Highland Chief | Horse Racing Free Tips

Pletcher Sophs Work Towards Belmont Day Spots

A trio of 3-year-olds from the barn of Todd Pletcher took to the Belmont dirt training track Friday morning as they prepare for stakes engagements during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival.

Mo Donegal (Uncle Mo), who defeated GI Preakness S. hopeful Early Voting (Gun Runner) in the GII Wood Memorial S. Apr. 9 ahead of a closing fifth in the GI Kentucky Derby May 7, breezed a half-mile in the company of his GI Central Bank Ashland S.-winning stable companion Nest (Curlin) in :50.02. Owned by Donegal Racing and Repole Stable, Mo Donegal is pointing for the GI Belmont S. June 11, while Nest is under consideration for a start against the boys in the 'Test of the Champion.' Nest's sire was famously defeated by the Pletcher-trained Rags to Riches (A.P. Indy) in the 2007 Belmont.

“It was a good maintenance breeze,” said Pletcher's New York-based assistant Byron Hughes. “They both were moving well and galloped out well. They were on even terms throughout and we were happy with the breeze.”

'TDN Rising Star' Wit (Practical Joke) went five furlongs in the company of fellow 'Rising Star' Malathaat (Curlin) in 1:01.58 Friday morning. Wit most recently returned from a six-month break to take out the GII Bay Shore S. by a nose Apr. 9 and will remain at the seven-furlong distance for the GI Woody Stephens S. on Belmont S. day. Malathaat also made a victorious return to action in Keeneland's GIII Baird Doubledogdare S. Apr. 22, besting Friday's GII DuPont Distaff romper Super Quick (Super Saver), and faces a mouthwatering matchup with champion Letruska (Super Saver) in the GI Ogden Phipps S. the same afternoon.

“Both are good breeze horses and made a good matchup,” Hughes said. “They went head-and-head throughout in 1:01 and change and had a good, solid gallop out.”

Highland Chief On to Manhattan…

Highland Chief (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}), who caused a 19-1 upset in the May 14 GI Man o' War S., is likely to make his next appearance on the Belmont S. undercard in the GI Manhattan S.

“I think we'll point to the Manhattan if he's doing well,” trainer Graham Motion said. “The timing is right and I don't have a concern whatsoever about the mile and a quarter for him. I think he's pretty tactical and I think we're certainly going to keep him over here and not consider taking him over to England anytime soon. It had been mentioned to me before the race, but after we all got together, I think we'll keep him for an American campaign.

BC Champ Possible for Met…

Trainer Wayne Catalano has told the NYRA racing office that his GI Breeders' Cup Sprint hero Aloha West (Hard Spun) could make the trip to the Big Apple for the GI Hill 'n' Dale Metropolitan H. June 11. The Maryland-bred 5-year-old made his seasonal debut in the GI Churchill Downs S. May 7, finishing third behind Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) and Reinvestment Risk (Upstart).

“He went on the dead rail and got pushed a little early,” Catalano said. “It was a tough race. The only horse that went up the rail the last eighth of the mile was the Derby winner [Rich Strike]. From what I saw, everyone else was on the middle of the racetrack.”

The Met is also likely to attract undefeated 'TDN Rising Star' Flightline (Tapit) and GI Carter H. hero Speaker's Corner (Street Sense).

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Graham Motion Talks Importance of Taking Shots On Writers’ Room

In an era where trainers are increasingly hesitant to run their horses frequently and/or in races where they might be longshots, Graham Motion is a throwback. It often pays off for his perennially successful outfit, as it did on Saturday at Belmont, when his Highland Chief (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}), dismissed at 19-1 in a five-horse field, upset defending champion turf male Yibir (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) and MGISW Gufo (Declaration of War) in the GI Man O' War S. Tuesday, Motion joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland as the Green Group Guest of the Week to talk about why he's steadfast about taking shots and running his horses, how he feels about the current state of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act, the upcoming Royal Ascot trip for his undefeated Spendarella (Karakontie {Jpn}) and more.

“I think we are very cautious these days,” Motion said of modern trainers. “I think everyone's so worried about that [win] percentage. I think you can learn a lot from watching a guy like Wayne [Lukas], who's never been afraid to take a shot. I think we're just so caught up in being careful. It's so easy to ship across the country now. It's so easy to avoid races that you think are too tough. At the end of the day, that takes a little bit away from the sport, which is to see who has the fastest horse, and the challenge. I kind of live for that. That's what I find so exciting. That's why I love going to Ascot, because it's out of the normal and it's a challenge for these horses. That's what it's all about, right?”

An early supporter of the HISA reform law that has since hit hiccups in potential implementation, Motion was asked how optimistic or pessimistic he is that the program will take full effect and the new rules will fundamentally improve the sport.

“It's going to be difficult, there's no doubt about it,” he said. “I realize there are issues with cost and where the money is going to come from. What I don't understand and what frustrates me a little bit–I'll probably get chastised for saying this, but–we're running for these extraordinary purses. We're running for $100,000 with maidens. Couldn't we put some of that money aside toward the integrity of our sport? I don't understand it. Improve the backstretch, improve safety, improve the integrity of our sport and put some of this money toward HISA. It's going to be a difficult task. I was disappointed when USADA dropped out. I don't know much about the new arrangement. I'm surprised how little, quite frankly, we read about it. So, look, I'm optimistic it's going to happen. I hope everybody eventually gets on board because I think it'll be game changing, and it's going to take a while. There are going to be some hiccups along the way.”

Elsewhere on the show, which is also sponsored by Coolmore, the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association, XBTV, West Point Thoroughbreds and Legacy Bloodstock, the writers had a thorough discussion on the proposals to increase the spacing of Triple Crown races and previewed a Rich Strike-less Preakness. Click here to watch the show; click here for the audio-only version or find it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

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Gleneagles’s Highland Chief Upsets Yibir in Man o’ War

With heavily favored champion Yibir totally missing the start, Saturday's GI Man o' War S. at Belmont was thrown into a state of flux, and longest shot on the board Highland Chief took advantage. Away well himself and with no real pace on, Highland Chief shared early front-running duties with Abaan (Will Take Charge) past the wire for the first time while kept well off the fence by pilot Trevor McCarthy. Content to sit second on the first bend and down the backside through splits of :25.35, :51.84 and 1:17.60, Highland Chief turned the heat back up heading for home as last year's Jockey Club Derby Invitational and GI Breeders' Cup Turf hero Yibir and MGISW Gufo swept up to join the fray. Highland Chief poked a head in front after a mile in 1:42.04, and while it seemed like surely one of his more accomplished foes would come get him when they straightened, the bay kept finding and in fact pulled away slightly in the late stages.

“I wanted to get a good break, that was the most important thing,” said McCarthy, who was celebrating his first win at the highest level. “He broke well last time, but he just got annihilated at the break. Today, he was really handy the whole way for me. The pace was pretty slow, but the whole time he was just carrying me, carrying me, carrying me. At the 5/16 pole I let him go and started to make an early move. I just wanted to get away from the other guys and it sure paid off. He made up a ton of ground the first time he ran in America and got shut off really bad at the break, but he made a good rally.”

“It's a great feeling,” McCarthy said of winning his first Grade I. “To win it for [trainer] Graham [Motion], who has given me so much support in my career, it's really special. My father started riding for Graham and we got to be good friends with them and his family. I started at 15 and worked for Graham. As soon as I started to learn how to ride, I stayed at Fair Hill for three years. I would come in on the weekends and days off of school and ride out for him which was great. I learned so much from him and all his employees there at the time. To win it with so much history with him is great.”

Originally based with Paul Cole in England, Highland Chief was well thought of enough to contest the 2020 G1 Investec Derby, where he finished 10th before a pair of seconds going 1 1/2 miles at the Group level. He made just one start last year, checking in fifth in Epsom's G1 Coronation Cup June 4, and found 8 1/2 panels at Aqueduct too sharp when ninth while making up significant ground late in his Stateside debut Apr. 14.

“In fairness, Alex Cole, the manager for the owners, told me that if he runs back to his European form, he's very competitive with these horses,” said Motion. “He won a race at Ascot. That's not easy to do. Trevor had a strategy–he knew he couldn't leave him too much to do. He broke better today, which made a difference because he wasn't so held back at the start or too much ground to make up. Trevor gave him a great ride. I said to Trevor, 'I can't believe somebody broke slower than we did.”

Of potential future plans, Motion said, “We'd have to think about the [June 11 GI Resorts World] Manhattan, but it was mentioned to go to Europe after this race if he ran well. Originally, they talked about running in the Dubai World Cup and I knew he just wasn't ready for that. [The owners] think very highly of him.”

As for the beaten favorite, trainer Charlie Appleby said, “That's him. He did that here last year. That's his style. He did it [when second in the Mar. 26 G1] Sheema Classic as well. We intentionally did not want him to be as slow out, but his run style is to come off the pace… Unfortunately, we had rain here last night and rain again today and it's just on the slower side of where he likes to hear his feet rattling. For his acceleration, it just blunts it slightly. Take nothing away from the winner, he held decent form back in Europe in his 3-year-old career there and he had to be respected. We ran our race, but in an ideal world if you asked me what I'd like to have had, it would be no rain.”

Appleby said last year's champion turf horse would likely be back in the States for the Aug. 27 GI Sword Dancer S. at Saratoga.

Saturday, Belmont Park
MAN O' WAR S.-GI, $651,000, Belmont, 5-14, 4yo/up, 1 3/8mT, 2:17.04, fm.
1–HIGHLAND CHIEF (IRE), 118, h, 5, by Gleneagles (Ire)
1st Dam: Pink Symphony (GB) (GSW-Ire, MSP-Eng, $186,684), by Montjeu (Ire)
2nd Dam: Blue Symphony (GB), by Darshaan (GB)
3rd Dam: Blue Duster, by Danzig
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN, 1ST GRADE I
WIN. O/B-Mrs. Fitri Hay (IRE); T-H. Graham Motion; J-Trevor
McCarthy. $375,000. Lifetime Record: 12-3-2-2, $501,862.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk Nick Rating: B.
2–Gufo, 124, h, 5, Declaration of War–Floy, by Petionville.
O-Otter Bend Stables, LLC; B-John Little & Stephen Cainelli
(KY); T-Christophe Clement. $130,000.
3–Yibir (GB), 124, g, 4, Dubawi (Ire)–Rumh (Ger), by Monsun
(Ger). O/B-Godolphin (GB); T-Charles Appleby. $70,000.
Margins: 1, NK, 2 3/4. Odds: 19.20, 2.45, 0.55.
Also Ran: Easter (Fr), Abaan. Scratched: So High (GB). Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

Pedigree Notes:
Highland Chief hails from the first crop of MG1SW miler Gleneagles, who was a distant last in his lone U.S. start when trying the dirt in American Pharoah's GI Breeders' Cup Classic procession. He is one of 10 graded/group winners for the Coolmore Ireland resident.

Montjeu, meanwhile, has 37 Northern Hemisphere graded/group winners as a broodmare sire to go with 17 foaled south of the equator.

The winner's dam was a 400,000gns TATOCT yearling purchase in 2008 by Paul Cole on Hay's behalf, and she helped repay that investment with a score in the 1 1/2-mile G3 Irish Stallion Farms E.B.F. Give Thanks S. in 2011. A half to MGSW/MG1SP Fantasia (GB) (Sadler's Wells)–a Group 3-winning producer herself–and MGSW/MG1SP Western Hymn (GB) (High Chaparral {Ire}), Pink Symphony is a granddaughter of Europe's 1995 champion 2-year-old filly Blue Duster. She has a 2-year-old full-brother to Highland Chief and a yearling filly by Churchill (Ire).

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