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Bloodlines Presented By Diamond B Farm’s Rowayton: Greatest Honour Was Built For Classic Success

After a relatively quiet year in the classics during 2020, Tapit is loaded for this year's preps to the classic races of 2021. In addition to the champion juvenile colt, Essential Quality, the multiple leading sire added a new graded stakes winner to his list of accomplishments when Greatest Honour won the Grade 3 Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 30.

The sire of 141 stakes winners, Tapit now has a pair of graded stakes winners among his classic prospects, along with Proxy, who was second in the G3 Lecomte Stakes at the Fair Grounds on Jan. 16. Although Tapit did not get a classic winner last year, his son Constitution did, with Tiz the Law winning the Belmont Stakes and finishing second in the Kentucky Derby to Horse of the Year Authentic (by Into Mischief), and Tapit's son Tapiture sired Jesus' Team, who ran third in the Preakness and was recently second in the Pegasus.

Now Tapit has fired up a progressive classic prospect in the tall, scopey Greatest Honour, who swept round his competition on the turn in the Holy Bull, then pulled away to win by 5 3/4 lengths in the race at a mile and a sixteenth. Trainer Shug McGaughey said, “He picked up his horses quick today. I think the farther we go, the better.”

The big bay's racing style certainly indicates he will be suited to classic distances, and the colt's pedigree backs that up in spades.

Bred in Kentucky by the Courtlandt Farm of Donna and Donald Adam, Greatest Honour is out of the Street Cry mare Tiffany's Honour. The mare didn't finish in the money in any of her three starts for owner-breeder Southern Equine, but when consigned to the 2015 Fasig-Tipton November sale in foal to Tapit, Tiffany's Honour was bought back for $2.3 million. Courtlandt Farm acquired the mare privately, and the mare's first foal was a Tapit colt who died.

The second foal out of Tiffany's Honour is the 4-year-old War Front gelding Semifinal, who brought $1.1 million at the 2018 Keeneland September yearling sale. He is unplaced from two starts and was vanned off the racetrack after the second.

Greatest Honour is the mare's third foal, and he won his maiden in his fourth start, going 8.5 furlongs on dirt at Gulfstream Park on Dec. 26. Although clearly more talented for two turns, Greatest Honour is not afflicted with a case of the slows. He was twice third in maiden specials at Saratoga and Belmont; each time, the second horse was Caddo River (Hard Spun), who won the listed Smarty Jones Stakes at Oaklawn on Jan. 22.

In his third start, going nine furlongs at Aqueduct on Nov. 8, Greatest Honour was second by a head to the Curlin colt Known Agenda, with the third horse 21 lengths farther behind. The penny had dropped, and Greatest Honour has won his next two starts.

The size, the scope, the lack of sprint speed, and yet the ability to show form late at two and improve markedly at three is the trademark of the A.P. Indy line of classic stock. And it's not coincidental that the best racehorse in the second generation of this pedigree is A.P. Indy's Belmont Stakes winner Rags to Riches, a winner in five of seven starts, four times at the Grade 1 level (Belmont, Kentucky Oaks, Santa Anita Oaks, Las Virgenes).

Rags to Riches and Belmont Stakes winner Jazil (Seeking the Gold) are elder siblings to Tiffany's Honour, who was the ninth and next-to-last foal out of their dam, the splendid racehorse and producer Better Than Honour (Deputy Minister). Winner of the G2 Demoiselle at two, Better Than Honour was second in the G1 Acorn and third in the G1 Mother Goose at three. At stud, she produced four stakes winners. In addition to her two Belmont Stakes winners, Better Than Honour is dam of Casino Drive (Mineshaft), winner of the G2 Peter Pan, and Man of Iron (Giant's Causeway), winner of the Breeders' Cup Marathon.

This family fairly reeks of stamina, but it responds well when matched with high-class speed, which is what happened with the mating of French champion and leading sire Blushing Groom (Red God) to fourth dam Best in Show. The result was Greatest Honour's third dam, G1 Kentucky Oaks winner Blush With Pride, who also won the G1 Santa Susana, was second in the G1 Spinster, and third in the G1 Mother Goose.

At stud, Blush With Pride produced three stakes winners, and this is the family of four-time G1 winner Peeping Fawn (Danehill), a granddaughter of Blush With Pride, and of G1 Hollywood Starlet winner Streaming (Smart Strike), a granddaughter of Better Than Honour.

The esteem in which breeders hold this family is evident from the sales prices of its members, and after Tiffany's Honour produced Greatest Honour, Courtlandt sent the mare to the 2018 Keeneland November sale. In foal to Medaglia d'Oro, Tiffany's Honour brought $2.2 million from Katsumi Yoshida, and the mare was exported to Japan. Tiffany's Honour foaled a filly in April 2019, was barren from a cover to Duramente for 2020, and was bred to the Deep Impact son Kizuna last year for a 2021 foal.

Greatest Honour has already provided a major update for his siblings, and the classics await. This colt is strengthening and should be a better horse in three months than he is today.

The post Bloodlines Presented By Diamond B Farm’s Rowayton: Greatest Honour Was Built For Classic Success appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Greatest Adventure Beckons Courtlandt

We sometimes talk of the moment in a young horse's career when the bulb switches on. When the resulting illumination is as brilliant as was the case with Greatest Honour (Tapit) at Gulfstream last Saturday, however, it feels as though the whole sport can bask in the glow. Those few strides in the GIII Holy Bull S. when he clicked into top gear, before running clear in the stretch, not only announced his own candidature but cast into exciting new perspective the whole road to Churchill on the first Saturday in May.

The way ahead looks particularly auspicious for Tapit, whose career at Gainesway plainly deserves the final gilding of a GI Kentucky Derby success. With champion Essential Quality already setting the standard, he now also has one to head all the emerging talent in these initial sophomore skirmishes. Both horses, moreover, vindicate acorn-to-oak development by a breeding program.

And what acorns, in this case! For the second and fourth dams of Greatest Honour are Broodmares of the Year, with a GI Kentucky Oaks winner in between, and the family seeded by distaff influences of corresponding stature in Street Cry (Ire), Deputy Minister and Blushing Groom (Fr). Every forward step now, then, will only add to the appeal of Greatest Honour as a stallion prospect. As such, even after a solitary start outside maidens, he already appears potentially the most significant horse in the history of Courtlandt Farm.

Its principal achiever to date remains Grade I winner Film Maker (Dynaformer), placed in three consecutive runnings of the GI Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf. But Donald Adam and his wife Donna, the farm's owners, remain as enthusiastic as ever judging from their acquisition of half a dozen yearlings in the first two sessions at Keeneland last September for $4,325,000. This reflects a new strategy over the past five years or so, Courtlandt having primarily raced homebreds to that point. For octogenarian owners, clearly, that's a pretty natural evolution.

“I think Mr. Adam just felt that by the time you have planned your mating, and the gestation is 11 months, and then it's another year and a half before you're breaking them…time goes along pretty quick on you,” explains Ernie Retamoza, their farm manager. “Whereas when you go to the yearling sales and you're defining athletes you think fit your program, you get them home and they're under tack within two or three weeks. But it was a process. We didn't just lead all the mares over there and sell them. We went through them case by case.”

The net result is a broodmare band trimmed from around 25 to seven or eight. And actually Tiffany's Honour (Street Cry {Ire}), the dam of Greatest Honour, fell right into that mix, spending just three years on the Courtlandt books before being moved on. Yet while her stay was relatively brief, it had ample span for destiny to incorporate extremes of tragedy and hope.

As a daughter of $14-million broodmare icon Better Than Honour (Deputy Minister), and duly a half-sister to GI Belmont S. winners Rags To Riches (A.P. Indy) and Jazil (Seeking The Gold), the 4-year-old Tiffany's Honour did not meet her reserve even at $2.3 million when offered with a maiden cover by Tapit at Fasig-Tipton in November 2015–despite finishing stone last in all three starts for breeder Southern Equine Stables. And even though Courtlandt was then just beginning its transition, Adam couldn't resist the idea of a Tapit out of that family. He secured a private deal and, sure enough, Tiffany's Honour delivered a beauty.

“Just an unbelievable colt,” Retamoza recalls. “Lane's End has a pretty good client media section, they take real good care of us, and we always get pictures from Alys Emson through email of our foals and mares. But with this particular colt, I got a picture one day from [long-serving farm manager] Mike Cline. Mike never sends me pictures! I thought that spoke volumes.”

Tiffany's Honour had meanwhile been sent to War Front and, consistent with the new policy, was slated for sale that November. But then disaster struck: the Tapit colt was lost in a paddock accident.

“That just broke our hearts,” Retamoza says. “We knew this was the reason Mr. Adam had pursued the mare, we knew what Lane's End thought of him, it had looked like everything was working out. And then this unfortunate thing happened.”

Undaunted, Adam resolved to seek redress from fate and retained the mare for another visit to Tapit. With a colt safely delivered in April 2018, Tiffany's Honour was sent to Keeneland that November with a Medaglia d'Oro cover, and realized $2.2 million from Katsumi Yoshida.

Her War Front colt had been sold in the same ring a couple of months previously, for $1.1 million. Sadly he didn't work out, vanned off the track when making his second start in a maiden claimer at Belterra Park last year. As the mare's own track career had shown, even genes like these can slip their cogs in the wheel of fortune.

“Boy, it just shows you,” Retamoza mused. “That gene pool, it might skip one–but when it's in place, it's strong. I think Mr. Adam understood that and he really hung his hat on getting a Tapit from this mare. All the credit on Greatest Honour goes to Mr. Adam. He found the mare at the sale, he pursued her after the R.N.A., and he persevered after we lost her colt. He decided to see it through. That's what makes this truly special. The plan came to fruition, and Mr. Adam did all the work himself.”

Here his patron would surely demur, because this version of events modestly passes over another key contributor to the development of Greatest Honour: Ernie Retamoza. Son of a Kentucky trainer, Retamoza has long done the groundwork on the farm–and done such a good job that Lane's End have ended up sending some of their own young stock alongside the Courtlandt weanlings when they migrate to Ocala every winter. It was Retamoza, for instance, who broke in eventual Derby runner-up Code Of Honour (Noble Mission {GB}). Another elite outfit doing the same is St Elias Stable.

“That's a big endorsement and I'm humbled by that,” admits Retamoza, who has been at Courtlandt since 1996. “I'm very hands-on, I'm there every moment. I bridle and saddle and handle as many horses a day as my help. With these young horses, it only takes one bad experience and you're trying to fix something for two or three weeks. So we're diligent about not making those mistakes. And I have great staff here. They know what I want, and that I'm there with them as part of the process. So, as soon as they feel like, 'Hey, that horse didn't have a good day,' then I'm directly involved.

“Especially at the beginning stages, the bridling and all that stuff, it's such a fine line. And as they develop–as they start to gain fitness and pick up the pace, and learn how to rate and relax–the biggest challenge is the mental side. So, what I always tell my guys is, 'I want to get them fit, but I don't want them to know they're fit.' That's the key, that's the challenge. Anybody can gallop, gallop, gallop. But there's always so many nuances you have to see.”

It was into skilled hands, then, that the yearling Greatest Honour arrived from Lane's End in August 2019, ready to be broken alongside the yearlings recruited at the imminent sales.

“And right off the van he was 'as advertised',” Retamoza recalls. “The whole package. A big, leggy, scopey, rangy horse; correct, well-made, good bone, everything. We were excited. And he took the breaking fine, took to the training great. No issues at all. And as we got into January, February, March, when we start to get a little more serious, he was always a horse that had high energy. Always wanted to do more than you wanted–and I don't mean that in a bad way. You'd pull up after a mile, mile-and-a-quarter gallop, and he'd always be like: 'That all we're doing today?'”

Retamoza has been around enough good horses to recognize what he saw here.

“Code of Honor was very, very similar,” he remarked. “You could never do enough with him in the morning. And once he got to breezing, you could almost see it: 'Yeah, this is what I was meant to do.' Greatest Honour was more imposing, as an individual; Code of Honor was a little smaller in stature, lighter in frame. But we knew he was a runner. Horses are different in terms of pedigree, how they're made, how they move. But what's always a great sign is the horse that meets you at the webbing every morning, ears forward, what's going on.”

The next stage of Greatest Honour's education took him to Fair Hill, where Shug McGaughey inducts juveniles into his program. And, as it happens, this was another respect in which the sails of this horse–as one of relatively few homebreds these days broken alongside the sales athletes–have been filled with a wind of change at Courtlandt. Because it was just around this time that the track division was transferred (while stressing undiminished regard for previous trainer Mark Hennig) to McGaughey.

There was, of course, already a relationship through Lane's End, all parties having seen things fall into place with Code Of Honor.

“The Phipps family had started to sell some yearlings, and we thought it might be an opportune time,” Retamoza says. “We had a little bit of a record, breaking here at the farm for Mr. Farish, and so it just like a natural fit. We reached out to Shug, and he was able to come and look at our young ones. We didn't want him to take anything he didn't want. We didn't know the situation on numbers or anything. We just let Shug dictate that and it's worked out beautiful.”

McGaughey now has around 10 for Courtlandt, while others are stabled with Steve Asmussen. And the new regime has certainly landed running.

“Greatest Honour was only in Fair Hill about a month before Shug moved him to Belmont,” Retamoza says. “Tapit has a bit of a reputation for horses that can be a little challenging, and I think at Fair Hill he was bored, wanting to do more. So, I really credit the job Shug has done getting him to this point, in terms of the mental side. Even going into this race, Shug felt like the horse was still just figuring it all out. I think that speaks volumes for how much better he can be, and that's exciting.”

Hence the old-school grounding for Greatest Honour, who started out by closing from off the pace in a couple of sprints before stretching out to duel with Known Agenda (Curlin) at Aqueduct and then breaking his maiden on his fourth start at Gulfstream.

“It's been such a good process,” Retamoza says. “I thought he grew up a ton in the race in New York, where they hooked up at the top of the lane. Very rarely do you see young maidens run that professionally for that long. And then the day he won, it wasn't the smoothest trip, the horse on his inside had some issues and he got knocked sideways. The horse has grown up a lot and it's just a credit to Shug. Because he didn't put a lot of pressure on him early, didn't ever force it.”

Unfortunately, Ten For Ten (Frosted), a $410,000 Keeneland yearling who was beaten a neck in the GII Remsen S., has required a break at the farm but there are no major issues and Retamoza believes he will resume among the good sophomores in the summer. And meanwhile he's excited about the next batch off the belt, headlined by a $1.05 million Into Mischief filly whose third dam is Hall of Famer Personal Ensign.

“They're doing wonderful,” Retamoza enthuses. “We do take a bit of a slower approach: bring them home, let them acclimate two or three weeks, and then begin the breaking process. And the whole time they're getting the value of going outside every morning for two or three hours. Just now we're beginning to stop turnout, and get them into more of a race-type program: put four shoes on them, bandages every day, all the stuff to prepare them for when it's time to ship in April or May. But we've got some really nice prospects and I'm delighted with how they've handled everything we've thrown at them so far.”

Fulfilling times, then, for one so immersed in the mute, daily signaling of an adolescent racehorse.

“I work seven days a week, but it's never like work with these young horses,” he said. “Because you're always seeing an evolution. 'Oh, man, that horse really is starting to figure things out.' Or, on the flip side: 'Why did this horse have a bad day yesterday?' So, your mind is always working. And that's the passion that drives you. To see them progress from day one on the farm, and then go on and turn into something on the racetrack. And when ultimately you end up with a horse like this, that's obviously where we're trying to get with all of them.”

And you can hear in Retamoza's s voice just how much the blossoming of Greatest Honour means to the whole Courtlandt team.

“Mr. Adam is an absolute gentleman to work for,” he stressed. “He has been unbelievable for myself and my family. He has multiple businesses and I'm sure that all the employees would say exactly the same.

“He does everything first-class. I mean, it's done the right way or don't do it. And his horses are his passion. We've fields of horses that we bred: some raced successful, some didn't. But they're all right here, being taken care of. He does the right thing every step of the way–by his people, his horses and his family. All the credit goes to him: for his perseverance in the business, and the way he treats us. We're all very excited about this horse and, hopefully, where we're headed from here. Mr. Adam has been at this a long time and in my view there would be no better person that could have a colt like this.”

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Triple Crown Weekend Prep Report Card: A Tale Of Two Pedigrees

Two Grade 3 races on each coast, the Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park in South Florida and the Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita in Southern California, were run on Saturday, offering 17 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the top four finishers (10-4-2-1).

The last time the Holy Bull Stakes winner went on to victory in the G1 Kentucky Derby was in 2006 when Barbaro, making his dirt track debut after winning his first three career starts on turf, scored by three-quarters of a length on a sloppy track. Before that, when the race was known as the Preview Stakes, Go for Gin was victorious en route to capturing the 1994 Kentucky Derby. Some very good horses have won the Holy Bull, including the 2020 winner Tiz the Law, who opened last year's disjointed Triple Crown with a win in the Belmont Stakes.

Prior to 2007, the Robert B. Lewis was known as the Santa Catalina Stakes, which was first run in 1935. It's had different conditions over the years but in recent decades has been restricted to 3-year-olds. Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner I'll Have Another won the Lewis in 2012 and Kentucky Derby winner Ferdinand won it in 1986. Like the Holy Bull, many winners of this early season race for 3-year-olds have gone on to bigger and better things.

Here's a brief look at each race, with my Report Card grade for the winner. The A to F grading system is subjective and based on my personal “eyeball test,” Beyer Speed Figures from Daily Racing Form, historical signifidance of the race and perceived quality of field.

Jan 30 Holy Bull Stakes 1 1/16 miles, Gulfstream

The 11-10 favorite in the Holy Bull was Prime Factor, a $900,000 yearling purchase and winner by 8 ¾ lengths for Todd Pletcher in his only career start while sprinting six furlongs at Gulfstream on Dec. 12. Greatest Honour, bred and owned by Courtlandt Farm and trained by Shug McGaughey, needed four starts to break his maiden, doing so in his Gulfstream debut Dec. 26 at 1-2 odds, coming from off the pace to win by 1 ½ lengths. He was the 5-2 second choice in the betting in the Holy Bull.

Jose Ortiz and Greatest Honour at the wire in the Holy Bull Stakes

Gulfstream Park is not the kind of racetrack where I expect a horse to come from far off the pace to win, and that made Greatest Honour's powerful 5 3/4-length victory that much more impressive.

Rated in seventh of nine runners early by Jose Ortiz, the Tapit colt gained ground in the run down the backstretch, made a bold move on the outside rounding the far turn, took command with a quarter mile to run and ran straight as a string down the stretch as he drew off under mild encouragement.

Final time of the Holy Bull was 1:43.19 after fractions of :23.28, :46.97, 1:11.36 and 1:36.58. The winner was given an 89 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort, an improvement from his maiden-breaking 83.

While some of the Holy Bull runners may go on to bigger and better things (Prime Factor ran a decent third in his first try around two turns), the field as a whole had not accomplished much going into the race. The lone stakes winner was Sittin On Go, who won the G3 Iroquois at Churchill Downs in his second start but then was off the board in two subsequent starts. The late-running horse from the Dale Romans barn ran sixth.

There is a lot to like about Greatest Honour's pedigree beyond him being a son of Tapit. The colt was produced from the Street Cry mare Tiffany's Honour, a half sister to back-to-back Belmont Stakes winners Jazil and Rags to Riches. Those successes led to their dam, G2 Demoiselle Stakes winner Better Than Honour, being named Broodmare of the Year by the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association/Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders. Better Than Honour was produced by G1 Kentucky Oaks winner Blush With Pride, whose dam, Best in Show, was also named Broodmare of the Year. When two of a horse's first four dams were Broodmare of the Year, that is a strong female family.

The year she foaled Greatest Honour, Tiffany's Honour was sold to leading Japanese breeder Katsumi Yoshida of Northern Farm at the 2018 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale for $2.2 million while believed in foal to Medaglia d'Oro.

Grade: A-

Jan. 30 Robert B. Lewis Stakes, 1 1/16 miles, Santa Anita

With a barn full of royally bred and expensive yearling and 2-year-old in training purchases, is it possible that trainer Bob Baffert's best prospect for the 2021 Triple Crown is a Florida-bred who changed hands for $1,000 as a yearling at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's 2019 Winter Mixed Sale?

That horse, Medina Spirit, a son of the Giant's Causeway stallion Protonico, increased in value but was still a bargain at $35,000 when clocker and bloodstock agent Gary Young bought him from Whitman Sales for $35,000 on behalf of Zedan Racing Stables at the 2020 OBS July Sale of 2-year-olds in training and horses of racing age.

Medina Spirit has been the “other Baffert” twice. The first time came in his debut when stablemate Democrat fizzled as the favorite and Medina Spririt won by three lengths going 5 ½ furlongs at Los Alamitos. Next out, in the G3 Sham on Jan. 2, some thought Medina Spirit (sent off at 9-1) was entered by Baffert to make sure the race would fill (only four others entered). The hotshot 1-5 Sham favorite was Life Is Good, who made a dazzling impression in his debut, getting a 91 Beyer Speed Figure (Medina Spirit got a 76 Beyer in his debut). Life Is Good looked well on his way to living up to his top billing in the Sham until Medina Spirit, racing in second throughout, gained 3 ¼ lengths on his stablemate in the final furlong, cutting the winning margin to just three-quarters of a length.

Medina Spirit (inside) fought off Roman Centurian and Hot Rod Charlie the length of the stretch to win the Robert B. Lewis Stakes

For the Lewis, Medina Spirit was the even-money favorite, with his stablemate, the $1-million yearling purchase and G2 Los Alamitos Futurity winner Spielberg, playing second fiddle in the Baffert barn. The latter was a non-factor in a race where Medina Spirit was pushed early by Wipe the Slate and Parnelli through fast fractions of :22.89 and :46.61. The third quarter was a dawdling :25.75 for six furlongs in 1:12.36 and the fourth quarter of 26.98 made the mile time 1:39.34. The times are slow on paper, but Santa Anita's main track was listed as good after heavy rains hit the previous two days.

Medina Spirit put away the chasers (they finished about 20 lengths behind him at the wire), but was under attack down the stretch from Hot Rod Charlie and Roman Centurian. The former, an Oxbow colt trained by Doug O'Neill, was making his first start since finishing second at 94-1 odds in the G1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile, beaten three-quarters of a length by champion Essential Quality. The latter, an Empire Maker colt trained by Simon Callaghan, graduated from the maiden ranks in his second start and first around two turns at Santa Anita on Jan. 3.

Both Hot Rod Charlie, racing between horses, and Roman Centurian to the outside, appeared to have all the momentum as they hooked up with Medina Spirit at the top of the stretch. But Medina Spirit never yielded, holding his two rivals at bay at the wire and then continuing to gallop out ahead of them. Roman Centurian, at 11-1, finished second by a neck, just a nose ahead of 5-2 second choice Hot Rod Charlie.

Final time for the Lewis was 1:46.26, and the top three finishers all received Beyer Speed Figures of 91.

Medina Spirit is from the first crop of foals by Protonico, who certainly has stamina in his pedigree, being by Giant's Causeway and out of an A.P. Indy mare. There's not much black type on Medina Spirit's catalogue page (until you get to the fourth dam), but his dam, Mongolian Changa, is a daughter of the Dynaformer stallion Brilliant Speed, who won the G1 Blue Grass Stakes when Keeneland had a Polytrack synthetic surface.

Once a horse is a proven runner, pedigree doesn't matter nearly as much. I'm reminded of that when I look at the remarkable racing career and the relatively obscure pedigree of Holy Bull, a son of the Minnesota Mac stallion Great Above out of a mare by Al Hattab.

Grade B

Previously: Jan 26 Triple Crown Weekend Prep Report Card

Jan. 18 Triple Crown Weekend Prep Report Card

Jan. 3 Triple Crown Weekend Prep Report Card

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The TDN Derby Top 12 for February 2

The Nos. 1, 2 and 3 candidates atop this week's GI Kentucky Derby rankings are fascinating from a tactical standpoint. In order, their styles are that of a relentless stalker, a high-cruising speed specialist, and a dominant, off-the-pace tailgater. But the contenders ranked behind them are poised to pounce as we edge past the 90-day mark until the first Saturday in May.

1) ESSENTIAL QUALITY (c, Tapit–Delightful Quality, by Elusive Quality)
O/B-Godolphin (KY). T-Brad Cox. Lifetime Record: Ch. 2yo Colt & GISW, 3-3-0-0, $1,335,144.
Last Start: 1st GI TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile, KEE, Nov. 6
Accomplishments Include: 1st GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity, 'TDN Rising Star'
Next Start: GIII Southwest S., OP, Feb. 15
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 30.

'TDN Rising Star' Essential Quality can now add “2-year-old champ” to his 3-for-3 resume after winning Thursday's Eclipse Awards vote. But there was also big news last week about plans for this Godolphin homebred's 2021 debut, which trainer Brad Cox said will be the GIII Southwest S. Feb. 15 at Oaklawn (the GII Risen Star S. Feb. 13 at Fair Grounds had been the secondary option). The decision came down to a distance preference (1 1/16 miles for the Southwest versus half a furlong farther in the Risen Star), which is entirely logical for this Tapit colt's first race back since the winning the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile. This athletic gray was a versatile stalker at age two, and looked well within his element employing intimidating pace-pressing tactics. Although “EQ” has twice won at 1 1/16 miles, both of those Grade I victories came over Keeneland's short-stretch configuration, where races at that distance end at the sixteenth pole. How have Eclipse champs fared in the Derby? In the 21st Century, Street Sense, American Pharoah and Nyquist all managed that double. There were no Eclipse/Derby winners in the 1980s or '90s. But in the '70s that feat was quite common, and the honor roll includes some legendary names: Spectacular Bid, Affirmed, Seattle Slew, Foolish Pleasure, Secretariat and Riva Ridge.

2) CADDO RIVER (c, Hard Spun–Pangburn, by Congrats)
O/B-Shortleaf Stable (KY). T-Brad Cox. Lifetime Record: SW, 4-2-2-0, $166,092. Last Start: 1st Smarty Jones S., OP, Jan. 22.
Accomplishments: 'TDN Rising Star'
Next Start: GII Rebel S., OP, Mar. 13 or GI Arkansas Derby, OP, Apr. 10
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 10.

'TDN Rising Star' Caddo River is still basking in the afterglow of his tour-de-force, 10 1/4-length blowout in the opening-day Smarty Jones S. at Oaklawn. A homebred for Arkansas lumberman John Ed Anthony's Shortleaf Stable, trainer Brad Cox has confirmed that this colt will remain on the Hot Springs prep path. But considering how Cox is a proponent of spacing races, it seems likely that Caddo River might bypass the upcoming Southwest S. (which has already drawn commitments from the Nos. 1 and 5 contenders on this list) in favor of using the Mar. 13 GII Rebel S. and Apr. 10 GI Arkansas Derby as his launch pad to Louisville. This Hard Spun colt's past-performance lines got a nice lift Saturday when Greatest Honour (Tapit) won the GIII Holy Bull S., because Greatest Honour had twice finished third in “loaded” New York MSW races in which Caddo River ran second. Although speed is Caddo River's main weapon, he's not so much a blast-out-of-the-gate presence as a colt who breaks fluidly then rapidly attains a high cruising speed and stays there, which is the type of speed that can be better leveraged into excelling over 10 furlongs.

3) GREATEST HONOUR (c, Tapit–Tiffany's Honour, by Street Cry {Ire})
O/B-Courtlandt Farms (KY). T-Claude R. McGaughey III. Lifetime Record: GSW, 5-2-1-2, $175,240.
Last Start: 1st GIII Holy Bull S., GP, Jan. 30
Next Start: GII Fountain of Youth S., GP, Feb. 27 or GI Florida Derby, GP, Mar. 27
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 10.

Greatest Honour, a Courtlandt Farms homebred by Tapit, makes a leapfrog debut onto the Top 12 this week after unleashing a bold, sustained Holy Bull S. run that was as impressive in watching him build it up as it was in seeing him uncoil that devastating kick in the stretch knowing he was “just playing around,” as jockey Jose Ortiz quipped post-race. “I was really, really happy going to the five-eighths,” said Ortiz. “Luckily, I didn't have to fight for any position. I was just able to take it. Honestly, when I put myself four wide in the clear, I showed him the whip one time and from that point I knew I was going to have a really, really good shot to win. When we got to the quarter pole, I knew I had it.” Greatest Honour earned an 89 Beyer Speed Figure, and trainer Shug McGaughey said in the winner's circle this colt will prep for the Derby in at least one other Gulfstream stakes. Asked if the GII Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth (FOY) was a possibility, McGaughey said it was before quickly adding, “But I think we need to wait a little bit. I mean, he's not going to be a hard horse for me to have ready for the [Mar 27] GI Florida Derby. And a mile and an eighth is going to suit him even better than a mile and a sixteenth” in the FOY.

4) LIFE IS GOOD (c, Into Mischief–Beach Walk, by Distorted Humor)
O-CHC Inc & WinStar Farm LLC. B-Gary & Mary West Stable (KY). T-Bob Baffert. Sales History: $525,000 ylg '19 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW, 2-2-0-0, $94,200.
Last Start: 1st GIII Sham S., SA, Jan. 2
Next Start: Possible for GII San Felipe S., SA, Mar. 6
Accomplishments: 'TDN Rising Star'
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 10.

'TDN Rising Star' Life Is Good, a $525,000 KEESEP Into Mischief bay, is the top gun among California-based horses. But like many Bob Baffert phenoms who dominate short-field Santa Anita stakes as prohibitive favorites, it can be difficult to gauge just how talented these sophomores actually are. This past Saturday, we got a little help in judging where Life Is Good stands from a company-line perspective. Fellow Baffert trainee Medina Spirit (Protonico), who finished three-quarters of a length behind Life Is Good in the Jan. 2 GIII Sham S. (and 13 lengths ahead of everyone else), won a three-horse photo to tenaciously snag the GIII Lewis S. But bettors who participated in Pool 2 of the Derby Future Wager the previous weekend needed no such convincer: They made Life Is Good the 7-1 second choice behind the “field” option. What is perplexing about the Future Wager odds though, is that Life Is Good actually closed at a lower price (5-1) back in November's Pool 1 when he only had a highly hyped maiden win on his record. So anyone who waited for Life Is Good to win a stakes race and edge two months closer to the Derby got rewarded with the better price despite the proposition looking much stronger. It's supposed to work the other way around, but future-bet markets are rife with inefficiencies.

5) JACKIE'S WARRIOR (c, Maclean's Music–Unicorn Girl, by A.P. Five Hundred)
O-J Kirk & Judy Robison. B-J & J Stables (KY). T-Steve Asmussen. Sales History: $95,000 ylg '19 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: MGISW, 5-4-0-0, $502,564.
Last Start: 4th GI TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile, KEE, Nov. 6
Accomplishments: 1st GII Saratoga Special, 1st GI Runhappy Hopeful S., 1st GI Champagne S.
Next Start: GIII Southwest S., OP, Feb. 15.
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 12.

Now that Essential Quality's connections have committed to the Southwest S., the highly anticipated grudge match between the two Breeders' Cup Juvenile favorites is on for Feb. 15, representing the first true clash of the year between “headline” horses on the Derby trail. The first time they met, then-undefeated Jackie's Warrior was bet down to 9-10 odds and got first run into a sacrificial speed duel after enjoying an in-the-clear stalking trip. Still-undefeated “EQ” was the 7-2 second choice in the Breeders' Cup, and he was content to drop a dozen lengths off the action and build gradual momentum that didn't crest until a sixteenth of a mile from the wire, catapulting him to victory while “Jackie” was fourth, beaten 3 1/4 lengths. Purely from a next-race perspective, this $95,000 KEESEP Maclean's Music colt is likely to hold the upper hand based on his wicked turn of foot and the tendency for speed-oriented horses to do well at Oaklawn. But until Jackie actually wins a two-turn race (he was 4-for-4 at age two, winning at five, six, seven and eight furlongs), the jury is still out as to whether or not a 10-furlong Derby is within his scope.

6) PREVALENCE (c, Medaglia d'Oro—Enrichment, by Ghostzapper)
O/B-Godolphin (KY); T-Brendan Walsh. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $25,800.
Last Start: 1st Maiden Special Weight, GP, Jan. 23
Next Start: Uncommitted
Accomplishments: 'TDN Rising Star'
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 0.

Prevalence is one of three Godolphin homebreds currently ranked within the Top 12. This Medaglia d'Oro-sired 'TDN Rising Star' is the only one based in Florida though, so it would seem that the Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth S. could be his next start. That would work out to five weeks between races and keep him geographically separated from Godolphin's other two top sophs, Essential Quality and Proxy (Tapit), who appear bound for the Southwest S. and Risen Star S., respectively. The 89-Beyer MSW debut for Prevalence on the Pegasus undercard a week and a half ago at Gulfstream still resonates as a “Wow!” effort, both for how this colt won it (by 8 1/2 geared-down lengths after dominating a five-way fight for the lead) and the well-intended colts whom he beat (Justify's half-brother and a $1.05-million KEESEP buy).

7) MIDNIGHT BOURBON (c, Tiznow–Catch the Moon, by Malibu Moon)
O-Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC; B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC (KY); T-Steve Asmussen. Sales History: $525,000 ylg '19 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW & GISP, 5-2-1-2, $221,420.
Last Start: 1st GIII Lecomte S., FG, Jan. 16
Next Start: GII Risen Star S., FG, Feb. 13
Accomplishments: 3rd GI Champagne S., 2nd GIII Iroquois S.
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 16.

Trainer Steve Asmussen indicated after Midnight Bourbon's 91-Beyer wiring of the GII Lecomte S. that win that he'd like to keep this $525,000 KEESEP colt in New Orleans to try and sweep the Risen Star S. and GII Louisiana Derby en route to a berth in Louisville. Those were the same races that Midnight Bourbon's half-brother, Girvin, won for different connections in 2017 prior to a trip-troubled 13th in the Kentucky Derby. Although Girvin benefitted from weak renewals of those Fair Grounds stakes, he did mature into a level-headed sophomore who could handle multiple levels of in-race pressure, which is something that Midnight Bourbon still must prove, because his Lecomte score had an “everything his own way” flavor to it. Three horses have swept the Lecomte, Risen Star, and Louisiana Derby: International Star in 2015 was the most recent, but he did not did not start in the Kentucky Derby. Friesan Fire swept the series in 2009 prior to running 18th in the Derby. Dixieland Heat won all three New Orleans races in 1993, and then (underscoring that he raced in a very different era) additionally ran third in the GII Blue Grass S. prior to finishing 12th in the Derby.

8) PROXY (c, Tapit–Panty Raid, by Include)
O/B-Godolphin (KY). T-Michael Stidham. Lifetime Record: GSP, 4-2-2-0, $107,700.
Last Start: 2nd GIII Lecomte S., FG, Jan. 16
Next Start: Possible for GII Risen Star S., FG, Feb. 13
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 4.

Proxy isn't one of those colts whose past performances leap out at you as a top-tier Derby candidate, but he does have the look and feel of the type of contender capable of quietly rounding into form and sneaking up on everybody by the first Saturday in May. He got first run at a loose leader in the Lecomte S., and while he did not win, this Tapit homebred for Godolphin prevailed in the “race within the race” for second. Proxy's previous two Fair Grounds victories were on the lead, so he's no longer so one-dimensional, tactics-wise, and he'll bring four races of two-turn experience into the Risen Star S. if his connections opt for that spot. Proxy's pedigree has a versatile, distance-centric slant: In 2007, his dam, Panty Raid, won the GI American Oaks Invitational S. at 10 furlongs on the turf, the GI Spinster S. at nine furlongs on a synthetic track, and the GII Black-Eyed Susan S. at nine furlongs on dirt.

9) HIGHLY MOTIVATED (c, Into Mischief–Strong Incentive, by Warrior's Reward)
O/B-Klaravich Stables, Inc (KY). T-Chad Brown. Sales History: $240,000 wlg '18 KEENOV. Lifetime Record: SW, 3-2-1-0, $124,050.
Last Start: 1st Nyquist S., KEE, Nov. 6
Next Start: GIII Gotham S., AQU, Mar. 6
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 0.

Highly Motivated breezed a half mile in :49:20 (9/35) Saturday at Payson Park, one day after trainer Chad Brown disclosed the colt's 2021 debut will be in the GIII Gotham S. at Aqueduct Mar. 6. This $240,000 KEENOV Into Mischief colt needed patient handling after emerging “a little stiff” from his Nov. 6 track-record-setting Nyquist S. score, Brown told DRF.com. “I gave him a little extra time, and that put me behind a little bit,” he said. “I approached him like I have some of these other horses that I have, in that I don't want to run him too much before the Derby because if they're not good enough I want to have the rest of the year.” Highly Motivated has yet to race beyond 6 1/2 furlongs, so the one-turn-mile is a natural progression. But if he runs well enough to remain under consideration for a two-prep path to Louisville, that means Highly Motivated will go into the Derby with (most likely) only one two-turn race under his belt. The betting public let Highly Motivated drift to 24-1 in last week's Pool 2 of the Derby Future Wager after an 18-1 opening back in November.

10) MEDINA SPIRIT (c, Protonico–Mongolian Changa, by Briliant Speed)
O-Zedan Racing Stables. B-Gail Rice (FL). T-Bob Baffert. Sales History: $1,000 ylg '19 OBSWIN; $35,000 2yo '20 OBSOPN. Lifetime Record: GSW, 3-2-1-0, $105,200.
Last Start: 1st GIII Robert B. Lewis S., SA, Jan. 30
Next Start: Uncommitted
Accomplishments: 2nd GIII Sham S.
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 14.

Medina Spirit's 91-Beyer GIII Lewis S. score on Saturday rates as one of the grittiest winning runs on the Derby trail this season. Seizing the lead from the rail, he took heat on the front end in a three-way go while drilling splits of :22.89 and :46.61, looked like he might be cooked at the quarter pole when two fresh closers barreled at him from off the pace, then dug in and never once relinquished the lead in a stretch battle that had him a neck in front in a three-way photo. “That reminded me a little bit of [1997 Derby winner] Silver Charm,” trainer Bob Baffert said post-race. “He had every reason to give it up late down the stretch [when] those horses came to him; I thought he was beat. I thought they were going to get by and he wouldn't let them by. He fought on. He really is not as tired as I thought he would be. He got caught up in the speed duel. We were afraid about the one hole and I was hoping he could just back off a little bit … He's going to get a lot out of this race, but I think you have to take him pretty seriously now.”

11) MANDALOUN (c, Into Mischief–Brooch, by Empire Maker)
O/B-Juddmonte Farms Inc. (KY). T-Brad Cox. Lifetime Record: GSP, 3-2-0-1, $111,252.
Last Start: 3rd GIII Lecomte S., FG, Jan. 16
Next Start: GII Risen Star S., FG, Feb. 13
Accomplishments: 'TDN Rising Star'
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 2.

Trainer Brad Cox said last week that he was going to equip 'TDN Rising Star' Mandaloun with blinkers for a Saturday half-mile work that clocked in :48.20 (2/99), and that this 2-for-3 colt would wear them when he next starts in the Risen Star S. on Feb. 13. The beaten 4-5 fave when three wide around both turns behind a tepid pace in the Lecomte S., this Juddmonte homebred by Into Mischief now has to scramble a bit to regain Derby relevance. Speaking on “At the Races with Steve Byk,” Cox said that coming back on four weeks of rest with an elite-level sophomore is “something I'm not wild about, but at the end of the day, when a 3-year-old is on the Derby trail, you've got to push him along a little more.” Mandaloun displayed good fighting instincts when crashing through heavy traffic to break his maiden, and ranged up threateningly after stalking the leaders in his allowance score. But he had to be ridden with vigor in both of those races to uncork his best rally, and his subpar third in the Lecomte lacked a similar display of self-confidence. Perhaps the blinkers will offer a different perspective.

12) KEEPMEINMIND (c, Laoban–Inclination, by Victory Gallop)
O-Cypress Creek LLC & Arnold Bennewith. B-Southern Equine Stables, LLC (KY). T-Robertino Diodoro. Lifetime Record: GSW & MGISP, 4-1-2-1, $394,320.
Last Start: 1st GII Kentucky Jockey Club S., CD, Nov. 28
Accomplishments: 2nd GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity,
3rd GI TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile
Next Start: GIII Southwest S., OP, Feb. 15.
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 18.

This Laoban bay will celebrate his Feb. 8 foaling birthdate prior to his next start in the Southwest S. at Oaklawn. As a maiden, Keepmeinmind ran second and third behind No. 1-ranked Essential Quality in to Grade I stakes, beaten only 5 ¼ combined lengths. He then went off favored in the GII Kentucky Jockey Club S., and his rally from last to collar a tiring leader was notable for how much lateral movement he made while trying to pick a spot at the back of the pack (three wide first turn, six deep entering backstretch, then down to the rail and gradually out to the seven path turning for home). The effort produced one of the weaker stakes Beyers (80) on this year's Derby trail, and it clocked .54 seconds slower than 2-year-old fillies covered the same 1 1/16 miles distance in the GII Golden Rod S. earlier on that same card. But this off-pace specialist will benefit from any sort of speed setup that might occur in the Southwest, and any progress in his 2021 debut should not be judged so much by whether or not he wins the race but by how he finishes. This guy could be a slow-developing surprise.

On the Bubble (in alphabetical order):

Freedom Fighter (Violence): Away since wiring Aug. 1 Del Mar debut for Baffert as 1-2 fave. Listed by Santa Anita as “possible” for Saturday's GII San Vicente Stakes.

Hot Rod Charlie (Oxbow): Half to 2019 sprint champ Mitole ($17,000 FTKFEB; $110,000 FTKOCT) stumbled at break of Lewis S. and took bumping in deep stretch when rallying capably for third in three-way photo. That was his first race back off 94-1 second in the Breeders' Cup.

Prime Factor (Quality Road): This 'TDN Rising Star' is relegated out of the Top 12 after a no-excuse third in the Holy Bull S. in which he stalked two long-shot pacemakers and never fired when called upon for run. Fellow Todd Pletcher-trained stablemate Likeable (Frosted) also lost his standing within the Top 12 after running up on heels and coming up empty in the GIII Swale S.

Roman Centurian (Empire Maker): Nice try first time against winners when rallying from last and beaten only a neck in the Lewis S. over a tiring, drying-out track.

Tarantino (Pioneerof the Nile): Eye-catching 26-1 effort in Holy Bull S. on Saturday. Hustled for lead, attended pace, put nose in front three-eighths out, got inhaled by stalkers but stayed on with purpose to regain second.

The post The TDN Derby Top 12 for February 2 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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