Sisterson Sees Veteran Channel Cat On Upswing Going Into Man O’ War

Trainer Jack Sisterson will saddle Calumet Farm homebred Channel Cat in search of a first Grade 1 score in Saturday's $700,000 Man o' War, an 11-furlong inner turf test for older horses at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

The 6-year-old English Channel horse made the grade under the care of newly minted Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher in the 2019 Grade 2 Bowling Green at Saratoga Race Course. The victory came as part of a profitable season in which the chestnut finished third in both the Grade 1 United Nations at Monmouth Park and the Grade 1 Sword Dancer at the Spa.

Transferred to Sisterson's care last year, Channel Cat finished a closing fifth in the nine-furlong Grade 2 Fort Lauderdale in December at Gulfstream Park and followed with an even fifth in the Grade 3 William L. McKnight traveling 1 1/2-miles at the same oval in January.

Last out, Channel Cat was a prominent second in the 12-furlong Grade 2 Elkhorn on April 17 on the Keeneland turf.

Sisterson said a revised training schedule for Channel Cat heading into the Elkhorn made a world of difference.

“We were disappointed with his effort in the McKnight in Florida. Usually, second off the layoff in our barn is a big step forward and not a regression,” said Sisterson. “I think he was breezing too fast in the mornings leading up to the McKnight, so we backed off on him and gave him two weeks off after that race to focus on the Elkhorn at Keeneland. We slowed his works right down and he thrived off that.

“His coat started to change and he put on weight,” added Sisterson. “He ran a great second in the Elkhorn and Corey Lanerie was really happy with him. He came out of that race and put on weight and looked better coming out of it than he did going into it.”

To win the Grade 1 event, Channel Cat will have to topple a field that includes the North American debut of Sovereign, a gate-to-wire winner of the 2019 Group 1 Irish Derby, and last year's Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational-winner Gufo.

Sisterson said he will leave race tactics in the capable hands of Hall of Famer John Velazquez, who will guide Channel Cat from post 5.

“The good thing with Channel Cat is that he can be forwardly placed or save ground and relax and come from off the pace,” said Sisterson. “A lot of people would agree that a European horse with speed is a lot different from an American horse with speed, so It will be interesting to see what Irad Ortiz, Jr. does with Sovereign, who has shown speed in Europe.”

Sisterson is hoping to saddle a trio of horses Saturday at Belmont, including Calumet Farm's Anejo, a first time starter by Freud out of the Thunder Gulch mare Tiffany Twisted.

Anejo, bred in the Empire State by SF Bloodstock, is listed as the first also-eligible entrant in a six-furlong turf sprint for state-bred maidens 3-years-old and up in Race 5. Luis Saez will have the call should Anejo draw into the field.

“He was such a big 2-year-old that we backed off on him and let him grow into his frame,” said Sisterson. “He's big, but he shows a lot of speed as well. He had been working forwardly on the dirt and we don't usually win first time out, but he showed enough foundation to get him going on Saturday if he gets in.”

The New York-bred sophomore colt, purchased for $150,000 at the 2019 Saratoga Preferred New York-bred Yearling Sale, is a half-sibling to multiple stakes winner Twisted Tom.

Sisterson will also be represented by Calumet Farm homebred Scarabea in Race 11, a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight on the Widener turf for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up. By American Pharoah, Scarabea is out of the multiple graded stakes winning Galileo mare Starstruck.

The well-bred chestnut, a half-sister to stakes winner Turf War, will make her fourth career start out of a closing fourth in a nine-furlong turf event at Keeneland on April 7.

“It may not be her best distance on Saturday. I think she's better at a mile and an eighth, but they might go a touch quicker up front at the shorter distance Saturday which would help her out,” said Sisterson.

Sisterson said a good effort on Saturday could propel Scarabea to the Grade 3,$200,000 Wonder Again, a nine-furlong turf test for sophomore fillies on June 3 at Belmont.

“She'll stay all day long and whether she breaks her maiden or not on Saturday, we'll see. If she does, we might try the Wonder Again,” said Sisterson. “If she doesn't, we'll be patient with her and look to break her maiden. She's definitely a filly that as she gets older and the races stretch out a bit, she could be a force in those longer distance turf races.”

Jose Lezcano is named to ride from post 3 in a field of 10.

Sisterson said Calumet Farm homebred Lexitonian is possible for the Grade 1, $1 million Hill 'N' Dale Metropolitan Handicap on Belmont Stakes Day on June 5, following a strong second in the Grade 1 Churchill Downs on Kentucky Derby Day when defeated a head by Flagstaff.

“On his day, he can compete with the best of them. He's a fighter and he puts his heart on the line,” said Sisterson.

Lexitonian entered the Churchill Downs from an even fourth in his seasonal debut in an optional-claiming sprint at Gulfstream Park in March.

“The goal was always the Churchill Downs and he had time between starts and we were able to work him three times,” said Sisterson. “We knew second off the layoff is good with him. This was the first time since we've had him that he didn't win second time off the layoff for us, so we thought it would be a much improved performance, which it was.”

The 5-year-old Speightstown chestnut boasts a record of 17-4-2-2 with purse earnings of $465,182. Lexitonian made the grade in the 2019 Grade 3 Chick Lang at Pimlico Race Course.

Sisterson said the Metropolitan Handicap and the Grade 1, $350,000 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap, a six-furlong sprint for 3-year-olds and up on July 31 at the Spa, are potential targets.

“Timing wise, the Met Mile would be perfect,” said Sisterson. “If he trains forwardly we would consider it. There's also the Aristides [May 29] at Churchill as a prep for the Vanderbilt at Saratoga for him. I just want to space his races accordingly, so he can get the Grade 1 because I think he deserves it.”

Sisterson said True Timber, who was last seen winning the Grade 1 Cigar Mile Handicap at the Big A in December under Kendrick Carmouche, is enjoying some downtime.

“True Timber has been turned out at my barn here at Keeneland since we decided to give him a break,” said Sisterson. “He's a bright eyed, happy horse. Hopefully, we can get him back going this month and back to Aqueduct at the end of the year to defend his Cigar Mile.”

The 7-year-old Mineshaft bay sports a record of 29-5-5-9 with purse earnings in excess of $1.2 million.

Bon Raison, who finished sixth last out in the Cigar Mile, is set to return to training next week. The 6-year-old son of Raison d'Etat, a Kentucky homebred, has a career ledger of 45-11-4-7 with purse earnings of $682,034.

“Bon Raison will be back on the work tab in a week or two and will come to Saratoga during the summer with us,” said Sisterson.

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Landmark 1-2 Flies the Flag for Speightstown

The day that will forever be remembered for a Cinderella story also contained a valuable corrective. Nobody, after all, will suddenly decide that the best route to the GI Kentucky Derby is simply to buy every $1,000 yearling that comes onto the market; nor does it now follow that every seven-figure yearling will necessarily prove a waste of money. Our industry will only remain viable so long as we all feel we have a puncher's chance, whatever our weight division. And if Medina Spirit (Protonico) sustained the longshot dreamer, then last Saturday also provided fresh vindication for a much bigger investment, made at much shorter odds.
The GI Churchill Downs S., a race opened up by the defection of one son of Speightstown, Charlatan, was instead decided by the head separating two others, Flagstaff and Lexitonian. It was the runner-up's second near-miss at this level, having failed by a nose to nail the Bing Crosby S. last summer. That's how close Speightstown came to five individual Grade I winners in 2020; as it was, he earned a fee hike back up to $90,000 from $70,000. In doing so, he not only resisted the fee cuts made across nearly every roster this spring but also an insidious prejudice against ageing stallions.

For here is one prolonging his pomp in a fashion that will leave a lasting impact on the breed. That's exactly the kind of thing he was bought to do, as a $2 million yearling. And now, 22 years later, it is hard to think of many living American Thoroughbreds as deserving of the adjective “venerable.” Flagstaff is Speightstown's 20th individual Grade I winner in the Northern Hemisphere. As such, it feels right to celebrate his latest distinction as one that might-between his prolific record, and the contrasting narrative that dominated the day-be too easily taken for granted.

The fact is that Speightstown is one of the most proven, gilt-edged influences available to breeders today. And, while the expert WinStar team has been maintaining his libido and fertility to very solid levels, it behooves us all to take a step back and remind ourselves what it is that we should most be prizing in Speightstown, while we still have the chance.

It must be said that Flagstaff and Lexitonian are a couple of apples that did not fall far from the tree. At seven and five respectively, they resemble their sire in thriving with maturity round a single turn. By now breeders know not to expect precocity from Speightstown: Tamarkuz, for instance, crowned an ongoing bloom by winning the GI Breeders' Cup Mile at seven. That said, only the pandemic last year prevented Charlatan redressing his sire's notorious failure, hitherto, even to muster a starter in the any U.S. Classic, instead being obliged to settle for a division of the GI Arkansas Derby on the first Saturday in May. (Maddeningly, of course, he was sidelined by the time a Kentucky Derby was salvaged in September.)

But we should always be wary of making rules about any Thoroughbred. Speightstown has sired Grade I scorers at two, notably Sharing at the Breeders' Cup. In terms of distance, moreover, he has given us two-turn winners as prestigious as Golden Ticket in the Travers S. and Haynesfield in the Jockey Club Gold Cup. Last year he even had a Group 2 winner in France over 15 furlongs!

As should always be the case, when planning a mating, you should first think about how best to complement Speightstown's knockout, pugilistic build. Certainly it would be too simplistic to say that he merely needs a Classic-bred mare to stretch out his stock. Saturday's protagonists, Flagstaff and Lexitonian, are respectively out of mares by A.P. Indy and Tapit. His most accomplished performer in Europe, Lord Shanakill, similarly won a Group 2 over six furlongs at two even though he was out of a Theatrical (Ire) mare.

Speightstown at WinStar | Louise Reinagel

On the track, Speightstown's own trademark was the kind of speed we recognize in Nashville and Echo Town, two of the fastest sophomores of 2020. Unsurprising, then, to find Speightstown himself preceding Flagstaff on the roll of honor for what remained a Grade II handicap in 2004. By that stage, he had begun to complete the template: having twice endured prolonged injury lay-offs, he was now on a roll that would include a 1:08.04 track record at Saratoga and an Eclipse Award sealed in the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint. Mind you, the raw talent had already been transparent when running City Zip to a length in the GII Amsterdam S.-one of the more resonant races of the decade, in terms of assets showcased to breeders.

Speightstown bowed out at the Lone Star Breeders' Cup, and if that seems a long time ago, well, they still had a July Sale at Keeneland when Eugene Melnyk made that $2 million play. It's the page Speightstown brought to that auction I feel we need to revisit, because the key to his success may be something we very seldom consider now-and that's the way he can connect young mares to some storied but attenuating influences on the breed.

Speightstown's first three dams are by Storm Cat; Bold Ruler's second crop son Chieftain; and Buckpasser. If you accept Chieftain as a proxy for Bold Ruler, you could scarcely have come up with a more resonant branding at each stage.

A hard-knocking campaigner for Frank Whiteley Jr., Chieftain set a dirt track record over seven at Arlington but was also effective round two turns on turf. While he failed to establish a branch of the Bold Ruler line, he filtered some potent blood into Speightstown's family as a half-brother to Tom Rolfe (Ribot {GB}) and to the dam of Alzao (Lyphard). Their mother Pocahontas (Roman), duly decorated as Broodmare of the Year, was one of just three foals out of 1961 Kentucky Oaks winner How, who raced for Boone Hall Stable.

How was by Princequillo, momentously claimed for $2,500 during the partnership of that most colorful of stables and Horatio Luro. And the golden strands of Princequillo and Bold Ruler are further entwined in Speightstown's pedigree by the top-and-bottom replication of the mighty Secretariat (who of course combined them far more closely, as a son of Bold Ruler out of a Princequillo mare). For two of the three greatest achievements of Secretariat, as a broodmare sire, are represented in Speightstown through his sire Gone West and damsire Storm Cat.

Let's hear it for Flagstaff, by the way, as he introduces the third in his damsire A.P. Indy. What a pity he was gelded! I wouldn't mind keeping a filly by a sire that draws together the great stallion sons of Weekend Surprise, Terlingua and Secrettame… Especially as A.P. Indy himself obviously extends the Bold Ruler line; while his granddam Lassie Dear brings in Buckpasser, sire (as noted) of Speightstown's third dam. As it is, in the top half of Speightstown's pedigree we instead get a nice mirror of Buckpasser's sire Tom Fool, Gone West's second dam Tamerett being a daughter of Tom Fool's son Tim Tam.

If that is all starting to feel a little dense, then the key point couldn't be simpler. You can call Speightstown “a Mr Prospector line sire” if you like, but to me his most precious genetic payload comes through these packed seams of old gold. It's pretty rare, nowadays, to be able to breed a stallion who will give you Bold Ruler 4 x 5 x 4. (What Mr. Prospector does introduce, incidentally, is an extra line of Bold Ruler's sire Nasrullah: Mr. P.'s dam Gold Digger being by Nasrullah's son Nashua.)

So much for the overall seeding. The bottom line itself is also truly aristocratic, tracing to the matriarch Hildene who produced several elite runners and/or producers headed by 1950 Horse of the Year Hill Prince-as it happens, the first signpost to the greatness of Princequillo, as a graduate of his debut crop conceived in Virginia at $250.

Speightstown is out of Silken Cat, whose spectacular first season-three wins by an aggregate 25 ½ lengths-qualified her as Canada's champion juvenile filly and for private acquisition by Aaron and Marie Jones. She lost her only start in their ownership, but made amends with that $2 million dividend on what was her very first foal. Despite four other seven-figure yearlings, Silken Cat produced a series of duds until her very last foal, the ill-fated Irap (Tiznow), won the GII Blue Grass S.

The branch of the Hildene dynasty leading to Silken Cat goes through her granddaughter Copper Canyon, second dam of three Grade I winners: Crusader Sword (Hopeful S.), Cherokee Colony (Flamingo S.) and Turk Passer (Turf Classic Invitational). The latter was by Turkoman out of Buckpasser's unraced daughter Insilca, whose mating with Chieftain produced the stakes-winning dam of Silken Cat.

Quality in the seedbed, then; and quality in the seeding. So far as we must associate Speightstown with a sire-line, moreover, we must gratefully recall the diversity of the Gone West influence (itself so typical of Mr. Prospector)-notably on turf, from milers like Da Hoss to stayers like Johar. Sons Elusive Quality and Mr Greeley proved similarly versatile.

Speightstown's damsire Storm Cat, of course, straddled the ocean like few modern stallions; and, in the process, elaborated the cosmopolitan repertoire of his grandsire Northern Dancer. It seems unlikely, then, that Speightstown as a sire of sires will limit himself to mere speed through the likes of Munnings, Central Banker, Jersey Town, Poseidon's Warrior and Country Day, and now Speightster and Tamarkuz. And we'll soon see, moreover, whether Vekoma (Candy Ride {Arg}) and Laoban (Uncle Mo) can also extend his legacy as a broodmare sire.

At 15, Munnings seems to have been a buzz stallion forever and, oversubscribed at an ever-rising fee, has been given every opportunity to make that final break into the elite. As it happens, he never did match five other members of Speightstown's debut crop by winning a Grade I, but he has steadily been catching up with his reputation and last month Kimari's Madison S. cracked his first such prize in nearly four years, and his third in all.

His sire, as noted, has now reached a landmark 20 Northern Hemisphere Grade I wins. That represents 1.67 percent of named foals, a stellar ratio surpassed only by Tapit (narrowly) and War Front (a law unto himself, with those conservative books). Speightstown's 120 black-type winners, meanwhile, represent almost precisely one in ten of his named foals, which beats all bar War Front (11.3 percent).

In this era of industrial output, these yields evoke the days when quality stallions were reserved for quality mares. To me, that must reflect his compression of so many copper-bottomed influences, in terms of both genetic proximity and density.

It would be invidious to compare Speightstown's indices with any particular stallion among those commanding even bigger fees, but we've mentioned the only pair who can measure up consistently and it's an elementary exercise to discover which others do so only in one or two categories, or none. As such, there's a case for arguing that Speightstown still represents value, at this rarefied level, even now that his fee has reverted towards the $100,000 he charged through 2016-18.

Those credulous enough to believe that stallions deteriorate with age are welcome to send their mares elsewhere. This is a self-fulfilling prejudice, further nourished by affordable and commercially fashionable sons entering competition. Obviously Speightstown can't be expected to remain as sprightly as Galileo (Ire), say, who has all the advantages of youth in having been delivered as many as eight weeks later in 1998! But value is relative. At one end of the market, people have been shown to give the likes of Protonico a chance. But for those who can afford to operate at the other extreme, Speightstown was value as a $2 million yearling–and he's value as a $90,000 cover, too.

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Whitmore Tries Again for Second Phoenix Victory

Whitmore (Pleasantly Perfect) shoots for his second win in Friday’s GII Stoll Keenon Ogden Phoenix S. at Keeneland, a ‘Win and You’re In’ for the GI Breeders’ Cup Sprint.

After narrowly annexing this event in 2017, the hard-knocking and popular as ever 7-year-old gelding has since completed the bottom half of the exacta in the last two renewals.

Whitmore captured his third GIII Count Fleet Sprint H. at Oaklawn in April, then was second to the ultra-talented Volatile (Violence) in the GI Alfred G. Vanderbilt H. at Saratoga July 25. He was seventh in a very sloppy renewal of the GI Forego S. at the Spa last time Aug. 29.

Grade I winning sophomores and ‘TDN Rising Stars’ Echo Town (Speightstown) and No Parole (Violence) take on their elders here.

The speedy No Parole bested Echo Town in front-running fashion by 3 3/4 lengths in Belmont’s GI Woody Stephens S. June 20. Echo Town turned the tables on the Louisiana-bred, however, with a breakthrough win in Saratoga’s GI H. Allen Jerkens S. Aug. 1. No Parole faded to ninth that day, his most recent trip to the post.

Echo Town cuts back in distance following a flat fifth as the 2-1 favorite in the GII Pat Day Mile S. at Churchill Downs Sept. 5.

Lexitonian (Speightstown), third at 46-1 in last year’s Phoenix, came within a nose of a Grade I victory in the Bing Crosby S. at Del Mar Aug. 1, then was a close fifth in the Forego.

Diamond Oops (Lookin At Lucky), winner of the 2019 GIII Smile Sprint S. and GIII Mr. Prospector S., goes turf to dirt following a last-to-first neck decision in the GII Twin Spires Turf Sprint S. at Churchill Sept. 4.

The post Whitmore Tries Again for Second Phoenix Victory appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Jack Sisterson Talks Vexatious, Returning Calumet to Glory On TDN Writers’ Room

Two years ago, when it was announced that legendary Calumet Farm was hiring Jack Sisterson as its primary trainer, there was skepticism. At just 33 years old, with only experience as an assistant to his name, it was fair to question whether or not Sisterson was prepared to carry the flag for such a powerful racing and breeding brand. Those questions have now been answered–resoundingly in the affirmative, as just a short while later, Sisterson has not only proved equal to the task, but appears on his way to the even larger accomplishment of restoring historic Calumet to the glory of its heyday.

Still in the afterglow of pulling off a colossal upset of champion Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute) with Calumet’s Vexatious (Giant’s Causeway) in the GI Personal Ensign S. at Saratoga, Sisterson joined the TDN Writers’ Room podcast presented by Keeneland Wednesday to talk about his first Grade I victory, his hands-on education in racing and the bright future for him and Calumet.

Calling in via Zoom as the Green Group Guest of the Week, Sisterson spoke on how he adapted his training approach to fit Vexatious, who is reaching her career peak at the age of six.

“She has an extremely high cruising speed, and she can carry that over a distance of ground,” he said. “What we found with her, she’s a filly that loves to train at 5:30. She goes right out when the track opens, because that’s what she wants. She’s very businesslike and wants to get on with it. And when I initially got her, if I asked her to go three-quarters of a mile in a workout, she would put so much effort into it that she was doing too much in the mornings and not leaving it for the afternoon. So we decided to back up all of her works to half a mile and crossed our fingers that would result in her being a little bit more energetic in the afternoons. It’s slightly worrisome when you just breeze them half a mile–do they have enough foundation in them to compete at that classic type of distance on the dirt? But with her, she puts so much effort into her gallops and half-mile breezes that she’s in that happy stage of her career at the moment.”

Asked about the process that led to his hiring by Calumet, Sisterson credited former boss Doug O’Neill and compared the aura of Calumet to another iconic brand from his upbringing playing soccer in England.

“Initially, when I had this small conversation with them, I’d never been to the farm before,” he said. “I was working for Doug at the time, who still to this day is very supportive of everything I do, which I’m very grateful for. It was Doug who pushed me out there, saying, ‘If you don’t do it, I’m going to do it.’ Being from England and a soccer player, when you grow up, there’s Manchester United, at the top of the league with so much history and success. I assumed Calumet was the Manchester United of farms. Why would they want someone like me? I’m nobody. It was honoring, humbling. I’m just a very, very, very small piece of so much hard work that goes in behind the scenes that people don’t see.”

It was soccer that first brought Sisterson to the United States and sent him on his path to stardom in the Thoroughbred racing world. Having a lifelong passion for both sports, Sisterson killed two birds with one stone by enrolling at the University of Louisville, which led to a first racing gig working alongside a Hall of Fame trainer.

“From as far as I can remember, there was racing on TV or we were going to some big racing events in the Northeast of England,” he recalled. “I fell in love with it from day one and always wanted to have some involvement in it. I was fortunate enough to be offered a soccer scholarship at Louisville, which offered the equine program. And in return, I worked summers for Todd Pletcher. That was my first introduction to the American side of racing.”

Elsewhere on the show, the writers analyzed last weekend’s major stakes action, previewed Saturday’s GI Runhappy Travers S. and took stock of where the 3-year-old picture stands exactly one month away from the GI Kentucky Derby. Then, in the West Point Thoroughbreds news segment, they reacted to the news of increased restrictions on out-of-state jockeys attempting the ride in the Derby, even as fans are still slated to be on track with much more lax requirements. Click here to watch the podcast on Vimeo, and click here for the audio-only version.

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