Gunite Dazzles In Perryville

In another dominating display of talent, Gunite pounced on dueling rivals and rolled home to a flashy victory in Keeneland's Perryville S.

Second to fleet-footed stakes-winner Conagher (Jimmy Creed) in a non-winners of three at Churchill Downs June 3, he parlayed that effort into victories in that track's Maxfield S., Saratoga's GII Amsterdam S., and a runner-up effort two-back to Jack Christopher (Munnings) in the GI H. Allen Jerkens Memorial S. Returning to winning ways last out Sept. 24 in the Harrods Creek S. beneath the Twin Spires over familiar foe Conagher, the 3-5 favorite made short work of his rivals here when the real running began.

Perched in third early as Provocateur (Into Mischief) and Of a Revolution (Maclean's Music) battled through :22.38 and :45.82 splits, Tyler Gaffalione was content to range into his striking position approaching the five-sixteenths pole before inhaling the tiring pacesetters. Kicking clear in upper stretch, Gunite meant business as he strode home 3 3/4 lengths best over 25-1 longshot Hoist the Gold (Mineshaft), who valiantly tried to make a race of it.

“[Gunite has shown] beautiful consistency. He has performed at the highest levels and continues to impress. He carries himself like he can do this. He's got a confidence. He accepts what's happening and does it extremely well,” said conditioner Steve Asmussen in a winner's circle interview.

And as for a possible start in the GI Qatar Racing Breeders' Cup Sprint in two weeks' time?

“This was the first test: how he handles Keeneland,” said Asmussen. “I thought he ran really well. He was very comfortable and looked great over the race track. Now it will all be about how he comes back. But we have until Monday [pre-entry deadline] to decide.”

Out of a stakes-winning half-sister to MSW Optionality (Gun Runner) and SP Simply Sovereign (American Pharoah), Gunite is his dam's only foal to the races thus far. Simple Surprise has a 2-year-old full-sister to the winner named Surprise Attack and produced a pair of half-sisters to those–a yearling by Copper Bullet and a 2022 weanling by Tapiture. She went back to Gun Runner for 2023. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

PERRYVILLE S., $250,000, Keeneland, 10-22, 3yo, 7f, 1:23.21, ft.
1–GUNITE, 122, c, 3, by Gun Runner
          1st Dam: Simple Surprise (SW, $185,446), by Cowboy Cal
          2nd Dam: Simplify, by Pulpit
          3rd Dam: Classic Olympio, by Olympio
O/B-Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC (KY); T-Steven M. Asmussen; J-Tyler Gaffalione. $151,125. Lifetime Record: GISW, 12-6-4-1, $965,934.
2–Hoist the Gold, 118, c, 3, Mineshaft–Tacit Approval, by Tapit. ($47,000 RNA Ylg '20 KEESEP). O-Dream Team One Racing Stable; B-Dream Team Racing (KY); T-Dallas Stewart. $48,750.
3–B Dawk, 118, c, 3, Gormley–Mott N Hester, by Super Saver. ($77,000 Ylg '20 KEEJAN; $140,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP; $425,000 2yo '21 EASMAY; $500,000 RNA 3yo '22 KEEAPR). O-West Point Thoroughbreds and Joseph E. Besecker; B-Small Batch Thoroughbreds & Robert Fetkin (KY); T-Doug F. O'Neill. $24,375.
Margins: 3 3/4, 3, 3 3/4. Odds: 0.62, 25.78, 7.02.
Also Ran: Artorius, Friar Laurence, Of a Revolution, Provocateur. Scratched: Pinehurst.

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He’smyhoneybadger Doing Well After Perryville Win

Trainer Brad Cox reported Sunday morning that Perryville winner He'smyhoneybadger was doing well following his narrow victory Saturday afternoon over Ram at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky.

“He's a cool little horse and he really tries every time,” Cox said of the son of Daredevil, who is owned by Steve Landers Racing.

The Perryville victory marked the first stakes triumph for He'smyhoneybadger.

“I don't know what's next for him, but I would like to find another race like that one,” Cox said.

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Kentucky Derby Runner Soup And Sandwich Headlines Saturday’s Perryville Stakes At Keeneland

Live Oak Plantation's Soup and Sandwich, unraced since the $3 million Kentucky Derby (G1) Presented by Woodford Reserve in May, headlines a field of nine 3-year-olds entered Wednesday for Saturday's 13th running of the Perryville going 7 furlongs on the main track at Keeneland.

The Perryville is scheduled as the seventh race on Saturday's 10-race program with a 4:12 p.m. ET post time. First post Saturday is 1 p.m.

Trained by Mark Casse, Soup and Sandwich won his first two career starts and was second in the Florida Derby (G1) before his run in the Kentucky Derby. Tyler Gaffalione will have the mount Saturday and break from post position one.

Looming as one of the main threats to Soup and Sandwich is Roseland Farm Stable's Pickin' Time.

Trained by Kelly Breen, Pickin' Time has returned to sprinting and enters Saturday's race off a runner-up effort to Jackie's Warrior in the Gallant Bob (G2) at Parx on Sept. 25. Corey Lanerie has the mount and will exit post position five.

The field for the Perryville, with riders and weights from the inside, is:

  1. Soup and Sandwich (Gaffalione, 118 pounds)
  2. Boca Boy (Marcelino Pedroza Jr., 118)
  3. Ram (Rafael Bejarano, 118)
  4. He'smyhoneybadger (Florent Geroux, 118)
  5. Pickin' Time (Lanerie, 120)
  6. Pipeline (John Velazquez, 118)
  7. Irish Unity (Ricardo Santana Jr., 118)
  8. Cool Quest (Julien Leparoux, 118)
  9. Runway Magic (Brian Hernandez Jr., 118)

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Saturday Undercard: Nashville Sets Track Record, Spill Mars Second Race

The China Horse Club and WinStar Farm showed off a talented young sprinter in the opener on Breeders' Cup Saturday at Keeneland, sending out Nashville for a track record-setting victory in the $125,000 Perryville Stakes. The 3-year-old son of Speightstown ran six furlongs over the fast main track in 1:07.89, annihilating the previous record of 1:08.43 set by A.P. Indian in 2016.

(Note: the run-up for today's Perryville was 55 feet, while the run-up for A.P. Indian's previous track record-setting performance was 34 feet.)

Trained by Steve Asmussen and ridden by Ricardo Santana, Jr., the 1-9 favorite Nashville grabbed the lead at the start and easily ran away from the field, setting fractions of :21.54, :43.87, and :55.61 without turning a hair. Santana never touched his whip down the lane, cruising under the wire an easy winner by about three lengths over Wild Wes.

Asmussen could have sent the colt to the Breeders' Cup Sprint later on the card, but elected to take an easier route with the inexperienced Nashville.

Bred in Kentucky by Breffni Farm, Nashville is out of the unraced Mizzen Mast mare Veronique from the family of multi-millionaires Giacomo and Tiago. Nashville was a $460,000 yearling purchase at the 2018 Keeneland September sale, and has gone undefeated in his first three starts by a total of over 20 lengths. His earnings now stand at $157,200.

The day's second race, the Lafayette Stakes, saw a spill at the top of the stretch mar the action when Absolutely Aiden broke down. Both Dinar and Strike That were also affected and unseated their riders, but galloped out unharmed and were corralled by outriders before being taken back to their respective barns. Trainer Cherie DeVaux Tweeted that Dinar was find other than minor abrasions.

Absolutely Aiden was loaded onto the equine ambulance.

All three jockeys affected by the incident escaped unharmed, and were checked out at first aid and approved to ride their remaining mounts. They are: Tyler Gaffalione (Dinar), Chris Landeros (Absolutely Aiden), and David Cohen (Strike That).

Midnight Sands also appeared to stumble over the stricken horse, and was eased down the stretch by jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. He also walked off the track under his own power.

Sleepy Eyes Todd won the Lafayette for trainer Miguel Silva and jockey Joel Rosario.

In the third race, the Fort Springs Stakes, trainer Bob Baffert and jockey Luis Saez teamed up with Merneith to defeat Motivated Seller by a neck at the finish. The 3-year-old filly is sired by American Pharoah.

Merneith has been a part of Baffert's recent medication controversy: after finishing second in the fourth race on July 25 at Del Mar, the filly returned a positive test for Dextrorphan, a cough suppressant.

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