Keeneland September | Horse Racing Free Tips

Notable US-Bred Runners in Japan: Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2021

In this continuing series, we take a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. Here are the horses of interest for the first meeting of the new year to be held Tuesday at Nakayama Racecourse:

Tuesday, January 5, 2021
2nd-NKY, ¥9,680,000 ($94k), Maiden, 3yo, 1800m
AMERICAN YELL (c, 3, Tapit–Sindy With An S, by Broken Vow), a $700K Keeneland September purchase by owner Katsumi Yoshizawa, is a full-brother to SW & GSP My Miss Tapit and the GSP duo of I’ll Wrap It Up and Rattataptap, and is the 19-10 favorite to improve off a strong runner-up effort over this course and distance when last seen Dec. 13 (video, gate 12). Yoshizawa, who campaigns 2019 Triple Crown participant Master Fencer (Jpn) (Just A Way {Jpn}), has been represented by four Tapit winners in Japan, including the listed-placed American Seed. B-Gainesway Thoroughbreds Ltd (KY)

3rd-NKY, ¥11,400,000 ($110k), Newcomers, 3yo, 1800m
WELL SNIPER (f, 3, Violence–Down the Well {Ire}, by Mujadil) is the latest to make the races for her dam, whose three winners from as many to hit the track include SW Aqua Frio (Uncle Mo) and Karak (Karakontie {Jpn}), the latter of which broke her maiden at first asking sprinting on turf at Belmont before winning the 2019 Tyro S. on the grass and the 2020 Cincinnati Trophy on the Polytrack.. Well Sniper was bought back on a bid of $37K at KEENOV in 2018 and fetched $35K at KEEJAN a couple of months later. B-Parrish Hill Farm & Amanda Roach Cole (KY)

8th-NKY, ¥21,000,000 ($204k), Allowance, 4yo/up, 1200m
SUI (f, 4, Candy Ride {Arg}–Eltimaas, by Ghostzapper), the half-sister to champion and MGISW Drefong (Gio Ponti), doubled her win tally when taking out an Oct. 3 allowance over track and trip first off a six-month absence before finishing down the field in her last visit to the post Oct. 25. A $300K KEESEP yearling turned $675K OBS March breezer, Sui is out of a half-sister to champion Action This Day (Kris S.). B-Machmer Hall, Carrie & Craig Brogden (KY)

10th-NKY, Junior Cup-Listed, ¥38,370,000 ($372k), 3yo, 1600mT
ASCALON (c, 3, Speightstown–Coco As In Chanel, by Awesome Again) validated 4-5 favoritism when breaking his maiden at first asking going 1200 meters at Sapporo Aug. 22 (see below, gate 6), but was well-beaten in his first try against winners three weeks later and resumes here. The stakes-winning Coco As In Chanel was purchased by SF Bloodstock and Newgate Farm for $150K in foal to Violence at KEENOV in 2018 and produced a filly by Newgate’s Russian Revolution (Aus) in 2020. B-Heider Family Stable (KY)

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Pricey Malibu Moon Filly a Smart Winner in Big A Debut

2nd-Aqueduct, $80,000, Msw, 12-4, 2yo, f, 6fT, 1:10.45, gd,1 length.
MISS DRACARYS (f, 2, Malibu Moon–Ask Me When, by Speightstown), the second-priciest offspring by her sire of 47 yearlings sold in 2019 when bringing $525,000 at Keeneland September, lit up the tote board at 23-1 in this debut run. She raced under a snug hold in seventh on the inside and was traveling nicely as the field hit the quarter pole. Kept along the fence by Kendrick Carmouche as they turned for home, the bay threaded the needle in deep stretch and ran to daylight to win going away by a length over Stuck On Kitten (Kitten’s Joy). The winner is a half to Up the Ante (Smart Strike), SW & GSP, $298,713; and a full to Aristocratic, SW & GSP, $361,379. Ask Me When, a half-sister to MGSW and Spendthrift sire Dominus (Smart Strike), had a colt by Quality Road in 2020 and was barren for 2021. This is also the family of grassy MGISW Honey Ryder (Lasting Approval). Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $44,000. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
O-Al Shira’aa Farms; B-Castleton Lyons & Kilboy Estate (KY); T-Neil D. Drysdale.

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American-Bred Lemon Pop Takes Derby Prep at Tokyo

The first of four races on the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby, the 1600-meter Cattleya S. (allowance), took place Saturday on the eve of the G1 Japan Cup at Toyko Racecourse, with US-bred Lemon Pop (Lemon Drop Kid) running his record to two wins from as many starts with a convincing victory.

The 7-5 second choice, a debut winner in a 1300-meter newcomers’ event at Tokyo Nov. 7, broke without incident and was ridden positively from gate one by Keita Tosaki to sit in the wake of pacesetting Takeru Pegasus (Jpn) (Dunkirk), favored at 4-5 off a nine-length maiden victory over Saturday’s track and distance Nov. 7. Sitting the pocket into the long Tokyo straight, Lemon Pop rolled away from the fence to come after the front-runner and wore that one down to take it by a cozy 1 1/2 lengths (see below). It was a gap of 10 lengths back to Plus Ultra (Jpn) (Discreet Cat) in third.

Lemon Pop races for Godolphin and was purchased on behalf of Sheikh Mohammed’s operation by Harry Sweeney’s Paca Paca Farm for $70,000 at the 2019 Keeneland September sale out of Padraig Campion’s Blandford Stud consignment. The chestnut was bred by Olly Tait, who served as chief operating officer of Darley for 15 years prior to his departure in 2014, and his wife Amber.

Lemon Pop was produced by Unreachable (Giant’s Causeway), an unraced daughter of five-time GSW Harpia (Danzig), a full-sister to the legendary Danehill, MGSW Shibboleth and GSW Eagle Eyed. Another full-sister to Harpia–Family–bred European GSW, Hong Kong SW and UAE Group 3-placed Dundonnell (First Defence).

The Cattleya Sho offered Derby points on a 10-4-2-1 scale. The second leg of the series is the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun (1600m) at Kawasaki Dec. 16, followed by the Listed Hyacinth S. back at Tokyo in February and the Fukuryu S. (allowance) at Nakayama.

WATCH: Lemon Pop (1) wins the Cattleya S. (allowance) at Tokyo

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Spielberg Favored to Continue Baffert Streak in Bob Hope

With the ongoing Del Mar meet renamed a few years ago to honor Hollywood icon Bing Crosby, it seems only fitting that a colt named Spielberg (Union Rags) would take his shot in the GIII Bob Hope S., the race formerly known as the Hollywood Prevue S. The $1-millon Keeneland September graduate should jump a warm favorite for the seven-furlong affair, a race won by his trainer Bob Baffert no fewer than six times in its last nine runnings and 10 times dating back to 1996.

Runner-up on debut and in the GI Del Mar Futurity to the talented Dr Schivel (Violence), the chestnut was never truly dangerous when third in the GI American Pharoah S. at Santa Anita Sept. 20. He was more workmanlike than spectacular in graduating by a mile here 13 days ago, but is nevertheless the one they’ll have to beat.

Weston (Hit It a Bomb) is the only member of the Bob Hope sextet with a graded victory to his credit, having earned a neck success in the GII Best Pal S. Aug. 8 prior to a third in the Futurity, where Spielberg was 3 3/4 lengths ahead of him.

Ambivalent (Constitution) enters the Bob Hope a five-time maiden, though he did cross the line third in the Best Pal, only to be disqualified to fourth. A close third in the Del Mar Juvenile Turf S. Sept. 7, he turns back off a distant sixth to Jackie’s Warrior (Maclean’s Music) in the GI Champagne S. over a mile Oct. 10.

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