Rattle N Roll Keeps On Shakin’ For McPeek

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Rattle N Roll (Connect)'s very promising and then down-a-bit career path is on a solid upward trajectory approaching the historic $1 million GI Jockey Club Gold Cup Saturday at Saratoga Race Course.

With six wins–five of them in graded stakes–and just over $1.6 million in earnings, Rattle N Roll has been a big success for the Mackin family's Lucky Seven Stable. After a two-month break from competition, the chestnut will face seven others in the 1 1/4 miles Gold Cup, long one of the premier races in the country for older horses.

From the rail out, the complete field for the Jockey Club Gold Cup.
1 – Proxy (Tapit)
2 – Unbridled Bomber (Upstart)
3 – Warrior Johny (Tapit)
4 – Rattle N Roll (Connect)
5 – Clapton (Brethren)
6 – Tyson (Tapit)
7 – Duke of Love (Cupid)
8 – Bright Future (Curlin)
*All starters will carry 126 pounds.

With a late-running style, Rattle N Roll benefits from some speed to take aim at. McPeek said that 10 furlongs should be within his range.

“You don't know how the pace of that race will unfold,” McPeek said. “He's not run that distance but I don't have any doubt he's going to like it. In hindsight, a year ago he won the St. Louis Derby but he could have run in the Travers. I'm excited to see him go that far.”

McPeek has targeted the Gold Cup for Rattle N Roll, who has won three of five starts this year. He opened the season with a non-threatening fourth in the GII New Orleans Classic on Mar. 25. A month later at Keeneland, Rattle N Roll won the GIII Ben Ali. He moved on to Baltimore to win the GIII Pimlico Special by a nose and ran his win streak to three in the GIII Blame on June 3 at Churchill Downs. On July 1, he ended up a half-length behind West Will Power in the GI Stephen Foster at Ellis Park.

Rattle N Roll (outside) wins the GIII Pimlico Special | Horsephotos

“He ran pretty steady and hard this spring,” McPeek said. “He had some back-to-backs and then I just thought that waiting for the Gold Cup would be a good idea. He's been up here all summer and thrived.”

Rattle N Roll has had five works during his time at the Spa.

McPeek said that even in defeat, Rattle N Roll was impressive.

“I think his last race, when he was beaten West Will Power, that was his best race,” McPeek said. “He ran super that day. It was quite hot that day down at Ellis, too.

Bred by St. Simon Place, Rattle N Roll is out of the Johannesburg mare Jazz Tune. He brought $55,000 as a weanling at the 2019 Keeneland November Sale and McPeek purchased him as a yearling for $210,000 at the Keeneland September Sale.

“You could see that he would develop into a big, handsome older horse,” McPeek said. “He's a little bit different-made than most. He stands over himself. He's a little upright, but has been smart from the beginning.”

Rattle N Roll made the second start of his career at Saratoga on Aug. 26, 2021 against maidens going 1 1/8 miles. McPeek said he bolted after getting hit in the left eye in the second turn and did not finish the race. He broke his maiden at Churchill Downs on Sept. 23 and picked up a GI victory in the Breeders' Futurity. A foot injury kept him out of the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

Last year, he was tested on the Triple Crown trail, but was well-beaten in the GII Fountain of Youth, the GII Louisiana Derby and the GI Blue Grass. McPeek changed course a bit and the colt won the American Derby, the St. Louis Derby and the GIII Oklahoma Derby.

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Smile Happy To Point For Stephen Foster

Lucky Seven Stable's 'TDN Rising Star' Smile Happy (Runhappy), impressive winner of the GII Alysheba S. on the GI Kentucky Oaks undercard at Churchill Downs May 5, will make his next start in the $1-million GI Stephen Foster S. July 1, trainer Ken McPeek told the track's media office Friday.

Eighth in last year's GI Kentucky Derby, the $185,000 Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearling Showcase graduate returned from a 10-month absence with an impressive allowance victory at Oaklawn Park Mar. 16 and was a good third in the GIII Oaklawn Mile Apr. 1 before defeating GI Pegasus World Cup hero Art Collector (Bernardini) by two lengths at odds of 7-1 in the Alysheba. He received a lofty 110 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort, the highest number over a mile thus far in 2023.

McPeek reported that the commonly owned Rattle N Roll (Connect), last-out winner of the GIII Ben Ali S. at Keeneland Apr. 22, will go next in the GIII Blame S. on Stephen Foster Preview Day Saturday, June 3.

The Foster offers the winner an all-expenses-paid berth in the GI Breeders' Cup Classic as part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series.

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McPeek Duo Ready for Holy Bull

Lucky Seven Stable's Smile Happy (Run Happy) and Phoenix Thoroughbreds LTD's Tiz the Bomb (Hit It A Bomb) breezed in company at Gulfstream Saturday morning ahead of a likely encounter in the GIII Holy Bull S. Feb. 5.

GSWs Smile Happy and Tiz the Bomb were timed in :46.32 seconds, the third fastest of 83 workouts recorded at the distance Saturday.

“It was a nice maintenance work,” said trainer Kenny McPeek. “They went a little quicker than I wanted them to. I gave them instructions to go in about :48, but it's Ok. They're doing good.”

The breeze was the fourth in a series of workouts at Gulfstream for the workmates.

“I may have to run them against each other in the Holy Bull to get the year started,” McPeek said. “At this point, I'm planning to run both.”

Smile Happy won both of his career starts impressively, closing from far back to break his maiden at 1 1/16 miles at Keeneland Oct. 29 before rallying from mid-pack to capture the 1 1/16-mile GII Kentucky Jockey Club S. by 3 1/4 length at Churchill Downs Nov. 27.

Tiz the Bomb broke his maiden on dirt by 14 1/2 lengths going a mile at Ellis July 2 before taking the Kentucky Downs Juvenile S. in September and Keeneland's GII Bourbon S. Oct. 10. He concluded his 2021 season with a strong second-place finish behind Eclipse finalist Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) in the Nov. 5 GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf at Del Mar. A minor injury forced the bay to bypass last fall's Kentucky Jockey Club.

“He's done great with his little break,” added McPeek. “He had a slight nick on his leg that we had to address with some

simple clean up and antibiotics last fall. He's back into a 3-year-old routine now. He's had a little three eights and a couple of half miles, and he's hitting on all cylinders already, so it's very exciting.”

Asked how Tiz the Bomb might fare on the dirt, McPeek affirmed, “He's not going to have any trouble handling dirt. He's out of a Tiz Now mare and his top line is War Front and they handle dirt fine. I think this horse can run on any surface and he handled the dirt for his maiden win. I think the question is, really, how good can he be on the dirt, too?”

He continued, “The Holy Bull looks like an ideal starting point for him. We need to get some points and ideally, he'd then come back in the [GII] Fountain of Youth [S. Mar. 5]. The dream scenario would be he'd go Holy Bull, Fountain Of Youth then the [GI] Florida Derby [Apr. 2], but we'll see.”

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Smile Happy Gives McPeek Another Kentucky Jockey Club Win

The horse that brought Kenny McPeek to the winner's circle for the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill Downs was not the one that most fans would have expected. Instead of Tiz the Bomb, who scratched out of the G2 stakes earlier Saturday, it was Smile Happy, a son of Runhappy, who brought McPeek his third win in the early prep race for the 2022 Kentucky Derby.

With the field scratched down from 14 to 11, Smile Happy broke from post eight, taking up position in fifth around the first turn and onto the backstretch. Setting early fractions of :23.95 and :48.74, early leader Howling Time had a 1 1/2 length lead down the backstretch, his lead shrinking as the field moved into the far turn.

Around the far turn, Smile Happy was among the challengers pressing Howling Time, who gave way as they approached the top of the stretch. Smile Happy went five-wide to find racing room to challenge, with Classic Causeway and Ben Diesel driving to his inside. Down the stretch, Smile Happy took the lead at the eighth pole and pulling away late to take the G2 Kentucky Jockey Club by 3 1/4 lengths. Classic Causeway was second and White Abarrio was third.

The final time for the 1 1/16 miles was 1:43.94. Find this race's chart here.

Smile Happy paid $11.60, $4.60, and $3.60. Classic Causeway paid $3.40 and $2.80. White Abarrio paid $4.00.

Bred in Kentucky by Moreau Bloodstock International and White Bloodstock LLC, Smile Happy is out of the Pleasant Tap mare Pleasant Smile. He is owned by Lucky Seven Stable, who purchased him from Hunter Valley Farm for $185,000 at the 2020 Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase. The Kentucky Jockey Club is his second win in his two lifetime starts, for career earnings of $284,810. Smile Happy earns 10 points toward the 2022 Kentucky Derby, with Classic Causeway getting four points, White Abarrio two points, and Ben Diesel one point for his fourth-place finish.

The post Smile Happy Gives McPeek Another Kentucky Jockey Club Win appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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