largent | Horse Racing Free Tips

Weekend Lineup Presented By Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association: Say It Ain’t Snow

While most of the Northeast has been blanketed by snow and endured sub-freezing temperatures during the week, the horse racing action will help heat things up a bit this weekend with graded stakes action from coast to coast.

Saturday offers up a Grade 3 on the turf at Gulfstream Park, while older fillies and mares battle in the Pippin at Oaklawn and sophomore fillies go head-to-head in the G2 Santa Ynez at Santa Anita. Sunday's offerings include the G3 Las Cienegas at Santa Anita, an exciting down-the-hill turf race with a wide-open field of eight fillies and mares.

Here's a brief look at the graded stakes action (all times Eastern).

Saturday

3:37 PM – G3 Tropical Turf Stakes at Gulfstream Park

Grade 2 winner Largent, unraced since being beaten a neck in last year's Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational (G1), returns to Gulfstream Park to launch his long-awaited comeback. The Tropical Turf would be Largent's first race in 351 days, but comes over a course where he has raced six times with four wins and two seconds. He broke his maiden in debut at Gulfstream in March 2019, won a pair of allowance races during the 2019-2020 Championship Meet as well as the Fort Lauderdale.

Value Proposition is a British-bred ridgling that won three of his first four career starts and has matched that total over his last nine, including victories in the one-mile Red Bank and seven-furlong Oyster Bay last fall. The 5-year-old was second in the 2021 Forbidden Apple (G3) and third in the 2020 Poker (G3), and enters the Tropical Turf having finished fifth in the six-furlong Aqueduct Turf Sprint Championship Nov. 27.

Another graded winner in the field is Phat Man, who captured the 2020 Fred W. Hooper (G3) at Gulfstream. The 7-year-old gelding has two seconds in five lifetime tries on grass, but was last on the surface in the October 2017 Hawthorne Derby for previous connections.

Flying Scotsman will be making his second start off a layoff in the Tropical Turf. He ran fifth in a one-mile, 70-yard optional claiming allowance Dec. 19 that was moved off the Gulfstream turf to its Tapeta surface. Promoted winner of the 2019 Woodchopper at Fair Grounds, it was his first race since setting the pace before finishing sixth by 2 ¼ lengths in the Dinner Party (G2) at Pimlico Race Course.

7:06 PM – G2 Santa Ynez Stakes at Santa Anita Park

An impressive maiden winner in her most recent start, Bob Baffert-trained Under the Stars heads a field of six sophomore fillies going seven furlongs in this $200,000 contest. A respectable third, beaten three quarters of a length by the well regarded Tonito's in the 6 ½ furlong Desi Arnaz Stakes two starts back on Nov. 13, Under the Stars came back earn a Beyer Speed Figure of 80 when registering an impressive three-length maiden win at Los Alamitos going six furlongs on Dec. 11.

Reddam Racing's Awake At Midnyte, a close second in a one mile turf stakes on Nov. 27, also rates a big look, as do California-bred stakes winner Big Switch and recent turf maiden winner Miss Mattie B.

A $320,000 March 2-year-old in training sale purchase, Awake At Midnyte pressed the pace and came away a game neck first-out maiden winner going six furlongs on Oct. 31 here at Santa Anita and then stretched out to a mile on turf in the G3 Jimmy Durante Stakes at Del Mar Nov. 27. A close second early, she wrested control a sixteenth of a mile out but lost a desperate photo by a nose in a huge effort.

A California-bred by hot sire Mr. Big, John Sadler's Big Switch, a first-out maiden winner going six furlongs at Del Mar Aug. 20, followed that up with a 2 ¾ length win going seven furlongs in the Golden State Juvenile Fillies Nov. 5, earning an 80 Beyer Speed Figure. In what will be her first try in open company, she'll get the services of John Velazquez.

Trained by Bob Hess, Jr., Miss Mattie B rallied from far back to break her maiden going one mile on turf Nov. 27 and will hope to have a similar late kick as she switched back to dirt and shortens up a furlong. Miss Mattie B will be ridden back by Mike Smith.

Sunday

6:30 PM – G3 Las Cienegas Stakes at Santa Anita Park

A stakes winner over the course, Zero Tolerance heads a field of eight older fillies and mares going 6 ½ furlongs down Santa Anita's hillside turf this Sunday. Zero Tolerance stalked the pace and rallied impressively to take the ungraded Unzip Me Stakes over the course three starts back on Oct. 3 and was subsequently a close fourth going one mile on turf in the G3 Autumn Miss Stakes on Oct. 30. She sped to a 1 ¼ length win at 3-5 in a second condition allowance on Nov. 20 at Del Mar. Originally trained by Peter Miller, she'll be saddled by Ruben Alvarado on Sunday as she seeks her first graded win and her fourth overall from six starts.

Vladimir Cerin's Hear My Prayer and Bob Baffert's Ginja, a pair of distaffers in good recent form, also rate big chances in what will be their initial tries down Santa Anita's unique hillside layout. Throw in Baffert's classy comebacker Beautiful Gift and John Sadler's newcomer, Gold for Kitten, as well as his veteran stakes winner Constantia, and the Las Cienegas has the look of a wide open affair.

The post Weekend Lineup Presented By Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association: Say It Ain’t Snow appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Tough Tropical Turf Field Awaits Largent In Gulfstream Park Comeback

Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Twin Creeks Racing Stable's Grade 2 winner Largent, unraced since being beaten a neck in last year's Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational (G1), returns to Gulfstream Park to launch his long-awaited comeback in Saturday's $100,000 Tropical Turf (G3) at the Hallandale Beach, Fla., racetrack.

The 44^th running of the one-mile Tropical Turf for 4-year-olds and up serves as the headliner on an 11-race program that begins at noon.

Largent, a newly turned 5-year-old son of Into Mischief, owns six wins and four seconds in 10 career starts, with Virginia-bred stakes victories in the Edward P. Evans and Bert Allen prior to a two-length upset of the 1 1/8-mile Fort Lauderdale (G2) in 2020, the latter at 16-1 odds in his graded debut.

“He's a really cool horse that we're thrilled to have coming back with Twin Creeks,” said Eclipse managing partner Aron Wellman. “You don't see too many records like his, where he's never been worse than second in any of his lifetime races. Multiple stakes winner. Graded-stakes winner. Second by a neck in last year's Pegasus Turf. He's an awesome horse who's a model of consistency at a very high level, and those are very hard to come by.”

Largent, named for the Seattle Seahawks' Hall of Fame wide receiver Steve Largent, forged a short lead entering the stretch of the Pegasus Turf last January, only to be passed late by stablemate Colonel Liam. Colonel Liam would go on to win two more graded-stakes, including the May 1 Turf Classic (G1).

Following two subsequent works at Palm Beach Downs for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher, Largent went to the sidelines and did not have another timed breeze until mid-November over the all-weather surface at WinStar Farm's training center. He returned to South Florida in late November and has worked steadily since, including a bullet five-furlong move in 1:02.01 Dec. 31.

“We've given him a lot of time since last year's Pegasus. Twin Creeks had him out at their farm and treated him like a king, then he went over to WinStar to get legged up. They always do a phenomenal job,” Wellman said. “Todd's been very pleased with him since he came back to Palm Beach Downs.”

The Tropical Turf would be Largent's first race in 351 days, but comes over a course where he has raced six times with four wins and two seconds. He broke his maiden in debut at Gulfstream in March 2019, won a pair of allowance races during the 2019-2020 Championship Meet as well as the Fort Lauderdale.

“He's been sensational at Gulfstream since Day 1,” Wellman said. “It's definitely a very appealing scenario that, if he's going to come back, to do it here on what has been his most successful sort of home turf, so to speak.”

Wellman said the connections are approaching the Tropical Turf with both optimistic and realistic expectations ahead of the $1 million Pegasus Turf on Jan. 29.

“I'd be lying to you if I said we thought we had him 100 percent cranked up off such a long layoff,” Wellman said. “But, this race is coming up in such a way that the timing is right and the distance is probably right to get him going. While we're certainly not, by any means, trying to get too far ahead of ourselves, it's not out of the question that if he were to run very well and emerge from this race well, that in three weeks' time the Pegasus could come back into play.

“We're not going to call our shot by any stretch of the imagination,” he added. “The main thing is that this is probably the most logical launching point for him, even though he's probably not entirely tight for this outing.”

Championship Meet-leading rider Luis Saez has the call on Largent from the rail in a field of seven.

“We felt like we're cutting it a little close in terms of how cranked up he is, but with this race being three weeks before the Pegasus Turf it could put us in a position to have some options, so we decided to give it a go,” said Pletcher. “He's been training well like he always does and he's always shown an affinity for the Gulfstream course. He's always seemed to do well over it. I think it's a good starting point. He's shown he's pretty versatile and can handle multiple distances.”

Klaravich Stables' Value Proposition is a British-bred ridgling that won three of his first four career starts and has matched that total over his last nine, including victories in the one-mile Red Bank and seven-furlong Oyster Bay last fall. The 5-year-old was second in the 2021 Forbidden Apple (G3) and third in the 2020 Poker (G3), and enters the Tropical Turf having finished fifth in the six-furlong Aqueduct Turf Sprint Championship Nov. 27.

Irad Ortiz Jr. is named to ride from Post 4 at co-topweight of 122 pounds.

Another graded winner in the field is Marianne Stribling, Force Five Racing and Two Rivers Racing Stable's Phat Man, who captured the 2020 Fred W. Hooper (G3) at Gulfstream. The 7-year-old gelding has two seconds in five lifetime tries on grass, but was last on the surface in the October 2017 Hawthorne Derby for previous connections.

Shaun Bridgmohan gets the assignment from Post 3 at 120 pounds.

Calumet Farm homebred Flying Scotsman will be making his second start off a layoff in the Tropical Turf. He ran fifth in a one-mile, 70-yard optional claiming allowance Dec. 19 that was moved off the Gulfstream turf to its Tapeta surface. Promoted winner of the 2019 Woodchopper at Fair Grounds, it was his first race since setting the pace before finishing sixth by 2 ¼ lengths in the Dinner Party (G2) at Pimlico Race Course.

“He's doing well. His last run was off the turf and on the Tapeta. It was his first run in probably six or seven months so he needed that run,” trainer Jack Sisterson said. “He's run well second off a layoff at Gulfstream. He won a nice allowance race last year in a quick time, so we expect sort of a performance like that this weekend.”

Flying Scotsman was fifth in last year's Tropical Turf after being unable to get to the early lead. It was his first race in nearly seven months, and he came back with a front-running optional claiming allowance triumph in mid-February.

“That's typically how we train. We don't win first time out or off a layoff. We like to let them improve with races. He did that last year and we expect him to do the same this weekend,” Sisterson said. “He definitely has the talent to win a race like this, it's just whether the race will set up for him. I think his best races are when he's on the front end.”

Corey Lanerie will ride Flying Scotsman from Post 5.

Peace Sign Stables' stakes winner Belgrano, most recently seventh in the Claiming Crown Canterbury Dec. 4 at Gulfstream; MEB Stables' Clear Vision, runner-up in the 1 1/16-mile Claiming Crown Emerald; and Vicente Stella Stables' Call Curt, eight-for-10 in the money lifetime, complete the field.

The post Tough Tropical Turf Field Awaits Largent In Gulfstream Park Comeback appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Pegasus World Cup Turf Runner-Up Largent Could Surface In Tropical Turf

Grade 2 winners Largent, unraced since a runner-up finish in the 2021 Pegasus World Cup Turf (G1), and stablemate Mutasaabeq, who captured the 2021 Mucho Macho Man, head a list of 14 horses nominated to the $100,000 Tropical Turf (G3) for 4-year-olds and up going one mile Jan. 8 at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

Twin Creeks Racing Stables and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Largent owns four wins and two seconds in six career tries over the Gulfstream turf, including a victory in the 2020 Fort Lauderdale (G2). The multiple stakes winner was beaten a neck in last winter's Pegasus Turf by Colonel Liam, also trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, and shows six works at Palm Beach Downs since late November.

Shadwell Stable's Mutasaabeq, another Pletcher trainee, went to the sidelines after capturing the one-mile Mucho Macho Man on dirt last January at Gulfstream. The Into Mischief colt has raced twice previously on the grass, including a victory in the October 2020 Bourbon (G2) going 1 1/16 miles at Keeneland.

Mutasaabeq worked five furlongs in 1:00.23 Sunday at Palm Beach Downs, the fastest of four horses, in his eighth timed breeze since mid-November.

Another horse nominated off a long layoff is Paradise Farms Corp.'s Bemma's Boy, a 6-year-old Into Mischief gelding that has not raced since his neck victory over Mike Maker-trained stablemate Zulu Alpha, winner of the 2020 Pegasus Turf, in the March 2020 Pan American (G2) at Gulfstream. Bemma's Boy returned to the work tab last September at Ellis Park and has breezed steadily since, his last five coming at Gulfstream.

Maker also nominated Three Diamonds Farm's Field Pass, last out winner of the 1 1/16-mile Seabiscuit Handicap (G2) Nov. 27 at Del Mar. The 4-year-old son of Lemon Drop Kid also has four Grade 3 victories to his credit including the Baltimore-Washington International Turf Cup at historic Pimlico Race Course last June, and won the 2020 Dania Beach in his only previous try over the Gulfstream turf.

Also prominent among nominees are 2019 Virginia Derby (G3) winner English Bee, 2020 Fred Hooper (G3) winner Phat Man, and stakes winners Belgrano, Flying Scotsman and Value Proposition.

The post Pegasus World Cup Turf Runner-Up Largent Could Surface In Tropical Turf appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Pletcher Runs 1-2 As Colonel Liam Bests Largent In Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational

Robert and Lawana Low's Colonel Liam, the least experienced contender in the richest grass race of the winter season, looked like a seasoned pro in his graded-stakes debut, powering through the stretch to edge Grade 2-winning stablemate Largent by a neck in Saturday's $1-million Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational (G1) at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

The third running of the 1 3/16-mile Pegasus Turf and the fifth renewal of the $3-million Pegasus World Cup (G1) at 1 1/8 miles on dirt, both for 4-year-olds and up, comprised the Pegasus World Cup Championship Invitational Series, headlining a blockbuster 12-race program that featured seven graded-stakes worth $4.725 million in purses.

Colonel Liam ($7) completed the distance in 1:53.09 over a firm course to lead a Todd Pletcher-trained exacta with Largent, winner of the Fort Lauderdale (G2) Dec. 12 at Gulfstream in his previous start. Cross Border, trying to give trainer Mike Maker his second straight Pegasus Turf victory, was third followed by multiple graded-stakes winner Social Paranoia – the third of Pletcher's talented trio.

“I couldn't be more pleased with the way they all ran,” Pletcher said. “It was a heck of a race between Largent and Colonel Liam at the end. I thought Social Paranoia put in a huge effort from the 12 post. Just really, really happy with all three of them.”

It was the first Pegasus win for Pletcher and second in three editions of the Turf for jockey Irad Ortiz Jr., also winning with eventual 2019 Horse of the Year Bricks and Mortar. Ortiz won the 2020 Pegasus World Cup with Mucho Gusto.

“This is just unreal. It's fantastic,” Robert Low said. “We just had a great combination. We had the horse, we had the trainer, we had the rider, and they got it done. We're just very, very thankful and very grateful. It's a wonderful feeling.”

Sent off as the 5-2 top choice, Colonial Liam was unhurried racing in mid-pack as Storm the Court, winless since being named the 2-year-old male champion of 2019, and multiple graded-stakes winner Anothertwistafate took the field through splits of 23.59 seconds for the opening quarter-mile, 48.69 for a half and six furlongs in 1:12.85. Largent saved ground in fourth with Social Paranoia right behind after working his way over from outside Post 12.

Ortiz sat chilly on Colonial Liam while waiting for room around the turn, advancing to fourth just a half-length off the lead. Ortiz found an opening and tipped outside approaching the stretch, setting down for a drive once straightened for home. They were able to get by Social Paranoia, who briefly held a lead near the eighth pole, then outsprinted Largent, who snuck through a seam along the rail and dug in under Paco Lopez.

“In the second and third quarter everybody slowed down and I got good position. I waited inside and got through a little late,” Lopez said. “If I was able to get through earlier, it might have been different.”

Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Twin Creeks Racing Stable's Largent, a two-time Virginia-bred stakes winner in addition to his Fort Lauderdale triumph, now has six wins and four seconds in 10 lifetime tries.

“He's run 10 times now and has never been worse than second,” Pletcher said. “He ran a hell of a race today and just was on the tough side of a stretch duel there.”

Tyler Gaffalione had to navigate through traffic to get up for third with Three Diamonds Farm's Cross Border, promoted winner of the Bowling Green (G2) and second as the favorite in the Sword Dancer (G1) last summer at Saratoga. They were two lengths behind Largent.

“It wasn't an ideal trip. He didn't get away the smoothest and there was a lot of traffic around the first turn and down the backside,” Gaffalione said. “We were just trying to wait for a spot but nothing really developed until we came into the stretch and then a spot opened up. He really finished up well. It's a shame. I felt like I had more horse and I could have finished better but definitely a very encouraging race moving forward.”

The Elkstone Group's Social Paranoia was only a half-length behind Cross Border in fourth. He won the Appleton (G3) over the Gulfstream course last winter and was coming in off back-to-back victories five months apart – the Poker (G3) at Belmont Park last July and an optional claiming allowance Dec. 16 at Gulfstream.

“He still dug in and put his head in front at one point. He made everyone run and it was a great effort from him,” Pletcher said. “I think with a little better draw he would have been a little closer.”

Following Social Paranoia under the wire were Pixelate, Next Shares, Storm the Court, Aquaphobia, Breaking the Rules, North Dakota, Say the Word and Anothertwistafate.

Colonel Liam, a 4-year-old colt from the first crop of Liam's Map, was purchased for $1.2 million as a 2-year-old in training in April 2019 and began his career on dirt, with one win via disqualification and a third in two tries, both last spring at Gulfstream. He has since won three of four on the grass, including a 3 ¼-length triumph in the Dec. 26 Tropical Park Derby to punch his Pegasus ticket. The lone loss came by less than a length in the Saratoga Derby (G1).

“We really were [confident]. He showed us a lot of ability in his couple of starts on the grass. We felt like he was getting better and better,” Pletcher said. “We loved the way he handled the turf in the Tropical Derby and he had trained great. We were very optimistic, He's a little less experienced than some of the other horses, but I think this proves his quality.”

The post Pletcher Runs 1-2 As Colonel Liam Bests Largent In Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post