‘Really On His Game Right Now’: Maxfield Headed To Saratoga, May Point To Whitney

Godolphin's homebred Maxfield has exited his victory in the Grade 2 Stephen Foster Stakes in good order and shipped to Saratoga on Monday, trainer Brendan Walsh told the Daily Racing Form. The 4-year-old son of Street Sense could target the G1 Whitney Stakes on Aug. 7 for his next start, another “Win and You're In” race for the Breeders' Cup Classic.

Maxfield has won seven of his eight career starts, beaten for the only time when third in the G1 Santa Anita Handicap earlier this year.

“It seems like since he got beat at Santa Anita, he's really turned a corner,” Godolphin's Jimmy Bell told DRF. “It's like it woke him up, maybe even toughened him up. He is really on his game right now.”

Read more at the Daily Racing Form.

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Letruska, Maxfield Move Up In NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll

Godolphin's 4-year-old Mystic Guide remained in first place in the latest NTRA National Thoroughbred Poll, but St. George Stable's 5-year-old mare Letruska and Godolphin's 4-year-old Maxfield, moved up to second and third place, respectively, following dominating victories at Churchill Downs on Saturday.

Mystic Guide, trained by Mike Stidham, received 21 first-place votes and 313 points. On Saturday, Mystic Guide breezed 4 furlongs in 48.2 at Fair Hill in Maryland in preparation for the Grade 2 Suburban Stakes at Belmont Park on July 3. A chestnut son of 2004 Horse of the Year Ghostzapper, Mystic Guide will be making his first start since winning the Group 1 Dubai World Cup on March 27.

Letruska, trained by Fausto Gutierrez, won Saturday's Grade 2 Fleur de Lis by 5 ¾ lengths for her fourth win in five starts in 2021. A bay daughter of 2010 Grade 1 Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver, Letruska has two first-place votes and 268 points, moving from third to second place this week.

Equally impressive on Saturday was Maxfield, who swept to a powerful 3 ¼-length victory in the Grade 2 Stephen Foster Stakes. A dark bay son of 2007 Grade 1 Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense, Maxfield jumped from seventh to third place in the poll. Trained by Brandan Walsh, Maxfield increased his first-place votes from one to five this week, and has a total of 253 points.

Winchell Thoroughbreds and Willis Horton Racing's 4-year-old Silver State dropped from second to fourth place, registering one first-place vote and 229 points. Trained by Steve Asmussen, Silver State is unbeaten in four starts this year, including the Grade 1 Hill 'N' Dale Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont.

Klaravich Stables' 4-year-old gelding Domestic Spending, the only turf horse in the top 10, is in fifth place with six first-place votes and 219 points. Trained by Chad Brown, Domestic spending won the Grade 1 Resorts World Casino Manhattan Stakes at Belmont on June 5.

Godolphin's 3-year-old Essential Quality, winner of the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets, is in sixth place. Trained by Brad Cox, Essential Quality has one first-place vote and 185 points.

Spendthrift Farm LLC and Madaket Stables' 6-year-old Monomoy Girl, the 2020 older dirt female Eclipse Award winner, rose from ninth to seventh place, and has 87 points.

The 4-year-old Gamine (109 points), last year's champion female sprinter, trained by Bob Baffert, stayed in eighth place.

Korea Racing Stable's Knicks Go (37 points), winner of the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Invitational, moved up one spot to ninth place.

SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Stonestreet Stables, Frederick Hertrich III, John Fielding and Golconda Stables' 4-year-old Charlatan (135 points), who finished second in the Group 1 Saudi Cup for Bob Baffert, is in 10th place and received 32 votes. Charlatan has subsequently been retired.

The NTRA Top Thoroughbred polls are the sport's most comprehensive surveys of experts. Every week eligible journalists and broadcasters cast votes for their top 10 horses, with points awarded on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. All horses that have raced in the U.S., are in training in the U.S., or are known to be pointing to a major event in the U.S. are eligible for the NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll. Voting in the Top Thoroughbred Poll is scheduled to be conducted through Nov. 6.

The full results for the NTRA Thoroughbred Polls can be found on the NTRA website at: https://www.ntra.com/ntra-top-thoroughbred-poll-june-28-2021/

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Maxfield Reigns Supreme in Stephen Foster

Godolphin homebred Maxfield (Street Sense) put on a show at Churchill Downs yet again with a dazzling victory in the GII Stephen Foster S., a “Win and You're In” for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic. Running off the fence early, the 2-5 chalk settled in sixth as longshots Empty Tomb (Speightstown) and Sprawl (City Zip) duked it out through opening splits of :23.33 and :46.88. Making an eye-catching move up the outside on the backstretch run, the dark bay swiftly picked off rivals, flying up to take charge at the quarter pole. It was all over from there. With Jose Ortiz still motionless in the irons, Maxfield charged home down the fourth path to win as he pleased by 3 1/2 lengths. Warrior's Charge (Munnings) filled the place spot and Sprawl held third.

“It was a really good performance,” trainer Brendan Walsh said. “It looks like he continues to improve all the time. Thankfully now he's been good and healthy. Our goal has been to get a good string of races into him and that's starting to happen. I'm glad to get over another obstacle today. We'll hope he comes out of today's race in good order and we'll move on to the next one.”

“I just sort of had to stay out of his way,” said Ortiz. “He has a big stride and does it so nicely. It's great to be back here at Churchill with this horse. He seems to be getting better and loves it here.”

“We had a lot of confidence today,” said Godolphin's North American President Jimmy Bell. “He settled down up the backside and down the lane he finished in a strong hand ride. It's his fourth start of the year, so it's good to see the succession of races coming together. We can look at the [Aug. 7 GI] Whitney as a primary target.”

With Maxfield and G1 Dubai World Cup winner Mystic Guide (Ghostzapper), who is expected to make his next start in the July 3 GII Suburban H., Godolphin has a strong hold on the older male division. The powerhouse operation also won the G1 Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby earlier Saturday with Hurricane Lane (Ire) (Frankel {GB}).

Maxfield was two-for-two as a juvenile, following his debut win at Churchill in 2019 with a decisive victory in the GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity S. He was the early favorite for the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile, but was forced to scratch with a minor lameness. Making a victorious return in this venue's GIII Matt Winn S. last May, he was forced off the Triple Crown trail with a condylar fracture. Making yet another comeback in the Tenacious S. at the Fair Grounds in December, the dark bay proved no worse for wear with a facile score and followed suit with a win in that venue's GIII Mineshaft S. Feb. 13. Maxfield suffered the first loss of his career when trying 10-panels for the first time in the GI Santa Anita H. Mar. 6, but rebounded with a dominant victory in the local GII Alysheba S. Apr. 30.

Pedigree Notes:

Maxfield was the second graded winner of the day for Street Sense, following Zaajel's upset in the GII Mother Goose S. at Belmont. His dam Velvety is also responsible for an unraced sophomore colt named Dubai Vision (Medaglia d'Oro) and an unraced 2-year-old filly named Loved (Medaglia d'Oro). Her 2020 colt by Street Sense died, but she produced an Uncle Mo colt Mar. 20 of this year. The winner's second dam is MGSW Caress (Storm Cat), who is responsible for Grade I-winning stallion Sky Mesa (Pulpit) and MGSW & GISP Golden Velvet (Seeking the Gold), who in produced GSWs Lucullan (Hard Spun) and Innovative Idea (Bernardini). This is also the family of MGSW sires Bernstein (Storm Cat) and Good Samaritan (Harlan's Holiday); GSW & GISP Country Cat (Storm Cat); and MGSW & GISP sire Della Francesca (Danzig).

Saturday, Churchill Downs
STEPHEN FOSTER S.-GII, $600,000, Churchill Downs, 6-26, 4yo/up, 1 1/8m, 1:48.53, ft.
1–MAXFIELD, 121, c, 4, by Street Sense
                1st Dam: Velvety, by Bernardini
                2nd Dam: Caress, by Storm Cat
                3rd Dam: La Affirmed, by Affirmed
O/B-Godolphin (KY); T-Brendan P. Walsh; J-Jose L. Ortiz.
$357,120. Lifetime Record: GISW, 8-7-0-1, $1,265,902.
   Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*.
   Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Warrior's Charge, 119, h, 5, Munnings–Battling Brook, by
Broken Vow. O-Ten Strike Racing & Madaket Stables LLC; B-Al
Shaquab Racing (FL); T-Brad H. Cox. $115,200.
3–Sprawl, 119, c, 4, City Zip–Amen Again, by Awesome Again.
O/B-Claiborne Farm & Adele B. Dilschneider (KY); T-Thomas
Drury, Jr. $57,600.
Margins: 3 1/4, 2, 2 3/4. Odds: 0.40, 7.20, 12.80.
Also Ran: South Bend, Chess Chief, Empty Tomb, Necker Island, Visitant, Silver Dust. 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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Maxfield Gives Godolphin Another Stakes Win In Stephen Foster

Earlier today, the blue silks of Godolphin came home first at the Curragh in County Kildaire, Ireland, with Hurricane Lane dashing to the lead in the final furlong to win the Group 1 Irish Derby. Hours later, clad in the same Godolphin blue, Jose Ortiz guided Maxfield to an easy win in the Grade 2 Stephen Foster Stakes at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., clinching a guaranteed spot in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar in Del Mar, Ca. in November.

Starting from post eight in a field of nine, Maxfield broke clean, content to sit midpack as Empty Tomb took the early lead with Claiborne Farm's Sprawl just behind him, Necker Island in third. In the backstretch, Maxfield was sixth, Empty Tomb and Sprawl still running one-two, but, as the field entered the final turn, Sprawl took over the lead and Ortiz put Maxfield in gear. Around the turn, Maxfield picked off horses, overtaking Sprawl as their field entered the stretch. From there, Maxfield drew away, increasing his advantage to three and a quarter lengths as he hit the wire. Behind him, Warrior's Charge passed Sprawl in the stretch to take second place, with Sprawl holding onto third and South Bend fourth. The time for the mile and an eight was 1:48.53.

Find this race's chart here. 

Maxfield paid $2.80, $2.20, and $2.10. Warrior's Charge paid $5.00 and $3.60. Sprawl paid $4.20 to show.

The G2 Stephen Foster Stakes is a Win and You're In race on the road to the Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar Nov. 6. Winning horses receive a free and guaranteed spot in the starting gate for the corresponding Breeders' Cup race.

Bred and owned by Godolphin, Maxfield was sired by 2007 Grade 1 Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense out of the Bernadini mare Velvety. Saturday's win gives Maxfield his third victory in four starts in 2021 and his seventh win in eight lifetime starts, with career earnings of $776,640. His other 2021 wins include the Grade 2 Alysheba Stakes at Churchill Downs and the Grade 3 Mineshaft Stakes at Fair Grounds in New Orleans, La.

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