john sadler | Horse Racing Free Tips

Out Of The Weeds: Rock Your World Wins Santa Anita Derby In Main Track Debut

Although he was two for two on grass, Rock Your World had one big question to answer on Saturday at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.: Would he run as well on dirt? Question answered, as he dominated nine rivals en route to a rousing 4 ¼-length win in the 84th running of the Grade 1, $750,000 Runhappy Santa Anita Derby. Ridden by Umberto Rispoli and trained by John Sadler, the 3-year-old colt by Candy Ride, who was bred by Hall of Fame trainer Ron McAnally and his wife Debbie, got a mile and one eighth in 1:49.17.

With longshot Parnelli and favored Medina Spirit gunning for the early lead as expected, Rispoli appeared to take his measure of the competition heading into the clubhouse turn, allowing his mount to get into stride, which he did, taking command into the turn and from there, dictating terms throughout.

With a three-quarter-length advantage on both Parnelli and Medina Spirit at the half mile pole, Rock Your World got stronger as the race progressed, chugging through splits of :22.42, :46.11, 1:10.64 and 1:36.27. Although both Parnelli and Medina Spirit were “all-in” a quarter mile out, the Derby was essentially over as none of the others could make up any ground through the lane.

“We have been laying in the weeds,” said Sadler, who bagged his second Runhappy Santa Anita Derby. “I thought it would be good to start this horse off on the turf, much like Omaha Beach, and develop. The plan was to run him a couple of times on the turf and now it was time to get the points. We gotta get the points to get to Kentucky.

“…The post (position) dictated our strategy. I saw Umberto in the paddock this morning at 8 a.m. and I told him 'Go big or go home.' We had to get out of there with the scratch inside (of number one Roman Centurian) of us. It worked out great and I'm very excited.”

A handy winner of the ungraded Pasadena Stakes going a mile on turf Feb. 27, Rock Your World was off at 5-1 and paid $12.40, $4.60 and $3.40.

Owned by Hronis Racing, LLC or Talla Racing, LLC, Rock Your World is out of the McAnally's Empire Maker mare Charm the Maker. With the winner's share of $450,000, Rock Your World increased his earnings to $546,600 and is now unbeaten in three starts.

Favored at 4-5, Medina Spirit appeared to have a perfect trip while second-best, finishing 2 ¼ lengths in front of Medina Spirit. Ridden by John Velazquez, Medina Spirit paid $2.80 and $2.20.

“The horse ran well, but the winner took the lead on a fast track and kept running,” said Velazquez. “My horse kept coming and kept coming but couldn't catch up. He did have some left in the tank at the end and he kept coming, but the other horse got away pretty well and opened up again. It was too hard to catch up.”

Ridden by Flavien Prat, Dream Shake was forwardly placed throughout, but never threatened for the win. Off at 9-2, he paid $2.80 to show.

“We had a good trip and it was a bit, you know, drawing gate side was not the best spot but the horse was travelling well and the race went well,” said Prat.

With 170 Kentucky Derby qualifying points at stake, Rock Your World will receive 100, with 40, 20 and 10 points awarded to the second, third and fourth place finishers.

Updated Kentucky Derby leaderboard.

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Rock Your World Coast-To-Coast in Runhappy Santa Anita Derby

Hronis Racing and Talla Racing's Rock Your World (Candy Ride {Arg}) threw his hat in the ring for the GI Kentucky Derby with a front-running upset in his first try on dirt in Saturday's GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby.

A debut winner sprinting on the grass at Santa Anita on New Year's Day, the $650,000 KEESEP purchase scored a decisive victory in the one-mile Pasadena S. over the local lawn Feb. 27. He prepped for this with a best-of-82 five-furlongs in :59 1/5 over the Arcadia main track Mar. 28.

Given a 5-1 chance in this step up to the big leagues, Rock Your World showed good early foot, pushing his way up between foes to seize the early advantage. The dark bay was hard-pressed by 45-1 shot Parnelli (Quality Road) with 4-5 favorite Medina Spirit (Protonico) perched on that one's outside in third through opening splits of :22.42 and :46.11. Umberto Rispoli let Rock Your World out a notch at the three-eighths pole and he readily responded, shaking free of his foes as he entered the bend. A determined Medina Spirit tried his best to reel in the pacesetter in the lane, but Rock Your World had plenty left in the tank and effortlessly rolled clear of the chalk to win for fun by 4 1/4 lengths. 'TDN Rising Star' Dream Shake (Twirling Candy) completed the trifecta.

It was the second Santa Anita Derby victory for trainer John Sadler. Coincidentally, his first also came with a son of Candy Ride, when winning the 2010 edition with Sidney's Candy.

“We have been laying in the weeds,” said Sadler, who also won Saturday's GIII Commonwealth S. at Keeneland with Flagstaff (Speightstown). “I thought it would be good to start this horse off on the turf, much like Omaha Beach (War Front), and develop. The plan was to run him a couple of times on the turf and now it was time to get the points. We gotta get the points to get to Kentucky.”

He continued, “The post [position] dictated our strategy. I saw Umberto in the paddock this morning at 8 a.m. and I told him 'Go big or go home.' We had to get out of there with the scratch inside of us. It worked out great and I'm very excited.”

Sadler and the Hronis family have campaigned the likes of champions Accelerate (Lookin At Lucky) and Stellar Wind (Curlin), as well as Grade I winners Combatant (Scat Daddy), Higher Power (Medaglia d'Oro), Gift Box (Twirling Candy), Cistron (The Factor), Hard Aces (Hard Spun), Iotapa (Afleet Alex) and Lady of Shamrock (Scat Daddy).

“Things came together and thank God, John Sadler has done a great job, Juan Leva and Alex Bosano, everybody on the backside they made all this happen,” said Kosta Hronis. “They did a great job with the horse. We told Umberto to be aggressive, but if somebody was going to go let them go. But I think he just felt comfortable, it was just kind of the thing you had to come out and compete right off the bat and he did. He rode a great race, think he knew he had the horse to do it. We get to go to the Kentucky Derby, that's going to be a fun day. We're going to try to enjoy this for today. He's only had three starts, making his fourth start in his career in the Kentucky Derby, I guess we really have nothing to lose. Just go in there and enjoy it.”

Pedigree Notes:

Rock Your World is the 17th Grade I winner and 50th graded winner for the timeless Candy Ride. The Lane's End stallion is responsible for 98 black-type winners in total and also earned another graded winner as a broodmare sire earlier in the day courtesy of GIII Gazelle S. heroine Search Results (Flatter).

Juddmonte homebred Empire Maker, who died last January, continues to burnish his legacy as a sire and broodmare sire. Rock Your World is bred on the same cross as GI Frizette S. and GI Test S. heroine Separationofpowers (Candy Ride {Arg}) and GIII Hanshin Cup winner Crewman (Candy Ride {Arg}). Already one of 55 black-type winners out of a daughter of the 2003 GI Belmont S. victor, the winner is his 26th at the graded level and fifth Grade I winner as a broodmare sire.

Saturday, Santa Anita
RUNHAPPY SANTA ANITA DERBY-GI, $752,000, Santa Anita, 4-3, 3yo, 1 1/8m, 1:49.17, ft.
1–ROCK YOUR WORLD, 124, c, 3, by Candy Ride (Arg)
                1st Dam: Charm the Maker (MSW & MGISP, $340,290),
                                by Empire Maker
                2nd Dam: Charm the Giant (Ire), by Giant's Causeway
                3rd Dam: Olympic Charmer, by Olympio
1ST GRADED STAKES WIN, 1ST GRADE I WIN. ($650,000 Ylg
'19 KEESEP). O-Hronis Racing LLC & Talla Racing LLC; B-Ron
& Deborah McAnally (KY); T-John W. Sadler; J-Umberto Rispoli.
$450,000. Lifetime Record: 3-3-0-0, $546,600. *Full to She's
Our Charm, GSP, $144,598. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple
Plus* Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Medina Spirit, 124, c, 3, Protonico–Mongolian Changa, by
Brilliant Speed. ($1,000 Ylg '19 OBSWIN; $35,000 2yo '20
OBSOPN). O-Zedan Racing Stables Inc; B-Gail Rice (FL); T-Bob
Baffert. $150,000.
3–Dream Shake, 124, c, 3, Twirling Candy–Even Song, by Street
Cry (Ire). ($32,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP; $75,000 2yo '20 OBSAPR).
'TDN Rising Star' O-Exline-Border Racing LLC, SAF Racing &
Richard Hausman; B-Dunwoody Farm (KY); T-Peter Eurton.
$90,000.
Margins: 4 1/4, 2 1/4, 4 3/4. Odds: 5.20, 0.90, 4.50.
Also Ran: Defunded, Law Professor, Parnelli, The Great One, Back Ring Luck, Ottothelegend. Scratched: Roman Centurian. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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Flagstaff Rallies Late Under Rosario For Commonwealth Stakes Triumph

Bottled up on the inside after breaking from the rail post, Lane's End Racing and Hronis Racing's Flagstaff was taken to the outside in the stretch by jockey Joel Rosario, and the 7-year-old gelding by Speightstown finished with determination to overtake front-runner Special Reserve and win Saturday's Grade 3 Commonweath Stakes by 1 1/4 lengths at Keeneland racecourse in Lexington, Ky.

Trained by John Sadler, Flagstaff was winning for the first time since taking the G2 San Carlos at Santa Anita on March 7, 2020. He completed the seven furlongs on a fast main track in 1:21.84 and paid $5.80 as the 9-5 favorite.

Special Reserve just held second over a fast-closing Attachment Rate, with Bango fourth and Mucho fifth in the field of seven older sprinters.

Special Reserved, claimed two starts back for $40,000 by trainer Mike Maker, set all the fractions: :22.98 for the opening quarter mile, :45.97 for the half and 1:09.80 for six furlongs. Bango chased the front-runner from the outside with Flagstaff racing along the inside until Rosario eased him off the rail turning into the stretch. He guided the gelding further out in mid-stretch and Flagstaff responded to the clear sailing with a strong finish.

Flagstaff, bred in Kentucky by Summer Wind Farm, is out of the A.P. Indy mare, Indyan Giving. He improved his record to six wins, six second and three thirds from 18 starts. He was coming off a third-place finish in the Hot Springs Handicap at Oaklawn behind C Z Rocket and reigning sprint champion Whitmore.

Post-race quotes:

Joel Rosario (winning rider of Flagstaff)

“I was thinking (about) trying to get out at some point. With an inside post position I just had to be there. He broke really sharp and I was in a good spot, and I was just waiting to be in the clear when I could going forward.”

“He was running for me (coming into the stretch). Sometimes you know how much (horse) you have when you start moving, but I stopped moving and he kept moving forward so I felt very good about how much horse I had.”

Bill Farish (of winning co-owner Lane's End Racing)

“When you have the one post, you either send him or you don't, and it looked like (Joel) was sending him in the beginning and maybe the horse just got outfooted a little bit. But when he swung him outside he really made a great run. It's really fun to have an older gelding like him. He just keeps coming on big days and winning big races, and it's a lot of fun for everybody involved.”

Mike Maker (trainer of runner-up Special Reserve)

“He made a really good effort – was trying very hard down the lane.”

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Medina Spirit, Baffert’s Santa Anita Derby Stand-In, ‘Went Very Nice’ In Breeze

Medina Spirit, twice runner-up to Life Is Good, worked four furlongs Sunday in 48 seconds flat as the Protonico colt prepares to deputize for his undefeated but sidelined stablemate in Saturday's Grade 1 Runhappy Santa Anita Derby at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.

“He went very nice (under jockey Juan Ochoa),” said Bob Baffert, who is seeking to add to his record of nine Santa Anita Derby victories.

“I also worked Hozier (runner-up to unbeaten stablemate Concert Tour in the March 13 Rebel at Oaklawn Park, five furlongs in 1:00.80), Charlatan (four furlongs in 48 flat) and Gamine (five furlongs in 59.60).”

Life Is Good was favored in the most recent Future Wager to win the May 1 Kentucky Derby before a small chip in his left hind ankle was detected following a workout on March 20, forcing him to miss the race and necessitating surgery by Dr. Larry Bramlage at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky., two days ago.

“The surgery went well,” Baffert said. “I received great reports on it. It was minor, so that was good and he should be back (racing) a lot sooner than we thought he would.”

G1 Malibu Stakes winner Charlatan and Eclipse Award champion female sprinter Gamine are scheduled to run at Churchill Downs on Derby Day, Charlatan in the G1 Churchill Downs Stakes and Gamine in the G1 Derby City Distaff, both at seven furlongs.

Trainer John Sadler sent Runhappy Santa Anita Derby candidate Rock Your World five furlongs Sunday morning in a bullet 59.20, fastest of 76 drills at the distance, more than two seconds faster than the average time of 1:01.37.

The Runhappy Santa Anita Derby headlines six stakes on Saturday, four of them graded and two showcasing California-bred or sired runners.

In addition to the Runhappy Santa Anita Derby, they are the G22 Santa Anita Oaks for 3-year-old fillies at 1 1/16 miles; the G2 Royal Heroine for fillies and mares 4 and up at one mile on turf; and the G3 Providencia Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at 1 1/8 miles on turf.

Also, two Golden State Series races, the $150,000 Echo Eddie Stakes for 3-year-olds at 6 ½ furlongs and the $150,000 Evening Jewel Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at 6 ½ furlongs.

In all, the six stakes offer $1,750,000 in purse money. Entries for Saturday's race will be taken on Wednesday.

Saturday's latest local weather forecasts partly cloudy skies, one percent chance of rain and a high of 78 degrees.

First post time will be 12 noon.

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