Murray | Horse Racing Free Tips

Baffert Nominates Four For Capote Stakes, Two For Los Alamitos Special

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert nominated four 2-year-olds to the $75,000-guaranteed Capote Stakes.

Named in honor of the champion 2-year-old of 1986, the Capote is scheduled to be run at 6 ½ furlongs at Los Alamitos Race Course in Cypress, Calif., Saturday, Sept. 18.

Baffert also nominated a pair to the $100,000 Los Alamitos Special, a race at 1 1/16 miles set for Sunday, Sept. 19.

Topping the list of nominees for Baffert to the Capote is Murray, an impressive first-out winner before disappointing as the favorite in the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in Del Mar, Calif., Sept. 6.

A $300,000 purchase at the Keeneland September sale last year and owned by a partnership that includes SF Racing LLC and Starlight Racing, Murray broke his maiden by 10 ¾ lengths July 25 before finishing fifth of six in the Futurity. The son of Street Sense and the Tiznow mare Now Now has banked $48,000.

Baffert also nominated Montebello, a New York-bred son of Curlin who won narrowly in his debut Aug. 7 at Del Mar before finishing second in the Funny Cide at Saratoga 20 days later, and the maidens Rhetoric and Enbarr.

The other nominees include Los Alamitos graduates Olympic Legend and Richards the Dream and Fascinated, who won at first asking – via disqualification – on the Golden Gate Fields turf Sept. 4.

Baffert, who won the inaugural Los Alamitos Special – when it was contested at 1 ¼ miles – with Dabster in 2018, nominated Leading Score and Magic On Tap this year.

A lightly-raced 7-year-old, Leading Score owns a victory at Los Alamitos, capturing an optional claimer at one mile during the 2017 Los Angeles County Fair meet.

Owned by breeders Patti and Hal Earnhardt III, the son of Midnight Lute has won three of 10 and earned $141,810.

Magic On Tap will be shortening up for breeder Summer Wind Equine LLC after trailing in the Grade 1 Pacific Classic at 10 furlongs last month. The 5-year-old Tapit horse has won three of eight and banked $234,300.

The other nominations to the Los Alamitos Special are Bold Endeavor, Border Town, Luvluv, Manhattan Up, Margot's Boy, Red Storm Risen, and Sash.

Entries for the Capote will be taken Wednesday, Sept. 18 and for the Los Alamitos Special the following day.

The post Baffert Nominates Four For Capote Stakes, Two For Los Alamitos Special appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Corniche Indicative Of Depth Of Baffert Juveniles

Smack in the middle of the two Grade 2 races on Saturday's program was a 5 ½-furlong maiden special weight sprint for 2-year-olds. And if racing fans were looking for a bridge of interest between the $200,000 John C. Mabee Stakes and the $250,000 Caesars Sportsbook Del Mar Derby they got it.

Corniche, a $1.5 million purchase by Speedway Stables at the Ocala sale in April, trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, drew clear shortly after the break from the gate; led by two lengths at the top of the stretch; extended the advantage via what the charts described as “an energetic hand ride” from jockey Mike Smith: and won by 4 ¼ lengths geared down in a time of 1:03.01

Speedway Stables is the nom du course of Peter Fluor of Houston, TX. His horse, Collected, won the 2017 TVG Pacific Classic.

Corniche was one of 33 2-year-olds Baffert nominated to Monday's $300,000 Grade 1 Runhappy Del Mar Futurity. But Saturday's race represented an impressive debut for the Quality Road colt. And Baffert will have two others who also were impressive debut winners earlier in the meeting as representatives, Pinehurst and Murray, when he seeks a 15th Futurity victory in the penultimate race of the summer meeting.

The nomination deadline for both the Runhappy Del Mar Futurity and today's $300,000 Grade 1 Del Mar Debutante was June 25 this year. And Baffert, always with an abundance of talented babies, takes a shotgun approach when the paperwork is due.

“We have to do it early, so I nominate a lot of them and see which ones are ready when the time comes,” Baffert said this morning.

Murray, a son of Street Sense who commanded $300,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale, debuted with a 10 ¼-length victory at 5 ½ furlongs in 1:04.20 on July 25. Pinehurst, a $385,000 purchase at the same sale and for the same ownership group – SF Racing, Starlight Racing and partners – won his career opener by a half-length, covering five furlongs in :58 flat.

Baffert said Corniche came out of his race in fine fettle and future assignments will be determined in a few days.

“I wasn't surprised, I expected it,” Baffert said of the Corniche effort. “He was flying early and he kept flying late. The Futurity was coming up a little too quick for him, but we're excited about him like we are about several others. This is a really good group of 2-year-olds.”

The field for the Runhappy Del Mar Futurity from the rail with jockeys and morning line odds in parentheses: Pappacap (Joe Bravo, 3-1); Olympic Legend (Jose Valdivia, Jr., 12-1); Finneus (Tiago Pereira, 12-1); Pinehurst (Mike Smith, 5/2); Murray (Flavien Prat, 2-1), and American Xperiment (Umberto Rispoli, 5/2).

The post Corniche Indicative Of Depth Of Baffert Juveniles appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Pappacap Looking to Step Up in Del Mar Futurity

Having ascended through his conditions with aplomb, Pappacap (Gun Runner) hopes the trend continues in Monday's GI Runhappy Del Mar Futurity. A first-out winner going five panels at Gulfstream May 14, the Rustlewood Farm homebred came from just off the pace to make it two straight in the Aug. 7 GII Best Pal S. Joe Bravo, who was aboard last time, reunites with the Florida bred again here. Never one to be disregarded, on either coast, trainer Steve Asmussen is represented by

American Xperiment (Nyquist), who shipped to the West Coast this past week. He was supplemented for $10,000 after producing a rousing 5 1/4-length win in a 5 1/2-furlong off-turf test at the Spa July 30.

“He got here Tuesday, he arrived in good order and we're hoping he runs well,” said Asmussen assistant Sarah Campion, who traveled with the colt. “He broke his maiden impressively at Saratoga, so Steve decided to send him out.”

Also represented is Bob Baffert, who saddles two for this seven-furlong juvenile feature. Pinehurst (Twirling Candy) led through most of his five-furlong debut here Aug. 1, holding on for a 1/2-length score over stablemate Enbarr (Brody's Cause). Baffert also saddles Murray (Street Sense), who earned TDN Rising Star distinction when airing by 10 3/4 lengths in his debut at Del Mar July 25. Since that effort, the $300,000 KEESEP purchase has been producing fast works at Del Mar, including a five-furlong move in :59.80 Aug. 25 followed by a bullet six furlongs in 1:12.4 Aug. 31.

“They both broke their maidens here and they've both trained well since,” said Baffert, who has won the Futurity on 14 prior occasions.

The post Pappacap Looking to Step Up in Del Mar Futurity appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Pinehurst, Murray Head Field For Monday’s Del Mar Futurity

The curtain comes ringing down on a highly successful Del Mar race meeting Labor Day Monday with a pair of juvenile stakes races topping the bill – the championship-caliber Grade 1 Runhappy Del Mar Futurity and the Del Mar Juvenile Turf.

There will be 10 races offered on the holiday with an early first post of 1:30 p.m. The Juvenile Fillies Turf will run as Race 9 a bit after 5 p.m. and the Runhappy Futurity will follow as Race 10 shortly after 5:30.

A half-dozen well-bred and well-meant colts will put on a show in the $300,000 Futurity, which will be contested at its usual distance of seven furlongs. No fewer than three Hall of Fame trainers will take a crack at this 74th edition of the race including one – Bob Baffert – who is known as Mr. Futurity in these parts.

Baffert, who has two runners for the race, has won Del Mar's top event for 2-year-olds 14 times, starting with his champion Silver Charm in 1996. The other two Hall of Famers – Mark Casse and Steve Asmussen – each have a single entrant in the extended sprint, but, in both cases, they've come loaded for bear.

Baffert's pair are SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Golconda Stable, Stonestreet Stable, et al's Murray and SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Stonestreet Stables, et al's Pinehurst. Both were impressive straight maiden winners earlier in the Del Mar meet and, with Baffert's mo-jo behind them, both will draw many eyes and heavy action Monday.

Casse's runner is Best Pal Stakes winner Pappacap, who is a homebred for Rustlewood Farm and Asmussen's starter is Downstream Racing's American Xperiment, who won smartly in a straight maiden race at Saratoga on July 30.

The Juvenile Turf drew nine 2-year-old for a mile spin on the Jimmy Durante Turf Course with a $100,000 purse as a target for them to shoot at.

The morning-line favorite in the race is Sierra Racing or Sterling Stables' Silver Surfer, a gray gelding who has been racing exclusively in Ireland and came stateside to trainer Phil D'Amato's barn in July. He's listed at 5/2 to capture the 10th running of the stakes, which serves as a prep for the $1 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf scheduled to be run at Del Mar on November 5.

Here are the full fields for both races with riders and morning line odds:

Runhappy Del Mar Futurity – Pappacap (Joe Bravo, 3-1); Opas or Sinatra's Olympic Legend (Jose Valdivia, Jr., 12-1); Lovingier, Fasihuddin or Navarro's Finneus (Tiago Pereira, 12-1); Pinehurst (Mike Smith, 5/2); Murray (Flavien Prat, 2-1), and American Xperiment (Umberto Rispoli, 5/2).

Del Mar Juvenile Turf – Silver Surfer (Bravo); Paradise Farms, Staudachere, et al's My Mane Champ (Rispoli, 12-1); Martin or Yamamoto's Mogollon Rim (Flavien Prat, 6-1); Sergio Zepeda Jr.'s Shortman (Valdivia, Jr., 30-1); ERJ Racing or Kenney's Mackinnon (Juan Hernandez, 3-1); Peter Redekop's Aquitania Arrival (Abel Cedillo, 5-1); Aldan Butler's Thirty Four Coupe (Smith, 15-1); Red Barons Barn or Rancho Temescal's Optimising (Drayden Van Dyke, 3-1), and Thomsen Racing's Socal Red (Pereira, 20-1).

Monday's card is the 31st and final day of summer season No. 82 at the shore oval. The track will return to action on Wednesday, November 3 for its 15-day fall session that will include the Breeders' Cup Championship races on November 5 and 6.

The post Pinehurst, Murray Head Field For Monday’s Del Mar Futurity appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post