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Weekend Lineup: 2021 Preps For Kentucky Derby, Oaks Get Under Way

One year ago, an Into Mischief colt with just a maiden victory to his credit began his march toward glory in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby and, eventually, the G1 Breeders' Cup Classic and a likely Horse of the Year title. The colt, Authentic, scored by 7 3/4 lengths in the G3 Sham Stakes as the 6-5 favorite for trainer Bob Baffert.

This year, another son of the Spendthrift Farm stallion trained by Baffert will make his sophomore debut in Saturday's Sham as an even heavier favorite. Life Is Good, who scored in his debut on Nov. 22 at Del Mar by 9 1/2 lengths, was made the 2-5 favorite as he faces four others (including a stablemate) in the one-mile Sham, a race that will be worth 10-4-2-1 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby to the top four finishers.

Santa Anita will also be offering a qualifying points race for the Kentucky Oaks in Sunday's G2 Santa Ynez Stakes for newly turned 3-year-old fillies. Baffert holds the aces there, with four of the seven runners entered from his stable.

Here's a brief look at the weekend's graded stakes (all times Eastern):

Friday, Jan. 1

6:32 p.m. – $200,000 Joe Hernandez Stakes at Santa Anita

The new 6 1/2-furlong turf chute gets used in this G2 sprint for older runners and this race looks wide open with trainer Peter Miller and Doug O'Neill each having a formidable duo. Miller starts defending Hernandez winner Texas Wedge (when the race was at 5 1/2 furllongs) and recent Churchill Downs $62,500 claim Hembree, a turf veteran with seven lifetime wins from 39 starts. O'Neill has Blitzkrieg, winner of the G3 American at a mile, and the always dangerous Wildman Jack. Don't overlook John Sadler-trained Chaos Theory, who usually comes flying late.

https://www.equibase.com/static/entry/SA010121USA7-EQB.html

Saturday, Jan. 2

6:35 p.m. – $200,000 San Gabriel Stakes at Santa Anita

Count Again showed a strong stretch kick winning the G2 Seabiscuit Handicap at Del Mar Nov. 29 in his Southern California debut for Phil D'Amato after a solid season north of the border for trainer Gail Cox at Woodbine, where he won the G2 Singspiel. Longshot players might like Cleopatra's Strike, a close second in this race in both 2019 and 2020 when trained by D'Amato. The 8-year-old Smart Strike gelding was claimed for $62,500 last out by trainer Bob Hess Jr., who gives the mount to the comebacking Hall of Fame rider Kent Desormeaux.

https://www.equibase.com/static/entry/SA010221USA7-EQB.html

7:05 p.m. – $100,000 Sham Stakes at Santa Anita

The Into Mischief colt Life Is Good earned a 91 Beyer Speed Figure in his debut at Del Mar going 6 1/2 furlongs, putting him head and shoulders in that category above his four rivals in here. But this race goes around two turns, and until a horse tries stretching out, you never know whether they can get the added distance.John Shirreffs-trained Parnelli does have two-turn experience and appears to have the bet upset chance.

https://www.equibase.com/static/entry/SA010221USA8-EQB.html

Sunday, Jan. 3

7:00 p.m. – $200,000 Santa Ynez Stakes at Santa Anita

One of four Baffert entries, Kalypso was overtaken in deep stretch by stablemate Varda last out in the G1 Starlet at Los Alamitos after inheriting the lead when a third Baffert runner, heavy favorite Princess Noor, was suddenly pulled up. Kalypso set the pace that day and drops back to seven furlongs here, a distance the Brody's Cause filly might prefer. Kentucky Oaks points (10-4-2-1) to the top four finishers.

https://www.equibase.com/static/entry/SA010321USA8-EQB.html

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Lead Affects Duration Of Hoof-To-Ground Contact On Turns

Research has show that sharp turns increase the risk of ligament-related limb injuries in racehorses and that catastrophic injuries are more likely to occur on a turn than on a track straightaway.

In natural settings, how an animal negotiates curves while moving is important to survival, especially during interactions with a predator where speed alone may not ensure escape. Horses routinely travel in curves and bends while at liberty, racing and in other disciplines. The increased force on front limbs while galloping on a turn is suspected to be associated with increased injury risk.

Drs. Rebecca Parkes, Thilo Pfau, Renate Weller and Thomas Witte created an experiment using seven Thoroughbreds galloping on large radius curves. Each horse was equipped with an inertial measurement unit with GPS on their sacrum, as well as with two hoof-mounted accelerometers and retro-reflective markers on their front legs.

Each horse galloped counterclockwise around the track two to four times; they were filmed at 120 frames per second by 10 cameras. The scientists determined speed and curve from the GPS information and estimated the centripetal acceleration. The accelerometers provided information on stride, swing durations, stance and the percent of the total stride that the hoof is on the ground. The front-leg markers tracked limb angles.

For horses that galloped on the correct lead, the left front leg was on the ground longer on both the straightaway and the curve; for horses that galloped on the right lead, there was no difference in length of time the hoof was on the ground on the straightaway or the curve.

The researchers conclude that the forces at play on a horse's leg when it runs on a curve are complex and that more research is needed. They note that the study doesn't take into account the hind limbs of galloping horses, which mainly propel the horse forward, while the forelimbs apply vertical impulse to the horse's body. They suggest that additional work be done regarding the role of the hind legs, horizontal body bend and the effects of torque on limbs when a horse is running on a curve.

Read the study here.

TCA Holding Series of Fundraising Auctions

Thoroughbred Charities of America (TCA) will hold a variety of fundraising auctions over the first two weeks of the new year, featuring approximately 200 stallion seasons from over 10 states as well as a silent auction of non-season items.

The TCA’s Online Season Auction features over 150 seasons and runs from Wednesday, Jan. 6 at 9 a.m. through Friday, Jan. 8 at 4:30 p.m. EST. Featured in the online auction are seasons to such sires as Candy Ride (Arg), English Channel, Ghostzapper, Gun Runner, Liam’s Map, More Than Ready, Outwork, Paynter, Speightstown, Tapiture, Union Rags and Violence.

A Select Season Auction will take place Tuesday, Jan. 12, following the conclusion of selling on day two of Book 1 of the Keeneland January Sale. Offered in this auction are seasons to Blame, Constitution, Curlin, Laoban, Nyquist (with a 2022 breed back) and Quality Road. For information on how to bid on select seasons, contact Erin Crady (ecrady@tca.org).

A silent auction of non-season items gets underway Jan. 6 at 9 a.m. EST and continues through Tuesday, Jan. 12. Items in the silent auction include equine air transportation with Tex Sutton, a Fasig-Tipton auction and sales package, a halter worn by dual G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner Enable (GB) and signed by her trainer John Gosden and jockey Frankie Dettori; and a halter worn by Tapit, among others.

The post TCA Holding Series of Fundraising Auctions appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Authentic Owners, Irad Ortiz Jr., Steve Asmussen Top National Earnings Standings

Spendthrift Farm LLC, MyRaceHorse Stable, Madaket Stables LLC and Starlight Racing – the ownership group that campaigned Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (Gr. 1) and Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (Gr. 1) winner Authentic – finished the year as the leading owner by earnings, according to final statistics released today by Equibase Company LLC, the Thoroughbred industry's official database for racing information. Irad Ortiz Jr. repeated as the top earner for jockeys and Steve Asmussen was the top money-earning trainer after finishing second the two previous years.

The year-end compilations are distributed annually by Equibase and include results from Thoroughbred racing in North America from January 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020. Expanded North American racing leaders' lists that include all trainers, jockeys, owners, and horses are available within the statistical section at equibase.com. These lists include the ability to look at leaders in a variety of categories, including age, sex, surface, graded races, foaling year for horses, and the inclusion of designated foreign races.

Authentic, who won five of his seven races, led all Thoroughbreds in North American earnings with $7,170,000. In addition to his wins in the Derby and Classic, Authentic won the TVG.com Haskell Stakes (Gr. 1), the San Felipe Stakes (Gr. 2), and Sham Stakes (Gr. 3) and finished second in the Preakness Stakes (Gr. 1) and RUNHAPPY Santa Anita Derby (Gr. 1).

Completing the list of top 10 horses by North American earnings were Tiz the Law with $2,388,300, Tarnawa (IRE) with $2,080,000, Improbable with $1,810,000, Swiss Skydiver with $1,791,820, Mucho Gusto with $1,674,000, Monomoy Girl with $1,472,068, Whitmore with $1,426,500, Essential Quality with $1,335,144, and Vequist with $1,235,500.

Some of the leading horses also were the top earners from their respective foal crops. The leading earners by foaling year from the past five years were Essential Quality (by Tapit, 2018 foal crop), Authentic (by Into Mischief, 2017), Improbable (by City Zip, 2016), Vino Rosso (by Curlin, 2015), and Bricks and Mortar (by Giant's Causeway, 2014).

The partnership of Spendthrift Farm LLC, MyRaceHorse Stable, Madaket Stables LLC and Starlight Racing, which campaigned Authentic for the colt's final four races, earned $6,790,000 in North America in 2020 to lead all owners. Completing the list of top 10 owners by North American earnings in 2020 were Godolphin LLC, $5,703,770 (80 wins, 361 starts); Klaravich Stables, Inc., $5,323,398 (70/272); Gary Barber, $4,010,838 (59/377); Three Diamonds Farm, $3,869,111 (51/282); Calumet Farm, $3,657,128 (59/531); Juddmonte Farms, Inc., $3,387,810 (30/122); End Zone Athletics, $2,867,917 (163/801); Sackatoga Stable, $2,510,400 (6/18); and Lothenbach Stables, Inc. (Bob Lothenbach), $2,469,686 (54/388).

Asmussen, who also led all trainers in earnings in 2008 and 2009, sent out the winners of 422 races from 630 starters with 2,278 starts for earnings of $20,204,064 in 2020. Brad H. Cox finished second with his horses having won 216 races from 328 starters with 903 starts for earnings of $18,983,832.

Completing the list of top 10 trainers by North American earnings in 2020 were Bob Baffert, $18,923,887 (94 wins / 323 starts / 118 starters); Chad C. Brown, $16,596,956 (174/746/288); Michael J. Maker, $14,215,671 (270/1,428/431); Mark E. Casse, $11,393,960 (183/1,185/351); Todd Pletcher, $11,200,790 (190/ 870/ 310);William I. Mott, $9,467,346 (92/589/184); Christophe Clement, $6,227,813 (101/499/175); and Peter Miller, $6,134,655 (106/500/148).

Ortiz Jr., who last year set a single season earnings record, reached the winner's circle 300 times from 1,266 mounts in 2020 and earned $21,050,726. Finishing second was Joel Rosario with 194 wins from 1,052 mounts and earnings of $18,235,197.

Rounding out the list of top 10 jockeys by North American earnings in 2020 were Luis Saez, $16,511,372 (268 wins / 1,398 starts); Tyler Gaffalione, $15,612,262 (271/1,408); John R. Velazquez, $15,420,515 (101/662);Florent Geroux, $14,766,563 (160/861); Jose L. Ortiz, $13,811,296 (190/1,027); Ricardo Santana Jr., $12,793,803 (176/1,057); Javier Castellano, $12,461,620 (108/640); and Manuel Franco, $12,278,857 (140/1,011).

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