NYRA Will Feature Series of Secretariat-Related Fan Giveaways

The New York Racing Association (NYRA) will feature a series of Secretariat-related fan giveaways and vintage artifacts to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Secretariat's historic 31-length victory in the 1973 Belmont Stakes during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival from Thursday, June 8 to Saturday, June 10.

The first 5,000 fans to pass through the main admission gates at Belmont Park Friday, June 9 will receive a commemorative poster of Secretariat crossing the finish line in the 1973 Belmont Stakes. The first 5,000 through the main admission gates Saturday, June 10 will receive an exact replica pocket program from 1973 Belmont Stakes Day. For additional information, or to purchase tickets for the race day, please visit the official page.

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Stars Come Out on a Steamy Wednesday Morning at Belmont Park

ELMONT, NY – With the rising sun making its way through cloudy skies, GI Belmont S. longshot Skippylongstocking (Exaggerator) began to get into his gallop on the clubhouse turn on a steamy Wednesday morning at beautiful Belmont Park.

Sporting plenty of trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr.'s flashy yellow-and-blue stable colors, the GI Preakness S. fifth-place finisher continued to catch the eye upon return while jogging along the outer rail with his neck arched. He stood briefly by the gap and soaked up plenty of attention from a handful of photographers as he headed off.

Unbeaten 'TDN Rising Star' Jack Christopher (Munnings) certainly made his presence felt while stepping onto the track at 7:13 a.m. The blaze-faced, 3-year-old chestnut puts his perfect three-for-three record on the line for Chad Brown in Saturday's GI Woody Stephens S.

Fellow 'Rising Star' We the People (Constitution) made his way through the tunnel about 40 minutes later. Trainer Rodolphe Brisset was all smiles in the irons aboard the GI Belmont S. morning-line favorite as he jogged alongside the pony. The runaway GIII Peter Pan S. winner–equipped with a pair of cotton balls in his ears–had his mind on the task at hand while understandably getting a little hot, cruising down the lane under a very snug hold.

Last year's GI Breeders' Cup Sprint winner Aloha West (Hard Spun), meanwhile, got plenty of love from his groom while exiting the track by the gap. He meets the powerhouse duo of unbeaten 'Rising Star' Flightline (Tapit) and the streaking Speaker's Corner (Street Sense) in a GI Hill 'n' Dale Met Mile for the ages. Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, responsible for 2017 Belmont S. winner Tapwrit (Tapit), will also be well-represented in the main event with the filly Nest (Curlin).

The aforementioned Flightline, last seen romping in Santa Anita's GI Runhappy Malibu S. Dec. 26, was one of the first to train after arriving from John Sadler's Southern California base Tuesday afternoon.

With GI Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike (Keen Ice) opting for some lighter exercise on the training track following a very powerful and visually impressive gallop on Tuesday, champion Letruska (Super Saver) enjoyed the spotlight on the main track after the break ahead of her title defense in Saturday's GI Ogden Phipps S. Things did not go exactly as planned, however, for the five-time Grade I winner after a little schooling session in the paddock.

With what appeared to be a chord from her exercise rider's walkie talkie swinging between her legs, Letruska was seemingly undeterred and galloped lightly down the sun-splashed stretch. She was pulled up just past the wire while being met by the outrider as training hours began to wind down.

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Late Triple Crown Noms Due Mar. 29

The late nomination period for all 3-year-old Thoroughbreds to compete in the races of the 2021 Triple Crown are due by Monday, Mar. 29 with a $6,000 payment. Late Triple Crown nominations can be made online at www.thetriplecrown.com or by calling the Churchill Downs Racing Office at (502) 638-3825. This year's early Triple Crown nominations, which cost $600 and closed Jan. 23, attracted 326 horses.

This season's Triple Crown begins with the May 1 GI Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs followed by the GI Preakness S. at Pimlico May 15. The Belmont Stakes, scheduled for June 5, rounds out the series at Belmont Park.

Any horse not nominated during the early or late phases can become Triple Crown eligible through a supplemental nomination payment due at the time of entry for each Triple Crown race: Kentucky Derby ($200,000), Preakness ($100,000), and Belmont ($50,000).

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Tiz Just the Beginning

There were just 56 days between Tiz the Law's (Constitution) dazzling sophomore debut in the GIII Holy Bull S. on the first day of February to his next start in the GI Florida Derby. How much could change in that time?

As it turned out, just about everything.

So maybe that's why, during a dark time, this bay colt with the bright, white-blazed face was so easy to cheer for. During uncertain circumstances, the Sackatoga silks with the familiar connections brought a piece of near normalcy to the starting gate.

Even now, as he takes up stud duty at Ashford Stud, Tiz the Law's campaign will long be remembered as one piece of an unforgettable year in racing.

“No one is ever going to forget 2020,” said Ashford's Adrian Wallace. “It was a year in which everyone had been touched in some way or another by the pandemic, by loss. A horse like Tiz the Law, to have gone from the Holy Bull to the Florida Derby to the Belmont Stakes, and then who is ever going to forget the Travers and him running a gallant second in a Kentucky Derby in September? No one is ever going to forget this campaign because of how different it was.”

The fact that this horse was owned by a syndicate of racing fans, Wallace said, made his success all the more meaningful.

“Being owned by a syndicate, he was able to touch so many more people,” he said. “We've seen it when some of his previous owners have come to the farm to visit him. He generated a huge amount of excitement and a huge following. Even though they couldn't go to the races and watch him, [fans] will never forget watching the owners celebrate the Travers win at Saratoga.”

Bred by Twin Creeks Farm, Tiz the Law was a $110,000 yearling purchase for Sackatoga's Jack Knowlton at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred Sale.

After a winning debut and easy four-length romp in the GI Champagne S., the son of Constitution had already caught Ashford's attention.

“Tiz the Law stamped himself as a very exciting prospect early in his 2-year-old season,” Wallace said. “The Champagne is a race that, year after year, stamps itself as a stallion-making race. We know first-hand with the likes of Uncle Mo, Scat Daddy and Practical Joke all having won the Champagne. It separates the wheat from the chaff, so any horse that wins in New York at that time of year, we're certainly looking at.”

Following his definitive wins in the GIII Holy Bull S. and GI Florida Derby, Tiz the Law followed an odd Triple Crown trail as he took on the first leg of the series in a nine-furlong GI Belmont S. When jockey Manny Franco cued him while heading into the long Belmont stretch, the bay shifted gears to blow by his foes and become the first New York-bred to win the Belmont since 1882.

Then came the GI Runhappy Travers S., which was slated to run exactly one year after his winning debut at the Spa in 2019. Sent off as the 1-2 favorite, Tiz the Law raced three wide before pouncing on his tiring rivals at the far turn and geared down in the stretch to win by 5 ½ lengths to John Imbriale's call of, “Here he is, Saratoga's hometown hero, Tiz the Law.”

“Only one horse has gone faster since 1990, and that was Arrogate (Unbridled's Song) five years ago,” Wallace noted of the Travers victory. “It just shows how much ability the horse had-how much raw, natural talent. What made Tiz the Law so great was his huge ability to quicken off a high cruising speed. The Travers was one example of that and the Belmont was another. I think that's the key to any great horse, and it was the key to him.”

Arguments arose as to if this horse would be named a Triple Crown champion if he were to win the next two legs of the series. But the controversy died when Tiz the Law had to settle for second against Bob Baffert's eventual GI Breeders' Cup Classic champion Authentic (Into Mischief) in the Run for the Roses.

After a sixth-place finish in the Classic, Tiz the Law's connections were ready for a comeback in the GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational S. But after an X–ray revealed bone bruising, the decision was made for him to retire.

The four-time Grade I winner arrived at Ashford with earnings of over $2.7 million, running in the money in all but one of his career starts.

“For a very long period of time, he was right at the top of his generation,” Wallace said. “He was New York's home-bred hero and he really captured the hearts and minds of a lot of people in New York in a very troubling year. That's one of the reasons that, as a four-time Grade I winner, he really resonates with a lot of breeders and a lot of fans.”

Tiz the Law now gives breeders a unique opportunity as the first son of rising young sire Constitution (Tapit) to enter stud.

“It's no secret that Constitution is probably regarded as one of the most promising new sires in the business at the moment,” Wallace said. “Worldwide, he has already sired four Grade I winners, including three from Chile, and Tiz the Law is obviously his marquee horse here. Tiz the Law is a great embodiment of what Constitution has to offer.”

Tiz the Law is out of the Tiznow mare Tizfiz, winner of the 2009 GII San Gorgonio H. and a full-sister to Grade III winner and Grade I-placed Fury Kapcori. Her granddam is a half-sister to Favorite Trick (Phone Trick), who won Horse of the Year honors as a juvenile in 1997.

“It's a family replete with 2-year-old success,” Wallace noted. “Obviously Tiz the Law himself was a very good 2-year-old, so I think it's a pedigree that will offer people a lot of precocity and it will suit a wide array of broodmares here in this country.”

Wallace said the Coolmore team has kept busy since the 4-year-old's arrival as breeders have been out to see the new prospect, who will stand his first season for a $40,000 fee.

“Physically he's all about balance,” he said. “He's an exceptional mover, lots of quality and a lovely nature. A lovely hip and shoulder on him as well. The breeders who have come to see him over the last couple of weeks have been blown away.”

Tiz the Law joins the growing list of fan favorites at Ashford Stud alongside Triple Crown winners American Pharoah and Justify.

“What makes any horse special is the amount of people that they can bring into the sport,” Wallace said. “This sport, like any sport, needs heroes. We need storylines. Barclay Tagg has been around for a long time and we'll never forget his role with Sackatoga Stables and Funny Cide (Distorted Humor). To come back with the same owner-trainer combination with a New York-bred, I think that really drew people into the sport. He's a stunning individual and we couldn't be prouder to stand him here.”

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