mike pegram | Horse Racing Free Tips

Report: Prat, Longtime Agent Lawson Split; Brad Pegram To Handle Book

Flavien Prat has split from agent Derek Lawson, who has represented Southern California's leading jockey since he came to the U.S. from his native France to ride full time at the end of 2014. Daily Racing Form reported the split and the fact that Prat's hiring of agent Brad Pegram has forced Drayden Van Dyke to make a change.

Pegram has represented both Van Dyke and Hall of Famer Mike Smith, but California rules restrict an agent from having more than two riders.

Van Dyke told Daily Racing Form's Steve Andersen he's “been swamped with calls already” but added that he was going to take a few days to consider options, including relocating to another circuit.

The change will take place effective Feb. 26, according to the report.

Prat did not give a reason for the move, telling Andersen, “I felt like it was time to make a change.”

The 28-year-old Prat has won numerous Southern California riding titles while working with Lawson. He is currently fourth behind Juan Hernandez, Umberto Rispoli and Joel Rosario in the Santa Anita jockey standings, with 19 wins from 113 mounts, a 17% winning percentage. Van Dyke is 5-for-49.

Now in his seventh year riding full time in Southern California, Prat has compiled 987 victories from 4,921 mounts with his horses earning over $76 million. He won the 2019 Kentucky Derby aboard Country House via the disqualification of Maximum Security and has won three Breeders' Cup races.

Van Dyke, a 26-year-old native of Louisville, Ky., has been riding since 2013 and has 721 career wins from 4,530 starts for mount earnings of $45.5 million. Among his 18 Grade 1 victories is a win by Stormy Liberal in the 2018 Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint.

Pegram has close ties to the Bob Baffert stable, with Smith getting many of the Hall of Fame trainer's top horses. Van Dyke has previously ridden a number of Baffert's top young prospects. Pegram is the nephew of longtime Baffert client Mike Pegram and the son of longtime agent Jim Pegram.

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Justify, Hoppertunity Disqualification Hearings Should Be Held, California Judge Rules

The connections of 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify and Grade 1 winner Hoppertunity on Thursday were thwarted in their attempt to stave off an Oct. 29 hearing before California Horse Racing Board stewards concerning possible disqualification from April 2018 victories by the two horses at Santa Anita Park because of failed drug tests.

Both horses tested positive for the banned substance scopolamine: Justify, after his win in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby; and Hoppertunity in the Grade 3 Tokyo City Cup.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge James C. Chalfant denied an application for a temporary restraining order requested by attorneys for WinStar Farm, China Horse Club, Head of Plains Partners, and Starlight Racing, the owners of Justify, and Michael Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman, the owners of Hoppertunity. Trainer Bob Baffert and jockeys Mike Smith and Flavien Prat were also named as petitioners in the case.

Earlier this year, the CHRB settled a lawsuit filed by Mick Ruis, owner of Santa Anita Derby runner-up Bolt d'Oro, conditional on the stewards conducting a hearing into Justify's positive drug test. The case was not pursued in 2018 after CHRB members voted unanimously in closed-door executive session – upon the recommendation of equine medical director Dr. Rick Arthur and then-CHRB executive director Rick Baedekr – not to file complaints. Arthur and Baedeker had investigated the cases and concluded the positive tests were a result of hay contaminated with jimson weed.

Ruis filed suit after learning of the CHRB's actions from a 2019 report in the New York Times.

Attorneys for the connections of the two horses argued that the CHRB was violating government code by reopening a case more than two years after the fact. Attorneys for the state said the petitioners were premature in seeking judicial review because the cases had not yet gone through the administrative process (i.e., a stewards hearing).

“At this hearing, the parties will have the opportunity to present evidence and make argument,” the state said in its opposition to the restraining order. “After the hearing, the Board of Stewards will render a decision. The decision by the Board of Stewards could be in favor of Petitioners or could be against Petitioners. If Petitioners take issue with the decision by the Board of Stewards following the Oct. 29, 2020, hearing, they can file a petition for writ of mandate. … Instead of following the procedures set forth by California law, Petitioners want this court to prematurely intervene and short-circuit the administrative processes of the CHRB.”

Darrell Vienna, an attorney for Ruis, issued a statement after the ruling that stated: “We are pleased that Judge Chalfant saw through this flimsy attempt to delay or avoid a long overdue and proper treatment of the positive tests involving these two horses.”

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McKinzie Retired To Gainesway Farm For 2021 Breeding Season

McKinzie, a four-time Grade 1 winner, has been retired from racing, and he will begin his stallion career at Gainesway in Lexington, Ky., for the 2021 breeding season, the Daily Racing Form reports.

The 5-year-old son of Street Sense was under consideration for this year's Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile at Keeneland. Instead, he finishes his career with eight wins in 18 starts for earnings of $3,473,360.

Trained by Bob Baffert for owners Karl Watson, Mike Pegram, and Paul Weitman, McKinzie won on debut as a juvenile by 5 1/2 lengths at Santa Anita Park, and he parlayed that into a victory in the Grade 1 Los Alamitos CashCall Futurity. At three, McKinzie kicked off the season with a victory in the G3 Sham Stakes, and he later added wins in the G1 Pennsylvania Derby and G1 Malibu Stakes.

The colt continued to be one of the best in his class at age four, racking up wins in the G1 Whitney Stakes and G2 Alysheba Stakes, and finishing the year with a second in the Breeders' Cup Classic. This year's campaign was highlighted by a win in the G2 Triple Bend Stakes.

Keeneland Reached $200 Million In Sales At Midway Point Of September Yearling Auction

Keeneland marked the halfway point in its 12-day September Yearling Sale with today's session highlighted by the sale of a colt from the first crop of Unified for $450,000 to Three Amigos.

Consigned by Four Star Sales, agent, the colt is out of Fay Na Na, by Majestic Warrior, and from the family of Grade 1 winner Klimt. Three Amigos is the name used to purchase horses for Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman. longtime clients of trainer Bob Baffert.

Keeneland sold 239 horses on Saturday for $18,364,200, for an average of $76,838 and a median of $52,000. Cumulative sales for the auction, which began Sept. 13, are $200,750,700 for 1,028 horses, for an average of $195,283 and a median of $130,000.

The day's second-highest price was $410,000 spent by Maverick Racing to acquire a colt by Violence from the consignment of Hidden Brook, agent. He is out of the stakes-placed City Zip mare Brinkley, a half-sister to Grade 2 winner Bound for Nowhere. The colt also is from the family of champion Midnight Lute.

Cheyenne Stables paid $400,000 for the session's top-priced filly, a daughter of Malibu Moon who is a half-sister to graded stakes winner Stanford and graded stakes-placed Hedge Fund. Consigned by Warrendale Sales, agent, she is out of the Distorted Humor mare Rosy Humor and is from the family of European champion and sire Johannesburg.

Donato Lanni, agent for SF/Starlight/Madaket, spent $385,000 for a colt by Twirling Candy who is a half-brother to Grade 3 winner Real Story and stakes winner My Afleet. Out of the winning Lasting Approval mare My Own Story, he was consigned by Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services, agent.

Paramount Sales, agent, led all consignors on Saturday by selling 21 yearlings for $2,193,000.

The leading buyer was Kenny McPeek, who acquired five horses for $642,000.

The September Sale continues Sunday with the first session of the two-day Book 4. All remaining sessions of the sale, which runs through Sept. 25, begin at 10 a.m.

The entire September Sale is being shown on the Watch TVG app, which is available on Amazon Fire, Roku and connected Apple TV devices. The Watch TVG App also features TVG, TVG2, Racebook, race track feeds and more.

The auction also is being is streamed live at Keeneland.com.

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