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Sharing Leaves No Doubt With Decisive Edgewood Victory Under Franco

Sharing came ready to run in the Grade 2 Edgewood Stakes at Churchill Friday, holding off a late challenge from rival Hendy Woods at the wire of the mile-long turf contest. Under the guidance of Manny Franco, Sharing broke sharply and was keen for the lead in the early going of the race before agreeing to settle for Franco behind pacesetter In Good Spirits, tracking a pedestrian early pace. The filly, who was 3-5 by race time, kicked into gear enthusiastically at the top of the stretch and took command, drawing clear for her fifth lifetime victory.

Sharing paid $3.20 to win.

Lucky Betty was fourth behind Hendy Woods. The final time for the mile was 1:36.87.

The win for the Graham Motion trainee comes after some difficulty with foot issues following her trip to Royal Ascot, where she was second in the G1 Coronation. She had originally been slated to ship to California after her return from England, but instead required the summer off. Previous wins include the G1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf and the Tepin Stakes.

Sharing is owned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Gainesway Stable. She was bred in Maryland by Sagamore Farm and is the daughter of Speightstown and Pleasantly Perfect mare Shared Account.

No doubt Franco is hopeful Sharing's victory is a sign of good things to come for him this weekend, as he will be aboard odds-on Kentucky Derby favorite Tiz the Law on Saturday.

See the full chart here

EDGEWOOD QUOTES, courtesy of the Churchill Downs media office

Manny Franco (winning rider, Sharing) — “She has tactical speed. She broke out of there good and put me in a position where I wanted to go. After that, she knows how to get it done. She is so nice and has a really good turn of foot. She is very professional.”

Graham Motion (winning trainer, Sharing) — “I can't lie, I was pretty anxious about it because she was coming off a long trip and a long break. But she's so classy, she makes us all look good I think. She had a great work last weekend and Manny (Franco) gave her a perfect ride. It couldn't have set up any better quite honestly.

“I figured she probably would be (a little fresh). The last thing I said was just tell Manny to keep her settled. She hasn't run for a while so it's not surprising but she's never overly anxious. She's such a pro.

“The only question I have in my mind is how far she wants to go. She obviously loves this distance. The next race would be 1 1/8 miles if we go to the QE2 at Keeneland. I don't know if she wants to go that far, I don't know why she wouldn't, but she seems awfully good going a mile. I think the QE2 is a race anyone with a good 3-year-old filly wants to go. I'm so tickled to get a race under her now because this makes it easier going forward now we've got this level of fitness. And I can't say enough about working with Aron (Wellman) and Antony (Beck). I feel like we've called the right shots and it's because of them, they've never put any pressure on me.”

John Velazquez (rider, Hendy Woods, second) – “She ran really well. She's looking at the infield and everything. She's not kind of settled behind the horses there. But finally she got settled on the second turn. I made a run with her. A good horse beat her today.”

Mark Casse (trainer, Hendy Woods, second) – “Very pleased. I want to talk to (jockey) Johnny (Velazquez) because twice he checked her and fell back in the saddle. I don't know if that cost us anything but definitely when you run against a filly like that (Sharing) and run second, there is no shame.”

Declan Cannon (rider, Lucky Betty, third) — “She kind of was not liking the soft ground, but I got in behind Sharing down the back and she made one run. She tried hard. I wish it was harder ground because she may have gotten a lot closer to Sharing, but my hat's off to the winner. She's the best in the country right now.”

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Sharing Victorious in Stateside Return

Talented ‘TDN Rising Star’ Sharing returned to winning ways back on this side of the pond as the public’s pick. Beaten a neck in third in her Saratoga unveiling last July, the well-bred chestnut romped in a seven-furlong off the turfer there in August before justifying heavy 1-2 favoritism in Laurel’s Selima S. in September. She was let go at 13-1 for the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Santa Anita Nov. 1, but the result was the same, and she picked up right where she left off when annexing the course-and-distance Tepin S. here May 23. Her connections opted for a sporting trip to Royal Ascot for the G1 Coronation S. June 20, and she gave a very good account of herself when second best behind Alpine Star (Ire) (Sea the Moon {Ger}), who has since been second in both the G1 Prix de Diane Longines and G1 Prix Jacque le Marois.

Avoiding some bumping between the foes to her outside at the start, Sharing showed good gate speed and perhaps a bit of eagerness as she kept In Good Spirits (Ghostzapper) honest through splits of :24.44 and :48.76. Ridden along by Manny Franco to confront the leader heading for home, she started to edge clear in midstretch and maintained a clear advantage under the line.

“She has tactical speed,” said Franco, who will look to carry Friday’s momentum into Saturday’s GI Kentucky Derby, in which he rides Tiz the Law (Constitution). “She broke out of there good and put me in a position where I wanted to go. After that, she knows how to get it done. She is so nice and has a really good turn of foot. She is very professional.”

This was the first Edgewood victory for trainer Graham Motion, who said: “I can’t lie, I was pretty anxious about it because she was coming off a long trip and a long break. But she’s so classy, she makes us all look good I think. She had a great work last weekend (7f in 1:26, 1/3 over the Fair Hill all-weather) and Manny gave her a perfect ride. It couldn’t have set up any better quite honestly.”

As for what could be next, Motion said, “The only question I have in my mind is how far she wants to go. She obviously loves this distance. The next race would be 1 1/8 miles if we go to the [GI Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Presented by Dixiana Farm Oct. 10] at Keeneland. I don’t know if she wants to go that far, I don’t know why she wouldn’t, but she seems awfully good going a mile. I think the QEII is a race anyone with a good 3-year-old filly wants to go. I’m so tickled to get a race under her now because this makes it easier going forward now we’ve got this level of fitness. And I can’t say enough about working with [Eclipse’s] Aron [Wellman] and [Gainesway’s] Antony [Beck]. I feel like we’ve called the right shots and it’s because of them, they’ve never put any pressure on me.”

Friday, Churchill Downs
EDGEWOOD S. PRESENTED BY FORCHT BANK-GII, $300,000, Churchill Downs, 9-4, 3yo, f, 1mT, 1:36.87, gd.
1–SHARING, 123, f, 3, by Speightstown
                1st Dam: Shared Account (GISW, $1,649,427),
                                by Pleasantly Perfect
                2nd Dam: Silk n’ Sapphire, by Smart Strike
                3rd Dam: Golden Tiy, by Dixieland Band
($350,000 Ylg ’18 FTSAUG). O-Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners
& Gainesway Stable (Antony Beck); B-Sagamore Farm (MD);
T-H. Graham Motion; J-Manuel Franco. $182,280. Lifetime
Record: GISW-US & G1SP-Eng, 7-5-1-1, $1,038,751. *1/2 to
Riley’s Choice (Distorted Humor), SW, $172,838. Werk Nick
   Rating: A. Click for eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Hendy Woods, 118, f, 3, Uncle Mo–Separate Forest, by
Forestry. ($95,000 RNA Ylg ’18 KEESEP). O-Stonestreet Stables
LLC; B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC (KY); T-Mark E.
Casse. $58,800.
3–Lucky Betty, 118, f, 3, Munnings–Cherokee Beads, by Street
Sense. ($145,000 Ylg ’18 KEESEP). O-Dennis Park; B-TK Stables
LLC (KY); T-William B. VanMeter. $29,400.
Margins: 1 1/4, 2HF, 1. Odds: 0.60, 3.50, 19.30.
Also Ran: In Good Spirits, Pranked, Walk In Marrakesh (Ire), Mariafoot (Fr). Scratched: Outburst (GB).
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

Pedigree Notes:

Sharing is one of 56 graded/group winners for super sire Speightstown, who was represented earlier this week by new ‘TDN Rising Star‘ in Nashville. Her dam’s signature win was a 46-1 upset of the GI Breeders’ Cup F/M Turf going 11 furlongs over this same course. Shared Account has a yearling filly by Mastery and was bred back to Speightstown this season.

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Longshot Bye Bye Melvin Snares Saranac With Late Rally On Soggy Saratoga Turf

Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez angled Bye Bye Melvin out in the stretch and piloted his charge through a thrilling stretch run that saw him overtake three rivals, including pacesetter Don Juan Kitten in the final jumps, for a rallying win by a head as the longest shot on the board in Saturday's Grade 3, $100,000 Saranac for 3-year-olds at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Off at 19-1, Bye Bye Melvin tracked in second position as 2-1 favorite Don Juan Kitten led the eight-horse field through the opening quarter-mile in 27.17 seconds on the soft Mellon turf course that was pelted by rain.

Velazquez guided Bye Bye Melvin through a ground-saving trip, which he capitalized on out of the final turn by tipping him out and having him pick off a pair of rivals before running down the Danny Gargan-trained Don Juan Kitten just before the wire, completing the one-mile course in 1:39.92.

The 113th running of the Saranac, originally carded for the inner turf course, marked the first stakes win for Bye Bye Melvin, a Graham Motion trainee whose previous best effort came in a runner-up effort to Vannzy in the Jersey Derby on July 26 at Monmouth Park.

“It's very soft and heavy out there,” Velazquez said. “Even though they rolled it, it feels like you're going very deep in the ground. We were running right on top of the rain, so it's deep and slick at the same time, but he came running anyway.

“The first part, I came out running just to get a position going into the first turn,” Velazquez added. “He did not want to go anywhere. I grabbed him until he got more comfortable. He was lugging in down the stretch and I had to get after him, and he was slipping and sliding but he was good enough to get there. He was trying as hard as he could, but at the same time he was slipping. But he got there anyways.”

Owned and bred by Alex G. Campbell, Jr., Bye Bye Melvin improved to 3-1-1 in nine starts and has finished first or second four times in his last six starts. The Uncle Mo colt is out of Dynaformer mare Karlovy Vary and is a half-brother to the Motion-trained three-time graded stakes-winner Mean Mary, who ran second by a neck to Rushing Fall in last week's Grade 1 Diana. Bye Bye Melvin impressed his conditioner with his effort in the inclement weather.

“He's a late developer,” Motion said. “He's been a little bit of a project in that way, but I'm not surprised with the way he ran He slugs it out and he obviously handled the soft turf better than most.”

Motion said the addition of blinkers was beneficial.

“My team at home [Fair Hill] thought it might help him focus a little bit, so I give credit to my assistant Cat McGee and Skylar McKenna, who gallops him every day,” Motion said. “He's not easy in the morning and I give them a lot of credit for how he ran today.”

Bye Bye Melvin returned $41 on a $2 win bet. He more than doubled his career earnings to $107,965.

Don Juan Kitten, ridden by Kendrick Carmouche, finished 2 ½ lengths in front of Bodecream for second, marking his best stakes performance in three attempts.

“I had everything my way. The horse ran his heart out,” Carmouche said. “With different circumstances and a bit of a firmer turf course, I think it could have made the difference for us. But the horse ran well, we went into the race good and the horse gave us 100 percent. That's all we can ask for.

“He was running on “E” by the time he [Bye Bye Melvin] got there from running over that soft turf course, the only reason the winner beat us is because he had a good gallop,” he added.

Embolden, Irish Mias, Three Technique, L'Imperator and Vanzzy completed the order of finish. Big Dreaming and Turn of Events scratched, as did main-track only entrant Ima Pharoah.

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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Uncle Mo’s Bye Bye Melvin Takes To Soft Turf in Saranac Upset

Bye Bye Melvin took to the rain-soaked turf well at Saturday Saturday, upsetting the GIII Saranac S. at 19-1. Stalking from a joint second through a glacial opening quarter in :27.17, the bay sat back a bit in third, letting Embolden (The Factor) move up to contest the pace with leader Don Juan Kitten through a half in :51.54. Under a ride approaching the far turn, Bye Bye Melvin was churning up sod as he brushed with his neighbor Bodecream (Bodemeister) at the top of the lane, but found his footing in the final sixteenth, surging late to nail Don Juan Kitten on the line.

He’s a late developer. He’s been a little bit of a project in that way, but I’m not surprised with the way he ran. He slugs it out and he obviously handled the soft turf better than most.”

Graduating by 8 1/4 lengths at fourth asking at Tampa Dec. 7, Bye Bye Melvin followed suit with an optional claimer score there Jan. 8. A well-beaten 10th on the main track for the GII Tampa Bay Derby Mar. 7, he was seventh in the GIII Kent S. at Delaware July 4 and checked in second last time in the Jersey Derby at Monmouth July 26.

Pedigree Notes:

Bye Bye Melvin is the 63rd black-type winner and 35th graded winner for his sire Uncle Mo. The winner is a half to talented turf distaffer Mean Mary, a two-time graded winner who finished second in last week’s GI Diana S. at the Spa. Bye Bye Melvin is the most recent produce for their Grade I-winning dam Karlovy Vary.

Saturday, Saratoga
SARANAC S.-GIII, $100,000, Saratoga, 8-29, 3yo, 1mT, 1:39.92, sf.
1–BYE BYE MELVIN, 118, c, 3, by Uncle Mo
1st Dam: Karlovy Vary (GISW, $448,596), by Dynaformer
2nd Dam: The Right Pew, by Pulpit
3rd Dam: Packet, by Polish Navy
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. O-Alex G.
Campbell, Jr.; B-Alex G. Campbell, Jr. Thoroughbreds, LLC (KY);
T-H. Graham Motion; J-John R. Velazquez. $55,000. Lifetime
Record: 9-3-1-1, $107,965. *1/2 to Mean Mary (Scat Daddy),
MGSW & GISP, $496,160. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Don Juan Kitten, 119, c, 3, Kitten’s Joy–Romance Project, by
Not For Love. ($77,000 Ylg ’18 KEESEP). O-Kenneth L. & Sarah
K. Ramsey; B-Cantrell Family Partnership (KY); T-Danny
Gargan. $20,000.
3–Bodecream, 122, g, 3, Bodemeister–Call Mariah, by Dixie
Union. ($50,000 Ylg ’18 KEESEP; $50,000 3yo ’20 FTKHRA).
O-Repole Stable; B-Judy Hicks, Kathryn Nikkel & Sanford
Robertson (KY); T-Michael J. Maker. $12,000.
Margins: HD, 2HF, 3/4. Odds: 19.50, 2.00, 7.60.
Also Ran: Embolden, Irish Mias, Three Technique, L’Imperator (Fr), Vanzzy. Scratched: Big Dreaming, Ima Pharoah, Turn of Events. 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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