Ivar ‘Has Been Working Steadily’ For ‘Win And You’re In’ Keeneland Turf Mile

When last seen at Keeneland, Bonne Chance Farm and Stud R D I's Ivar (BRZ) ran fourth in the $2 million FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile (G1) Presented by PDJF for a finish that marked the best placing for a U.S.-based runner in the race.

Trainer Paulo Lobo has the 5-year-old ready for a crosstown trip this weekend from The Thoroughbred Center for the $750,000 Keeneland Turf Mile (G1), a “Win and You're In” race for the Breeders' Cup Mile to be run at Del Mar on Nov. 6.

“He is doing very well,” Lobo said of Ivar, who finished sixth beaten 2 lengths in the Turf Classic (G1) on Kentucky Derby Day (May 1) at Churchill Downs.

“He had a minor setback after that race, but he has been working steadily (since the end of July) and never has missed a work.”

Ivar earned his way into last year's Breeders' Cup with a victory in the Turf Mile here, and a triumph Saturday in the 36th running of the grass test would make him the third repeat winner. The others are Gio Ponti (2010-2011) and Dumaani (1995-1996).

In addition to Ivar, Lobo also plans to enter In Love (BRZ) for Bonne Chance.

“We put blinkers on him and his last race was amazing,” Lobo said of the gelding's 2¼-length victory in the TVG Stakes (L) at Kentucky Downs on Sept. 8.

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Argentinian Import Upsets Unlucky Arklow

Argentinian import Imperador (Arg) (Treasure Beach {GB}) was the main beneficiary of favorite Arklow (Arch)'s unlucky trip as he earned his first North American victory in the GII Calumet Turf Cup at Kentucky Downs, a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the GI Breeders' Cup Turf. Backed at 8-1 from a 15-1 morning line, the bay entire broke alertly from the fence before being wrestled back by Joe Talamo to bide his time in midpack. He was one slot behind Arklow as they headed down the hill past six furlongs in 1:13.15, and was guided outside of that foe heading for the stretch in a move that effectively won the race. Imperador was widest in the lane, and enjoyed an unencumbered run from there, but Arklow was completely bottled up and rider Florent Geroux had to jam on the brakes. Imperador wore down Glyn County (Kitten's Joy) past the eighth pole, and found the line a neck to the good as Arklow did his best to make up the ground loss late after eventually finding daylight. The final clocking of 2:25.70 was a new course record.

Saturday, Kentucky Downs
CALUMET TURF CUP S.-GII, $715,105, Kentucky Downs, 9-11, 3yo/up, 1 1/2mT, 2:25.70 (NCR),, fm.
1–IMPERADOR (ARG), 122, h, 5, by Treasure Beach (GB)
                1st Dam: Duchess Royale (Ire), by Danehill
                2nd Dam: Fantasy Royale, by Pleasant Colony
                3rd Dam: Nijinsky's Lover, by Nijinsky II
O-Bonne Chance Farm, LLC & Stud R D I, LLC.; B-Haras Rio Dois
Irmaos S.R.L. (ARG); T-Paulo H. Lobo; J-Joseph Talamo.
$317,130. Lifetime Record: MG1SW-Arg, 14-4-4-0, $538,268.
Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Arklow, 124, h, 7, Arch–Unbridled Empire, by Empire Maker.
($160,000 Ylg '15 KEESEP). O-Donegal Racing, Joseph Bulger &
Estate of Peter Coneway; B-John R. Penn & Frank Penn (KY);
T-Brad H. Cox. $186,000.
3–Glynn County, 124, c, 4, Kitten's Joy–Quad Tens, by Rock
Hard Ten. ($45,000 Ylg '18 KEESEP; $80,000 2yo '19 OBSAPR).
O-Three Diamonds Farm; B-Kenneth L. & Sarah K. Ramsey (KY);
T-Michael J. Maker. $93,000. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.
Margins: NK, 1 1/4, 2 1/4. Odds: 8.60, 2.30, 6.20.
Also Ran: Ajourneytofreedom, Epic Bromance, Channel Cat, Breakpoint (Chi), Big Dreaming, Dynadrive, Artemus Eagle, Tide of the Sea, Crossfirehurricane. Scratched: Bluegrass Parkway, Fantasioso (Arg), Time for Trouble, Zulu Alpha.

“It felt great,” Talamo said. “Hats off to the horse and to the trainer, Paulo Lobo, for the training job he did. I tried to be a good passenger the whole way around there. He settled in good, and turning for home, he had a good turn of foot.”

Geroux said of his trouble, “The horse ran great. It was just a tough beat, bad luck. I had a great trip. I was saving ground, he was traveling great. I thought I had the horses measured in front of me. I thought I had the speed turning for home, and those horses came back at us quick. I had to take a hold and come around, and it was too late. The winner went all the way around. If I split horses and get through, they'll tell me it's a great ride. I didn't. I got squeezed, and it's a bad ride. He's a horse that always tries hard.”

A dual Group 1 winner in his native country under the tutelage of Diego Pena, Imperador was second in a Churchill optional claimer last September before checking in ninth in the GII Seabiscuit H. at Del Mar Nov. 28. He was fourth upon seasonal debut in a Keeneland allowance Apr. 15, and could only manage sixth behind Arklow after going for an early run in the May 15 GIII Louisville S. Imperador was last seen belying 23-1 odds in the GI United Nations S. at Monmouth July 17.

“I was expecting a huge effort,” Lobo said. “He ran good at Churchill, the first time running a mile and a half here in America. He ran very good in New Jersey and he was doing very good for this race… I was talking with Jerry Bailey this morning and he saw everything that I saw and he liked the horse. He saw the race at Churchill and the race in New Jersey. And I told him, 'Man, he has been training very well and I am very confident today.'”

Imperador is already nominated for the Breeders' Cup and that'll be the target.

“In the Breeders' Cup we are going to be in deeper waters, but this horse I think is peaking at the right time,” Lobo said. “I think he is going to enjoy Del Mar. South American horses also like Del mar. Let's see. Let's see. Let's hope for the best.”

Lobo and Bonne Chance Farm also took a division of the TVG S. Wednesday with In Love (Brz) (Agnes Gold {Jpn}).

“We have a very good team behind us here with Paulo and all the crew at his barn who did an excellent job to bring those two horses in top condition. And also, all the people in South America deserve some credit as well to develop those horses into being champions,” said Bonne Chance CEO Alberto Figueiredo. “They're proving it here. Imagine, we're bringing three horses and three are stakes winners: [2020 GI Shadwell Turf Mile winner] Ivar (Brz) (Agnes Gold {Jpn}), Imperador and In Love. That's a huge accomplishment for a South American stable with just a couple handful of mares.”

Pedigree Notes:

The well-traveled Treasure Beach competed in seven countries, with his highest-level victories coming in the 2011 Irish Derby and Secretariat S. The son of the late Galileo (Ire) now splits his time between Florida's Pleasant Acres Stallions and Argentina, where the majority of his success has come. He has six Group 1 winners in the Southern Hemisphere, and 11 black-type winners and eight graded/group winners overall (two in the Northern Hemisphere). The winner's dam was purchased for $20,000 at the 2010 Keeneland November sale while in foal to Arch.

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Imperador Gets First American Win In Calumet Turf Cup, Earns BC Turf Berth

Toward the back of the pack during the first half of the 1 1/2-mile Calumet Turf Cup, Imperador went wide on the last bend, closed fast, and held off Arklow late to win the Grade 1 stakes race at Kentucky Downs and earn a spot in the starting gate for the Breeders' Cup Turf at Del Mar in November.

In his sixth start in North America, Imperador with jockey Joseph Talamo broke cleanly from the rail post and settled in eighth as Epic Bromance and Big Dreaming traded the lead throughout the first mile of the Turf Cup. On the race's final bend, Channel Cat made a move for the lead, with Talamo taking Imperador to the outside of horses to find running room for their closing run.

Into the long stretch at the Franklin, Ky., track, Imperador challenged Channel Cat and Epic Bromance, ranging up on the outside as they shortened stride and fell back. As Imperador dueled with Glynn Country for the lead, favored Arklow was trapped behind a wall of horses, finally finding running room on the outside to make his bid. Imperador got clear of the field, holding off a surging Arklow to win by a neck. Glynn County was third. Ajourneytofreedom, Epic Bromance, Channel Cat, Breakpoint, Big Dreaming, Dynadrive, Artemus Eagle, Tide of the Sea, and Crossfirehurricane rounded out the order of finish.

The final time for the 1 1/2 mile was 2:25.70, a new track record. Find this race's chart here.

Imperador paid $19.20, $8.00, and $5.00. Arklow paid $4.00 and $2.80. Glynn County paid $3.80.

The Grade 1 Calumet Turf Cup is part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series. Winners of Challenge Series events receive a fees-paid, guaranteed spot in the corresponding race at the Breeders' Cup World Championships Nov. 6 at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in Del Mar, Calif.

Bred in Argentina by Haras Rio Dois Irmaos S. R. L., Imperador is out of Treasure Beach (GB) out of the Danehill mare Duchess Royale. The 5-year-old horse is owned by Bonne Chance Farm and Stud R.D.I. LLC and trained by Paulo Lobo. With his win in the Calumet Turf Cup, Imperador's 2021 record is one win in four starts, with his lifetime record improving to four wins in 14 starts.

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Brazilian-Bred In Love Gives French Jockey Achard Biggest U.S. Score In TVG Stakes

The Brazilian-bred In Love scooted up the rail in the $330,160 first division of the TVG Stakes while holding off favored Kentucky Ghost for a 2 1/4-length victory at Kentucky Downs in Franklin, Ky., giving French-born jockey Alex Achard his biggest purse victory in America.

With Brown Storm and Tut's Revenge setting a resolute pace, Achard settled In Love into fourth in the field of nine older horses, gradually picking up steam before getting through on the inside at the top of the stretch and taking command. Kentucky Ghost ate at his deficit in the final eighth-mile but didn't threaten the winner. He did, however, nail Brown Storm to take second by a head. In Love covered the mile and 70 yards in 1:38.55.

Those who bet the winner certainly were in love, as the 5-year-old trained by Paulo Lobo paid $19.40 while racing in blinkers for the first time.

“I won the last time at Arlington,” Achard said, referencing a neck allowance victory over yielding turf. “That was pretty good. We thought that would be an easier swing, but we had to fight. Today was even better.

“I knew that there was enough speed in the race, which is good for us because he can be a little bit tough sometimes. We got the pace and were just behind chilling. When I asked him to go, he just went.”

Trainer Vicki Oliver said the distance was too short for Kentucky Ghost to be most effective. “He ran really well,” she said. “That was our biggest concern, that it would be too short for him. He's always been a mile and an eighth-type of horse. His mom was a mile-and-a-half type of horse. We were hoping to get the pace that we got. We just couldn't close into it at a mile and 70 yards.”

Kentucky Ghost's jockey Rafael Bejarano thought he was in a winning position until Achard made his decisive, clever move.

“I had a good trip. I saved ground and had a beautiful position coming down the lane,” Bejarano said. “I let him out in the stretch and my horse gave me a good run, a good finish, but the winner today he stole the race. He had a good trip inside and he kept going.”

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Though born in Brazil, In Love raced in Argentina in 2019 before Bonne Chance farm owner Alberto Figueiredo sent him to Lobo in the United States, where he's now won three of seven starts. The only times he wasn't competitive was in the slop in a Keeneland allowance. He also finished eighth, beaten 6 1/2 lengths, in his only previous U.S. stakes, Churchill Downs' Grade 2 Wise Dan.

“Since he came here, he's run very well,” the Lexington-based Lobo said. “The day of the Wise Dan, after the race he came back a little sick with a virus. I think that's why he didn't perform well that day.”

Since he wasn't born in Kentucky, In Love wasn't eligible for the $100,000 in Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund purses that help fatten the pot for each $400,000 division of the TVG. But he still earned a healthy $178,560 to more than double his earnings to $279,700 off a 4-2-2 record in 12 starts.

Even without racing for the maximum purse, In Love still provided the 30-year-old Achard his biggest victory since coming to America three years ago. Earlier this year the Indiana Grand-based jockey won Arlington Park's Grade 3 Chicago Stakes, but that race was worth $100,000, with Abby Hatcher earning $57,600.

“Now it's even better,” Achard said of this victory.

In Love is a son of the Japanese Sunday Silence stallion Agnes Gold and out of the Brazilian mare Last Bet, who is by the Irish-bred Know Heights.

“We bred him in Brazil, and we send our best stock to race in Argentina,” said Figueiredo. “This horse is no exception. When all the COVID started to stop all the races over there, we put him on a plane with two others. It was well worth the bet we made on him.

“This horse never disappoints us. And to be frankly honest, I always expected a little bit more from him. Even in his time in Argentina. He was always a horse that worked so well. Sometimes he did not do the same in the afternoon. But with time and more experience, and now maybe with the blinkers, I think we'll figure out more of him.”

A year ago, Figueiredo and Lobo brought the Brazilian-bred Ivar to Kentucky Downs, finishing third in the race now known as the WinStar Mint Million but in his next start won Keeneland's Grade 1 Shadwell Turf Mile. Ivar subsequently finished fourth in the Breeders' Cup Mile.

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