Luis Saez | Horse Racing Free Tips

Luis Saez To Ride Pletcher-Trained Unbridled Honor In Preakness

Todd Pletcher, Thoroughbred racing's newest Hall of Fame trainer, will take aim at the May 15 Preakness Stakes (G1) – the only Triple Crown race he has yet to win – with Unbridled Honor.

Pletcher's election to the Hall of Fame at the National Museum of Racing in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. was announced Wednesday. The 53-year-old, who gained entry in his first year of eligibility, holds the record for career-earnings ($405,791,077) and ranks seventh all-time with 5,118 wins, including 708 graded-stakes victories. He has saddled two Kentucky Derby (G1) winners – Super Saver (2010) and Always Dreaming (2017) – and three Belmont Stakes (G1) champions – filly Rags to Riches (2007), Palace Malice (2013) and Tapwrit (2017).

Unbridled Honor, a gray Whisper Hill Farm homebred son of Honor Code, will be Pletcher's 10th Preakness runner and his first since Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming finished eighth in 2017. His best finish was a third with his first starter, Impeachment, in 2000.

The Preakness will be Unbridled Honor's first start since his runner-up finish in the Lexington (G3) at Keeneland on April 10. The late-running colt was a dozen lengths off the early pace in the Lexington and ended up 2 ¾ lengths behind the winner, King Fury. In his previous start, the Tampa Bay Derby (G2), he was forced to try to close into a slow early pace and finished fourth, seven lengths in back of Helium.

“He's a horse that we've always had high hopes for,” Pletcher said Friday. “He's always trained really well and he's still sort of putting it all together in race situations. We thought he made a move forward in the Tampa Derby when he ran a sneaky-good fourth and was finishing arguably the best of anyone in the field. He came back and was second-best in the Lexington. That was another improving effort.”

Unbridled Honor will have his final Preakness work Saturday morning and is scheduled to ship from Belmont Park to Pimlico on Tuesday. Pletcher said that the Preakness, led by front-running Derby winner Medina Spirit, could provide an ideal scenario for the colt.

“We like the way he's training and if he could get a decent pace up front to run at, we feel that if he can take another step forward he's in the mix,” Pletcher said.

Jockey Luis Saez will replace Julien Leparoux in the saddle for the Preakness, his first mount on the colt.

“We've had a lot of luck with Luis,” Pletcher said. “He's riding great and we're happy to have him.”

The post Luis Saez To Ride Pletcher-Trained Unbridled Honor In Preakness appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Flagstaff Determined Winner In Breathtaking Churchill Downs Stakes Finish

The Grade 1 Churchill Downs Stakes on the Kentucky Derby undercard had one of those finishes that made one observer remark that it was a shame anyone had to walk away the loser. With a few strides left, six horses blanketed the width of the dirt track, and in another few steps, three were separated by a few inches, but it was Flagstaff who would emerge the victor.

Jockey Luis Saez hustled the gelding strongly out of the gate and he was initially part of a blazing battle for the early lead alongside Get The Prize, Tap It To Win, Lexitonian, and Basin. Halfway through the backstretch he dropped back behind those and would have seemed poised to begin reversing through the rest of the field in the remaining furlongs. Instead, Saez regrouped and made a wide move on the turn, sweeping into at least the five path to circle the field.

Flagstaff was one of a flurry of horses in contention through the final furlong, from the pacesetters and stalkers trying to hang on to late closers. He briefly held the lead but was challenged by closers. At the wire, Whitmore was to his outside and Lexitonian to his inside as Flagstaff lengthened his stride just enough to stretch his neck out at the right moment and win by a head.

Lexitonian was second, followed by Whitmore and Hog Creek Hustle. The final time was 1:21.82 after early fractions of :21.97, :44.21 and 1:08.04.

John Sadler trains Flagstaff for owners Lane's End Racing and Hronis Racing. The 7-year-old came to this race off a decisive win in the G3 Commonwealth at Keeneland in early April. This is his first Grade 1 win, and he also won the G2 San Carlos at Santa Anita last year.

Flagstaff was bred in Kentucky by Summer Wind Farm and is the son of Speightstown and Indyan Giving, who is by A.P. Indy. He was sold for $475,000 as a yearling at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select Yearling Sale, where he was consigned by Lane's End and bought by Mayberry Farm.

Flagstaff went off at odds of 9-2 and paid $11.80 to win. Favored Tap It To Win finished second last. See the full chart here.

CHURCHILL DOWNS QUOTES, courtesy Churchill Downs press office

Luis Saez (Jockey, Flagstaff, winner) – “Getting settled off the pace was the key; they were going pretty fast up front. I tried to save ground into the turn and when there was a moment to go out so I had that good spot he came for me. I know Whitmore is a good horse but my horse really dug in. When I saw everybody coming past me I thought it was over but he never gave up and finally he gave me the last little bit and we got there. John told me to ride him with confidence and that he likes to fight and we broke and then you saw that at the end.”

John Sadler (Trainer, Flagstaff, winner) – “I'm thrilled. He's a real hard knocker; he always runs his race. He knocked it out today.”

Tyler Gaffalione (Jockey, Lexitonian, runner-up) – “He's a hard-trying horse. He's got a lot of natural speed and I just let him run his race. He fought hard to the wire. He gave me a good feeling at the eighth pole but we just didn't have enough today.”

The post Flagstaff Determined Winner In Breathtaking Churchill Downs Stakes Finish appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Flagstaff Takes Wild Finish In Churchill Downs

LOUISVILLE, KY – Flagstaff (Speightstown) kicked on gamely in a wild, blanket finish to lead home a one-two for his leading sire in the GI Churchill Downs S. Saturday. It was a head back to Lexitonian (Speightstown) in second; and another nose to champion sprinter Whitmore (Pleasantly Perfect) in third.

“I'm thrilled,” winning trainer John Sadler said. “He's a real hard knocker; he always runs his race. He knocked it out today.”

Flagstaff, a last out winner of Keeneland's GIII Commonwealth S. Apr. 3, his first win in 13 months, vied for early command along the inside in a five-horse scramble, headed by Bango (Congrats), but began to drop back to fifth following a sharp quarter in :21.97 and half mile in :44.21.

The Lane's End Racing and Hronis Racing colorbearer dialed it back up approaching the quarter pole once guided to the outside by Luis Saez with a six-wide blitz.

Bango proved a stubborn foe and held the call into the final eighth of a mile, but the others were about to swoop in. No fewer than six in with a chance and Whitmore looking like he was doing the best work of all, Flagstaff wanted it just a little more and eked out a narrow decision.

“Getting settled off the pace was the key; they were going pretty fast up front,” Saez said. “I tried to save ground into the turn and when there was a moment to go out, I had that good spot, he came for me. I know Whitmore is a good horse, but my horse really dug in. When I saw everybody coming past me, I thought it was over, but he never gave up and finally he gave me the last little bit and we got there. John told me to ride him with confidence, and that he likes to fight, and we broke and then you saw that at the end.”

Flagstaff kicked off his 7-year-old campaign with a pair of efforts at Oaklawn, finishing fourth in the slop in the King Cotton S. Feb. 6 and third in the Hot Springs S. Mar. 13, prior to his aforementioned 9-5 score in Lexington.

Flagstaff's resume also includes: wins in the 2019 Damascus S. and 2020 GII San Carlos S., and five graded placings, headed by a third-place finish in the 2019 GI Santa Anita Sprint Championship S.

Pedigree Notes:

Flagstaff is the 21st Grade I winner for leading sire Speightstown. He is one of 60 graded winners and 122 black-type scorers for his sire.

He is the 31st Grade I winner (one of 110 graded victors and 235 black-type winners) out of a daughter of the legendary A.P. Indy.

Flagstaff is a half-brother to champion juvenile and Lane's End stallion Game Winner (Candy Ride {Arg}). Their unraced dam Indyan Giving is a daughter of champion Fleet Indian (Indian Charlie), who was acquired by Summer Wind Farm after she RNA'd for $3.9 million at the 2007 Keeneland November Sale.

Flagstaff was Indyan Giving's first foal. She was bred to Empire Maker after delivering the aforementioned Eclipse winner, but died due to complications following colic surgery before she could produce that foal.

Saturday, Churchill Downs
CHURCHILL DOWNS S. PRESENTED BY FORD-GI, $500,000, Churchill Downs, 5-1, 4yo/up, 7f, 1:21.82, ft.
1–FLAGSTAFF, 118, g, 7, by Speightstown
1st Dam: Indyan Giving, by A.P. Indy
2nd Dam: Fleet Indian, by Indian Charlie
3rd Dam: Hustleeta, by Afleet
1ST GRADE I WIN. ($475,000 Ylg '15 FTSAUG). O-Lane's End
Racing & Hronis Racing LLC; B-Summer Wind Farm (KY); T-John
Sadler; J-Luis Saez. $288,300. Lifetime Record: 19-7-6-3,
$991,585. *1/2 to Game Winner (Candy Ride (ARG)), Ch.
2-year-old Colt, MGISW, $2,027,500. Werk Nick Rating: A.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Lexitonian, 118, h, 5, Speightstown–Riviera Romper, by
Tapit. O/B-Calumet Farm (KY); T-Jack Sisterson. $93,000.
3–Whitmore, 123, g, 8, Pleasantly Perfect–Melody's Spirit, by
Scat Daddy. O-LaPenta, Robert V., Ron Moquett & Head of
Plains Partners LLC; B-John Liviakis (KY); T-Ron Moquett.
$46,500.
Margins: HD, NO, HF. Odds: 4.90, 46.10, 5.20.
Also Ran: Hog Creek Hustle, Phat Man, Bango, Mind Control, Basin, Endorsed, Shashashakemeup, Tap It to Win, Get the Prize. Scratched: Attachment Rate.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

The post Flagstaff Takes Wild Finish In Churchill Downs appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

McLaughlin Returns To Louisville In New Role To Chase Elusive Derby Win With Godolphin

Longtime trainer-turned-jockey agent Kiaran McLaughlin has an extra special rooting interest in this year's Kentucky Derby. Not only does he represent Luis Saez, the jockey seeking his first garland of roses (for the second time) aboard morning-line favorite Essential Quality, but he also has more than a quarter century-long association with that colt's owner/breeder, Godolphin.

“Of course, I'm pulling for Godolphin and it's easy to pull for Luis because I work for him and he's such a great kid,” McLaughlin told Alicia Hughes of TVG's Horse Racing Insider this week. “Godolphin is a special story if they could win this race. It's a huge team and a great team here in America that basically I worked with for about 25 years, so it is special to think we're there and have a big chance. And it would be very special for Luis being that he won (the Derby) two years ago but didn't get to keep it (when Maximum Security was disqualified for interference). That was very difficult.”

McLaughlin stepped away from training horses full time 13 months ago, when Saez' agent Richard DePass retired. McLaughlin, now 60, struggled with the rising cost of business in his home base of New York, as well as workforce issues, and said the decision to leaving training for the jockey agent's role was an easy one.

As a trainer in the Kentucky Derby, McLaughlin's best finish was a fourth with Frosted in 2015. With Saez' mount on Essential Quality, this could be the year that both McLaughlin and the global racing operation Godolphin both get their first win in the Run for the Roses.

Read more at TVG's Horse Racing Insider.

The post McLaughlin Returns To Louisville In New Role To Chase Elusive Derby Win With Godolphin appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post