Tag: Ohio Derby

Spa Notebook: Maxfield Breezes Towards Whitney

Godolphin's once-beaten Maxfield (Street Sense), the impressive 3 1/4-length winner of Churchill's GII Stephen Foster S. when last seen June 26, tuned up for his next appearance in the Aug. 7 GI Whitney S. with a half-mile breeze over the Oklahoma training track Friday morning that was timed in :49.09 (14/46).

Working in the company of stablemate Longpants Required (New Year's Day), the son of Velvety (Bernardini) covered his first two furlongs in :25.3 and was out five-eighths of a mile in 1:01.1 according to NYRA clockers.

“I just wanted them to start out nice and easy and pick it up as they went,” Walsh said. “It was a good work. I just wanted to get him back in the swing of things again. He looks like he's doing great. I was delighted with him yesterday when I got up here. He looked as good if not better than ever.”

Walsh told the NYRA notes team that he was pleased with what he saw from his charge in his first work since the Foster.

“It's three weeks since he ran and it worked out fine,” Walsh said. “I wasn't in a rush to work him back with the shipping. It's just a question of keeping him happy and keeping him healthy.”

Masqueparade Works For Jim Dandy…

Masqueparade (Upstart) was also among those on the Friday worktab at the Spa, covering four furlongs in a steady :49.23 (28/98). Recent winner of the GIII Ohio Derby, the bay is slated to make his next start in the GII Jim Dandy S. at Saratoga July 31.

“He's an improving 3-year-old mentally, physically and figure wise and that's why we're taking our chance in a race like the Jim Dandy,” said the conditioner, who added that his colt was also under consideration for this weekend's GI TVG.com Haskell S. and the Aug. 7 GII West Virginia Derby. “He's easy on himself. He won't grab the bit and go down there in :47 and change and gallop out in a minute, which is good at this point in time. It might help his longevity.”

Hendrickson, Casse Reflect on Schuylerville Win…

One day following Pretty Birdie (Bird Song)'s front-running success in the GIII Schuylerville S., trainer Norm Casse and John Hendrickson, the husband of the late Marylou Whitney, were still on cloud nine.

“Everyone assumes I love horse racing because of who my family is and who my father is, but Smarty Jones (Elusive Quality) is the reason I fell in love with horse racing,” said Casse. “I think we all know the story on how that one ends with Marylou beating him [with Birdstone with the Triple Crown on the line in 2004], and now I train for her. It's just surreal. I thank her and John [Hendrickson] so much. They've really given me everything and I really appreciate everything they've done.”

Added Hendrickson of the late owner/breeder, “This is where she felt the most alive. This is the way she is alive and she has a win on Opening Day. It's pretty special. This is a dream come true for me and Marylou. Things getting back to normal and winning on Opening Day, she's throwing a party. She said, 'I want to race, get back to work.'”

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‘Improving 3-Year-Old’ Masqueparade Works Toward Jim Dandy

FTGGG Racing's graded stakes-winner Masqueparade breezed a half-mile in 49.23 seconds over Saratoga's fast main track Friday in preparation for the Grade 2, $600,000 Jim Dandy on July 31 at the Spa, a race in which he'll likely face Belmont Stakes winner Essential Quality.

The Al Stall, Jr.,-trained son of second crop sire Upstart has made a gradual climb up the ladder since being elevated to first via disqualification from his fourth career start on March 20 at Fair Grounds.

Masqueparade followed with an 11 ¾-length optional-claiming win going nine furlongs at Churchill Downs before defeating graded stakes winners King Fury, Keepmeinind and Promise Keeper in the nine-furlong Grade 3 Ohio Derby on June 26 at Thistledown.

“He's an improving 3-year-old mentally, physically and figure wise and that's why we're taking our chance in a race like the Jim Dandy,” Stall, Jr. said. “He's easy on himself. He won't grab the bit and go down there in 47 and change and gallop out in a minute, which is good at this point in time. It might help his longevity.”

Stall, Jr. said he had considered the Grade 1 Haskell Invitational on July 17 at Monmouth Park and the Grade 2 West Virginia Derby on 7 at Mountaineer, but decided the Jim Dandy provided the best opportunity.

“I think with natural selection they'll sort themselves out,” Stall, Jr. said of the 3-year-old crop. “There's plenty to choose from. The Haskell will tell us a lot, the Jim Dandy will tell us a lot, West Virginia might tell us something moving forward. The Haskell came up too close, but honestly, we just want to give this horse a chance to improve. He keeps on moving forward, so he belongs in this group.”

A $180,000 purchase from the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, where he was consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency, Masqueparade is out of the Any Given Saturday mare Cry War Eagle. She has a 2020 colt by Collected and a 2021 filly by Cairo Prince.

Jockey Miguel Mena, who has piloted Masqueparade in all six of his lifetime starts, will retain the mount for the Jim Dandy.

Stall, Jr. added that Bal Mar Equine's Dalika is possible for the Grade 2, $250,000 Glens Falls on Aug. 7 at Saratoga.

The gray or roan German-bred mare earned her first graded stakes triumph last out in the Grade 3 Robert G. Dick Memorial on July 10 at Delaware Park. She will return to the Spa after recording stakes efforts the past two seasons, finishing second in the Riskaverse in 2019 and fifth in the Caress last year.

“She's kind of hard to ride against because if you have a horse lengths ahead of you, it takes so much to catch up to her,” Stall, Jr. said. “She got overaggressive in the Caress and she'll do that. She's the type of horse that you cannot fight her. You've got to let her do her thing. That's why Miguel [Mena] fits her so well. We don't send her one inch, she just trains that way.”

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Breeders’ Cup Presents Connections: Mena’s ‘Pure Courage’ Grants Him Another Chance In Saratoga

Winners aren't people who never fall. They're people who never quit. 

Jockey Miguel Mena knows that truth all too well. A serious ankle injury in early 2018, complicated by fracture blistering which prevented surgical repair, kept him out of the saddle for a long, arduous eight months of physical therapy.

“It has changed my schedule a lot, because I have a crooked foot that is painful all the time,” Mena explained. “I can't run anymore, and even if I do too much walking, it hurts. I have to ride my bike all the time on the backstretch, so I can save my foot for the races. Thankfully it doesn't hurt when I'm on the horses, but it totally changed my routine.”

The 34-year-old native of Peru had been an avid runner, utilizing the exercise to maintain his weight and fitness for his riding career. Now, with running off the table, Mena uses a stationary bike and other low-impact forms of cardio to achieve that goal.

None of those challenges have stopped Mena. In the past several weeks, he's traveled out of state to win both the Grade 3 Ohio Derby at Thistledown with Masqueparade and the G3 Robert G. Dick Memorial at Delaware Park with Dalika. Both horses are trained by Al Stall, Jr., one of the first individuals to give Mena a big shot after his ankle injury.

Mena had a strong 2019 season that earned him the honor of the inaugural Randy Romero “Pure Courage” Award for his comeback, presented in February of 2020. Last June, Stall gave Mena the leg up on his stable star Tom's d'Etat for a win in the G2 Stephen Foster at Churchill Downs.

Tom's d'Etat and Miguel Mena win the 2020 Stephen Foster Stakes at Churchill Downs.

“He had been letting me work Tom's d'Etat in the mornings, and he always told me that if (regular rider Joel) Rosario couldn't ride him, I was gonna be the guy,” Mena relayed. “I'm so grateful for the opportunity to ride that horse. Mr. Stall, he gives me a lot of confidence, he trusts my work, and lets me get on the horses from when they're very young.”

That trust and teamwork has led to another exciting opportunity with improving sophomore colt Masqueparade (Upstart). A winner in his last three starts, including his graded stakes debut in the Ohio Derby, Masqueparade will now head to Saratoga for the G3 Jim Dandy on July 31.

“That colt, we got him as a 2-year-old here, and we were always very high on him,” Mena said. “He showed a lot of talent from day one, but he was kind of a slow learner. He was such a big colt, we knew the talent was there but we had to take our time.

“My boss Al Stall, he's a very patient trainer and he takes his time. Now, in his last two starts, he's really improving and getting better and better.”

Masqueparade wins at Churchill Downs on May 1, 2021

The Jim Dandy will be a significant test for Masqueparade, as the race is expected to draw Juvenile Champion and Belmont Stakes winner Essential Quality. 

“I think we have the horse to beat him,” Mena said. “Between working him and getting him to the races, I've just never seen the horse get tired. He was always getting better slowly, and we just haven't seen the best of him yet. I'm so excited to see the future from him. With his maturity and more races, I think he can beat the top horse in the country.”

Stall echoed Mena's belief in the colt earlier this week.

“He's on a wickedly improving curve, which is good,” Stall told the Daily Racing Form. “We ought to give him a chance to see how far he can take himself.”

It's been 10 years since Mena has ridden at Saratoga, and it's also the site of a dark spot in his career. At age 22, having just arrived at Saratoga as a promising young jockey, Mena developed a drinking problem that threatened to derail his promising career.

Mena took responsibility for his actions and entered Alcoholics Anonymous.

“AA is like another family I have now,” Mena told the Post-Star in 2010. “I never thought I'd meet people who would listen to me the way they do. It's very good. It's a family that supports me. I don't have my family here in the states and AA is a big part of my life now.”

The biggest turning point came when he married his wife April in 2011. The couple subsequently had two daughters, Naelah and Montserrat.

“They're daddy's girls,” Mena said of the 7 and 8-year-old. “They always look for where to spend time with me, going swimming or to the park.”

Thanks to his family's unwavering support, Mena never felt tempted to turn to alcohol during the process of healing from his ankle injury and the difficult eight months of physical therapy.

“I've got a strong support system now, with my family and friends,” Mena explained. “It feels good, you know. It's been a long road, 17 years in the United States with a lot of ups and downs.”

The son and brother of jockeys, Mena remembers following his father to the track in Peru as often as he could, beginning at just six years of age. By age 11 he was grooming horses, and at 14 Mena started at the Jorge Bernardini Yori Jockey School in Peru, which also produced Rafael Bejarano and Hall of Famer Edgar Prado.

He moved to the United States at age 17, and the Midwest-based jockey has now won 2,071 races from just over 16,000 career starts.

“I'm so excited to keep showing up to the track in the mornings, getting on young horses, because those are the ones to take you to the big races,” Mena said. “But really, I just want to win races, whether it's a $5,000 claimer or the Kentucky Derby.

“I came here with a lot of dreams. I came very hungry to work my butt off. I'm so grateful to this country. It has given me a better life, not only for me but for my family in Peru as well. I'm very thankful.”

The post Breeders’ Cup Presents Connections: Mena’s ‘Pure Courage’ Grants Him Another Chance In Saratoga appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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King Fury Returns in Ohio Derby

Well regarded before being knocked out of the GI Kentucky Derby after spiking a temperature on the eve of the big race, Fern Circle Stables and Three Chimneys Farm's King Fury (Curlin) looks to bolster his sophomore resume in Saturday's GIII Ohio Derby at Thistledown. Last season's Street Sense S. victor came home seventh in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile before finishing fifth in the Nov. 28 GII Kentucky Jockey Club S. at Churchill Downs. Let go at 18-1 for his seasonal reappearance in the Apr. 10 GIII Lexington S. at Keeneland, the Ken McPeek trainee closed from off the pace to score by 2 3/4 lengths.

Also with a graded stakes win already under his belt, Woodford Thoroughbreds, WinStar Farm and Rock Ridge Racing's lightly-raced Promise Keeper (Constitution) debuted with a fourth sprinting six panels at Gulfstream in January before showing his appreciation for the added yardage and the wet going by winning stretching to a mile Feb. 6. Tiring to finish an uncharacteristically poor 12th in the GII Tampa Bay Derby Mar. 6, the chestnut rebounded to score by 5 1/2 lengths going nine panels in a Keeneland optional claimer Apr. 8 and made it two straight when annexing the May 8 GIII Peter Pan S. at Belmont.

Cypress Creek, Arnold Bennewith and Spendthrift Farm's Keepmeinmind (Laoban) was one of the 'talking horses' heading up to last month's GI Preakness S., but his awkward gate exit left him no better than fourth, beaten just under 10 lengths, by winner Rombauer (Twirling Candy). Winner of last season's Kentucky Jockey Club, he was sixth in the GII Rebel S. in March and fifth in the GII Bluegrass S. before finishing seventh on the First Saturday in May. The son of late sire Laoban gets blinkers for the first time Saturday.

SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables and Stonestreet Stables' Hozier (Pioneerof the Nile), formerly with the beleaguered Bob Baffert, resurfaces with trainer Rodolphe Brisset. A maiden winner at Santa Anita in February, the bay was runner-up in the Rebel before failing to fire when sixth in the Apr. 10 GI Arkansas Derby. Favored for his latest, he had to settle for second–beaten a head–in Pimlico's Sir Barton S. May. 15. Chris Landeros gets the call.

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