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Saez Guides Mystic Guide To Dubai World Cup For Godolphin, Stidham

The U.S.-based Ghostzapper 4-year-old colt Mystic Guide proved superior in the Group 1 Dubai World Cup from Meydan in the United Arab Emirates on Saturday night, winning the $12-million race easily under Luis Saez for Dubai-based owner-breeder Godolphin and American trainer Michael Stidham.

Japan's Chuwa Wizard finished second, with another Godolphin homebred, French-trained Magny Cours third, Irish-bred/Dubai-trained Hypothetical fourth and German-bred/Dubai-trained Salute the Soldier fifth in the field of 12.

There were two late scratches that delayed the running of the race. Great Scot ran off during the post parade and Military Law broke through the starting gate and ran off.

Time of the 1 1/4-mile race on dirt was 2:01.62. Mystic Guide, favored in the wagering, paid $5.50 to win, $2.20 to place and $3.30 to show in the U.S.

Hypothetical led the way from the start, with Saez and Mystic Guide racing in third while in the clear to the pacesetter's outside. Saez made his move to the lead with just over a quarter of a mile remaining, and the result never seemed in doubt from that point forward.

The victory was the fourth in eight career starts for Mystic Guide, who was coming off a six-length victory in the G3 Razorback Handicap at Oaklawn on Feb. 27 in his 2021 debut. Produced from the A.P. Indy mare, Music Note, Mystic Guide did not race as a 2-year-old and won the G2 Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga for his only stakes victory as a 3-year-old. He finished his year with a second-place finish to Happy Saver in the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup, beaten three-quarters of a length.

This was Godolphin's ninth win in the 25 runnings of the Dubai World Cup and third in a row, having won in 2018 and '19 with Thunder Snow. The 2020 renewal was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

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Taking Stock: Awesome Again Sires Have Puncher’s Chance

What do Hot Rod Charlie (Oxbow), Mystic Guide (Ghostzapper), and Knicks Go (Paynter) have in common?

For one, they've cumulatively won three of the four most lucrative dirt races contested in North America so far this year. Hot Rod Charlie won the $1 million Gll Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds last weekend; Mystic Guide was first in the $600,000 Glll Razorback H. at Oaklawn Feb. 27; and Knicks Go took the $3 million Gl Pegasus World Cup Invitational S. at Gulfstream Park Jan. 23. The other big-money race was the $1 million Gll Rebel S. at Oaklawn, won by Concert Tour (Street Sense).

The trio of Hot Rod Charlie, Mystic Guide, and Knicks Go also share something else in common with one another: they are each by sons of Awesome Again (Deputy Minister). The Deputy Minister sire line isn't particularly vibrant these days, mostly flourishing within the interior of pedigrees (through daughters and granddaughters), where it is incredibly potent in that capacity. At one time, however, there were plenty of Deputy Minister sons and grandsons at stud, horses like Silver Deputy, Dehere, Graeme Hall, Salt Lake, Victory Speech, Mane Minister, French Deputy, Touch Gold, Deputy Commander, Spring At Last, Archers Bay, Forest Camp, Toccet, Posse, etc., but most of them couldn't sustain stud careers here, much less create heirs to carry the line forward. This isn't an uncommon phenomenon and it's an example of how sire lines tend to either disappear altogether or ebb and flow over time.

The Deputy Minister horse French Deputy and his son Kurofune put up an admirable fight in Japan, but the Awesome Again branch is Deputy Minister's most notably viable tail-male representative in North America and elsewhere these days, and, frankly, Ghostzapper is its main proponent despite the recent efforts of the closely related duo of Oxbow and Paynter. And not only is Ghostzapper an excellent stallion, but, true to the ethos of his grandsire, he's turning into an equally adept broodmare sire. He announced this loudly when his daughter Stage Magic produced Triple Crown winner Justify, one of three Grade l winners for Ghostzapper as a broodmare sire to date.

As a sire, Ghostzapper, who stands for $85,000 at Hill 'n' Dale, is represented by 12 Grade l winners and 83 black-type winners. He's got a great chance to add another Grade l winner to his tally when Mystic Guide starts as the probable favorite in the $12 million G1 Dubai World Cup this weekend, and it's quite amazing when you sit back and think about it that representatives of this sparsely represented sire line have been successful in some of the most valuable races this year with a chance at another, one of the biggest prizes of the season.

Certainly, it indicates that the Awesome Again sires have a puncher's chance in the big fights, particularly in races on dirt and at a distance, and frequently with older horses. It's something that defined Awesome Again's own career with such as Gl Breeders' Cup Classic winner Ghostzapper; Game On Dude, who won the Gl Santa Anita H. at seven; and Awesome Gem, winner of the Gl Hollywood Gold Cup at seven.

The Dubai World Cup is no longer the richest race in the world, that honor now belonging to the $20-million Saudi Cup. Recall that Knicks Go was one of the favorites in that race, though not successful that day after Charlatan (Speightstown) beat him to the early lead. However, the broader Deputy Minister line had success that day when the US-bred, Japanese-based 6-year-old Copano Kicking (Spring At Last) won the $1.5-million Riyadh Dirt Sprint. Copano Kicking's sire is by Silver Deputy, a son of Deputy Minister. Like Mystic Guide, Copano Kicking will be in action this weekend at Meydan, in the $1.5-million G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen.

Had Knicks Go run well at Riyadh, he'd have been in Dubai this weekend, too. At least, that's what connections had suggested before the Saudi race. His sire Paynter, who stands for $10,000 at WinStar, has 16 black-type winners to his credit and has carved out a useful career at stud through four crops, and it's possible his momentum will build as he gets more older runners in the pipeline. He was produced from a full sister to Tiznow (Cee's Tizzy), as was Oxbow.

Oxbow, like Paynter with four crops at the races through the end of last year, stands for $7,500 at Calumet, which also stands the Awesome Again horse Bravazo. The latter also happens to be from a Cee's Tizzy mare (who, in turn, is out of a granddaughter of Seattle Slew, like the dams of Oxbow and Paynter) as well.

Oxbow hasn't been as successful as Paynter, with only six black-type winners so far, but he does have a colt at Meydan in a big race this weekend with an unusual background. Bred by Calumet like Bravazo, Tuz is entered in the $750,000 G2 Godolphin Mile. He'd been sold as a Keeneland yearling for $7,000 and dispatched to Russia, a country from which horses never usually resurface. Tuz, however, was something special over there, winning his debut at the Pyatigorsk Hippodrome by 25 lengths over Polytrack in 2019 at two. He returned to win his next start by 14 lengths, then made his way to Dubai where the next year he opened some eyes by running second of 16 in the Listed Al Bastakiya over a mile and three-sixteenths in only his third start.

Tuz wasn't heard from again until this season, when he reappeared in February in a Meydan handicap over 1600 meters, running fourth of 10. Brought back in early March in a Group 3 race over the same trip, Tuz ran an improved race, finishing third of 16 to Midnight Sands, beaten less than three lengths. He's in deep this weekend, but he appears to be rounding into form and is another with a puncher's chance.

Oxbow, by the way, will also be represented by the lightly raced Calumet homebred 3-year-old filly Bow Bow Girl in the $200,000 Gll Gulfstream Park Oaks on Saturday, a race that one of the stallion's most accomplished runners, Coach Rocks–also bred by Calumet–won in 2018, so he could potentially get two new black-type winners this weekend.

Like Paynter, Oxbow, winner of the Gl Preakness, stands to grow his profile as he gets more crops of 3-year-olds and older horses at the track. He isn't a consistent stallion–and believe it or not, four of his six stakes winners earned their black type at two–but the feeling here is that he'll make his money with later-maturing runners, three and up. It's in his genes. Hot Rod Charlie is exactly that type of horse, as Knicks Go is to Paynter and Mystic Guide is to Ghostzapper

Sid Fernando is president and CEO of Werk Thoroughbred Consultants, Inc., originator of the Werk Nick Rating and eNicks.

The post Taking Stock: Awesome Again Sires Have Puncher’s Chance appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Breeders’ Cup Presents Connections: Burke Brings A Lifetime Of Experience To His Role With Godolphin

Veteran horseman Johnny Burke claims he's a “small cog” in the grand scheme of the Godolphin operation, but every good engineer knows that every cog in the machine, no matter how small, has to work together in perfect synchronicity to produce the desired outcome.

“I'm part of a big, global team, just trying to get the boss in the winner's circle,” Burke said. “It's me that's having the good fortune to work with these guys, the whole team. Any time we get to be associated with a horse that's winning, we enjoy knowing that we played a part in it.”

One of the top older horses in training to have come through the Godolphin rehab and pre-training barn Burke runs at Keeneland is Mystic Guide, a 4-year-old son of Ghostzapper being aimed at the Dubai World Cup. Mystic Guide won the G2 Jim Dandy Stakes and placed second in the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup last year, and began his 2021 campaign with a striking win in the G3 Razorback Stakes at Oaklawn Park on Feb. 27.

If he can find success in the UAE, Mystic Guide will be just the second winner Godolphin has sent from North America to the $12 million race, following the success of Street Cry in 2002.

That isn't the only reason the colt's success will have extra meaning for Burke, however. The Irish-born trainer counts himself lucky to have had Mystic Guide's dam in his barn when he first started working for Godolphin, and it would be pretty special to watch her have similar success in the broodmare shed to what she was able to achieve on the racetrack.

“Music Note was one of the charter members here at the Rice Road barn,” said Burke. “She was among the first group of horses I was rehabbing, and she turned out to be one of the better horses in America by the time she retired.”

Music Note, a daughter of A.P. Indy, broke her maiden at Aqueduct in November of her 2-year-old year. She would go on to three Grade 1 races as a 3-year-old, and a further two Grade 1 stakes as a 4-year-old. Music Note also ran third in both the 2008 and 2009 editions of the Breeders' Cup Ladies Classic before retiring to Gainsborough Farm with earnings over $1.6 million.

“I'm so glad for her to show up with this caliber of horse,” Burke said. “We've kind of been waiting on her to produce this kind of horse, so it's great to see her do that. You always want them to take that same performance between the rails and bring it to the paddocks.”

Music Note had found mild success in the breeding shed with her second foal, Ventura Highway (Street Cry), a gelding with no black type but a solid record (12-17-12) over 66 starts to earn $217,925 on the track.

The rest of the millionaire mare's offspring had yet to show the same kind of potential she'd had on the track, but that trend changed when Mystic Guide walked into Burke's barn at Keeneland in 2019.

“Usually the 2-year-olds get dispersed out of Ocala to their assigned trainers after the (Kentucky) Derby,” Burke explained. “Instead, he came from Niall Brennan up to me for a little bit, because he wasn't quite as forward. He was a nice, big, good-looking horse, though, and we just worked him a couple of times over the summer but mostly gave him time to grow.”

Mystic Guide went to trainer Michael Stidham's barn at the Fair Grounds before his first start in February of 2020, and the colt's recent effort in the Razorback has shown once again that Burke still knows a good horse when he sees one.

“For him to run a 108 Beyer off the layoff, that kind of thing always makes you feel good,” Burke said. “We'll be cheering him home in Dubai, for sure.”

Ghostzapper colt Mystic Guide wins the Razorback Handicap by six lengths under Luis Saez

Burke knows good horses, thanks to a lifetime of experience from the ground up.

The son of a steeplechase trainer who served his apprenticeship with the legendary Vincent O'Brien during his pre-Ballydoyle days, Burke has wanted to work with horses for as long as he can remember.

His father insisted Burke finish school, and as soon as he hit graduation Burke began riding out in the mornings. Burke attended the Irish National Stud Course in 1979, and spent a couple years in Australia before traveling to Lexington.

He spent seven years galloping horses and traveling for future Hall of Fame trainer Carl Nafzger, and eventually took out his own trainer's license.

“I didn't have anything else I knew how to do,” Burke said, laughing. “I ended up with one horse (in the beginning), and said, 'I'll keep going as long as I can.' I made a living at it, galloping a lot of my own horses, and rented half a barn at Paris Pike for a while.

“It's a tough business but a satisfying business, running a public stable. I have no qualms about the fact that I tried it; I wasn't going out with sky high ambitions. You know, they gave me a lemon and I tried to make lemonade.”

He trained a couple maiden winners for Godolphin over the course of his career, and in 2006, Burke got a call from Jimmy Bell about the organization's desire to open a year-round operation in a barn on Rice Road at Keeneland.

“It was a great phone call to get,” Burke said. “My days of getting on horses galloping were about over, and I said to myself, 'I'll probably never get a call like this again.'

“I do think mid-range horses teach you more about training than the real good horses, which basically train themselves. Good horses don't grow on trees, though.”

Neither do good employees.

“This business, you gotta have a bit of luck, but you gotta put a bit into it, too,” Burke summarized. “Hard work and reputation will carry you a lot further than anything else in life.”

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Razorback Winner Mystic Guide To Ship For Dubai World Cup

Trainer Michael Stidham told the Daily Racing Form that Saturday's G3 Razorback Handicap winner Mystic Guide will head overseas to contest the Dubai World Cup, scheduled for March 27. The Grade 1-placed son of Ghostzapper won Oaklawn's $600,000 race by six lengths, and should be one of the lower-priced choices in Dubai.

A Godolphin homebred out of the five-time Grade 1-winning millionaire Music Note (A.P. Indy), Mystic Guide won the G2 Jim Dandy Stakes last year before finishing a close second to Happy Saver in the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup.

Plans call for the 4-year-old to ship from Stidham's base at the Fair Grounds to Miami on March 15, then to the UAE on March 17. No decision has been finalized on a jockey, Stidham said.

Other American horses targeting the Dubai World Cup are Sleepy Eyes Todd and Tacitus, both of whom contested the Saudi Cup and remained overseas.