Los Alamitos Backstretch Improvements On The Way

Over the next year, Los Alamitos Race Course will conduct a series of improvement projects throughout its backstretch facilities with the first set of upgrades set to begin immediately, the track said in a release late Thursday.

Work will start next Monday with modernizing the men's and women's restroom facilities on the backstretch and new concrete has already been poured into designated areas to help prevent standing water and avoid excess mud around the barns.

In June, Los Alamitos completed work on improvements to the receiving barn and testing areas prioritizing suggestions and recommendations from staff in those areas. The track also built a brand-new office at the main entrance of the barn area for more efficient traffic control.

Additional projects to the barn area for 2023-2024 will be announced in the months to come.

The post Los Alamitos Backstretch Improvements On The Way appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Sunday Insights: Levon Debuts For Sadler At Los Alamitos

7th-LRC, $45K, Msw, 3yo/up, 6 1/2f, 7:05 p.m.
Trainer John Sadler debuts LEVON (Practical Joke) for Talla Racing and Central Dispatch (Arrogate) for Hronis Racing. The stablemates both worked a bullet five furlongs from the gate in :59 1/5 (1/12) at Los Alamitos June 10. The former is a $750,000 KEESEP buy whose dam Gal Factor (The Factor) counts GI Arkansas Derby hero Super Stock (Dialed In) as a half brother. Trainer Bob Baffert will saddle first-time starter Confucius (Candy Ride {Arg}) whose dam Mumtaazah (Tapit) is a half-sister to Canadian champion 3-year-old filly Ginger Brew (Milwaukee Brew) and MGSW Bourbon Bay (Sligo Bay {Ire}). TJCIS PPS

The post Sunday Insights: Levon Debuts For Sadler At Los Alamitos appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Big Ticket Colts Dot Los Al Futurity on Saturday

The Kentucky Derby points are back on the table in December. Well, for trainers Leandro Mora and Tim Yakteen that is, as it is once again time for the GII Los Alamitos Futurity. In prior contests, it would have been 10-4-2 or 1 to the top four finishers, but since we only have a five-horse field, and with Bob Baffert currently forced to abrogate his Derby egg hunt despite yet another re-christening of his legal stab at Churchill Downs, it is just Mora and Yakteen that are eligible.

Out of the handful that will go on Saturday afternoon at the cozy palm-laden oval that continues to breathe–we hope it does, because we need it to survive–you will see some major sale purchases strut their 2-year-old stuff. Historically, this race is Baffert's foregone conclusion, as he has netted 13 of them, starting with Real Quiet back in 1997. But last year, Reddam Racing's homebred, Slow Down Andy (Nyquist), ran contrary to his moniker by getting the best of Messier (Empire Maker) to end the Hall of Fame conditioner's streak at seven.

Baffert comes prepared this time and Messier's ownership group of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert E. Masterson, Stonestreet Stables, Jay A. Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, and Catherine Donovan is well represented with a pair of promising super colts in Carmel Road (Quality Road) and Fort Bragg (Tapit). The former went for $650,000 at the KEESEP sale last year, while the latter did him one better by $50,000 at FTKOTC. Tom Ryan, the Managing Partner of SF Racing, said when reached by phone, “We've got 10 nice 2-year-old winners on the board this year, and Bob and his team are very focused on 2023.”

Carmel Road, who has a half-brother named Ambition (Street Sense) out of Inspire who RNAd at FTNAUG this year, lost steam and ended up second-to-last at Keeneland as would-be 2-year-old champion Forte (Violence) nosed ahead for his score in the GI Claiborne Farm Breeders' Futurity Oct. 8. That poor showing was nothing like his maiden victory in the race prior when he won in a geared-down fashion by 8 3/4 at Del Mar Aug. 26. Ryan said about the letdown, “We ended up drawing the outside with Carmel Road in the 14 hole, and the 14 hole at Keeneland with a two-year-old, it's not ideal. So that race is a complete throw out. His last piece of work was a sparkling piece of work. Hopefully, he's ready for this.” Sporting some sharp recent breezes at Santa Anita (Dec. 9, 5f; .59, 1/30), we can expect him to be below his 2-1 morning-line by race time.

As for his stablemate, the 4-1-priced Fort Bragg comes calling after he was disqualified at Santa Anita Oct. 10 and placed second, and then officially broke his maiden Nov. 4 by 3/4 lengths over next out winner, Reincarnate. “He is a beautiful horse that just continues to develop,” Ryan said. “Flavian Prat breezed him last week, was impressed enough to want to ride him. He is coming back from a vacation in France to ride him here. It's a tough, demanding race, but we hope he's up to the challenge.”

Opposing this pair is the last of Baffert's trio, Zedan Racing Stables's $600,000 OBSAPR bay colt by Justify, Arabian Lion. Stretching out around two turns, this 4-5 morning-line favorite has posted a pair of Beyer Speed Figures that sparkled; 92 at Santa Anita with a first-out win Oct. 9, and then a second-place finish with a 93 at Keeneland against optional claimers Nov. 4. All three of these runners could be looking to grab the lead early, and hold off any would-be challengers.

As for Yakteen's Practical Move (Practical Joke), he is not without recent form, nor should he be underestimated. The $230,000 OBSAPR buy ran second to Fort Bragg in that race Oct. 10, despite a poor stumble at the start and getting bumped by his rival in the final furlong. The colt ran third to Havnameltdown (Uncaptured) in the GIII Bob Hope S. Nov. 20. Recall, he is a horse that won at first-asking at Del Mar July 24, was the seized the GIII Best Pal S. Aug. 14, and was second in the GI Runhappy Del Mar Futurity Sept. 11. If he can solve his gate issues, then he might be a player if a pace reactor failure occurs.

The big tickets will try to fly early at Los Alamitos. Baffert may not have access to those Derby points yet, but what is assured is this is going to be an intriguing renewal of the Futurity.

The post Big Ticket Colts Dot Los Al Futurity on Saturday appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

‘Rising Star’ Faiza Survives Inquiry To Take Starlet

'TDN Rising Star' Faiza (Girvin) narrowly outslugged Pride of the Nile (Pioneerof the Nile) and survived a stewards' inquiry to deliver as the 1-2 chalk in a roughly run renewal of the GI Starlet S. at Los Alamitos Saturday. The win marked the sixth straight Starlet victory and ninth overall for Hall of Famer Bob Baffert. The flashy six-furlong debut winner at Del Mar Nov. 12 was making her two-turn debut in the Starlet.

Placed in a perfect spot by Flavien Prat in an outside, stalking third through fractions of :23.36 and :47.87, Faiza began to make her move while four wide on the far turn to join stablemate Doinitthehardway (Street Sense) and the rail-skimming Pride of the Nile.

With the trio lined up at the top of the lane, the tiring pacesetter Doinitthehardway took the worst of it while racing in between rivals, exchanging bumps with both Faiza and Pride of the Nile as they straightened. Faiza looked well on her way from there, but Pride of the Nile wasn't going down without a fight. Those two put on a show down the stretch passing the eighth pole with Faiza wanting it just a little bit more to take it by a head. Uncontrollable (Upstart) completed the trifecta.

“Faiza has always shown she's a special filly and she had to be special today to win just off one maiden race,” Baffert said. “She's still green, but I think she has a big future in front of her. I think she's going to get better with age, but we've loved her from the start and she's by one of the hottest sires going right now.”

Pedigree Notes:

Faiza, a $90,000 FTKJUL yearling and $725,000 EASMAY 2-year-old, is the first Grade I winner and fifth stakes winner for fast-starting freshman sire Girvin, who has relocated from Ocala Stud to Airdrie for the 2023 breeding season. Faiza is out of a half-sister to MGSW and Spendthrift Farm stallion Thousand Words (Pioneerof the Nile). Second dam Pomeroys Pistol (Pomeroy), a multiple graded-stakes winner herself, placed in both the GI Prioress S. and GI Test S. Faiza's yearling half-sister by Cairo Prince brought $160,000 at Keeneland September. Faiza's dam Sweet Pistol, a $33,000 purchase by Airdrie's Brereton C. Jones at the 2016 KEENOV sale, had a filly by Complexity in 2022 and was bred back to that sire for next season.

Saturday, Los Alamitos
STARLET S.-GI, $300,500, Los Alamitos, 12-10, 2yo, f, 1 1/16m, 1:44.49, ft.
1–FAIZA, 120, f, 2, by Girvin
                1st Dam: Sweet Pistol, by Smart Strike
                2nd Dam: Pomeroys Pistol, by Pomeroy
                3rd Dam: Prettyatthetable, by Point Given
   'TDN Rising Star' 1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES
   WIN, 1ST GRADE I WIN. ($90,000 Ylg '21 FTKJUL; $725,000
2yo '22 EASMAY). O-Michael Lund Petersen; B-Brereton C.
Jones (KY); T-Bob Baffert; J-Flavien Prat. $180,000. Lifetime
Record: 2-2-0-0, $222,000. Werk Nick Rating: B. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Pride of the Nile, 120, f, 2, by Pioneerof the Nile
                1st Dam: Inny Minnie, by Hard Spun
                2nd Dam: Inny River, by Seattle Slew
                3rd Dam: Golden Petal, by Mr. Prospector
1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE, 1ST G1 BLACK
TYPE. ($140,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP). O-West Coast Stables, LLC;
B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC (KY); T-Leandro
Mora. $60,000.
3–Uncontrollable, 120, f, 2, by Upstart
                1st Dam: Behavioral, by Include
                2nd Dam: Arches of Gold, by Strike Gold
                3rd Dam: Pittsy, by Shecky Greene
1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($20,000 Ylg '21 FTKOCT; $130,000 2yo
'22 OBSAPR). O-Repole Stable; B-Fountian of Youth Breeding,
LLC (CA); T-Michael W. McCarthy. $36,000.
Margins: HD, 5HF, 3/4. Odds: 0.50, 12.30, 4.00.
Also Ran: Doinitthehardway, Blessed Touch, Classymademoiselle. Scratched: Fast and Shiny.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

The post ‘Rising Star’ Faiza Survives Inquiry To Take Starlet appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights