J. Kirk and Judy Robison | Horse Racing Free Tips

Jackie’s Warrior Favored in Jerkens Memorial

J Kirk and Judy Robison's Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) puts his perfect three-for-three Saratoga record on the line when he faces five rivals in the GI H. Allen Jerkens Memorial S. at Saratoga Saturday. The bay colt won last year's GII Saratoga Special S. and GI Hopeful S. and returned to the upstate oval to annex the Aug. 1 GII Amsterdam S. last time out.

“He's done really well,” trainer Steve Asmussen said of Jackie's Warrior. “All three of his races at Saratoga were obviously very good. We're anxious to run him here again.”

A victory would make Jackie's Warrior the third horse in the last four years to capture both the Hopeful at two and the H. Allen Jerkens at three, joining Practical Joke (2018) and Mind Control (2019).

Jackie's Warrior will again match strides with Drain the Clock (Maclean's Music) in the Allen Jerkens. Drain the Clock outbattled Jackie's Warrior to win the June 5 GI Woody Stephens S. at Belmont before running a distant second in the Amsterdam.

“Obviously, last time he was well-beaten fair and square by Jackie's Warrior,” said trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. “We feel on his best day, he's just as good as others in the field. But we have a new challenge in Life Is Good. It should be quite a race, and hopefully he shows up and runs his race.”

'TDN Rising Star' Life is Good (Into Mischief) was considered a likely GI Kentucky Derby favorite before injury knocked him off the Triple Crown earlier this year. The bay colt is unbeaten in three starts having broken his maiden by a front-running 9 1/2 lengths going 6 1/2 furlongs at Del Mar last November and adding the Jan. 2 GIII Sham S. and Mar. 6 GII San Felipe S. He makes his first start for Todd Pletcher and his first start in nearly six months Saturday.

“It's a tall order going into a seven-furlong Grade I off a layoff,” Pletcher said. “The horse has trained extremely well, has been impressive in all his breezes and we like what we've been seeing from him.”

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Ward Sends Overbore, Kaufymaker In Skidmore Friday At Saratoga

After saddling Golden Pal to a superb victory in last year's $120,000 Skidmore, trainer Wesley Ward will vie for more prosperity in the 5 ½-furlong Mellon turf sprint for 2-year-olds, sending out stakes-winner Overbore and impressive maiden winner Kaufymaker in the ninth edition of the race on Friday at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Owned by Peter Leidel, Overbore arrives off a two-month layoff after breaking his maiden in the Tremont on June 4 at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. He tracked a swift pace from third to capture the 5 ½ furlong event over muddy and sealed going by three-quarters of a length.

The favorite in all three of his starts, Overbore, a dark bay or brown son of Speightstown, will return to turf two starts after finishing second, beaten a nose to Artos in a maiden race over the Churchill Downs turf on May 21.

“We gave him a little break and he's back to doing well,” Ward said. “I wanted to give him a little breather after he fired three races like he did. He's been doing well at Keeneland. We shipped him up to Saratoga and he's settled right in nicely.”

As the lone stakes winner in the Skidmore field, Overbore boasts $108,500 in earnings.

Purchased for $275,000 from the 2020 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, Overbore is the first progeny out of the stakes-winning and multiple graded-stakes placed Saffir mare Galina Point.

Jockey Joel Rosario retains the mount from post 9.

Mr. Gregory Kauffman's Kaufymaker returns stateside following an endeavor across the pond in the Group 2 Coventry on June 15 at Royal Ascot, where she was eighth beaten four lengths.

The chestnut Jimmy Creed filly was outstanding on debut, breaking her maiden by 6 ¼ lengths over a good main track in April at Keeneland Race Course in Lexinton, Ky.

Kaufymaker resumed training at Keeneland before shipping to Saratoga, where she recorded a half-mile work in :48.11 Sunday over the Oklahoma turf course under Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez.

“She's doing very well. Ascot was disappointing because I was pretty confident going into that race,” Ward said. “She was really working tremendously on the grass. She had a real nice work this morning over the Oklahoma turf with Johnny V up. She's doing really well and we're looking for a big effort with her.”

Velazquez will return to the irons from post 3.

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Leading trainer Mike Maker sends a formidable contender in Kendall Hansen's Pure Panic, who scored on debut last month in a 5 ½-furlong maiden event over the turf at Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky. The gray or roan son of Summer Front will look to give Maker his fourth stakes triumph of the meet.

Jockey Tyler Gaffalione will ride from post 8.

Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen will saddle J. Kirk and Judy Robison's Bonus Appreciation after a second-out maiden victory in an off-the-turf event on July 11 at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J.

Jockey Ricardo Santana, Jr. picks up the mount from post 6.

Completing the field are Barone Cesco [post 1, Eric Cancel], Catch the Smoke [post 5, Jose Ortiz], and Baytown Warrior [post 10, Brandon Whitacre].

Averly Jane [post 2, Tyler Gaffalione], Backnthewoods [post 4, Jose Ortiz], and Golden Bell [post 7, John Velazquez] have been entered for main track only.

The Skidmore is carded as Race 9 on Friday's 10-race program at Saratoga Race Course. First post is 1:05 p.m. Saratoga Live will present daily television coverage of the summer meet on FOX Sports. For the complete Saratoga Live broadcast schedule, and additional programming information, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule.

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Jackie’s Warrior Dominant In Amsterdam, Brings Asmussen Closer To Record

After a thunderous deluge delayed the Grade 2 Amsterdam for thirty minutes, soaking the sealed Saratoga surface, Jackie's Warrior showed that the delay and the track were no trouble at all for the son of Maclean's Music. At Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., the 3-year-old's multi-length victory brought Steve Asmussen another win closer to passing Dale Baird and becoming racing's winningest trainer.

A troubled break in the Grade 1 Woody Stephens last time out compromised Jackie's Warrior's chances at the victory on the Belmont Stakes undercard, with Drain the Clock taking that G1 stakes race. The two hooked up again early in the G2 Amsterdam, dueling for the first couple of furlongs out of the gate. As the field of six entered the turn, Jackie's Warrior accelerated, leaving Drain the Clock in his wake, stretching his lead out to five lengths before they hit the stretch.

Jackie's Warrior lengthened his lead in the stretch, easily pulling away from the rest of the field with jockey Joel Rosario chilly in the saddle. Behind him, Crowded Trade looked poised to make a move on the rail, Drain the Clock in the center of the track trying as well, but neither had enough to catch up to the Asmussen trainee. Rosario eased his colt in the last part of the stretch, the margin of victory 7 1/4 lengths. The final time for the 6 1/2-furlong G2 Amsterdam was 1:15.46. Drain the Clock, Crowded Trade, Flash of Mischief, Mister Luigi, and River Dog rounded out the order of finish.

Jackie's Warrior paid $3.00, $2.20, and $2.10. Drain the Clock paid $2.90 and $2.50. Crowded Trade paid $3.00 to show.

Find this race's chart here.

Bred in Kentucky by J & J Stables, Jackie's Warrior is by Maclean's Music out of Unicorn Girl, by A. P. Five Hundred. Consigned by Taylor Made Sales, the 3-year-old colt sold for $95,000 to owner J. Kirk Robison at the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. The G2 Amsterdam brings Jackie's Warrior to a record of 2-1-1 in four starts in 2021, for a lifetime record of six wins in nine starts with career earnings of $1,058,964.

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Good With People Wins Golden State Juvenile At Del Mar

Jockey Ricardo (“Ricky”) Gonzalez and trainer Peter Miller did the déjà vu all over again thing Saturday at Del Mar, this time winning the $150,000 Golden State Juvenile with J. Kirk and Judy Robison's Good With People. On Friday, they won the $150,000 Golden State Juvenile Fillies with September Secret.

Good With People, a colt by the Curlin sire Curlin to Mischief, made the lead in Saturday's seven-panel sprint soon after the break, then easily made every pole his. He was a geared-down three-quarter length winner, covering the distance in 1:26.10. The homebred picked up a winner's share of $85,500 for his connections.

Finishing second in the Cal-bred tilt was Winner, Winner and Winner's Positivity and third was West Point Thoroughbred's Ascot Storm.

Good With People paid $6.20, $3.60 and $2.80 across the board. Positivity returned $4.60 and $3.20, while Ascot Storm paid $3.00 to show.

Good With People now has won three of five starts, including an earlier stakes score at Del Mar on September 4 in the I'm Smokin Stakes.

Three jockeys won two races on the eight-race Saturday program that was offered at Del Mar around the nine Breeders' Cup races televised during the day from Keeneland in Lexington, KY. Abel Cedillo, the 2019 fall riding champ, had a pair to move his meet-leading total to eight after four days of racing. Drayden Van Dyke, the 2018 fall riding kingpin, won his first two races of the meet, and Tyler Baze's pair of victories moved him into a second-place tie with Mike Smith with four wins.

Racing resumes at Del Mar Sunday with an eight-race program and a 12:30 p.m. first post.

RICARDO (“RICKY”) GONZALEZ (Good With People, winner) – “I like this, winning stakes. (He had won the Golden State Juvenile Fillies Friday, his first stakes win at Del Mar). This time Peter (trainer Miller, also the trainer of GS Juvenile Fillies winner September Secret) told me: 'Go to the front and don't look back.' I did it and it worked out great.”

PETER MILLER (Good With People, winner) – Trainer Miller was in Kentucky saddling Breeders' Cup runners and could not be reached by phone.

FRACTIONS: :22.56 :46.24 1:12.30 1:26.10

The stakes win was the first in the GS Juvenile for rider Gonzalez, but his second of the meet and second at Del Mar.

The stakes win was the first in the GS Juvenile for trainer Miller, but his second of the meet. He now has 37 stakes wins at Del Mar.

The winning owners are J. Kirk and Judy Robison of El Paso, TX.

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