‘She Has A Bright Future’: Soft Whisper Makes A Lot Of Noise In UAE 1,000 Guineas

The first classic of the UAE season took place in the UAE 1000 Guineas (Listed) this Thursday at Meydan, held over one mile on the dirt. Godolphin's Saeed bin Suroor-trained Soft Whisper vied for favoritism with Al Rashid Stables' Doug Watson-trained Mnasek before the race.

What set up as a great matchup never manifested as Soft Whisper screamed home a dominant seven-length winner under stalk-and-pounce Frankie Dettori tactics, while Mnasek missed the break before closing to a distant second under Dane O'Neill. Watson-trained Super Chianti was another 2 1/4 lengths back in third under Pat Dobbs after racing greenly during the final three furlongs.

The final time was 1:38.67 and the winner landed her second race of the season, following a one-sided tally in the UAE 1000 Guineas Trial three weeks ago. By Dubawi out of the Sea the Stars mare Placidia, the homebred gave Dettori his fourth win in the race this century and Bin Suroor his 12th. Bigger races may be on the horizon for the now four-time winner from six starts.

“She missed the kick last time, but this time she jumped really good into position and was always in control,” Dettori said. “When I kicked, she went–simply as that. I didn't have to do too much. She has a bright future. Saeed mentioned everything–Saudi (Derby), UAE Oaks, UAE Derby–who knows. When you win so impressively, you get excited and you think of big plans. I was just saying to Saeed that the last time I won a race this easily was probably Dubai Millennium in 2000. It took me 21 years to find one just as easy.

“That was good. We have big hopes for her. Maybe she didn't beat the best in the world, but the way she did it, you have to be impressed. We'll take one step at a time. Nothing has tested her today, so it would be wrong for me to say how good she is because I need some better competition, but at the moment everything is in the right place.”

“We got beat by a good horse on the night, there's no doubt about that,” O'Neill added about the runner-up. “We got a bit of kickback early on and they got a couple lengths on me on the turn, but when she saw daylight, she stayed on well. She's a timid little filly and likes a little bit of space and out of the kickback. She's a nice filly and she'll probably stay farther next time.”

Regarding Super Chianti, Dobbs added: “She was greener tonight than she was the first night. She travelled well, but when I went for her, she just stuck her head in the air and never went forward for me.”

The $1.5 million Saudi Derby is set for a similar one-turn, one-mile trip at King Abdulaziz Racecourse on Feb. 20 in Riyadh, while the UAE Oaks (G3) over 1 3/16 miles on Feb. 18. The UAE Derby is slated for Dubai World Cup day, March 27.

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Friday’s Stronach 5 Features Action From Three Racetracks

The Stronach 5, which continues to offer a strong return on investment and an industry-low 12-percent takeout, will feature races Friday from Laurel Park, Gulfstream Park and Golden Gate Fields.

The action begins at 3:55 ET with Laurel's eighth race, a very competitive optional allowance claiming event at a mile for 3-year-old fillies.

The favorite is likely to be Team Gaudet's Fraudulent Charge, a daughter of Will Take Charge who stepped up off a debut victory in November to finish second by a nose in the $100,000 Gin Talking Stakes behind multiple stakes winner Street Lute. Malibu Beauty cuts back a bit in distance for trainer Gary Capuano after setting the pace and finishing fourth Dec. 26 in the $100,000 Anne Arundel. The 11-horse field also includes Chloe Rose, a daughter of Twirling Candy from the stable of Brittany Russell, who won in her second start by 2 ¼ lengths at a mile.

The second and third legs of the Stronach 5 will be hosted by Gulfstream. The second leg, Gulfstream's eighth race, features $6,250 claimers going a mile. Favored Zonic drops in company, gets the rail and Irad Ortiz Jr. in the saddle. The third leg, Gulfstream's ninth race, is a $75,000 allowance optional claimer at five furlongs on the turf for 3-year-old fillies. The wide-open seven-horse field has a tepid 3-1 choice in Magical Soul from the barn of John Kimmel. Six of the seven horses are 6-1 or under.

The third race at Golden Gate Fields will serve as the fourth leg in the Stronach 5. The 5 ½ furlong maiden event for 3-year-old fillies has a 2-1 favorite in The Gee Factor, who drops out of maiden special weight company for trainer Doug O'Neill. Trainer Jonathan Wong will saddle first-time starter Old West.

The Stronach 5 wraps up with Gulfstream's 10th race, a five furlong claiming event for fillies and mares which have never won three races. It's a wide-open race with Wedontbelieveher the 7-2 morning-line favorite with Irad Ortiz Jr. in the saddle for Luis Ramirez. Fawkes Racing Inc.'s Ms Big Spring (9-2) draws the rail and jockey Tyler Gaffalione. Arindel's Lailoni enters off a 15-month layoff for trainer Gilberto Zerpa. Jose Ortiz is named.

Friday's races and sequence

· Leg One – Laurel Park 8th Race: (11 entries, 1 mile) 3:55 ET, 12:55 PT

· Leg Two – Gulfstream Park 8th Race: (8 entries, 1 mile) 4:11 ET, 1:11 PT

· Leg Three –Gulfstream Park 9th Race: (7 entries, 5 furlongs turf) 4:42 ET, 1:42 PT

· Leg Four –Golden Gate Fields 3rd Race: (8 entries, 5 ½ furlongs) 4:49 ET, 1:49 PT

· Leg Five –Gulfstream Park 10th Race: (10 entries, 6 furlongs) 5:13 ET, 2:13 PT

Fans can watch and wager on the action at 1/ST.COM/BET as well as stream all the action in English and Spanish at LaurelPark.com, SantaAnita.com, GulfstreamPark.com, and GoldenGateFields.com.

The Stronach 5 In the Money podcast, hosted by Jonathan Kinchen and Peter Thomas Fornatale, will be posted by 2 p.m. Thursday at InTheMoneyPodcast.com and will be available on iTunes and other major podcast distributors

The minimum wager on the multi-race, multi-track Stronach 5 is $1. If there are no tickets with five winners, the entire pool will be carried over to the next Friday.

If a change in racing surface is made after the wagering closes, each selection on any ticket will be considered a winning selection. If a betting interest is scratched, that selection will be substituted with the favorite in the win pool when wagering closes.

The Maryland Jockey Club serves as host of the Stronach 5.

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Grade 3 Winner Kingly Retired To Stand In Chile

Kingly, a Grade 3 winner and sibling to several fellow graded stakes winners, has been retired from racing, and he will enter stud at Haras Mocito Guapo in Chile, the South American publication Turf Diario reports.

The 5-year-old son of Tapit finished his career with three wins in 17 starts, earning $289,165. He was primarily owned by Clearview Stables, which rotated through a handful of partners throughout his time at the races.

Kingly started his on-track career in the barn of trainer Bob Baffert, winning on debut as a juvenile at Del Mar. He became a regular at Golden Gate Fields during the first part of his 3-year-old season, with a win in the listed California Derby, a second in the listed El Camino Real Derby, and a third in non-grade Alcatraz Stakes. The colt moved up to graded stakes competition when he returned to Southern California for the second half of his sophomore campaign, highlighted by a win in the Grade 3 La Jolla Handicap and a third-place effort in the G3 Los Alamitos Derby.

Kingly continued to compete in graded stakes races over the turf in southern California until late 2020, when he was moved to the barn of Mark Casse and raced at Woodbine and Turfway Park before his retirement.

Bred in Kentucky by Clearsky Farms, Kingly is out of the multiple Grade 2-winning Dixie Union mare Justwhistledixie. He is a full-brother to Grade 2 winner Mohaymen and Grade 3 winner Enforceable, and he's a half-brother to Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner New Year's Day. Grade 1 winner Got Stormy is in his extended family, along with Grade 2 winners Penny's Reshoot, Smooth Air, and Overdriven.

Kingly joins a stallion roster at Haras Mocito Guapo that includes State of Play, a Grade 2-winning son of War Front, and Grand Daddy, a son of Scat Daddy who won a stakes race at Turfway.

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Kentucky State Senator Announces Plans To File Legislation In Support Of Historical Horse Racing

Kentucky State Senator John Schickel (R) announced Thursday that he plans to file a bill supporting Historical Horse Racing during next week's legislative session, which resumes on Feb. 2, reports wtvq.com. Schickel's district includes Northern Kentucky racetrack Turfway Park, owned by Churchill Downs, Inc.

“Next week, I will file legislation to keep historical horse racing operational in Kentucky,” Schickel said in a statement. “The bill, which I am pleased to say will be co-sponsored by Senate President Robert Stivers (R), will address the recent Kentucky Supreme Court decision on pari-mutuel wagering and ensure that historical horse racing facilities are able to continue operating, while employing Kentuckians, generating state tax revenue and strengthening our signature equine industry.

“This effort is about preserving a system of wagering we've known for live racing for decades and historical horse racing for the last ten years. This is about maintaining the status quo. Our immediate action as legislators is critical to protecting current and future jobs and economic development across the Commonwealth.”

The Kentucky Supreme Court issued a brief statement last Thursday in which it declined to reconsider its unanimous decision on historical horse racing machines issued on Sept. 24, 2020. In response, both Keeneland and Red Mile temporarily shut down historical racing operations over the weekend.

The Kentucky Equine Education Project has plans to host a live panel on Historical Horse Racing at Keeneland Racecourse on Feb. 1.

Read more at wtvq.com.

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