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Laki Runs Down Lebda To Win Frank Y. Whiteley Stakes

Hillside Equestrian Meadows' Grade 3 winner Laki, coming off a brief freshening, ran down multiple stakes-winning pacesetter Lebda inside the eighth pole and edged clear to a half-length victory in Saturday's $100,000 Frank Y. Whiteley at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md.

The ninth running of the six-furlong Whiteley for 3-year-olds and up was the second of six stakes worth $650,000 in purses on an 11-race Spring Stakes Spectacular program headlined by the $125,000 Federico Tesio, a 'Win and In' qualifier for Triple Crown-nominated 3-year-olds to the 146^th Preakness Stakes (G1) May 15, and the $125,000 Weber City Miss, a 'Win and In' event for 3-year-old fillies to the $250,000 Black-Eyed Susan (G2) May 14.

With regular rider Horacio Karamanos aboard for trainer Damon Dilodovico, Laki ($10.20) completed the distance in 1:09.33 over a fast main track for his 11^th career win from 32 starts, pushing his lifetime earnings over the $800,000 mark.

The 6-year-old Cuba gelding has raced his entire career for Dilodovico, and over the years has grown close to his wife and assistant, Christine. Laki gave the Dilodovicos their first graded-stakes victory in the Frank J. De Francis Memorial (G3) last fall, also at Pimlico.

Laki has now won at least one stakes race each of the last five years, including the 2019 Whiteley.

“He means everything to us…the whole stable,” Dilodovico said. “He's our cornerstone.”

Winner of the Miracle Wood and Private Terms in back-to-back starts last winter as a 3-year-old at Laurel, Lebda was sent to the lead by jockey J.D. Acosta and held it through a quarter-mile in 23.33 seconds and a half in 45.55, with Laki tracking intently. The two straightened for home in front, going five-eighths in 57.15 before a stubborn Lebda finally yielded to his more experienced rival.

Lebda's Claudio Gonzalez-trained stablemate Eastern Bay was 4 ¼ lengths back in third, a head in front of Arthur's Hope. Whereshetoldmetogo, the 4-5 favorite, ran last of nine to snap a three-stakes win streak.

Laki was making his first start since running third in the seven-furlong General George (G3) Feb. 20 at Laurel Park. Since then, Laurel has seen its racing and training disrupted by an equine herpesvirus (EHV-1) quarantine and currently an ongoing evaluation and renovation of the main track, which caused the Spring Stakes Spectacular program to be transferred to Pimlico.

“It's been a crazy month for all of us horsemen here in the state. For him to do what he did, I just can't put it together,” Dilodovico said. “The last race we ran him he was letting me know he wasn't 100 percent. Not unsound, he just has a way about him. So, the rest was definitely warranted and it paid off.”

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Knicks Go Named 2020 Maryland-Bred Horse Of The Year

The fourth annual Renaissance Awards, a collaborative effort between the Maryland Horse Breeders Association, Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and Maryland Jockey Club, which recognizes excellence in Thoroughbred racing and breeding in Maryland in the past year, went virtual this year.

Throughout the week of Feb. 22, awards were presented through the MHBA's social media accounts to the top Maryland owner, trainer, jockey, breeder, broodmare and stallion, Backstretch Workers of the Year, one for Pimlico Race Course and one for Laurel Park, MTHA's Unsung Hero, as well as the champion Maryland-breds of 2020.

Record-breaking Grade 1 winner Knicks Go took home top honors as Maryland-bred Horse of the Year and champion older male.

Owned by Korea Racing Authority and trained by Brad H. Cox, Knicks Go capped off an impressive year by breaking the track record at Keeneland with his victory in the $1-million Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, notching his second Grade 1 victory by 3 1/2 lengths as he stopped the clock in 1:33.85. He went into the Breeders' Cup after securing a 10 1/4-length victory in a 1 1/16 mile allowance at Keeneland, where he broke the track record in 1:40.79, which was preceded by an allowance victory at Oaklawn Park in February. A perfect three for three in 2020, the son of Paynter earned $608,440.

Knicks Go, bred by Angie Moore, was sold as a weanling for $40,000 at the 2016 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale, and later purchased for $87,000 as a yearling by Korea Racing Authority at the 2017 Keeneland September sale. Only the fifth Maryland-bred to win a Breeders' Cup race, his share of the purse ($520,000) propelled him beyond the $1 million mark in career earnings.

Other divisional champions:

Champion 2-year-old male: Jaxon Traveler (dk.b./br.c., 2018, by Munnings—Listen Boy, by After Market). Bred by Dr. and Mrs. A. Leonard Pineau; owned by West Point Thoroughbreds and Marvin Delfiner; trained by Steven M. Asmussen.

Champion 2-year-old filly: Street Lute (ch. f., 2018, by Street Magician—Alottalute, by Midnight Lute). Bred by Dr. and Mrs. Thomas Bowman and Dr. Brooke Bowman; owned by Lucky 7 Stables; trained by John J. Robb.

Champion 3-year-old male: Field Pass (gr./ro.c, 2017, by Lemon Drop Kid—Only Me, by Runaway Groom). Bred by Mark Brown Grier; owned by Three Diamonds Farm; trained by Michael J. Maker.

Champion 3-year-old filly and champion turf runner: Sharing (ch.f., 2017, by Speightstown—Shared Account, by Pleasantly Perfect). Bred by Sagamore Farm; owned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Gainesway Stable (Antony Beck); trained by H. Graham Motion.

Champion older female: Never Enough Time (dk.b./br.m., 2016, by Munnings—What Time It Is, by Partner's Hero). Bred and owned by R. Larry Johnson; trained by Michael J. Trombetta.

Champion sprinter: Laki (ch.g., 2013, by Cuba—Truthful Dutch, by Swear by Dixie). Bred by Tom Michaels and Lorna Baker; owned by Hillside Equestrian Meadows; trained by Damon R. Dilodovico.

Also presented were the annual breeder, stallion and broodmare of the year awards. Angie Moore, breeder of 2020 Maryland-bred Horse of the Year and champion older male Knicks Go, was crowned the Maryland Breeder of the Year, while Sycamore Hall Thoroughbreds LLC and Hillwood Stable LLC's Love's Reason, dam of 2019 Maryland-bred champion older female Majestic Reason, won Maryland Broodmare of the Year and Northview Stallion Station's Great Notion took home the title of Maryland Stallion of the Year for the fifth consecutive year.

Other award winners for 2020 include Robert Bone, Maryland Owner of the Year; Claudio Gonzalez, Maryland Trainer of the Year; Trevor McCarthy, Maryland Jockey of the Year. Edgar Gallegos was honored as the Pimlico Backstretch Worker of the Year, while Antonio Lopez Salazar earned the title of Laurel Backstretch Employee of the Year, and jockey Victor Carrasco was recognized as the MTHA's Unsung Hero.

Watch the video announcements for each champion and award winner here

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Knicks Go Named Maryland’s 2020 HOTY

Presented virtually the week of Feb. 22, the fourth annual Renaissance Awards, a collaborative effort between the Maryland Horse Breeders Association, Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and Maryland Jockey Club, was highlighted by Knicks Go (Paynter) earning the title of Maryland Horse of the Year and champion older horse for the 2020 season. Owned by Korea Racing Authority and trained by Brad H. Cox, the grey capped off an impressive year with a victory in the GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile at Keeneland in November. He is only the fifth Maryland-bred to win a Breeders' Cup race.

Other Divisional champions:

Champion 2-year-old male: Jaxon Traveler (Munnings).

Bred by Dr. and Mrs. A. Leonard Pineau; owned by West Point Tbreds & Marvin Delfiner; trained by Steven M. Asmussen.

Champion 2-year-old filly: Street Lute (Street Magician).

Bred by Dr. and Mrs. Thomas Bowman and Dr. Brooke Bowman; owned by Lucky 7 Stables; trained by John J. Robb.

Champion 3-year-old male: Field Pass (Lemon Drop Kid).

Bred by Mark Brown Grier; owned by Three Diamonds Farm; trained by Michael J. Maker.

Champion 3-year-old filly and champion turf runner: Sharing (Speightstown).

Bred by Sagamore Farm; owned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners & Gainesway Stable (Antony Beck); trained by H. Graham Motion.

Champion older female: Never Enough Time (Munnings).

Bred and owned by R. Larry Johnson; trained by Michael J. Trombetta.

Champion sprinter: Laki (Cuba).

Bred by Tom Michaels and Lorna Baker; owned by Hillside Equestrian Meadows; trained by Damon R. Dilodovico.

Also earning an award, Angie Moore, breeder of 2020 Maryland-bred Horse of the Year and champion older male Knicks Go, was crowned the Maryland Breeder of the Year, while Sycamore Hall Thoroughbreds LLC and Hillwood Stable LLC's Love's Reason, dam of 2019 Maryland-bred champion older female Majestic Reason, won Maryland Broodmare of the Year and Northview Stallion Station's Great Notion took home the title of Maryland Stallion of the Year for the fifth consecutive year.

To watch the video announcements for each category, visit www.MarylandThoroughbred.com.

The post Knicks Go Named Maryland’s 2020 HOTY appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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General George Favorite Funny Guy One Serious Racehorse

His name evokes a smile, and though he has yet to register a win against open competition, make no mistake – Funny Guy is one serious racehorse.

Gatsas Stables, R. A. Hill Stable and Swick Stable's Funny Guy is a five-time stakes winner against fellow New York-breds that owns six wins, six seconds and $638,645 in purse earnings from 17 lifetime starts.

The 5-year-old son of 2008 Kentucky Derby (G1) and Preakness (G1) winner Big Brown has fared well in the occasional foray into open company, including a runner-up finish behind Grade 1 winner Firenze Fire in the Vosburgh (G2) last fall at his home base of Belmont Park.

Funny Guy is entered to make his graded-stakes return in Saturday's $250,000 General George (G3) at Laurel Park, where he is the 9-5 program favorite against a field boasting seven other stakes winners including Grade 3 winners Laki, Majestic Dunhill and Share the Ride.

The 45th running of the General George for 4-year-olds and up and $250,000 Runhappy Barbara Fritchie (G3) for females 4 and older, both sprinting seven furlongs, serve as the co-headliners on a nine-race Winter Sprintfest program featuring six stakes worth $900,000 in purses rescheduled from Feb. 13 due to weather.

Funny Guy has been at Laurel since last week under the supervision of Tonja Terranova, wife and assistant to trainer John Terranova. Though training has been intermittently interrupted by weather, John Terranova said Funny Got got in a “strong gallop” Wednesday morning.

“It's all good. We'll just do what we've got to do during the week,” he said. “I guess everyone else is in the same boat with the postponement. We'll just ride the wave.”

The General George will be only the second time Funny Guy has raced outside of New York. The first came in the 2019 Oklahoma Derby (G3), when he ran sixth behind Owendale, third in that year's Preakness, and runner-up Sleepy Eyes Todd, most recently fourth in the $3 million Pegasus World Cup (G1) Jan. 23 at Gulfstream Park and running in Saturday's $20 million Saudi Cup.

“He's been great. He's honest, he does everything right. He's been a fun horse to be around,” John Terranova said. “He's versatile and just keeps coming back for more each time. He's had a couple little circumstances where maybe the track got to him a little bit or it just didn't set up quite right, but he's always given us a big effort.”

One start prior to last year's Vosburgh, Funny Guy wound up fourth by 2 ½ lengths in the Forego (G1) at Saratoga to Win Win Win, another veteran of the 2019 Triple Crown trail, and Grade 1 winner Complexity, the runner-up. The seven-furlong Forego was contested during a thunderstorm that rolled through at post time. In a sign of respect, Funny Guy was sent off as the favorite in the Forego and Vosburgh.

“The Forego was one of those circumstances with that horrific rainstorm we were in the middle of when they snapped the gate on us. Everybody rushed out to the track and it was an absolute deluge,” Terranova said. “You couldn't even see them. It was like running through a river. He was down inside, just buried in there. The track took away from a lot of performances on that afternoon.”

Funny Guy's stakes wins have come at distances from 6 ½ furlongs to the 1 1/8 miles of the Albany, which he captured by a neck in 2019 at Saratoga, earning him a shot in the Oklahoma Derby. Given some time off after that effort, he returned with back-to-back stakes wins in the one-mile Commentator and seven-furlong John Morrissey last summer.

In his 2021 debut, Funny Guy ran second as the favorite in the seven-furlong Say Florida Sandy Jan. 9 at Aqueduct, his first start since a neck triumph in the New York Stallion Series Thunder Rumble Nov. 22, also going seven-eighths at the Big A.

“The track was a little loose on him. He's a big, heavy horse and winter tracks, they get cold, they get cuppy, they get loose and dry,” Terranova said. “He doesn't really get his feet that far up off the ground so I think he struggled with it, having that quickness to him. It took it a little bit away from him the last start. Our jock said the same thing after getting off him.”

Funny Guy owns two wins and two seconds in five career tries at the General George distance, and is two-for-three on an off track. A second winter storm is scheduled to pass through the Laurel area Thursday into Friday morning.

“He's certainly doing well coming into this. We're just kind of like in this holding pattern, not much to do this week,” Terranova said. “He's doing great. We've been looking forward to this race. Wet or dry, he's been great. Everything's good.”

Terranova has shipped in to Maryland and left with graded-stakes before, taking the 2019 Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash (G3) with Killybegs Captain. It was the trainer's most recent of more than a dozen graded triumphs.

“We've been lucky down there and very fortunate that we've had some good success with our horses,” he said. “Hopefully it continues with Funny Guy.”

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