Morgan's Ford Farm | Horse Racing Free Tips

Over $1 Million In Virginia Breeders Fund Awards To Be Distributed From 2021 Victories

The Virginia Thoroughbred Association announced that $975,000 in Virginia Breeders award monies will be distributed to breeding farms in the state whose horses reached the winners circle in 2021 at any track in North America. That $975,000 figure is up $25,000 from 2020.

Adding in $75,000 in Virginia Stallion awards — up $25,000 from 2020 as well — a total of $1,050,000 in bonus monies will be distributed via the Breeders Fund. A total of 46 different breeders will share in the prize pool, which comes from 161 winning Virginia-bred horses that accumulated purse earnings of $2,916,905. The bonus averaged 32 percent of each winning purse. As recently as 2019, that figure was 19 percent.

The Virginia Breeders Fund is generated by one percent of every dollar wagered in Virginia on live racing and via OTB and ADW betting. Each year, the Virginia Racing Commission approves how the money in the Fund is allocated. A large portion is set aside for payments to breeders of registered Virginia-breds that win a race at any track in North America. There is a $25,000 cap on any single award.

Morgan's Ford Farm, based in Front Royal, led the charge with $126,694 from 15 wins. Chess Chief, who scored a pair of stakes wins, and Bella Aurora, who connected in a single stake, were both key. The former, a 6-year-old Into Mischief horse, scored a maximum $25,000 award in winning the New Orleans Classic and a $19,027 bonus in the Tenacious Stakes. Both were held at Fair Grounds. Bella Aurora won the Interborough Stakes, good for $17,441 while Supply and Demand, with three wins in New York, produced over $32,000 in awards.

Mr. & Mrs. C. Oliver Iselin III finished second in awards with $113,855 led by several key contributors — Passion Play, Virginia Beach and Attachment Rate. Passion Play's victories in the Bert Allen and Edward P. Evans Stakes each returned a $19,027 award as did Virginia Beach's win in the Camptown Stakes. Attachment Rate, a former Kentucky Derby participant, captured an $11,035 payday for winning a February allowance at Gulfstream.

Knockgriffin Farm did not have any five-digit award winners but did have 14 overall. Multiple victors Vincent Van Gogo and Gimme Some Mo collected three each and Mucho Mas and Mo Clare's each had a pair. The combined total of $72,346 was good for third in the standings. Gimme Some Mo's $9,944 award from a Churchill Downs claimer was tops and Shastee's maiden special weight $8,562 bonus score at Gulfstream was next best.

Audley Farm Equine's bonus tally of $69,353 came from just five wins, but three were $100,000 stakes. Determined Kingdom prevailed in the Jamestown, Tasting the Stars was best in the Nellie Mae Cox, and Urban Fairytale finished first in the Brookmeade. Each provided an extra $19,027 on top of purse money earned.

With Repo Rocks' three wins and American Dubai's two, Mrs. C. Oliver Iselin took fifth place with $69,166. She had seven triumphs in all but benefitted most from American Dubai's dominating 7-length allowance win at Oaklawn with a $106,000 purse. Repo Rock's hat trick of wins all took place in New York — a maiden special weight at Belmont followed by two winning allowance efforts at Aqueduct.

Carlos Moore and Gillian Gordon-Moore's bonus of $55,443 was good for sixth among breeders. All came from Steve Asmussen trained Boldor, who prevailed in three stakes last year — the Sam's Town at Delta Downs, the King Cotton at Oaklawn and the Punch Line at Colonial.

Quest Realty's $49,799 figure came from six different horses, two of which reached the winners circle three times each — Drosselmoon and Stay Out. Another trio had their picture taken twice — Jestful, Point of Grace and Stay In.

The William Backer Revocable Trust reached the $40,000 level thanks to Shaaz's late season win in a $67,000 maiden special weight at Santa Anita. The Uncle Mo colt, a Bob Baffert trainee, was making his first lifetime start.

Tango Charlie's three wins in 2021 helped Morgan's Ford Farm and Godolphin reach $38,361 in bonus earnings. The 4-year-old Hard Spun gelding took a maiden claimer at Oaklawn followed by claiming wins at Ellis Park and Churchill. Oviatt Class chipped in with a maiden special weight victory at Del Mar, good for a $13,318 check.

Rounding out the top ten was Lazy Lane Farms with $37,659 from nine wins. Forloveofcountry was best on three different occasions while Dublin Yinz Money and Sing Along Suzy won twice each.

A total of $75,000 in stallion awards were distributed among six owners with 11 winners and combined purse earnings of $250,920.

Horses sired by Smallwood Farms' Friend or Foe won three and took $39,248 of the stallion reward pool. Mr. Buff led the way again with two stakes scores in New York — the Stymie and Jazil. The 8-year-old gelding has amassed $1.4 million from 17 lifetime wins.

Goodluckchuck, sired by Anne Louise Bonda's Big Picture, won three races to produce a $14,481 bonus. The 6-year-old gelding won an allowance at Charles Town, a claimer at Timonium and a starter optional claimer at Laurel.

Third largest award went to Lady Olivia at North Cliff, whose $8,967 bonus came courtesy of Heart Light's maiden special weight win at Colonial on Aug. 2. The 3-year-old Cosa Vera filly was best by a nose.

Other awards were received by Leanne Hester (Gone Clubbing), Ruxton Farm (Fierce Wind) and the late Sara Collette (Xenodon).

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Four 2018 Virginia Yearling Futurity Participants Share $5,000 In Bonus Awards

Congratulations to four Virginia-bred/certified horses that competed in the 2018 Yearling Futurity, who will share a $5,000 bonus pool based on career earnings they accumulated through their recently completed 3-year-old racing campaigns.

The top earners in bonus winning order were Patriotic Punch ($3,000), Appraised ($1,000), Lady Fox ($700) and Beach Traffic ($300).

Maryland-bred Patriotic Punch, bred by Charles Reed and Michael Zanella, bankrolled $125,969 from 17 career starts through Dec. 31. The Carpe Diem filly, out of Lori Z's Punch by Two Punch, reeled off three wins in a row during a five-week period in Maryland last year. She was best in maiden claimer and a pair of starter optional claiming races between Sept. 11 and Oct. 17. Overall, she has 10 top-three finishes. Patriotic Punch spent her Virginia residency at Karen Godsey's Eagle Point Farm in Ashland.

Virginia-bred Appraised also has recorded a trio of victories and ten top-three finishes. The Shanghai Bobby gelding, bred and raised at Morgan's Ford Farm in Front Royal, collected his wins in a series of claimers at Delaware Park over a nine-week period last year. Out of the Include mare, Looking Great, he has earned $70,067.

Lady Fox finished 2020 with $56,540 in earnings — third best from the '18 yearling class — and has kicked off 2021 with back-to-back wins. The Imagining filly, bred by Lady Olivia at North Cliff, LLC., had four runner-up finishes and a trio of thirds through 2020, good for $56,540. This year, she broke her maiden and prevailed in another claiming race, both at Laurel. The Maryland-bred, out of Lady Olivia by Silver Deputy, spent her residency at David Dobson's Lady Olivia at North Cliff Farm in Rixeyville.

Beach Traffic, reserve grand champion and winner of the “certified” class at the 2018 Futurity, has collected wins at both Gulfstream and Monmouth. The Maryland-bred gelding, by Cross Traffic, has bankrolled $53,365 to date. Out of Pink Sand by Sky Mesa, Beach Traffic was bred by Patricia Ramey and Maciej Szwarc and raised at the Hunt Ridge Stables at Ramey's Blue Ridge Farm in Upperville. He has hit the board in half of his 16 starts.

The post Four 2018 Virginia Yearling Futurity Participants Share $5,000 In Bonus Awards appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Unified Colt Takes Grand Champion Honors At Virginia Yearling Futurity

Knockgriffin Farm's Virginia-Certified 2019 colt out of Causin Commotion took Grand Champion honors in the annual Virginia Breeders Fund 2020 Yearling Futurity, which was held September 9 at the Warrenton Horse Show Grounds in Warrenton, Va.

The champion is owned/bred by Jim & Katie Fitzgerald at their Marshall, Va., farm. The dark bay or brown colt is by Unified.

Morgan's Ford Farm's 2019 bay out of Smart Believer, who took top honors in the Virginia-Bred/Sired Fillies division, was named 2020 Reserve Champion. She is a daughter of Animal Kingdom. A total of $22,500 in prize money was distributed between the three divisions. The top two winners from each advanced to the Grand Championship final round.

In the Virginia-Bred/Sired Colt and Gelding class, Althea Richards' 2019 colt out of Darting won top honors. Also named “Best Turned Out”, the dark bay is by Divining Rod.

Susan Cooney's Celtic Sea, a chestnut colt by English Channel out of Embarr by Royal Academy, took second. Rounding out the class in order was Knockgriffin Farms' 2019 colt out of Trishas Even by Street Sense, Becky and Andy Lavin's 2019 chestnut colt out of Falsehood by Madefromlucky, Knockgriffin's 2019 colt out of Looking Great by American Freedom, Daniel Wukich and Quest Realty's E.P Milton by Jack Milton, Darlene Bowlin's 2019 gelding out of Cape Cod Bay by Great Notion and Frazer Hendrick's colt, Maximum Momentum by Koda Chrome.

In the Virginia-Bred/Sired Fillies category, Daybreak Stables' 2019 bay out of Callipepla was runner-up behind the Smart Believer filly. The daughter of Cupid was also named “Best Turned Out” in her class.

The rest of the field in order was Corner Farm and John Behrendt's 2019 bay out of Senate Caucus by Maclean's Music, Morgan's Ford Farms' 2019 Pearls by Super Saver, Doug Daniels' Dulini by Madefromlucky, Daniel Wukich and Quest Realty's Music Queen by Maclean's Music, Eagle Point Farms' Chickahominy by Great Notion and Susan Cooney's Speak Your Mind by Mr Speaker.

In the large Certified class, which saw colts and filles combined, Lorraine and Dennis Johnson's colt out of Bigshot On Nothing and by Mineshaft, finished second and was named “Best Turned Out” horse.

Joanne Krishack's filly New Age Bad Girl by Fiber Sonde was next followed by Ron Sapp's colt Rebel Empire by Sky Kingdom, Kathleen Hamlin's gelding Man of the Cloth by Fiber Sonde, DMG Racing Stables' gelding Freegftwthpurchase by Freedom Child, Daniel Wukich & Quest Realty's filly Lunar Motion by Great Notion and Michael Dalton's colt Quincannon by Buffum.

The judge for this year's Futurity was Rick Abbott, a former longtime Pennsylvania bloodstock agent who along with his wife Dixie, had a successful sales consignment business.

The post Unified Colt Takes Grand Champion Honors At Virginia Yearling Futurity appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Shadwell Farm’s Tamarkuz Notches First Winner At Colonial Downs

Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile winner Tamarkuz of Shadwell Farm was represented by his first winner at stud on Wednesday when Cool Enough won a maiden claiming race at Colonial Downs, BloodHorse reports.

Cool Enough led every step of the way in the 5 1/2-furlong race that was rained out from the turf to the main track, and the gray or roan filly's lead extended to 5 1/4 lengths at the wire under jockey Forest Boyce. They stopped the clock in 1:05.13 over a fast main track for owners Rashid's Thoroughbred Racing and Kingdom Bloodstock, Inc., and trainer Phil Schoenthal.

A Virginia-bred from the program of Morgan's Ford Farm, Cool Enough is out of the unplaced Macho Uno mare Make Waves. The dam ran as a homebred for the Morgan's Ford operation, as did second dam Skipstone. Cool Enough was already a historic horse for Tamarkuz, as the stallion's first starter back in May at Churchill Downs.

Tamarkuz, a 10-year-old son of Speightstown, stands at Shadwell Farm in Lexington, Ky., for an advertised fee of $10,000.

A winner in eight of 20 starts for earnings of $1,840,444, Tamarkuz is best known on the racetrack for his victory in the 2016 Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile at Santa Anita Park. Prior to moving to the U.S., Tamarkuz picked up victories in the U.A.E. in the Grade 2 Godolphin Mile, and the G3 Firebreak Stakes and Burj Nahaar. His U.S. resume also includes runner-up efforts in the G1 Forego Stakes and G2 Kelso Handicap.

Bred in Kentucky by John D. Gunther, Tamarkuz is out of the unraced Lemon Drop Kid mare Without You Babe, making him a half-brother to Without Parole, a Group 1 winner at the prestigious Royal Ascot meeting. His extended family includes Grade 1 winner Stay Thirsty and Grade 3 winner Andromeda's Hero.