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French-Bred Wootton Asset Takes New Kent County Virginia Derby; Flippant Rallies In Oaks On Record Wagering Day

Winning for the first time In the U.S. since leaving his native France last year, Madaket Stables LLC's Wootton Asset extricated himself from traffic moving around the far turn, took command in the stretch and then held off a late rally from Slicked Back to win Tuesday's Grade 3, $250,000 New Kent County Virginia Derby at Colonial Downs in New Kent, Virginia.

Trained by H. Graham Motion and ridden by Jose Ortiz, Wootton Asset – a 3-year-old colt by Wootton Bassett – finished three-quarters of a length to the good of the Brad Cox-trained Slicked Back and jockey Fernando De La Cruz. It Can Be Done finished another 1 3/4 lengths back in third, and he was followed by Hidden Energy, 2-1 favorite Experienced, Indian Lake, Draft Capital, Doubleoseven, Eye of the Cat and Search for Truth.

Time for the 1 1/8 miles on a firm turf course was 1:46.79. Wootton Asset paid $11.20 to win as the second choice in the wagering.

Wootton Asset, making his sixth start in the U.S. since last October, saved ground early while racing in seventh position as Indian Lake established a moderate early pace, with fractions of :23.96, :48.13 and 1:11.24 for the opening six furlongs.

Rounding the far turn, Ortiz angled Wootton Asset to the outside from a tight spot along the rail and went five wide into the stretch. He seized the advantage just outside of the eighth pole after a mile in 1:34.76 and was never seriously challenged by the late run of Slicked Back.

Stewards lit the inquiry sign and Slicked Back's jockey De La Cruz lodged a claim of foul against the first-place finisher alleging that Wootton Asset interfered with him when he angled off the rail and into his path.

Stewards allowed the original order of finish to stand.

“I knew what I was doing out there,” Ortiz said of the foul claim. “Fernando was running out of horse at the three-eighths pole. He didn't have enough horse to keep me in there so I just went on. I never made contact with him. If we did it was very slight brush. My trip was great. My position on the backside is where I won the race. I just had a lot of horse. He did his job. The horse moved very smooth on the grass. I really like this turf course.”

“Jose was pretty confident (that the result would stand),” said Motion. “He just had a lot of horse. He's a cool horse and he finally got his good ground. He hasn't done much wrong since he's been here. He came to this country to run on firm ground which is what he got today.”

Flippant and Rafael Bejarano winning the Virginia Oaks

In the companion race for 3-year-old fillies, G. Watts Humphrey Jr.'s homebred Flippant took advantage of a quick pace to rally from far back and win the $150,000 Woodford Reserve Virginia Oaks by 1 1/4 lengths under Rafael Bejarano.

Invincible Gal finished second under Jose Ortiz, with Gold for Kitten and jockey Joe Rocco third.

The gray 3-year-old filly by Tapit out of Frivolous, by Empire Maker, was winning her third consecutive race for trainer Victoria Oliver. She ran 1 1/8 miles on firm turf in 1:46.47, establishing a new course record. Flippant paid $6.60 to win as the favorite.

Bejarano allowed Flippant to settle near the back of the 12-filly field as Belle Belisa carved out quick fractions of :23.31, :46.35 and 1:10.20. With just over a quarter mile left to run, Fliippant still had her work cut out for her while racing in 11th position. She split horses at the top of the stretch and gradually wore them all down, drawing clear in deep stretch.

“The first time I rode her I didn't know a lot about her,” Bejarano said. “This is the kind of filly that likes to come from behind. She likes to get settled and relax. She has a better turn of foot. I learned my lesson. My strategy was to have her in a good position right behind the speed to make one move from the three-eighths or half-mile, wherever she was ready. There was a lot of pace in my race which was good. I had to wait a little in the stretch and when I was clear she came flying.”

Wagering on Virginia Derby Day Card Establishes New Record
New Kent County Virginia Derby Day set a new all-source handle record of $4,875,792, bettering the old record of $4,469,223 set on July 19, 2008 – the date of Gio Ponti's victory in that year's Virginia Derby.

“I'd like to thank the fans, horsemen and our great staff for tremendous support today,” said Jill Byrne, VP of Racing Operations. “To generate an all-time record handle in just our third year since racing returned to Colonial Downs is quite an accomplishment.”

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Asmussen Still Smiling After Travers Day Wins With Yaupon, Jackie’s Warrior

Steve Asmussen was already back on the road scouting for new talent at the Texas yearling sales on Sunday morning, but there still were plenty of bright smiles lighting up the barn of the Hall of Fame trainer in the wake of Saturday's back-to-back wins in the $600,000 Grade 1 Forego by Yaupon and the $500,000 Grade 1 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial by Jackie's Warrior, followed by Midnight Bourbon's runner-up finish in the $1.25 million Runhappy Grade 1 Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

“I was so proud of how our horses ran yesterday. It was a great day of racing,” said Scott Blasi, Asmussen's longtime assistant. “To win two Grade 1s in a row at Saratoga on Travers Day is a great feeling. There are certain days of the year that are incredibly competitive. There's Derby Day, Preakness Day, Belmont Day, Travers Day, Breeders' Cup. With that level of quality racing, it's the best of the best. On those kinds of days to do well, it's a special feeling.”

At this stage of the season, the two fastest sprinters, arguably, in North America, are stabled in this barn.

J. Kirk and Judy Robison's Jackie's Warrior, who won the Grade 1 Hopeful at the Spa and the Grade 1 Champagne at Belmont in 2020, notched the first top-level victory of his sophomore season by beating the highly regarded Life Is Good in the ninth race on the 13-race card. In the eighth race, William and Corrine Heiligbrodt's Yaupon beat Firenze Fire in a race filled with drama.

As the two battled in deep stretch almost stride-for-stride with Yaupon to the inside under Ricardo Santana, Jr., Firenze Fire bared his teeth, turned his head to the left, and tried to savage his rival with no fewer than seven attempts. Afterward, Asmussen said that Firenze Fire was even trying to grab Santana.

“He [Yaupon] came out of it unscathed. No marks or anything. Luckily, Ricardo was able to continue to encourage him, although he was getting pretty close to the inside rail, which I was more worried about than the horse getting bit,” said Blasi. “I think it was a really hard thing for him [Jose Ortiz, up on Firenze Fire] to correct. The thing about it is those guys are riding hard, so they were going forward and it's not like you have the bit in their mouth. They're trying to persevere, and that's a hard to thing to correct when you're in that position. I've seen pictures of horses being savaged, and I've seen horses savage, or try to bite, but I've never seen any horse do it for that long. I've never seen it go on for that long.”

Blasi said even all that commotion could not dim the brilliance of these two sprinters.

“Yaupon is a special horse. It was a great win for him,” said Blasi. “Jackie's Warrior gave another game effort. He's a special talent. The horse he beat [Life is Good] is as well. You saw how they separated themselves from the rest of the field, and that just goes to show you the class and the quality of those two horses. It was a great race. Jackie is so consistent. At one turn, he's back to doing what he wants to do.”

The Heiligbrodts' Mitole won the 2019 Forego, the Breeders' Cup Sprint, the Grade 1 Met Mile at Belmont Park, and a fourth Grade 1 on the way to championship sprinter honors that year for the barn.

Does either Yaupon or Jackie's Warrior resemble Mitole?

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“They're just really fast horses and we've had some quality sprinters like Volatile [winner of the 2020 Grade 1 Vanderbilt at Saratoga] and Mitole. I mean they were great sprinters. These horses all have the same qualities. Both of these guys, you couldn't be any better to be around and to train. Yaupon and Jackie's Warrior are professionals,” said Blasi.

Though Winchell's homebred, Grade 3 winning Midnight Bourbon, didn't give Asmussen his first Travers victory, he finished only a neck behind 2020 Juvenile champion and Grade 1 Belmont Stakes winner Essential Quality.

“It was by far the best race of his career. We were a little bit unlucky to lose but that horse [Essential Quality] is a champion. Once that horse gets by you, he's not going to let anybody pass him, and he proved that time and time again. Hats off to the winner, but our horse is definitely improving. I think with the time that they ran and how they came home in the last quarter, you have to have quality to be able to do that,” Blasi said.

The effort is particularly gratifying considering his last race in the Grade 1 Haskell at Monmouth Park in July. That day he clipped heels with Hot Rod Charlie in the stretch and fell.

“I've got to give the credit to our team here. Everybody worked so hard on that horse after coming out of the Monmouth race. The whole barn did a great job getting him to come back around,” Blasi explained. “He was able to spend time in the round pen and we let him just be a horse up here in Saratoga, which is the great thing about Saratoga. You've got the environment. It's all good.

“I'm proud of how he acted going over to the paddock. We led the pony in front of him, which I think that made a big difference,” he continued. “He was a total professional yesterday. We really are happy with how he's progressing.”

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After Eventful Forego, Lombardi Looks Toward Vosburgh Repeat For Firenze Fire

To say that the stretch run of the Grade 1 Forego was an anxious one for owner Ron Lombardi would be an understatement, but he was still proud of a valiant effort from multiple graded stakes-winning millionaire Firenze Fire, who finished second after savaging subsequent winner Yaupon in the final sixteenth of the seven-furlong event at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Trained by Kelly Breen, Firenze Fire, who finished a respective second and 11th in the last two editions of the Forego, raced in second position throughout just off the flank of Yaupon and edged his way to even terms around the turn. The pair raced nip-and-tuck in upper stretch before Firenze Fire, with Jose Ortiz up, savaged Yaupon inside the eighth pole, biting at his rival's bridle.

“He ran great. He's a warrior,” Lombardi said. “Unfortunately, that mishap cost him the race. If he stays focused, I think he wins the race. It was unfortunate but it was a race that people will be talking about for a while. Jose did a tremendous job keeping Firenze Fire in there.”

Firenze Fire was on the receiving end of a similar situation when capturing the Grade 3 Gallant Bob in September 2018 at Parx, where he fended off Whereshetoldmetogo, who tried to bite Firenze Fire in the final furlong.

“It happens so rarely and to have one horse involved in it twice – both the giving and receiving end – is really amazing,” Lombardi said with a laugh.

Lombardi, who races under the Mr. Amore Stable moniker, said Firenze Fire will target a repeat victory in the $250,000 Grade 2 Vosburgh on October 9 at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

“That was always the plan. In fact, I was thinking about skipping the Forego,” Lombardi said. “But he was doing great and it's six weeks for that. I talked to Kelly this morning; he came out of the race great like he always does. Our goal will be the Vosburgh if things fall in line.”

Not all was lost for Lombardi this weekend as New York homebred juvenile filly November Rein won her stakes debut in Friday's $200,000 Seeking the Ante on New York Showcase Day.

Lombardi said the daughter of Street Boss could target either the $250,000 Maid of the Mist on October 30 at Belmont Park, or face open company in the $400,000 Grade 1 Frizette on October 3 – a “Win And You're In” event for the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies.

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Letruska Holds Off All Challengers To Win Personal Ensign

Already at the top of the older filly and mare division, already a multiple Grade 1 winner, Letruska demonstrated her dominance over all challengers again today. In the Grade 1 Personal Ensign, she fought off Swiss Skydiver early and then a surging trio of fillies and mares late to earn her third Breeders' Cup Win and You're In victory in 2021.

Breaking from post four, Jose Ortiz hustled Swiss Skydiver to the lead, but Irad Ortiz, Jr. on Letruska took over on the first turn, darting out to the lead with the 2020 Preakness Stakes winner in second. On the backstretch, Letruska was in front by two, with Miss Marissa, Swiss Skydiver, and Harvey's Lil Goil behind her. Through early fractions of :23.01 for the quarter-mile and :46.74 for the half, Letruska had no trouble maintaining her lead through challenges from Harvey's Little Goil on her outside on the far turn, Swiss Skydiver still in position on the rail to challenge again in the stretch. Once again, Letruska was not going to give up the lead.

Into the stretch, Letruska showed no signs of slowing down, with Swiss Skydiver falling back and Bonny South, Royal Flag, and Dunbar Road surging down the stretch. They could not catch her, with Letruska outlasting the closers to win by a half-length. The final time for the 1 1/8-mile Personal Ensign was 1:49.15.

Letruska paid $3.50, $3.10, and $2.60. Bonny South paid $10.60 and $5.30. Royal Flag paid $4.10.

Winners of Breeders' Cup Win and You're In events received a fees-paid, guaranteed spot in the starting gate for the corresponding Breeders' Cup race at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in Del Mar, Calif., on Nov. 6. The G1 Personal Ensign is a Win and You're In race for the Breeders' Cup Distaff.

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