maythehorsebwithu | Horse Racing Free Tips

The Reds Awarded Federico Tesio Stakes Via Disqualification

Having run second despite encountering trouble both early and late, Flanagan Racing's The Reds was promoted to victory following the disqualification of first-place finisher Excellorator in Saturday's $125,000 Federico Tesio at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md.

The 40^th running of the 1 1/8-mile Federico Tesio headlined an 11-race Spring Stakes Spectacular program featuring six stakes worth $650,000 in purses. For the sixth straight year, the Tesio offered Triple Crown-nominated 3-year-olds and automatic berth in the 146^th Preakness Stakes (G1) May 15 at Pimlico.

Saturday marked the return of the Tesio to Pimlico, where it debuted in 1981 and stayed every year but two through 2015. Named for the noted Italian breeder, owner and trainer whose homebreds Nearco and Ribot dominate Thoroughbred bloodlines around the world, the Tesio was held at Laurel Park in 1987 and 1989 and each year since 2016.

Sent off the 9-5 favorite in a field of eight that included stakes winners Shackled Love, Hello Hot Rod and his former stablemate Maythehorsebwithu, The Reds ($5.80) gave both local jockey Victor Carrasco and New York-based trainer John Kimmel their first Tesio victory.

“I thought he showed tremendous courage, really,” Kimmel said by phone. “He got squeezed at the start so he ended up losing his spot. He should have been much closer. Then he had a terrible trip getting to where he was when the horse came out on him, which was a call I thought was deserved. We were just very fortunate.”

Shackled Love, who edged Maythehorsebwithu in the March 13 Private Terms at Laurel, broke side-by-side from the two outermost posts and both were intent on the lead, going the first quarter-mile in 24.13 seconds and a half in 48.12 with Excellorator and jockey Angel Cruz tracking in third. Six furlongs went in 1:11.50 with the top two still in front, though Excellorator was closing the gap.

Neither leader was able to maintain their momentum and began to drop back as they came into the stretch, leaving Excellorator to inherit the lead. Meanwhile The Reds, shuffled back between Royal Number and Hello Hot Rod early and steadied on the far turn, got straightened out and was coming with a run when Excellorator drifted out under Cruz's left-handed urging. The Reds was forced to alter his path and had Royal Number closing on his outside.

Once on a straight path, Excellorator dug in and held off The Reds by a head after completing the distance in 1:49.98 over a fast main track. Following a lengthy stewards' inquiry and objections from both Carrasco on Cruz and Royal Number jockey Julian Pimentel on Carrasco, Excellorator was taken down and placed second behind The Reds.

“Not too disappointed really, because the horse ran a wonderful race,” Excellorator's trainer, Hugh McMahon, said. “We did our part. There's just so much we can do, but there's so many external variables that influence these kinds of outcomes.”

The remaining order of finish was unchanged. Royal Number was third, followed by Hello Hot Rod, Maythehorsebwithu, Shackled Love, Zertz and Tiz Mandate.

“He broke good. You could see going into the turn, I'm trying to get him to relax. We had a great outside post and I wanted no part of dueling for the first three-quarters,” jockey Sheldon Russell, aboard Maythehorsebwithu, said. “I'm making every effort to sort of break his stride and get him to relax. We do a lot of work trying to teach them to relax in the afternoon, but we probably had him a little too fresh today. He just ran his race early on. We'll regroup and see how he comes out.”

By Belmont Stakes (G1) winner Tonalist, The Reds broke his maiden in his fifth career start and second this year, a 1 1/8-mile maiden special weight Jan. 31 at Aqueduct. Last time out, he ran fifth in the one-mile Gotham (G3) March 6, also at the Big A.

The Reds is not Triple Crown-nominated, but can be supplemented to the 1 3/16-mile Preakness at the time of entry, May 10.

“This horse is really suited to run further. He's got that kind of temperament. He settles really well,” Kimmel said. “I'm not sure if we'll come back in three weeks but we'll see how the Derby and the participants in the Preakness shakes out and we'll go from there.”

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Federico Tesio, A ‘Win And In’ Race For Preakness, Returning To Pimlico

For the first time since 2015, Maryland's local audition for the 146^th Preakness Stakes (G1) in Baltimore, Md., will provide horses with an opportunity to prep over the same legendary Pimlico Race Course main track that serves as home for the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown.

The $125,000 Federico Tesio headlines seven stakes worth $750,000 in purses on the Spring Stakes Spectacular program Saturday, April 24, originally scheduled to be run at Laurel Park. With the ongoing evaluation of Laurel's main track, live racing has been shifted to Pimlico effective Thursday, April 22.

Laurel's spring meet, delayed seven days to an April 8 opening amid an equine herpesvirus (EHV-1) quarantine, was scheduled to run through May 2. The Preakness Meet at Pimlico is scheduled for Thursdays through Sundays through May 31, with no live racing Sunday, May 16, or Thursday, May 27, and a special Memorial Day holiday program Monday, May 31.

The 1 1/8-mile Tesio – named for the noted Italian breeder, owner and trainer whose homebreds Nearco and Ribot dominate Thoroughbred bloodlines around the world – debuted at Pimlico in 1981 and stayed every year but two through 2015. Laurel Park hosted the Tesio in 1987 and 1989 and each year since 2016.

For the sixth straight year, the Tesio will serve as a 'Win and In' qualifier for Triple Crown-nominated 3-year-olds to the 1 3/16-mile Preakness Stakes Saturday, May 15. Among the horses under consideration are Grade 2 winner Brooklyn Strong, Grade 3-placed Tarantino, stakes winners Hello Hot Rod and Maythehorsebwithu, and stakes-placed Tiz Mandate.

All five horses are Triple Crown nominated, with Laurel Park-based Maythehorsebwithu and Tiz Mandate's eligibility coming at the late March 29 deadline. Shackled Love, another Laurel horse that beat Maythehorsebwithu in the March 13 Private Terms, is also being pointed to the Tesio.

Laurel-based trainer Lacey Gaudet was an assistant to her late father when Eddie Gaudet won the 2011 Tesio at Pimlico with Maryland-bred Concealed Identity, owned by his wife, Lacey's mother Linda, along with Morris Bailey. Sheldon Russell, still part of Maryland's jockey colony, was the rider.

The Tesio was actually the second straight win at Pimlico for Concealed Identity, a two-length triumph over Ruler On Ice, who would go on to capture the Belmont Stakes (G1). It would be the only Preakness appearance for Eddie Gaudet, patriarch of one of Maryland's best-known and respected racing families.

“I remember my mom and I discussing, 'OK, this is our goal. If he can win going two turns, and then win the Tesio, we'll go to the Preakness. It was the local prep and it we decided that if we won it, we'd go,” Lacey Gaudet said. “It was fairly cool. There was a lot of personal sentiment at the time. Sheldon had rode him for us and if you watch the replay when he comes past where we stand in the regular winner's circle at the wire, Sheldon kind of pointed over at us.

“He won convincingly,” she added. “Sheldon pointed at us as he crossed the wire for the Tesio because it was like, 'OK, guys. We get to have fun now.' It was really cool and it definitely gave us a confidence booster that he won over the racetrack. He was essentially the only horse going into the Preakness winning two in a row and at the track. It was exciting.”

Serving as the Tesio's co-headliner on the Spring Stakes Spectacular program is the $125,000 Weber City Miss, a 'Win and In' qualifier for 3-year-old fillies to the $250,000 Black-Eyed Susan (G2) Friday, May 14 at Pimlico. Each of the first four Weber City Miss winners since its 2016 debut have gone on to run in the Black-Eyed Susan including Lights of Medina, second by a head in 2017. Grand Cru Classe did not race in last year's Black-Eyed Susan.

Spring Stakes Spectacular includes a pair of $100,0000 dirt sprints, Frank Y. Whiteley for 3-year-olds and up and Primonetta for fillies and mares 3 and older. With the change in venue, the Whiteley has been shortened from seven to six furlongs, same as the Primonetta.

Also scheduled are the first three turf stakes of the year – the $100,000 Henry S. Clark for 3-year-olds and up and $100,000 Dahlia for females 3 and older, both at a mile, and $100,000 King T. Leatherbury for 3-year-olds and up, carded for 5 ½ furlongs at Laurel but to be contested at five furlongs at Pimlico.

The Preakness highlights a program of 10 stakes, six graded, worth $2.25 million Saturday, May 15 that includes the 120^th edition of the $250,000 Dinner Party (G2) for 3-year-olds and up on turf, Pimlico's oldest stakes race and the eighth-oldest in the country, debuting in 1870.

Other graded-stakes on the Preakness undercard are the $200,000 Chick Lang (G3) for 3-year-olds sprinting six furlongs, $150,000 Gallorette (G3) for fillies and mares 3 and up going 1 1/16 miles on the grass, $150,000 Maryland Sprint (G3) at six furlongs for 3-year-olds and up, and $100,000 Arabian Derby (G1) for Arabian 3-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles.

A total of six stakes, four graded, worth $1 million in purses help comprise the May 14 Black-Eyed Susan Day card, including the historic $250,000 Pimlico Special (G3) for 3-year-olds and up at 1 3/16 miles, $150,000 Miss Preakness (G3) for 3-year-old fillies sprinting six furlongs, and $150,000 Allaire du Pont (G3) for fillies and mares 3 and up going 1 1/8 miles.

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Maryland Racing Set To Resume Thursday When Laurel Launches Spring Meet

A pair of allowance events help spice up a nine-race program as live racing returns to Laurel Park Thursday, April 8 to kick off its 16-day spring meet.

First race post time is 12:40 p.m.

A total of 83 horses were entered on the program, an average of 9.22 starters per race. The feature comes in Race 6, a second-level optional claiming allowance for 3-year-olds and up going around two turns at about 1 1/16 miles.

Among the overflow field of 11 are 2019 Remsen (G2) winner Shotski, most recently third in a similar spot Feb. 25 at Laurel; Silent Malice, riding a two-race win streak; Oxide, a winner of three of his last five races; Mischief Afoot and Awesome DJ, both exiting Laurel's Harrison E. Johnson Memorial March 13; 2020 A Huevo Stakes winner V.I.P. Ticket; and stakes-placed Dinar.

Race 8 is an entry-level allowance for fillies and mares 3 and up sprinting seven furlongs that drew a field of nine including 2020 Malvern Rose runner-up Remain Anonymous, second in each of her three 2021 starts; Tweet Away Robin, who had a two-race win streak snapped last out March 20 at Laurel; and Queen of Tomorrow for leading trainer Claudio Gonzalez, whose last starter at Laurel came March 7.

Laurel's spring meet runs Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through May 2. Saturday, April 24 is the Spring Stakes Spectacular featuring seven stakes worth $750,000 in purses led by the $125,000 Federico Tesio for 3-year-olds and $125,000 Weber City Miss for 3-year-old fillies.

The 1 1/8-mile Tesio is a 'Win and In' qualifier for Triple Crown-nominated horses to the 146^th Preakness Stakes (G1) May 15 at Pimlico Race Course. The Weber City Miss, at about 1 1/16 miles, is a 'Win and In' event for the $250,000 Black-Eyed Susan (G2) on Preakness eve, May 14, at Pimlico.

There will be special post times of 12:15 p.m. for both the Spring Stakes Spectacular and Kentucky Derby (G1) day, Saturday, May 1.

Maythehorsebwithu Breezes for Tesio on Busy Saturday at Laurel
Michael Dubb and Bethlehem Stables' Maythehorsebwithu, easy winner of the one-mile Miracle Wood Feb. 20, returned to the work tab with an easy half-mile breeze in 50.40 seconds over Laurel Park's main track Saturday.

It was the first work for the sophomore son of 2009 Whitney (G1) winner Bullsbay since running second in the March 13 Private Terms at Laurel, his two-turn debut, beaten a half-length by 21-1 long shot Shackled Love.

Maythehorsebwithu, nominated to the Triple Crown by the final March 29 deadline, is being pointed to the $125,000 Federico Tesio April 24 at Laurel, a 'Win and In' qualifier for Triple Crown-nominated 3-year-olds to the 146^th Preakness Stakes (G1) May 15 at Pimlico Race Course.

Joel Politi's Littlestitious, who snapped favored Street Lute's five-stakes win streak in the one-mile Beyond the Wire March 13 at Laurel, went a half-mile in 50.20 seconds Saturday. The 3-year-old filly, possible for the $125,000 Weber City Miss April 24, also breezed the same distance in an identical time March 27.

The Weber City Miss is a 'Win and In' qualifier for the $250,000 Black-Eyed Susan (G2) May 14 at Pimlico.

Hillside Equestrian Meadows' Laki, a six-time career stakes winner including the 2020 Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash (G3), breezed four furlongs in 49.20 seconds. It was his first timed work since running third in the General George (G3) Feb. 20 at Laurel.

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Tampa Bay Derby Winner Helium, Gotham Hero Weyburn Among Late Triple Crown Nominees

D.J. Stable's Tampa Bay Derby (Grade 2) winner Helium along with Chiefswood Stables' Gotham upset hero and likely Wood Memorial (G2) entrant Weyburn were among nine Thoroughbreds made eligible to compete in the 2021 Triple Crown with a $6,000 late payment that was due Monday.

With nine late nominees during the Jan. 23-March 29 late nomination phase (pending late mail), there are now 335 horses eligible to compete in the Triple Crown's three race series. The 2021 Triple Crown opens Saturday, May 1 with the 147th running of the 1 ¼-mile Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. The 146th Preakness, its 1 3/16-mile second jewel, is set for Saturday, May 15 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md. The 153rd running of the Belmont Stakes, the series' 1 ½-mile final leg, is scheduled for Saturday, June 5 at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

Other late Triple Crown nominees: Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum's UAE Derby (G2) runner-up Panadol; Reddam Racing's Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) third-place finisher Hockey Dad; Larry Katz' Turf Paradise Derby winner It's My House; Michael Dubb and Bethlehem Stables' three-time winner Maythehorsebwithu; Phillip Ward's stakes-placed Tiz Mandate; MyRacehorse.com, Medallion Racing, Parkland Thoroughbreds and Edward Kelly's European transfer Carrothers; and Clark M Cooper Family Trust, Mia Familia Racing Stable and Wade Jacobsen's two-time winner Back Ring Luck.

Any horse not nominated during the early or late phases can become Triple Crown eligible through a supplemental nomination payment due at the time of entry for each Triple Crown race: Kentucky Derby ($200,000), Preakness ($100,000), and Belmont ($50,000).

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