Tag: Racing

Godolphin Stable's homebred Nostalgic challenged pacesetter and even-money favorite Venti Valentine before surging up the rail in the final furlong and posting a 1 1/4-length victory Saturday in the $250,000 Gazelle (G3) at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Nostalgic, trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott and ridden by Jose Ortiz, completed the stretch-drive rally to win her first career stakes and in the process secure 100 qualifying points to the Kentucky Oaks (G1) May 6. The Gazelle's 127th running offered 100-40-20-10 points to the top-four finishers.

New York-bred Venti Valentine broke on top in her first race since posting a seven-length romp in the Busher Invitational on March 5 at the Big A. Under jockey Manny Franco, Venti Valentine paced the seven-horse field through the opening quarter-mile in :24.48, the half in 49.26, and three-quarters in 1:13.93 over the fast track.

Venti Valentine maintained the edge into the stretch. But Ortiz kept Nostalgic to task along the inside and tenaciously pursued the emerging seam along the inside, overtaking the pacesetter before hitting the finish line in 1:50.41 in the race for 3-year-old fillies.

The victory marked the Medaglia d'Oro filly's second consecutive after besting allowance company by 6 3/4 lengths on March 3 at Gulfstream Park.

“Last time, we planned on putting her up in the race a little bit, which we did again today,” said Mott, who previously won the Gazelle with Close Hatches in 2013. “We wanted to see her engaged early a little more and she did it. She held her position and came through on the rail. I didn't tell him where to be other than we didn't want to be 15 lengths back.

“She just hadn't learned how to put in that kind of a run yet,” Mott added. “She hadn't learned how to get that position. It all goes together, it's just maturity, time and she had a good winter at Payson Park.”

Off at 4-1, Nostalgic returned $10 and improved her career earnings to $235,400.

After running fourth in the Grade 2 Demoiselle to cap her juvenile campaign in December at Aqueduct, Nostalgic ran ninth in the Grade 3 Sweetest Chant in February at Gulfstream Park before earning a winner's circle trip in her last two starts.

“I love this filly. She reminds me a lot of (Grade 1 winner) Elate (also a daughter of Medaglia d'Oro),” Ortiz said of Nostalgic, who is out of the Tapit mare Been Here Before. “I was very happy to ride her today. With Keeneland going on right now, you don't know where you're going to be riding, so I was happy to be on her. I rode her with a lot of confidence. I knew she was doing well. She ran amazing last time. She woke up which was the most important thing.

“As a 2-year-old, she won first time out but she was very green. She's big and she's supposed to keep going longer and longer. I am very excited about her. Moving forward, we're going to be fine with her.”

Venti Valentine picked up 40 qualifying pints to the Oaks after being piloted by Manny Franco.

“She ran her race and I think like Manny said, he didn't think that horse (Nostalgic) was going to come back at the eighth pole and by that time he looked, the horse was already there,” trainer Jorge Abreu said. “But I think he gave her a great ride. She's used to having a target and today she was by herself on the lead. It was a whole different scenario because there was no speed in the race. If she tracks somebody, that puts her on the bit.”

Abreu said the Kentucky Oaks is on the radar.

“Oh yeah; we'll see how she comes out of it and we'll consider it,” he said.

Shotgun Hottie, trained by William Morey, earned 20 points after finishing a half-length in front of Classy Edition, who garnered 10 points for Hall of Fame conditioner Todd Pletcher.

“She's gutsy and always give 100%,” said Trevor McCarthy, Shotgun Hottie's rider. “We always thought the mile and an eighth would suit her. I wish I had gotten out a little bit sooner. She's a bit of a grinder and I had to wait until I could get out, but when she got out she really gave me 100 percent and a good effort.”

Devine Huntress, Morning Macha and Caragate completed the order of finish. Greatitude was scratched.

The post Nostalgic Upstages Front-Running Favorite In Convincing Gazelle Win appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Making his first appearance in a Grade 1 event since a distant sixth-place finish in last year's Pennsylvania Derby (G1), a streaking Speaker's Corner left no doubt that he is truly Grade 1 caliber in Saturday's $300,000 Carter Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Breaking from outermost post 8 with regular rider Junior Alvarado aboard, Speaker's Corner was able to sit in the clear in second as Reinvestment Risk was hustled through on the rail to gain control of the lead down the backstretch.

After an opening quarter-mile in a leisurely :23.17 over the fast main track, Speaker's Corner and Alvarado weren't content to let Reinvestment Risk gallop along on the front end and quickly took command of the race before hitting the half in :46.11. That early move proved to be decisive as Speaker's Corner stormed into the stretch and rolled home an easy 4 ½-length winner, finishing strongly to complete the seven furlongs in a sparkling 1:21.34.

“He is a horse who we have always been very high on,”  Alvarado said of the 4-year-old son of Street Sense, who is trained by Bill Mott. “We figured out what he wants to do. He's a very good miler. Today, we had a great trip, and he was there the whole way around. He was very much the best horse. He took the lead around the half-mile pole and after that, he was just doing his thing. He ran them off their feet early. He was traveling comfortably and was faster than the other horses. He gave me the same kick at seven-eighths as a mile. He's on his “A” game right now. He'll be a tough horse this year.”

The win was the third in a row for Speaker's Corner, a Godolphin homebred who is 6-for-9 overall with earnings that now stand at $572,130. He returned $3 as the prohibitive favorite.

Reinvestment Risk enjoyed some redemption of his own with a respectable second-place finish, 2 ½ lengths clear of a tough-luck Mind Control in third.

“I thought I was second-best today,” said Manny Franco, rider aboard Reinvestment Risk. “My horse ran really well. I just tried to find my spot there inside. I was in the right spot the whole way around. I was happy with the way he ran. He's really nice. The winner is in his prime right now, but I think my horse will improve after this race.”

It was another 2 ¾ lengths back to Green Light Go in fourth, who was followed home by Drafted, Bank On Shea, and First Captain.

Speaker's Corner might be seen next, it seems a possible date in the Grade 1, $1 million Hill n' Dale Metropolitan Handicap on Belmont Stakes Day on June 11 is in the cards.

“We've got to put that on the list of things,” said Mott. “That would be a prime target. We've squeezed him pretty good the way it is. We've come back five weeks, four weeks, so he's had his races fairly close together already.”

The post Speaker’s Corner On ‘A’ Game, Passes Grade 1 Test In Carter appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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In a major upset, Desert Dawn, the longest shot in the field at 14-1, wore down heavily favored Adare Manor late to take Saturday's Grade 2, $400,000 Santa Anita Oaks by a neck and thus ensured herself a place in the starting gate for the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks on May 6 at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.  Trained by Phil D'Amato and ridden by Umberto Rispoli, Desert Dawn got 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.50.

A Kentucky Oaks qualifier, Desert Dawn picked up 100 points for the win, Adare Manor, 40 points, Ain't Easy got 20 and fourth-place finisher Under the Stars collected 10 points.

Updated Kentucky Derby/Oaks leaderboard

D'Amato's Ain't Easy, off at 3-1 with Juan Hernandez, shot to the front from her number two post position while Adare Manor and John Velazquez, breaking from the far outside in a field of five sophomore fillies, pressed her every step of the way through splits of :23.05, :46.46, 1:10.56 and 1:37.76.

Ain't Easy had a narrow head advantage on the favorite turning for home, tired leaving the furlong pole while Desert Dawn pounced and in a protracted battle, inched clear late to narrowly prevail on the money.

A non-threatening fourth going the same distance in the Grade 3 Santa Ysabel Stakes March 6, Desert Dawn, who is owned and bred by H & E Ranch, Inc., paid $31.20, $7.40 and $3.20.

“She's an honest filly,” said D'Amato.  “I always thought once she'd get her scenario, It'd work out for her and I think the longer, the better.  Umberto's been breezing her and her last drill was probably her best drill to date, so it all worked out.”

By Cupid out of the Honour and Glory mare Ashley's Glory, Desert Dawn, in her seventh start, notched her first stakes victory.  With an overall mark of 7-2-0-1, she picked up $240,000 for the win, increasing her earnings to $378,400.

“I knew we needed that last race and I felt the last work was better than shown,” said Rispoli.  “I just wanted to keep her outside and I knew the pace would set up really well for her.  We started to move at the three eighths pole and she fought every step of the way…Now, it is on to Kentucky!”

A 13-length winner of the Grade 2 Las Virgenes Stakes Feb. 6 and a 12-length maiden winner two starts back on Jan. 7, Adare Manor, who was transferred from now-suspended Bob Baffert to Tim Yakteen, was off at 3-5 and paid $2.80 and $2.10 while finishing 7 ½ lengths in front of Ain't Easy.

“We are obviously disappointed in the result,” said Velazquez.  “She just didn't run her A-race.  She broke slowly and was in a good position in the backstretch.  But she just didn't run the way she usually does.”

Off at 7-2, Ain't Easy paid $2.40 to show while finishing 3 ½ lengths better than Under the Stars, who broke tardily.

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