‘Rising Star’ First Mission Returns Victoriously at Keeneland

10th-Keeneland, $120,000, Alw (NW2$X), Opt. Clm ($80,000), 10-14, 3yo/up, 1 1/16m, 1:45.63, ft, neck.
FIRST MISSION (c, 3, Street Sense–Elude, by Medaglia d'Oro), making his first start since winning this track's GIII Lexington S. during the April meeting, validated 2-5 favoritism–if only just–to give Godolphin a sweep of the late Daily Double. Off alertly from the inside stall, the homebred allowed himself to be taken back to sit in the second flight of horses behind a pace that was slow to materialize. Up into third and remaining glued to the fence entering the far turn following a half-mile that was clocked in just :49.73, First Mission came under a Luis Saez ride with 2 1/2 furlongs to race, but was scrubbed on vigorously to pick up the bridle. Short of running room in upper stretch behind a wall of horses, First Mission was forced to come across the heels of several rivals to find daylight five off the rail with time ticking away and kicked home gamely to prevail. The homebred earned a 96 Beyer on Fair Grounds sprint debut Feb. 18, good for only second to 'Rising Star' Bishops Bay (Uncle Mo) before dusting rivals by 6 1/2 lengths to pick up his own 'Rising Star' laurels. After besting future GI Woody Stephens S. hero Arabian Lion (Justify) in the Lexington, First Mission was being pointed to a start in the GI Preakness S., but a left hind issue forced his withdrawal 36 hours prior to the race. A daughter of Argentinan champion Forty Marchanta (Arg) (Roar), Elude is bred on that same Medaglia d'Oro cross over Forty Niner mares that has resulted in the likes of Rachel Alexandra, Songbird and Elate, to name a few. The mare was purchased by Oussama Aboughazale's International Equities Holding for $105,000 infoal to Street Sense at Keeneland January in 2022 and that full-brother to First Mission was hammered down to Richard Santulli's Colts Neck Stable for $500,000 at Keeneland September last month. Elude produced a colt by Protonico in 2023 and was bred to Life Is Good this past season. Lifetime Record: GSW, 4-3-1-0, $348,110. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
O/B-Godolphin (KY); T-Brad H Cox.

 

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This Side Up: Veterans Would Have An Instant Solution

Coming from a culture where most wagering stipulates a fixed dividend, in the startling event that your horse happens to see through his part of the deal, I tend to view the morning line on American races as named for the hangover evidently being suffered by its compiler. Certainly by the time the market has been soberly hydrated with dollars and cents, I won't be expecting anything as close to an even play as the 4-5 listed about Forte (Violence) overcoming the wide draw that appears to introduce his only real jeopardy in the GI Curlin Florida Derby at Gulfstream on Saturday.

We all know that anything can happen in a horse race, but some imaginative contortions are required to see any of his rivals bridging the abyss dividing them from the champion juvenile. After all, the most competent among them are keeping him company out wide anyway. There has to be every chance, then, that the GI Kentucky Derby favorite will arrive at Churchill without having been put under any meaningful pressure in five months since having to deal with Cave Rock (Arrogate) in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Keeneland in November.

This, as we know, is the modern way. If his Hall of Fame trainer is satisfied that Forte's best shot of winning the Derby is not even to run until March, and then only to outclass two fields of inferiors in his backyard, then we must respectfully stand aside. It's a different race, nowadays, and contested by a different kind of horse; and it is hardly Forte's fault that so few credible contenders have been tempted to slipstream their way to 40 starting points for the runner-up.

(To listen to an audio version of this column, click below)

 

Nor is he vulnerable to the way a similarly light schedule has backfired for Instant Coffee (Bolt d'Oro), who was deliberately kept under wraps between Jan. 21 and last weekend. It looked a safe enough gamble, in that the starting points awarded down to fifth place in the GII Louisiana Derby gave the hot favorite plenty of margin for error. In the event, however, he missed out altogether after trying to make up ground into a quickening pace and running a tepid finish.

There may be dozens of different reasons for that, so we can't assume that another race in between might have sustained him better through that mile and three-sixteenths. But what I do know is that horsemen of the old school, finding themselves in this kind of pickle, would certainly not be panicking. And that's because they would know that there are still 40 points available in the GIII Stonestreet Lexington S. on Apr. 15.

Now obviously if you decide that the model Derby prep today comprises races on Jan. 21 and Mar. 25, then I can't imagine that you'll suddenly be willing to salvage the situation with a race at the modern equivalent of five to midnight. That's a shame, because a lot of people involved in this talented colt deserve their shot at an experience that owes much of its mystique precisely to the fact that a) no horse gets a second chance; and b) as a result, nor do very many horsemen.

I can think of one man who wouldn't be squeamish about a three-week interval between the Lexington S. and the Derby. In fact, D. Wayne Lukas was probably disappointed in 1982 when Churchill moved the old Derby Trial from the Tuesday before the race back to the Saturday. The couple of Trial winners he had that decade were doubtless a little rusty by the time they ran midfield in the Derby, a full week later.

At 87, and 40 years after his first winner in Hot Springs, Lukas is already enjoying the most lucrative Oaklawn meet of his career and he's a long way from finished. Besides upcoming engagements for barn leaders Secret Oath (Arrogate) and Last Samurai (Malibu Moon), Lukas has seven declared on Saturday's card including 'TDN Rising Star' Caddo River (Hard Spun) in the GIII Oaklawn Mile.

Until recently a barnmate of Instant Coffee, Caddo River ran second in the GI Arkansas Derby two years ago. And actually Lukas has a candidate for the latest running with, I suspect, a rather better chance than odds that may yet extend past the 20-1 of the “hangover” line. Bourbon Bash (City of Light) broke his maiden by eight lengths at Saratoga last summer but then bombed out in consecutive Grade Is and was then given a chance to start piecing things quietly back together in sprints. He hadn't quite learned to settle when runner-up to a talented rival around a second turn last month, but then caught the eye with the way he handled a poor trip when fifth as rank outsider for the GII Rebel S.

Lukas evidently believes that Bourbon Bash can stretch out effectively and, if he's right, his revival could yet open up a final fairytale. But we must note that this colt is out of a sister to Volatile (Violence), who has helped to make the sire of Forte primarily, to this point at least, a speed brand. That duly also remains a caveat about the crop leader, who will probably be depending heavily on damsire Blame on the first Saturday in May, when he'll be facing a 10th furlong in much more exacting company.

Ironically this will actually be only Bourbon Bash's third sophomore start, scarcely the standard Lukas treatment. Lukas has said that the horse doesn't need mental seasoning, but has needed time to strengthen. He's certainly fired some bullet works over the past month or so but, who knows, maybe he'll end up having to complete his preparations in the Lexington S.- the last port of call now that the old race-week Trial has been absorbed into the Derby undercard as the GII Pat Day Mile.

Tim Tam, the last horse to double up the Trial and the Derby, had previously won both the races chosen for Forte's own road to Churchill: the Fountain Of Youth S. and Florida Derby. In fact, the Kentucky Derby was his 10th sophomore start. So where would Jimmy Jones have learned a fool thing like that, running a future Hall of Famer four days before the Derby? Well, I can't quote chapter and verse–but I can give you a Citation.

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Nothing Plain About Bob Baffert

When Bob Baffert won a record seventh GI Kentucky Derby May 1 with Medina Spirit (Protonico), I couldn't help but think back to the first time I met the conditioner.

Walking through the Keeneland barn area one mid-April morning in 1990, Baffert asked if I knew where the clockers were located at the track. We introduced ourselves to each other and I offered to show him the route to the press box, where the clockers were situated during training hours.

Baffert was in the process of switching from Quarter Horses to Thoroughbreds and had travelled to Keeneland with the first horse he hoped to run in the Derby–Thirty Slews.

Impressive winner of his first two starts in California the previous month, Baffert already had his sights set on racing's biggest prize. He shipped the son of Slewpy east to run in the Lexington S.

Thirty Slews ran third that day, behind Home At Last and Pleasant Tap, and shipped back to California while Unbridled won the Derby.

Though over the next three decades Baffert would strive–quite successfully–to find horses that could stay the Classic distance, it was apparent Thirty Slews could not.

He made 18 starts subsequent to the Lexington and only left California one other time. But the one time he did was monumental for Baffert.

Following a win in the 1992 Bing Crosby H., Thirty Slews was shipped to Florida, where he won the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint at Gulfstream Park for owners Mike Pegram, Mitch Degroot and Dutch Masters III.

Sent off at 19-1, Thirty Slews just got up by a neck over Meafara, who led every step of the way–except the last step.

Thirty Slews, the first Thoroughbred Baffert purchased at public auction ($30,000 at Keeneland September), had provided him with his first Grade I win.

It is interesting to think about this: Had Thirty Slews won the Lexington, Baffert may have run him in the Derby. A colt who was unraced at 2 and would have entered the starting gate on the first Saturday of May making just his fourth start.

Of course, no horse had won the Derby without racing as a juvenile since 1892 until Baffert did it with Justify in 2018, who would go on to become a Triple Crown winner.

And, it is Baffert who has redesigned the path to the Derby, proving you can run for–and win–the roses with fewer starts before the race than trainers thought horses needed not that many years ago.

Baffert took Thirty Slews, a $30,000 yearling, and turned him into a Grade I winner.

He took Medina Spirit–a $1,000 yearling turned $35,000 2-year-old–into a Derby winner.

A few races before Medina Spirit led every step of the way to win the Derby, Baffert trained Gamine won the GI Derby City Distaff, giving the trainer a record 220 Grade I wins.

Medina Spirit would give Baffert Grade I victory number 221.

But as he crossed the finish line, I was thinking about Baffert's first Grade I winner and the day I met the trainer at Keeneland.

With seven Derby scores, Baffert passed trainer “Plain Ben” Jones.

Since that spring day I first met Baffert 31 years ago, he has proven there is nothing plain about him.

He proved it once again May 1.

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Curlin Colt Rallies ‘Fury’-ously To Win the Lexington

Fern Circle Stable & Three Chimneys Farm's King Fury (Curlin) took advantage of a fast early pace in Saturday's GIII Stonestreet Lexington S. over a sloppy Keeneland main track and closed off fastest of all to cause an 18-1 upset, earning 20 points towards a potential appearance in the GI Kentucky Derby in three weeks' time.

A maiden winner at first asking over a distance of ground at Churchill Sept. 3, King Fury could not overcome a wide trip when eighth of nine behind Essential Quality (Tapit) in the GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity over this course and distance Oct. 3. The half-length winner of the Oct. 25 Street Sense S. beneath the Twin Spires, he could do no better than seventh when wheeled back on 12 days' rest in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile and added blinkers–to no avail–en route to a fifth in the GII Kentucky Jockey Club S. at Churchill Nov. 28.

They lined up three across the strip entering the first turn, as the rail-drawn and well-backed Noble Reflection (Liam's Map) set a demanding tempo from Swiftsure (Uncle Mo), with the much-hyped Besos (Empire Maker) three deep. Favored Proxy (Tapit) lingered towards the rear of the field with just two behind, including King Fury–getting the blinkers off for this seasonal debut–who was guided down to the inside by Brian Hernandez, Jr. down the backstretch after climbing through the sloppy going rounding the first turn.

Traveling noticeably more comfortably at halfay, the $950,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga grad improved into fifth on the bridle approaching the turn, angled to the outside of Noble Reflection while full of run off the home corner and stayed on well enough to best Unbridled Honor (Honor Code)–who made a run from absolute last–by 2 1/2 lengths. Starrinmydreams (Super Saver) raced prominently throughout and rounded out a trifecta that returned better than 1200-1. Proxy ran on admirably for fourth. The McPeek-trained and Fern Circle-owned Senior Investment (Discreetly Mine) upset the 2017 Lexington at 11-1.

“I got to the five-eighths pole and went 'Man, they're in trouble from this point,' because he was just doing it the right way and traveling and taking us the whole way,” said Hernandez, Jr. “He was so powerful today that I knew I would just be able to pick my way through like we did. He was just there for me the whole way.”

The 20 points earned for the victory Saturday leave King Fury on the fence for the Derby, but McPeek is game to face the challenge, should the opportunity present itself.

“We'll check him after this race,” he said. “I think he's going to handle a mile and a quarter without any trouble. Whether he gets in, it's out of our control. We'll see how he bounces out. We think a mile a quarter would be great. We'll look at the opposition. The [May 15 GI] Preakness S. is a great race too. It could be either-or, but it would definitely one or the other.”

Pedigree Notes:

King Fury is the first–and, sadly, only–produce for his dam, named a 'TDN Rising Star' following a smashing debut for Commonwealth New Era Racing and trainer Todd Beattie before winning Keeneland's GII Lexus Raven Run S. in track-record time of 1:21.32. Acquired by Coolmore for $2.35 million at the 2014 Fasig-Tipton November Sale, Taris was a bang-up second after setting a furious early pace in the GI La Brea S. in her first run for trainer Simon Callaghan. She would go on to win four of her next seven starts, capped by a victory in the 2016 GI Humana Distaff S. She was later acquired privately for breeding purposes and Scott Heider's Heider Family Stable took full ownership of the mare upon dissolution of the partnership. Taris died shortly after foaling King Fury.

Taris's success at the races helped to make members of her immediate female family extremely popular at public auction. Her dam, who sold for $24,000 in foal to Flatter at the 2012 Keeneland November Sale, was bred to Tapit in the aftermath of Taris's 3-year-old season and was sold to Stonestreet for $1.5 million at KEENOV in 2015. That produce, a colt, fetched $900,000 as a Keeneland September yearling in 2017. Taris's full-sister Stoweshoe, a winner in West Virginia-bred stakes company at Mountaineer Park, was sold for $330,000 at the 2016 Fasig-Tipton February Sale. Her 4-year-old son Desert Peace (Curlin), a $1.3-million KEESEP yearling of 2018, was a handicap winner at Meydan Mar. 11, while Stonestreet homebred Cantata (Medaglia d'Oro) annexed a Fair Grounds turf allowance Mar. 12.

King Fury becomes the 39th graded winner for his sire, himself the slop-loving winner of the 2007 GI Breeders' Cup Classic. While King Fury is the first produce of a daughter Flatter to produce a graded winner to Curlin, the stallion has eight such winners from A.P. Indy-line dams, including 'TDN Rising Star' and recent GI Central Bank Ashland winner Malathaat and Stonestreet's fellow Oaks contender and GSW Clariere.

Saturday, Keeneland
STONESTREET LEXINGTON S.-GIII, $200,000, Keeneland, 4-10, 3yo, 1 1/16m, 1:43.50, sy.
1–KING FURY, 118, c, 3, by Curlin
1st Dam: Taris (GISW, $1,086,260), by Flatter
2nd Dam: Comedy, by Theatrical (Ire)

3rd Dam: Don't Be Silly, by Lord At War (Arg)
   1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($950,000 Ylg '19 FTSAUG). O-Fern
Circle Stables & Three Chimneys Farm, LLC; B-Heider Family
Stables, LLC (KY); T-Kenneth G. McPeek; J-Brian Joseph
Hernandez, Jr. $120,000. Lifetime Record: 6-3-0-0, $262,739.
Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*  Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Unbridled Honor, 118, c, 3, Honor Code–Silvery Starlet, by
Unbridled's Song. O/B-Whisper Hill Farm, LLC (KY); T-Todd A.
Pletcher. $40,000.
3–Starrininmydreams, 118, c, 3, Super Saver–Boy Crazy, by Sky
Mesa. O-Stewart Racing Stable & WinStar Farm LLC; B-Dallas
Stewart & WinStar Farm, LLC (KY); T-Dallas Stewart. $20,000.
Margins: 2 3/4, 2 1/4, 1. Odds: 18.20, 20.10, 8.10.
Also Ran: Proxy, Noble Reflection, It's My House, Swiftsure, Hockey Dad, Bezos. Scratched: Ultimate Badger.Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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