Keeneland | Horse Racing Free Tips

Nashville Under Consideration for Breeders’ Cup Sprint

WinStar Farm and China Horse Club’s ‘TDN Rising Star‘ Nashville (Speightstown), who took his record to two-for-two with a towering allowance success at Keeneland Oct. 10, could make his next start in the Nov. 7 GI Breeders’ Cup Sprint over the same track and distance, WinStar General Manager David Hanley said Monday.

“It’s a bit too early for a final decision, but I would say the nothing has been ruled out at this point,” Hanley said. “I haven’t discussed it with [WinStar President/CEO and Racing Manager] Elliott [Walden] or [trainer] Steve [Asmussen] and they will be the ones to decide.”

A $460,000 Keeneland September purchase in 2018, Nashville was sent off as the prohibitive odds-on favorite in a sloppy Saratoga maiden Sept. 2 and romped home by 11 1/2 lengths, covering 6 1/2 furlongs in a spectacular 1:14.48 (video). The 1-2 chalk in a non-two-lifetime allowance in Lexington over the past weekend, Nashville led past every pole en route to a 9 3/4-length score (video). Hanley said Nashville has emerged unscathed from the effort.

“He seems to have come out of the race just fine, none the worse for wear,” he said. “He ran such a big race first time out at Saratoga, but you weren’t sure that he just didn’t run so big because of the slop. I wouldn’t say we expected to see the kind of performance he put up the other day, but you sure hope he could reproduce the debut and it was nice to see him do it on a fast track.”

Hanley explained that Nashville had his fair share of issues growing up.

“He had a few little setbacks and we just decided to give him some time,” he said. “There was nothing major that was wrong with him, he had some bone bruising and he tended to be a little headstrong, so we gave him the time and it looks like it’s paying off.”

Hanley indicated that if they decide against a run in the Sprint, Nashville could make an appearance in one of the undercard stakes on Breeders’ Cup weekend as a steppingstone to the GI Malibu S. at Santa Anita in late December. Nashville is cataloged as a racing or stallion prospect for the Keeneland November Sale, but Hanley said it is unlikely he’ll go through the ring.

The post Nashville Under Consideration for Breeders’ Cup Sprint appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Carpe Diem Colt Sharp in Keeneland Unveiling

9th-Keeneland, $68,513, Msw, 10-11, 2yo, 6 1/2f, 1:17.98, ft, 5 1/4 lengths.
SAFFA’S DAY (c, 2, Carpe Diem–Shytoe Lafeet {SW, $332,473}, by King of Kings {Ire}), a :10 flat OBSAPR breezer, showed off similar speed on Sunday in an auspicious first outing. Let go at 6-1 off an unassuming worktab mostly at Ellis Park, the chestnut broke sharply from his wide draw and found himself attending the pace perched three deep under a tight hold. He started to pull away from his pace foes around the turn through a :46.03 half, and poured it on in the stretch under energetic encouragement to don cap and gown by 5 1/4 lengths and stop the clock nearly a second faster than the split division of this event two races earlier. Fellow firster Sound Money (Flatter) did very well to overcome a tardy start and cross the wire second, but it was soon discovered that his gate had malfunctioned and not opened in time, and he was declared an unfortunate non-starter both for his connections and bettors who included him. All Bodes Well (Bodemeister) inherited seecond. The winner is half to Ontology (Tapit), GSP, $144,050, a yearling colt by Flintshire (GB) and a filly foal by Louisiana-based Jay Gatsby. His dam, purchased for $8,500 at KEENOV ’18, was bred to El Deal for 2021. Sales history: $19,000 RNA Wlg ’18 KEENOV; $50,000 Ylg ’19 OBSOCT; $125,000 2yo ’20 OBSAPR. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $42,000. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
O-L and N Racing LLC & Clark O. Brewster; B-SF Bloodstock LLC (KY); T-Steven M. Asmussen.

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Saratoga Oaks Winner Antoinette Among 12 Going In Friday’s Pin Oak Valley View

Godolphin's Antoinette, winner of the Saratoga Oaks Invitational and recently runner-up in the Belmont Oaks Invitational (G1), tops a field of a dozen 3-year-old fillies entered for Friday's 30th running of the $150,000 Pin Oak Valley View Stakes (G3) at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky.

The Valley View, run at 1 1/16 miles on the Keeneland turf course, will go as the ninth race on Friday afternoon's 10-race program with a 5:30 ET post time. First post is 1:05 p.m.

Trained by Bill Mott, the homebred daughter of Hard Spun will be ridden Friday by Manny Franco and break from post position 12.

Headlining the competition to Antoinette is Merriebelle Stable's Walk In Marrakesh (IRE), who came within a nostril of winning the Appalachian (G2) at Keeneland in July.

Trained by Ignacio Correas IV, Walk In Marrakesh has been on the wrong end of three photos in graded stakes company since coming to North America late last summer. She was beaten a nose in the Natalma (G1) at Woodbine in September and in her 2020 debut was beaten a head in the Florida Oaks (G3).

Sixth in the Edgewood (G2) at Churchill Downs in her most recent start, Walk In Marrakesh will be ridden by Brian Hernandez Jr. and break from post position four.

Figuring to also attract support are Marc Detampel, TSK Thoroughbred Racing and Rebecca Hillen's Outburst (GB) and Paradise Farms Corp. and Parkland Thoroughbreds' Stunning Sky.

Winner of the aforementioned Florida Oaks in March, Outburst enters Friday's race off a fourth-place finish in the Music City at Kentucky Downs on Sept. 15. Trained by Eddie Kenneally, Outburst will be ridden by Florent Geroux and break from post position 10.

Stunning Sky comes into the Valley View off a solid summer that featured runner-up finishes at Saratoga in the Lake Placid (G2) and Saratoga Oaks Invitational. In her most recent start, she was fourth in the Dueling Grounds Oaks at Kentucky Downs trailing Micheline and Harvey's Lil Goil, the top two finishers in Saturday's Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (G1) at Keeneland.

Trained by Mike Maker, Stunning Sky will be ridden by Ricardo Santana Jr. and break from post position 11.

The field for the Valley View, with riders and weights from the inside, is: Duopoly (Tyler Gaffalione, 118 pounds), In Good Spirits (Miguel Mena, 118), Princess Grace (Shaun Bridgmohan, 118), Walk In Marrakesh (IRE) (Hernandez Jr., 118), Witez (Julien Leparoux, 118), How Ironic (Rafael Bejarano, 118), Pranked (David Cohen, 118), Lucky Betty (Declan Cannon, 118), Sugar Fix (Adam Beschizza, 120), Outburst (GB) (Geroux, 120), Stunning Sky (Santana Jr., 118) and Antoinette (Franco, 120).

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Harvey’s Lil Goil Prevails In Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup

The Estate of Harvey Clarke and Paul Braverman's Harvey's Lil Goil grabbed the lead at the top of the stretch and then held off all challengers to win the 37th running of the Grade 1, $500,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup for 3-year-old fillies by three-quarters of a length over Micheline at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky.

Trained by Bill Mott and ridden Martin Garcia, Harvey's Lil Goil covered the 1 1/8 miles on a turf course rated as good in 1:48.72. The victory is the second in the race for Mott, who saddled Crown Queen to victory in 2014.

Sweet Melania set the pace with Harvey's Lil Goil lapped on her outside through fractions of :23.89, :47.75 and 1:12.16. The two hit the top of the stretch as a team only to have Harvey's Lil Goil quickly spurt away and open a daylight advantage.

Favored Magic Attitude (GB) made the first run at her and then Micheline finished fastest of all to grab second but unable to catch Harvey's Lil Goil. The result reversed the finish of the Dueling Grounds Oaks at Kentucky Downs Sept. 10 when Micheline prevailed by a neck.

“She has a lot of natural speed,” said Garcia. “She's fast – you can do whatever you want. After the break, I moved outside and she was really comfortable by herself. When it was time to go, I asked and she responded.”

Bred in Kentucky by Clarke, Harvey's Lil Goil is a daughter of Triple Crown winner American Pharoah out of the Tapit mare Gloria S. The victory was worth $300,000 and increased Harvey's Lil Goil's earnings to $561,529 with a record of 8-4-1-1.

“We were pretty confident with her,” said Kenny McCarthy, assistant to Mott at Keeneland. “She ran a super race for us at Kentucky Downs (finishing second to QE II runner-up Micheline in the Sept. 10 Dueling Grounds Oaks) in her last out and had trained really well in between. She's a little superstar. She pretty much goes on any surface for us. At least in my mind, I think the turf probably is a little bit easier for her to handle.”

Harvey's Lil Goil paid $9.20, $5.20 and $3.20. Micheline, ridden by Florent Geroux, returned $9.20 and $4.40 and finished a half-length in front of Magic Attitude, who paid $2.40 to show under Javier Castellano.

It was another half-length back to Red Lark (IRE), who was followed in order by California Kook, Hendy Woods and Sweet Melania.

Racing continues Sunday with a nine-race program beginning at 1:05 p.m. ET. Keeneland will offer a Pick 6 carryover of $34,998.45 and a Super High 5 carryover of $58,378.55.

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