NL List | Horse Racing Free Tips

Ghostzapper Success A First In Graded Stakes For Eye Of A Jedi, Owner/Trainer Budhoo

Owner/trainer Steve Budhoo's Eye of a Jedi, who has beaten his share of graded-stakes winners, ran the race of his life in Saturday's $100,000 Ghostzapper (G3) at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., to win the first graded stakes of his career.

The Ghostzapper. a 1 1/8-mile race for older horses, was one of 10 stakes on a 14-race program featuring 10 stakes and headlined by the $750,000 Curlin Florida Derby (G1) presented by Hill 'n' Dale Farms at Xalapa.

Already graded stakes-placed twice during the Championship Meet, Eye of a Jedi ($10.40) defeated favored Last Judgment by 5 ½ lengths while running the 1 1/8-miles in 1:48.83 and rewarding Budhoo with his first graded-stakes success.

Ridden for the first time by Hall of Famer Javier Castellano, the hard-knocking 6-year-old gelding was rated off a hotly contested pace set by Last Judgment and pressed by Superfecto during fractions of 23.60 and 46/43 seconds for the first half-mile. Castellano asked Eye of a Jedi for some run, and the son of Eye of a Leopard advanced steadily on the far turn to enter contention on the turn into the homestretch. Mike Maker-trained Last Judgement continued to show the way at the top of the stretch but proved no match for the fresher legs of Eye of a Jedi, who drew away to a comfortable victory.

Last Judgment, the 6-5 favorite ridden by Jose Ortiz, held second, 2 ¼ lengths ahead of third-place finisher Superfecto and jockey Tyler Gaffalione.

Eye of the Jedi, who finished second behind Tax in the Dec. 12 Harlan's Holiday (G3) and lost a photo in the Jan. 23 Fred W. Hooper (G3), was coming off a fourth-place finish in the Gulfstream Park Mile (G2).

Ghostzapper Quotes

Winning Owner/Trainer Steve Budhoo (Eye of a Jedi): “I love to train him for this track, because he loves this track. I had an invitation to go to Dubai for the [Godolphin] Mile, but because of the coronavirus, I said, 'I'll stay here.' I'm happy I did.”

“The good thing is sound. He's a very good horse.”

Winning Jockey Javier Castellano, Eye of a Jedi): “I'm really excited. Steve [Budhoo] is a great guy. He works hard. He's dedicated to every single one of his horses. It's nice to see good things happen for the little people. They make racing. I'm very lucky to ride this horse and win the race.”

The post Ghostzapper Success A First In Graded Stakes For Eye Of A Jedi, Owner/Trainer Budhoo appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Gray’s Fable Controls Pace, Gives Hall Of Famer Attfield His First Appleton Victory

Steve Goldfine, Kari Provost and Jeff Zlonis' gelding Gray's Fable, racing for the first time in 197 days, became a stakes winner in his second try with a front-running 2 ¼-length triumph in Saturday's $100,000 Kitten's Joy Appleton (G3) at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

The 69^th running of the one-mile Appleton for 4-year-olds and up on turf was the fourth of 10 stakes, and first of six graded, worth $1.85 million on a blockbuster 14-race program anchored by the $750,000 Curlin Florida Derby (G1) presented by Hill 'n' Dale Farms at Xalapa, one of the country's premier Triple Crown preps.

Also bred by Zlonis, Gray's Fable completed the distance in 1:32.64 over a firm course to give jockey Junior Alvarado his second win of the day and both he and Hall of Fame trainer Roger Attfield their first Appleton triumph.

Breaking from the rail in a field of eight, Gray's Fable quickly established position up front after a quarter-mile in 23.61 seconds and a half in 46.55, tracked in second by Ever Dangerous. Gray's Fable remained in control after going six furlongs in 1:09.38 and extended his advantage once straightened for home.

Renaisance Frolic got up to edge Ever Dangerous for second, followed by Perfect Speighty, 2-1 favorite Seismic Wave, Forever Mo, Little Menace and Frostmourne.

Gray's Fable was making his first start since capturing a one-mile optional claimer on the Woodbine turf last Sept. 12. In his only other stakes attempt, the son of two-time turf champion Gio Ponti was sixth in the Connaught Cup (G2) last June, also at Woodbine.

$100,000 Kitten's Joy Appleton (G3) Quotes

Winning jockey Junior Alvarado (Gray's Fable): “He's a horse that in the post parade he was kind of full of himself. He was showing he's kind of like an attitude horse, he wants to do things his way. He doesn't want you to get in his way. When we left the gate he broke very good so I kind of smooched him a little bit and let him do his own thing. I was pretty sure that he knew what he was going to do.”

The post Gray’s Fable Controls Pace, Gives Hall Of Famer Attfield His First Appleton Victory appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Mandella Has United Fit For Return In 12-Furlong San Luis Rey; Prat Wins Five

Idle roughly five months since running a disappointing eighth in the Breeders' Cup Turf, Richard Mandella's classy turf star United came back running on Saturday at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif., as he stalked the early pace and motored to an emphatic three quarter length win in the Grade 3, $100,000 San Luis Rey Stakes. Ridden by Flavien Prat, who notched his fourth win of the day, United, a 6-year-old gelding by Giant's Causeway, got a mile and one half on turf in 2:25.51.

Prat added a fifth win in the following race about Fratelli to extend his lead in the local jockey standings to 20 over Juan Hernandez.

With speedy Acclimate going to the front as expected in the run down the hillside turf, Prat was attentive to the pace and tracked the leader while applying mild pressure to the far turn, where he took over a quarter mile out and outran second choice Masteroffoxhounds from the top of the lane prior to holding off a late run from Say the Word.

“Hat's off to Mr. Mandella, he had him ready to run a mile and one half today,” said Prat, who has now guided him to five graded stakes wins. “He was traveling well the whole way and he responded well when I asked him to go. My horse likes to be in the race and he likes it when there is a good pace. I wanted to stay close to Acclimate, I didn't want him to get too easy of a lead.

“Like I say, we were traveling well and at the three eighths pole, I was in control. He likes the turf courses out here and with the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar, that's good. Hoping to have a good year.”

Heavily favored at 4-5 in a field of five older horses, United paid $3.80, $2.60 and $2.10.

“It's always nice to be home,” said Mandella. “He's won very nicely at Del Mar also, although we like The Great Race Place.”

Owned by LNJ Foxwoods, United, who is out of Indy Punch, by Pulling Punches, now has five wins from 10 starts over the Santa Anita turf and his overall mark stands at 18-8-4-1. With the winner's share of $60,000, he now has earnings of $1,513,549.

Patiently handled by Mike Smith, Say the Word made a nice late run, easily besting Masteroffoxhounds by one length. Off at 4-1, Say the Word paid $3.60 and $2.80.

A winner of the G2 San Marcos Stakes at a mile and one quarter on turf Feb. 6, Masteroffoxhounds sat third to the top of the lane and was unable to hold off Say the Word for the place. Ridden by Umberto Rispoli, he was off at 2-1 and paid $2.20 to show while finishing five lengths clear of Acclimate.

Fractions on the race were 24.29, 47.18, 1:11.36, 1:36.01 and 2:00.80.

The post Mandella Has United Fit For Return In 12-Furlong San Luis Rey; Prat Wins Five appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Shug Watch: Greatest Honour Returns To Worktab; Half Brother To Code Of Honor Graduates In Style

Courtlandt Farms' Greatest Honour returned to the worktab at Payson Park in Indiantown, FL Saturday morning in preparation for a scheduled start in the $750,000 Curlin Florida Derby (G1) presented by Hill n' Dale Farm at Xalapa March 27 at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

Trained by Shug McGaughey, the 3-year-old son of Tapit was timed in 50.20 seconds, the third fastest of 21 workouts recorded at the four-furlong distance, while breezing for the first time since capturing the $300,000 Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth (G2) Feb. 27 at Gulfstream Park.

“He worked nice – his typical work,” McGaughey said. “I think he bounced out of the Fountain of Youth good.”

Greatest Honour is 3-for-3 during Gulfstream's Championship Meet, closing from well off the pace to break his maiden Dec. 26, capture the Jan. 30 Holy Bull (G2) and win the Fountain of Youth, all at 1 1/16 miles.

McGaughey is hoping that Greatest Honour will follow the example of Orb, whom the Hall of Fame trainer saddled for victories in the 2017 Fountain of Youth, the Florida Derby and the Kentucky Derby.

Saturday afternoon at Gulfstream, McGaughey saddled William S Farish's Bears Watching for an impressive 7 ¾ -length victory in Race 7, a seven-furlong maiden special weight race for 3-year-olds. The son of Karakontie, who finished a close third over a sloppy track in his six-furlong career debut Feb. 8 at Gulfstream, is a half-brother to Code of Honor, the $2.7 million earner who captured the 2019 Fountain of Youth (G2) at Gulfstream before going on to capture the Travers (G1) at Saratoga and the Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) at Belmont Park.

Bears Watching graduates from the maiden ranks at Gulfstream Park

Bears Watching, the 3-5 favorite in a field of 11, was well placed along the rail before making a four-wide sweep to the lead leaving the turn into the homestretch and drawing away under Jose Ortiz. The homebred colt ran seven furlongs in 1:22.95.

“He's my kind of horse, looks-wise and stuff,” McGaughey said. “All is good with him.”

Hall of Fame trainer Carl Nafzger sent out his first starter since October 2019 for the well-stocked maiden race. Jim Tafel LLC's Sensible Jim finished sixth after acting fractious in the gate and getting away a step slowly.

The post Shug Watch: Greatest Honour Returns To Worktab; Half Brother To Code Of Honor Graduates In Style appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post