Claws is now 18-4-2-3 overall.

Tizamagician, who was ridden by Drayden Van Dyke, was the narrow second choice at 2-1 and outfinished Combatant by 1 ¼ lengths and returned $3.40 and $2.60.

With $39,101 bet to win on Combatant, he was the actual favorite by just five dollars at 2-1 and paid $2.40 to show with Umberto Rispoli up.

Fractions on the race were 25.22, 49.72, 1:14.82, 1:39.75 and 2:04.52.

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Get Her Number Upsets American Pharoah Stakes In Dirt Debut

From turf to dirt, to victory in Saturday's Grade 1 American Pharoah Stakes at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif., the Peter Miller-trained Get Her Number marched to a three-quarter length victory, thus assuring him a fees-paid berth in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Keeneland on Nov. 6.  Ridden by Flavien Prat, Get Her Number covered 1 1/16 miles on a fast track in 1:44.92.

A restrained second, one length off of longshot Dyn O Mite around the first turn, Get Her Number settled into a fluid stride down the backside, took command three furlongs out and had a two-length edge on Rombauer three-sixteenth of a mile from home and was not threatened from there.

A first-out five-furlong maiden turf winner on Aug. 14, Get Her Number was most recently fourth, beaten one length in an ungraded one mile turf stakes on Sept. 7 at Del Mar.  Off at 8-1 in his first main track try, Get Her Number paid $18.20, $8.20 and $3.40.

Owned by Gary Barber, Get Her Number, who was purchased for $45,000 out of the OBS April 2-year-olds in training sale, picked up $180,000 for the win, increasing his earnings to $219,000.

Sixth in the same race the winner exited on Sept. 7, Rombauer was also trying dirt for the first time and he responded with a big effort for trainer Michael McCarthy, finishing 4 3/4 lengths clear of favored Spielberg.  Off at 11-1 with Mike Smith, Rombauer paid $9.60 and $4.40.

Third with no apparent excuses, Spielberg, who was off at even money with Luis Saez, paid $2.40 to show.

It's worth noting that the winner was very fractious in the saddling paddock, but had no apparent issues once the field came on the track.

Fractions on the race were 23.12, 47.07,1:12.46 and 1:37.97.

The American Pharoah is named for Bob Baffert-trained 2015 Triple Crown winner and is a Breeders' Cup “Win & You're In” Challenge Race qualifier to the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile on Nov. 6 at Keeneland.

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United Takes Flight In Wire-To-Wire John Henry Turf Championship Win

With little early speed in the seven-horse field, jockey Flavien Prat put LNJ Foxwoods' United in front at the start and the 5-year-old Giant's Causeway gelding was never seriously challenged en route to an easy victory as the 3-5 favorite in Saturday's Grade 2 John Henry Turf Championship at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.

Irish-bred Originaire finished second, followed by Another Mystery in third, French-bred Proud Pedro fourth and Irish-bred Oscar Dominguez fifth in the field of seven older horses. Kazan was scratched.

United, produced from the Pulling Punches mare Indy Punch, was bred in Kentucky by Rosemont Farm. He is trained by Hall of Famer Richard Mandella.

United paid $3.40 to win and covered 1 1/4 miles on firm turf in 1:59.17 after setting fractions of :24.57, :49.07, 1:1;3.20 and 1:36.46. The final time was just over one second faster than Mucho Unusual took to win the G1 Rodeo Drive Stakes for fillies and mares going the same distance.

Mandella indicated the Breeders' Cup Turf at Keeneland would be next for United, who has now won seven of 16 starts, with four seconds. One of those runner-up performances came in the 2019 Breeders' Cup Turf when second, beaten a head by eventual Horse of the Year Bricks and Mortar.

United has won four of five starts in 2020, all of the wins coming in G2 races: the San Marcos in February, Charles Whittingham in May,  Eddie Read in July and now the John Henry in September. His only defeat this year came in his most recent outing when second, beaten a head by Red King, in the G2 Del Mar Handicap on Aug. 22.

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Dialed In’s Get Her Number Upsets the American Pharoah

Get Her Number (Dialed In) and Rombauer (Twirling Candy), also-rans in the Del Mar Juvenile Turf Sept. 7, reported home one-two to spring an upset in Saturday’s GI American Pharoah S., a ‘Win and You’re In’ for the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Keeneland. It was another gap back to the favored maiden Spielberg (Union Rags) in third.

Nicely away from gate six, Get Her Number set up camp just to the outside of longshot Dyn O Mite (Goldencents) as Spielberg settled in an apparently good spot, just behind the speed. Well held on the far-turn run, Get Her Number struck to the lead with a quarter mile to race and and held sway late.

Rombauer, also making his dirt debut, dropped out to the tail of the field, made a menacing wide move into contention at the head of the lane and plugged on gamely for second while covering 14 more feet than the winner, according to Trakus.

Get Her Number, a $45,000 OBS Spring (:21) purchase by Gary Barber, debuted with a victory sprinting on the Del Mar lawn for Peter Miller Aug. 14 prior to finishing fourth as the favorite after setting the pace in the Del Mar Juvenile Turf.

“I thought it was a great move [switching to dirt],” winning jockey Flavien Prat said. “He was a bit disappointing last race. I thought I had good race, easy pace and he didn’t really show a turn of foot. We had a good trip; he broke well and he put me in the race. He reacted well on the backside and by that point I felt in control. It is great, Breeders’ Cup is always something we all look forward to so it’s cool.”

Pedigree Notes:

Dialed In has been quietly accruing a bevy of nice runners and Get Her Number, who is his sire’s fifth graded winner and 15th black-type winner overall, is the first Grade I winner for the Darby Dan stallion, although he’s come close with six GI/G1 placings by Gunnevera and additional GI placings for both Chalon and Finnick the Fierce. Get Her Number’s dam, Fancier, is by another under-the-radar performer in Bernstein, whose 63 stakes winner out of his daughters include champion Champagne Room (Broken Vow) and MGISW Gormley (Malibu Moon). Fancier sold to William Nicks for just $1,300 in foal to Astern (Aus) at the 2019 Keeneland November sale, but a foal has not been reported for her this year. Get Her Number’s American Pharoah win is the first black-type in the family since his third dam, Shy Princess, placed in the 1986 G1 Prix Morny. Shy Princess was a half-sister to GI Breeders’ Cup Mile winner Opening Verse (The Minstrel) and produced GSW Diffident (Fr) (Nureyev).

Saturday, Santa Anita
AMERICAN PHAROAH S.-GI, $301,000, Santa Anita, 9-26, 2yo, 1 1/16m, 1:44.92, ft.
1–GET HER NUMBER, 122, c, 2, by Dialed In
                1st Dam: Fancier, by Bernstein
                2nd Dam: Princess Pegasus, by Fusaichi Pegasus
                3rd Dam: Shy Princess, by Irish River (Fr)
   1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN, 1ST GRADE I
   WIN. ($45,000 2yo ’20 OBSAPR). O-Gary Barber; B-Philip &
Brenda Robertson (KY); T-Peter Miller; J-Flavien Prat.
$180,000. Lifetime Record: 3-2-0-0, $219,000. Werk Nick
   Rating: A+. Click for eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Rombauer, 122, c, 2, Twirling Candy–Cashmere, by Cowboy
Cal. O/B-John & Diane Fradkin (KY); T-Michael W. McCarthy.
$60,000.
3–Spielberg, 122, c, 2, Union Rags–Miss Squeal, by Smart Strike.
($1,000,000 Ylg ’19 KEESEP). O-SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing,
Madaket Stables LLC, Golconda Stables, Siena Farm LLC &
Robert Masterson; B-G. Watts Humphrey (KY); T-Bob Baffert.
$36,000.
Margins: 3/4, 4 3/4, 4HF. Odds: 8.10, 11.70, 1.10.
Also Ran: Waspirant, Dyn O Mite, Touchdown Brown, Notable Exception. Scratched: Weston. 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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