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Necker Island Scores First Stakes Win In Bet On Sunshine

The Scherr Boys' Necker Island, who finished ninth in last year's Kentucky Derby, narrowly prevailed in a three-horse photo for the win in Saturday's 13th running of the $300,000 Bet On Sunshine at Churchill Downs to beat Mucho by a head with Sir Alfred James another neck back in third.

Ridden by Mitchell Murrill for trainer Chris Hartman, Necker Island ran six furlongs in 1:09.22 over a fast track to give the jockey and conditioner their third win together on the 11-race program.

It was Necker Island's first career stakes win, but he has proven fruitful for owner Wayne Scherr after he and other partners claimed the horses for $100,000 on June 13, 2020. Since then, Necker Island finished third in the $300,000 Grade 3 Indiana Derby and $200,000 Ellis Park Derby, which led to a start in the 2020 Kentucky Derby. This was his third victory in seven starts this year.

The win was worth $183,450 and improved Necker Island's career earnings to $565,532 with a record of 5-1-4 in 18 starts.

Necker Island returned $9.40, $4.20, and $3.20 as the 7-2 third betting choice. Mucho, the 5-2 favorite under Rey Gutierrez, paid $3.40 and $3.20. Sir Alfred James, ridden by John McKee, paid $5 to show. Bango, Long Weekend and Atoka completed the order of finish.

Sir Alfred James and Rough Entry battled for the early lead in the field of eight older horses through a first quarter mile in :21.66 as Necker Island raced in fifth along the inside. Necker Island had to check entering the turn as Sir Alfred James and Mucho left the turn vying for the lead in :45.01. Necker Island continued to race along the rail, wore down those rivals, and got up at the wire.

“I saw there was a lot of speed in this race so I wanted to let my horse settle,” Murrill said. “He settled very well up the backside and I had a lot of horse turning for home. I'm really proud of his effort and the Hartman team did a great job getting him ready.”

The race was spoiled by an incident on the turn when Vertical Threat, ridden by Adam Beschizza, and Rough Entry, with Brian Hernandez Jr. up, fell. Both jockeys walked to the onsite ambulance and were examined onsite by EMTs. Rough Entry was corralled by the outriders. Vertical Threat was vanned off.

Necker Island is a 4-year-old son of Hard Spun out of the Mr. Greeley mare Jenny's Rocket and was bred in Kentucky by Stonestreet Stables.

Racing at Churchill Downs continues Sunday with a 10-race card that begins at 1 p.m. (all times Eastern). Sunday is Military Appreciation Day with free admission or a discounted $29 ticket to Skye Terrace for active and retired members of the U.S. armed services.

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Mystic Eyes Earns Black Type With Stewart Manor Victory

MeB Racing Stables and Vincent Esopi's Mystic Eyes earned black type in her first two stakes starts, setting the pace before finishing second in the Ainsworth in September at Kentucky Downs in Franklin, Ky., and a competitive third in the Grade 3 Matron on October 9 at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. The daughter of Maclean's Music broke through on Saturday, going gate-to-wire and fending off Hot Fudge's last charge to post a victory by a neck in the $100,000 Stewart Manor for juvenile fillies going six furlongs on Belmont's inner turf course.

The fourth running of the Stewart Manor, which marked the last of four stakes on the 10-race card on the penultimate day of the Belmont fall meet, saw Mystic Eyes break sharp from post 3. Under jockey Manny Franco, the Kentucky bred led the 10-horse field through the opening quarter-mile in :21.75 and the half in :44.75 over firm going, with Benbang in close pursuit.

Hot Fudge, who tracked the pace from the inside under jockey Eric Cancel, gained ground in the final furlong, pressing Mystic Eyes to the wire before the pacesetter completed the course in a 1:09.97 final time to secure her second win in four career starts.

Mystic Eyes, a debut winner by 4 1/2 lengths on August 5 at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., before her pair of stakes placings, has never finished off the board for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher.

“She's fast. You just have to control her speed a little because she's a type of horse who just wants to go,” Franco said. “I tried at some point in the race to give her a breather and save something for the end, and that's what we did. She was ready for today's race. I'm just happy to be on her.”

Mystic Eyes, the 8-5 favorite bred by Pursuit of Success, returned $5.20 on a $2 win wager. She improved her career earnings to $164,000.

“I thought she broke well. She has a lot of speed and used that today,” said Byron Hughes, assistant to Pletcher. “She got into a nice rhythm and did a great job on the front end without using too much. And she was able to hold off the competition. It was a nice win. We'll see what comes out of it. I imagine we'll head south pretty soon.”

Hot Fudge, trained by Linda Rice, bested Gal in a Rush by a half length for second in her first start since running seventh in the Grade 1 Frizette on October 3 at Belmont.

Benbang, Rigby, Flip My Id, Charlee O, The Club, Still My Babe, and Stand Up Comic completed the order of finish.

Live racing resumes Sunday with Closing Day of the Belmont fall meet. The 10-race card, which features an 11:50 a.m. first post, will feature a pair of stakes in the $150,000 Zagora for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up going 1 1/2 miles on the turf in Race 4 at 1:18 p.m. and the $150,000 Grade 3 Nashua for 2-year-olds in a one-turn mile on the main track in Race 9 at 3:43 p.m.

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America's Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the fall meet at Belmont Park on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/belmont/racing/tv-schedule.

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Belmont Park, and the best way to bet every race of the fall meet. Available to horseplayers nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.

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Mischievous Kiss Makes Bold Move To Take Chelsey Flower At Belmont

A pair of recent maiden graduates at Belmont Park stepped up in class with little trouble and finished one-two in Saturday's $100,000 Chelsey Flower for 2-year-old fillies, with the Carl Pollard homebred Mischievous Kiss coming out on top over Caironi by a half length in the 1 1/16-mile event on the Widener turf course at the Elmont, N.Y., track.

Having both broke their maidens on October 2 over this same Widener course going seven furlongs, Mischievous Kiss and Caironi were overshadowed in the betting by another impressive Belmont maiden winner in Shad Nation. But the exacta proved too much for the rest of the field, as the runner-up finished 4 1/2 lengths clear of third-place finisher Kneesnhips.

In addition to their nearly identical profiles entering the race, Mischievous Kiss [trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott] and Caironi got similar trips from off the pace, which proved to be the place to be as longshots Lady Milagro and Evangeline Allons tussled through solid early splits of :23.40 for the opening quarter-mile, :46.91 for the half, and 1:11.27 for three-quarters over firm going, with Misthaven perched just to their outside.

Mischievous Kiss, ridden by Eric Cancel, was the first to make a move into the teeth of that swift pace, launching a bold and ultimately winning rally leaving the far turn. Caironi and jockey Kendrick Carmouche followed their lead, but Mischievous Kiss gained enough separation in the stretch, forcing Carioni to settle for second while completing the course in a 1:42.89 final time.

“Eric gave her a great trip,” said Leana Willaford, assistant to Mott. “The horses we figured to show some early speed did just that. He let her relax and get into stride, and when he asked her, she was there for him. The longer she's been around, the more maturity she's shown, and she handled things real well today.”

The victory marked Mischievous Kiss' second from just three career starts, while the Mike Miceli-trained Caironi was making only her second start. The winner, by Into Mischief out of a Kris S. dam, returned $16.20 on a $2 win wager. Her career earnings now stand at $116,500.

“Her next step is between Mr. Pollard and Bill,” Willaford added. “She'll probably head to Florida with no more turf racing [in New York].”

Following Caironi in second was Kneesnhips, who finished two lengths ahead of fourth-place finisher Ouraika. Shad Nation, Misthaven, Philly Eagles, Evangeline Allons, and Lady Milagro completed the order of finish.

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Live racing resumes Sunday with Closing Day of the Belmont fall meet. The 10-race card, which features an 11:50 a.m. first post, will feature a pair of stakes in the $150,000 Zagora for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up going 1 1/2 miles on the turf in Race 4 at 1:18 p.m. and the Grade 3, $150,000 Nashua for 2-year-olds in a one-turn mile on the main track in Race 9 at 3:43 p.m.

The post Mischievous Kiss Makes Bold Move To Take Chelsey Flower At Belmont appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Yibir’s Longines Turf Win for Red-Hot Connections Headlines Breeders’ Cup Saturday Undercard

In winning two earlier Breeders' Cup races Nov. 5-6 at Del Mar, Charlie Appleby experienced varying emotions, watching as a pair of his horses (and nearly a third) were scratched due to unruly gate antics and two runners emerged as victors.