General Partner Stakes his Claim of the Saratoga Winner’s Enclosure

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – In his second career start Saturday, General Partner (Speightstown) was really ready for prime time at Saratoga Race Course.

While it wasn't exactly a led-from-gate-to-wire performance, General Partner was in front quickly under Manny Franco. He was never seriously challenged and won the seven-furlong maiden special weight race for 2-year-olds a solid four lengths in front of the favorite Dive Bomber (Omaha Beach). Klaravich Stables's chestnut colt reached the wire in 1:22.33.

General Partner debuted for trainer Chad Brown at six furlongs on July 22 and after being prominent early ended up fourth, beaten 2 ¾ lengths.

“We really liked the horse first time out and in hindsight when he came back from running I could see how hard he was blowing. I ran him a couple of works short,” Brown said. “I was eager to run him because he had so much ability and I actually jumped the gun a little bit putting him in.”

With Klaravich owner Seth Klarman watching, General Partner broke his maiden with a flashy performance.

“It all worked out in the end,” Brown said, “because he got a race that he needed and got the last bit of fitness that he needed for a race rather than a couple more works and we were able to run him back at the meet and be successful today.”

General Partner, out of the Distorted Humor mare Fleeting Humor, was bred by Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey and the Speightstown Syndicate. He paid $9.30 as the second choice in the wagering.

Brown said he expected General Partner to be on the lead, but not in the way that the race unfolded. He came out of Post 3 a step slow and appeared to brush with the horse to his inside.

“He didn't break that well and Manny made a key decision to go up in the lead,” Brown said. “I'm not sure I actually would have done that when he broke bad because he looked like he was going to be in a nice, cozy stalking spot. Manny used excellent judgement. That was really the difference in the race. He kept him clean the whole way.”

General Partner and Franco turned in split times of 22.74, 45.92 and 1:09.87. Without any real pressure, they got the final eighth in 12.46.

While Brown said a stake might be General Partner's next start, he did not commit to a specific race.

“There's been some really good-looking maidens this meet – I've been very impressed – that aren't mine,” he said.  “When you look at a horse like this, you look at a race like the (GI) Champagne S. This year, when you say that, you better know that if these horses all stay healthy this is going to be a real race if some of them end up there. This is not a meet where there's been like one Jack Christopher (Munnings) debut or something like that. There's been a handful of ones I can just think of right now that have been super-impressive to my eye. I'm just happy to have one of them.”

 

7th-Saratoga, $105,000, Msw, 9-2, 2yo, 7f, 1:22.33, ft, 4 lengths.
GENERAL PARTNER (c, 2, Speightstown–Fleeting Humor, by Distorted Humor) finished fourth in what was a loaded maiden special contest July 22 behind well-met Valentine Candy (Justify) but ahead of returning rival Dive Bomber (Omaha Beach), who was crowned the 8-5 favorite between the two. Jostled at the start by an inner horse coming out, he recovered quickly to set a pressured pace from the public's choice to his outside and had taken firm command six furlongs out. Tucking closer to the rail though the bend and bracing for a pair of challengers, he straightened for home with a clear lead heading passed the eighth pole. Despite moving out late from the left hand stick, General Partner came home four lengths best over Dive Bomber. A half-sibling to a fleet of accomplished runners including  Seventhfleethumor (Afleet Alex), GSP, $133,785; Naughty Joker (Into Mischief), SW, $176,403; and Cathedral Reader (Shackleford), SP, $174,795, the victor is the first to the races after a couple years of poor breeding fortunes for the mare. His 2023 half-sibling was stillborn and Fleeting Humor was sent to Epicenter for 2024. Sales history: $250,000 Wlg '21 FTKNOV. Lifetime Record: 2-1-0-0, $64,050. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
O-Klaravich Stables, Inc.; B-Kenneth L. & Sarah K. Ramsey & Speightstown Syndicate (KY); T-Chad C. Brown.

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Friday’s Racing Insights: Not This Time Colt Tackles Two Turns In Spa Grass Debut

1st-SAR, $136K, Msw, 2yo, 1 1/16mT, 1:10 p.m.
Purchased by St. Elias Stable and Repole Stable for $875,000 at the '22 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, TIRELESS (Not This Time) will be taking on two turns in his first career bow over the grass at Saratoga on Friday. Trained by Todd Pletcher and ridden by Irad Ortiz, the dark bay colt's dam Kitty Union (Union Rags) was purchased by Rosilyn Polan at the '21 Keeneland November Sale for $160,000 with a colt in-utero by Improbable. Tireless is out of an extended female family which counts third dam Tizso (Cee's Tizzy), who produced GI Haskell Invitational S. hero Paynter (Awesome Again) and is a full-sister to Horse of the Year Tiznow. TJCIS PPS

6th-SAR, $136K, Msw, 2yo, 6f, 4:00 p.m.
Switching to the Spa main, a pair of colts are set for their maiden trips. As a weanling, Change of Command (Into Mischief) went for $570,000 at the Fasig-Tipton November Mixed Sale before fetching $1.05-million less than a year later at the Keeneland September Sale. The Shug McGaughey trainee, who will have Jose Ortiz aboard, is out of a dam who is a full-sister to MGSW Mrs McDougal (Medaglia d'Oro).

Also entered is Kaleem Shah's Billal (Street Sense), a $725,000 '22 Keeneland September grad from Bill Mott's shedrow, who will be ridden by Florent Geroux. Dam Bambalina (Bernardini) was purchased by Repole Stables at the '20 Keeneland November Mixed Sale for $270,000 with Billal in-utero. She's out of Champion grass mare Perfect Sting (Red Ransom), who is also responsible for GSW Smart Sting (Smart Strike). TJCIS PPS

4th-DMR, $82K, Msw, 2yo, 6 1/2f, 7:29 p.m.
Heading out to Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, a competitive group of 2-year-olds will be looking to strut their stuff. Indispensable (Constitution) for trainer John Sadler was a $825,000 buy at the Keeneland September Sale and his extended female family includes MGSWs Gulch Approval (Gulch) and Rusty Slipper (Lemon Drop Kid). His dam High Performer (Candy Ride {Arg}), a full-sister to SW Chocopologie, was purchased by Hunter Valley Farm while in-foal–yielding a colt–to Omaha Beach for $130,000 at the '21 Keeneland November Mixed Sale and she was bred back to that sire, which produced a filly Mar. 15.

Bob Baffert has a pair of firsters ready to fire in Wynstock (Solomini), who initially sold as a yearling for $50,000 at the Keeneland September Sale before going this past spring for $700,000 during OBS April. The New York-bred is his dam's first offspring. Last but certainly not least, is Don Alberto homebred Ultra Power (Curlin), who is out of dual Champion female Unique Bella (Tapit). She is the daughter of GI Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic heroine Unrivaled Belle (Unbridled's Song), who is also responsible for her full-sister Vanishing Point, a $1.5-million purchase at the '19 Keeneland September Sale by Yuji Hasegawa. TJCIS PPS

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Daughter Of Omaha Beach Gives Her Sire His First Stakes Win At Ellis

Spendthrift's freshman sire Omaha Beach (by War Front) picked up his first stakes winner Sunday when daughter Hot Beach came from off the pace to take down the Ellis Park Debutante S. Still a maiden since settling for second as the beaten favorite when tackling five furlongs on debut over this track July 7, the dark bay got bet all the way down to 2-1 from her 10-1 morning line. Fourth behind a pair of early longshot leaders in Intermittent Fast (Tapwrit) and Twirling Queen (Twirling Candy), Hot Beach rated patiently before coming with a three-wide charge into the turn to effectively seal the race. Favored Youalmosthadme, who sat further back than usual after a stumble at the break, tried to close into her but Hot Beach had things wrapped up despite never changing leads, going on to win safely.

In addition to being Omaha Beach's first stakes winner, Hot Beach is also her sire's seventh individual winner this year. Already a half-sister to a trio of graded-stakes runners, Hot Beach counts her third dam as champion 3-year-old filly Xtra Heat (Dixieland Heat). Her dam foaled a Charlatan filly this year before visiting WinStar's Life Is Good for next season. Click for the Equibase.com chart.

 

ELLIS PARK DEBUTANTE S., $150,000, Ellis, 8-13, 2yo, f, 7f, 1:24.32, ft.
1–HOT BEACH, 118, f, 2, by Omaha Beach
                1st Dam: Hot Water, by Medaglia d'Oro
                2nd Dam: Elusive Heat, by Elusive Quality
                3rd Dam: Xtra Heat, by Dixieland Heat
($160,000 Wlg '21 KEENOV; $400,000 Ylg '22 FTSAUG).
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN. O-Boardshorts Stables, LLC; B-Cobalt
Investments, LLC (KY); T-Brian A. Lynch; J-Declan Cannon.
$88,520. Lifetime Record: 2-1-1-0, $103,920. *1/2 to
Tracksmith (Street Sense), SW & GSP, $282,133; Scalding
(Nyquist), MGSW, $325,800; Hot and Sultry (Speightster),
SW & GISP, $409,970.
2–Riperton, 120, f, 2, Constitution–Kimberlea K, by Indian
Evening. 1ST BLACK TYPE. O/B-OXO Equine LLC (KY); T-Paulo
Lobo. $30,200.
3–Youalmosthadme, 122, f, 2, Oxbow–Good Gator, by Good
and Tough. ($12,000 Ylg '22 KEESEP). O-Qatar Racing LLC,
Swinbank Stables, Steve Adkisson and Black Type
Thoroughbreds; B-Pope McLean, Marc McLean & Pope
McLean Jr. (KY); T-Brad H. Cox. $14,600.
Margins: 2, 3/4, NK. Odds: 2.20, 7.26, 0.96.
Also Ran: Tx Women for Arts, Twirling Queen, Edistrudis, Grace Given, Easy Red, Intermittent Fast. Scratched: Dancing Princess.

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Forte And Tapit Trice Breeze Together Towards Travers; Nest To Personal Ensign

Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable's Forte (Violence) and Whisper Hill Farm and Gainesway Stable's Tapit Trice (Tapit), both 'TDN Rising Stars', worked in company over the main track Thursday in preparation for the GI Travers S. August 26 at Saratoga.

Forte, with regular pilot Irad Ortiz, Jr. up, worked without blinkers to the outside of Tapit Trice, who was guided through the half-mile breeze by exercise rider Fernando Rivera. Both workmates stopped the clock in :48.33.

“I thought both horses worked extremely well–both were moving really well and good gallop outs,” said Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher. “They came back and cooled out quickly. We got what we were hoping for.”

It was the first breeze back for both horses after Forte's narrow score in the GII Jim Dandy S. July 29 at the Spa and Tapit Trice's fifth-place effort in the GI Haskell S. July 22 at Monmouth Park.

Pletcher said he would like to see Tapit Trice be more involved early in his races.

“He reacts well to the doors opening, but he just doesn't get away from the gate real quickly and I think that's compromised his chances in a couple of races,” Pletcher said.

 

With Luis Saez committed to ride Kentucky Derby winner Mage (Good Magic) in the Travers, Pletcher said it is likely either Jose Ortiz or Flavien Prat would pick up the mount aboard Tapit Trice.

Meanwhile, Repole Stable, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Michael House's reigning Champion 3-Year-Old Filly Nest (Curlin) worked a half-mile in :49.44 in company with sophomore maiden filly Sister Maha (American Pharoah).

“I thought she was impressive. I had her coming home in 23 and a couple and just galloped out really strongly,” said Pletcher of the work.

Nest made a triumphant return from an eight-month layoff to best MGISW Clairiere (Curlin) in the GII Shuvee S. July 23 at the Spa.

“She seems to thrive on racing,” Pletcher said. “I was little concerned running her a mile and an eighth off the layoff from the Breeders' Cup and it seems like the race moved her forward. Everything does seem to come easily to her and I'm amazed the way she maintains her fitness and comes out of her races,” Pletcher continued. “We noticed it last year in the Belmont. It was a concern running a filly against colts at a mile and a half and is there some risk it could knock her out a little bit, but it did just the opposite. It moved her forward.”

Nest is targeting the GI Personal Ensign S. August 25 at Saratoga Race Course.

Pletcher said Harrel Ventures and Starlight Racing's maiden winner and 'TDN Rising Star' Pirate (Omaha Beach), who earned a 77 Beyer for his debut win July 15, will train up to the GI Hopeful S. Sept. 4 at the Spa.

“I don't know that he needed more time, but I felt with the Grade I status of the Hopeful that we'd be taking our best shot at it by not running in between the maiden race and there,” Pletcher said.

Also targeting the Personal Ensign is Rigney Racing's GISW Played Hard (Into Mischief), who scratched from the Shuevee with a fever days before the race. She logged a five-furlong breeze in 1:00.05 in company with the stakes-placed 4-year-old gelding Warrior Johny [1:01.14] over the Saratoga main track Thursday.

“When I'm looking for a strong work, I like to give a horse a target,” said trainer Phil Bauer. “We knew the horse in front of her is a quality individual, so we were going to get the work we wanted.”

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