Oisin Murphy Joins TDN Writers’ Room Podcast

Oisin Murphy, the British Champion Jockey in 2019, 2020 and 2021, decided to spend part of his winter riding at Gulfstream Park. He didn't come just for the sunshine. Murphy felt that experiencing something different, riding on the dirt and competing against one of the best riding colonies in the world, would further his career.

How has he done? Has the experience made him a better rider? Those were questions we asked Murphy when he joined this week's TDN Writers' Room podcast sponsored by Keeneland. Murphy was the Green Group Guest of the Week.

“On dirt, I always knew that if you get stopped at any stage, it can be race over for you,” Murphy said. “Watching those top riders riding on a daily basis has been great. And I've ridden for some top trainers while I've been here and I've enjoyed that. Hopefully, this week, I've got some chances to ride another winner or two. I just have a lot of admiration for the lads I've been riding against.”

Murphy has ridden five winners at the meet, not at all bad considering he came here with few connections and is riding every day against the likes of Irad Ortiz Jr., John Velazquez, Tyler Gaffalione and the rest. But he said he had hoped to do better.

Irish Jockey Oisin Murphy Joins the TDN Writers' Room from Thoroughbred Daily News on Vimeo.

“I'd like to have ridden a lot more winners,” he said. “I've tried. In fairness, I knew coming here that it wasn't going to be easy. I got some really good results on Saturday, which was fulfilling, and I felt like I rode well over the weekend. But, of course, I always want to do better. I knew coming here that the jockey colony was very strong. But I want to do better. If I get another chance to come here, I'd like to ride many more winners.”

Will he be back next year?

“I'll definitely aim to come back and do a similar stint,” Murphy said. “I know I'm not going to earn loads of money in the month of January here, but I think the connections I can develop here will serve me well in the future. Some of those top jockeys are going to retire in the next number of years, like to Johnny V. and Frankie Dettori. Those top dirt races like the Saudi Cup, Dubai World Cup, Breeders' Cup Classic are worth an awful lot of money. If I have enough experience on dirt, and can prove myself, hopefully I can put my hand on the phone and call a trainer or an owner and ask is your horse available in this race because I'd love to ride them?”

In the stallion spotlight segments, the podcast featured Coolmore's Tiz the Law (Constitution), who stands for a fee of $20,000. The focus was also on four-time Grade I winner Improbable (City Zip), who stands at WinStar for $15,000.

Elsewhere on the podcast, which is also sponsored by WinStar Farm, the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association,https://www.kentuckybred.org/https://www.nyrabets.com/ 1/ST Racing, the KTA & KTOB, West Point Thoroughbreds, https://www.winstarfarm.com/and XBTV.com, the team of Randy Moss, Bill Finley and Zoe Cadman gave their opinions on the fact that owners are not planning to transfer their 3-year-old stars out of the Bob Baffert barn even though that means they will not be eligible to run in the GI Kentucky Derby. The Derby could be missing some of the best horses in the division. They discussed a successful Pegasus World Cup Day at Gulfstream and looked ahead to a quartet of Derby preps set to be run this weekend, which include an appearance by 'TDN Rising Star' and 2-year-old champion Fierceness (City of Light) in the GIII Holy Bull S. at Gulfstream.

To watch the Writers' Room, click here. To view the show as a podcast, click here.

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Tuscan Gold A New ‘Rising Star’ For Medaglia d’Oro

Tuscan Gold (Medaglia d'Oro) debuted with an educational–if a bit troubled–fourth-place effort behind sales-topping stablemate and 'TDN Rising Star' Sierra Leone (Gun Runner) and fellow seven-figure seller Change In Command (Into Mischief) going a mile at Aqueduct Nov. 4. Sierre Leone did his part to validate the effort with a near-miss second in the GII Remsen S., while Change of Command has since won twice, including a Jan. 5 allowance at this track, and Tuscan Gold will presumably get his chance to further frank the form after being named a 'TDN Rising Star' himself Wednesday afternoon.

A somewhat surprising 8-5 second choice behind three-start maiden Skip the Line (Into Mischief–Bubbler) at 11-10 and getting Lasix for the first time, Tuscan Gold was toting the Gary Broad/Walmac silks this time around after debuting in the Lawrence colors and was trapped out five deep rounding the first turn while niggled along to keep pace by Tyler Gaffalione. Able to shift in to save some ground midway up the backstretch, the $600,000 Keeneland September grad was soon back into the bridle and was all the way up into third rounding the second bend. Looking a bit one-paced as he tried to get to front-running Skip the Line approaching the stretch, Tuscan Gold was popped the question in earnest and ran away impressively before galloping out with good energy.

Stonestreet bred Tuscan Gold from their very talented Valadorna (Curlin), runner-up to Champagne Room (Broken Vow) in the 2016 GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile and–appropriately enough–third in the GII Rachel Alexandra S. at three. A listed winner at the tail end of that season, she posted a career-high in the GIII Hilliard Lyons Doubledogdare S. at four in 2018.

A half-sister to former Chad Brown Grade I winner Complexity (Maclean's Music), Valadorna is also represented by a 2-year-old colt by Uncle Mo and a yearling colt by Tapit. Valadorna was not bred in 2023. Tuscan Gold is a 33rd 'Rising Star' for his recently turned 25-year-old stallion.

7th-Gulfstream, $70,000, Msw, 1-31, 3yo, 1 1/16m, 1:46.42, ft, 6 1/4 lengths.
TUSCAN GOLD, c, 3, by Medaglia d'Oro
1st Dam:  Valadorna (GSW & GISP, $670,265), by Curlin
2nd Dam: Goldfield, by Yes It's True
3rd Dam: Folly Dollar, by Digression
Sales history: $600,000 Ylg '22 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: 2-1-0-0, $47,100.  Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
O-William H Lawrence, Walmac Farm & Stonestreet Stables LLC; B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC (KY); T-Chad C Brown.

 

 

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Medaglia d’Oro Filly Delahaye Impressively Wires Gulfstream Allowance

5th-Gulfstream, $72,000, Alw (NW1$X), Opt. Clm ($25,000), 1-31, 4yo/up, f/m, 1 1/16mT, 1:40.88, fm, 1 1/4 lengths.
DELAHAYE (f, 4, Medaglia d'Oro–Bella Carina, by War Front) sat a no-cover trip three and four wide on her debut over this course last February, but jockey Javier Castellano lost the crop with judgment day approaching and the filly went down to a narrow defeat behind the future MSP Love Appeals (Speightstown). Away for 8 1/2 months thereafter, the $550,000 Keeneland September yearling raced more prominently in an Aqueduct maiden and shot clear late to graduate by a handy 3 1/4 lengths at 65 cents on the dollar when last seen Nov. 5. Favored here at an arguably overlaid 9-10 and carrying the Three Chimneys colors for the first time, Delahaye tugged her way to the front without expending much energy and led her rivals along through sedate fractions of :24.01 and :48.92. Castellano sat hard against Delahaye around the turn, cut the ribbons once heads were turned for home and she easily held sway to the wire. She covered her final 2 1/2 furlongs in :28.20 and sprinted the final sixteenth in a very slick :5.50. Delahaye is the ninth winner worldwide from 11 runners bred on this cross, a number that includes the stakes winners Ticker Tape Home and Golden Canary. Ben Leon's Besilu Stables acquired the stakes-winning second dam Grand Prayer (Grand Slam) in foal to Medaglia d'Oro for an even $1 million from the Ned Evans dispersal at Keeneland November in 2011, a little more than a year after the mare's daughter Malibu Prayer (Malibu Moon) won the GI Ruffian H. for Evans and Mark Hennig. Grand Prayer's value appreciated further still when her Medaglia d'Oro foal of 2010, Valid, became a three-time graded winner and Grade I-placed on the dirt. Malibu Prayer is also the dam of the MGSP Grand Love, whose sire Gun Runner is out of Quiet Giant (Giant's Causeway), a $3-million purchase by Besilu from the same dispersal. Leon also paid a sales-topping $8.5 million for champion Royal Delta (Empire Maker). Bella Carina is the dam of a 2-year-old Not This Time colt that was bought back on a bid of $350,000 at Keeneland September last fall and a yearling colt by Gun Runner. She was not bred last season. Sales history: $550,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: 3-2-1-0, $104,650. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
O-William H Lawrence & Three Chimneys Farm; B-Three Chimneys Farm LLC (KY); T-Chad C Brown.

 

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The Week in Review: National Treasure Could Be On His Way to Stardom

I wasn't a National Treasure (Quality Road) fan. He got one of the easiest trips you'll ever see in a Triple Crown race when he was allowed to walk on the lead in the GI Preakness S., winning by a head over soft group of challengers. Which is why it came as no surprise that he couldn't so much as finish in the money in any of his next three starts, the GI Belmont S., the GI Travers S. and the GI Awesome Again S. He looked like a horse who had to set the pace to prevail and he didn't find himself on the lead in any of those races.

Yes, he turned in a big effort in the GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile when losing to eventual Horse of the Year Cody's Wish by a nose. But maybe Cody didn't run his best. He never did show an affinity for two turns. And maybe National Treasure's effort was a bit of a fluke. So I didn't like him one bit in Saturday's GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational S. at Gulfstream. As the 5-2 favorite, he was an easy toss.

I was wrong. Was I ever.

Yes, this was the weakest field ever to assemble for the Pegasus and he did win by only a neck over the hard-trying blue-collar type Senor Buscador (Mineshaft). But take a deeper dive into this race and you'll likely conclude, as I did, that this was a very strong performance from National Treasure, one in which he served notice that he might be on a path to a Horse of the Year title.

As soon as the gate opened, both National Treasure and Hoist the Gold (Mineshaft) left there with a purpose, to get to the lead. With Hoist the Gold narrowly in front, they battled through early fractions of :23 and :46. For National Treasure, this was supposed to be the worst trip possible. He didn't make the lead and was engaged in a battle that resulted in fast fractions.

Trainer Bob Baffert, watching from California, wasn't worried.

“I knew there was going to be a hot pace and [Flavien] Prat and I talked about it,” Baffert said. “You can't take his speed away. You can't be worried about one horse. Just let him do his thing and he did. That's why he won.”

With about five furlongs to go, Prat made the move that might have won the race for him. He backed off of Hoist the Gold, ever so slightly but enough to give his horse a quick breather. With three furlongs left, Prat called on National Treasure and he responded and went right back at Hoist the Gold. By mid-stretch he had put away Hoist the Gold and had clear sailing to the wire. But then Senor Buscador decided to make a race out of it and closed relentlessly. Another two or three jumps, he probably would have won the race. But National Treasure had enough left to hold him off.

“He's very brave,” Prat said of National Treasure.

Meanwhile, Hoist the Gold, the winner of the GII Cigar Mile H., was cooked in the stretch. He finished fourth, beaten 11 lengths.

Baffert was non-committal when asked about National Treasure's next race, but you have to think that the $20-million G1 Saudi Cup is on his radar. If so, he would meet White Abarrio (Race Day), which would mean an early season showdown between the two best older dirt males in training.

With so many top horses being retired at the end of 2023, it looked like there would be very little star power when it came to the older male dirt division this year. Maybe National Treasure can change that.

Ryan Moore Does It Again

European-based rider Ryan Moore turned in the ride of the day when he guided Auguste Rodin (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) to victory in the GI Breeders' Cup Turf. He saved ground every step of the way and burst through the hole that opened up at the top of the stretch when Balladeer (Distorted Humor) drifted ever so slightly off the fence and then held off eventual Eclipse Award winner Up to the Mark (Not This Time). Moore was the reason Auguste Rodin won the race.

On Saturday at Gulfstream, he gave a carbon-copy ride to Warm Heart (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) to win the nine-furlong Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational S.

On a horse whose biggest wins had come at a mile-and-a-half, Moore knew he couldn't afford to drop too far off the pace, so he had her positioned in third in the early going. She was third at the top of the stretch on the rail and it looked like Moore had nowhere to go. There never really was a hole, but when Maine Event (Bernardini) came out a half-path or so, Moore burst through the narrow opening and then held off a late bid from I'm Very Busy (Cloud Computing). Just as was the case in the Breeders' Cup, the horse probably doesn't win unless guided to a perfect trip by Moore.

“Ryan obviously gave her an incredible ride and has done such an incredible job,” winning trainer Aidan O'Brien said.

And give credit to the Coolmore team. When so many others find reasons not to run in races, this was Warm Heart's second start after she finished second in the GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf. When it was determined that she was going to have to be in the U.S. anyway so that she could be bred to Justify, they figured why not head a ways down the road and go after the $1-million purse at Gulfstream. The win netted them $531,000. It was the perfect way to end Warm Heart's career.

By the way, how did Warm Heart go off at 2.4-1, while Integration (Quality Road) was 1.2-1? Yes, Integration looked like he had a lot of potential, but had never faced older horses in a stakes race and his biggest win came in the GII Hill Prince S. Yes, Warm Heart was a filly facing boys, but her record towered over that of anyone else in the field. She was a two-time Group I winner in Europe and missed by just a neck when second in the GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf. She should have been the favorite.

Eclipse Awards

It's always fun to see every year what was the dumbest vote when it comes to the Eclipse Awards. The winner this year goes to the person who voted for Kirstenbosch (Midnight Lute) in the female sprinter category. Kirstenbosch went 2-for-9 on the year and both wins came in Grade III races. That also means that someone voted for her ahead of Goodnight Olive (Ghostzapper), won two Grade I's during the year, including the GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, and Echo Zulu (Gun Runner) who was 3-for-3 and based on some speed figures was the fastest horse to race during the year.

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