For decades, the Grade 1 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes at Saratoga has served as the sprint complement on the Runhappy Travers Stakes undercard. Since its inauguration in 1984, the race has served as a showcase for some of the fastest 3-year-old sprinters in the country.
Tag: Racing
Dozen Sophs Set To Contest Tuesday’s New Kent County Virginia Derby
A field of 12 will go to post in the 18th running of the Grade 3 New Kent County Virginia Derby presented by Woodford Reserve on Tuesday, Aug. 31, at Colonial Downs in New Kent, Va., featured event of five stakes on the card and 11 races in all.
The Derby carries a purse of $250,000 and will be contested at 1 1/8 miles over the track's signature Secretariat Turf Course. Programmed as the 10th race, it will be the final leg of an All-Stakes, All-Turf Pick-5 wager covering races 6-10 that kicks off with the $150,000 Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance Old Nelson Stakes and continues with the $100,000 Woodford Reserve Kitten's Joy Stakes, the $100,000 Exacta Systems Rosie's Stakes and the $150,000 Woodford Reserve Virginia Oaks. First post Tuesday is 1:45 PM and the Derby itself is at 6:14 PM.
Among the Derby dozen is Gap View Stables and Jagger Inc.'s Indian Lake, a gate-to-wire winner in the Bald Eagle Derby at Pimlico most recently. The 3-year-old Daredevil gelding has finished in-the-money in 16 of 17 career starts and has earnings of $222,408, highest of any in the field. The Jamie Ness trainee has a trio of allowance wins this year, a runner-up in the Jersey Derby and a third in the Sussex Stakes.
Madaket Stables LLC's Wootton Asset, third-place finisher in the Bald Eagle Derby, is trained by Graham Motion, who won the 2019 Virginia Derby with English Bee. The 3-year-old Wootton Bassett colt also took third in the Grade 3 Kent Stakes July 3 and finished second by a nose in the Laurel Futurity last October. He has bankrolled $100,245, all of which has come from nine turf starts.
Gallaghers Stud's Search For Truth dominated a Colonial maiden special weight race by 11 1/2 lengths Aug. 10 at the 1 1/8-mile distance. The Michael Dickinson trainee's only other start came over a soft turf at Delaware where he rallied from fifth at the top of the stretch to finish second.
Savesnine Corp.'s Draft Capital brings a four-race win streak into Virginia. The Uncle Mo colt's margin of victory in the four-pack – all contested at Arlington – has increased with each start. The Doug Matthews trainee started his streak with a maiden claiming triumph June 19 by a nose and most recently prevailed by four in an off-the-turf allowance. He has earned $55,694.
Red Oak Stable's It Can Be Done has bankrolled $177,330 from ten starts which includes a win in the Nownownow Stakes at Monmouth last October. The Temple City gelding finished a solid second last out in the Tale of the Cat Stakes and lost by a neck March 27 in the Cutler Bay at Gulfstream. The Greg Sacco trainee has competed in six stakes thus far.
With only two lifetime starts, Augustin Stable's Experienced was a solid runner-up in the Bald Eagle last out which followed a maiden special weight score over the Delaware turf June 21. Jonathan Thomas conditions the Temple City gelding. Augustin Stable will be seeking a Derby hat trick of sorts after wins in the 1998 inaugural edition with Crowd Pleaser and three years later with Potaro.
L and N Racing's Hidden Enemy only has one win from ten starts, but has faced tough competition in some. The Steve Asmussen trainee was fourth in the Grade 2 American Turf at Churchill May 1, part of the Kentucky Derby under card, then finished ninth in the $1 million, Grade I Belmont Derby July 10. The Irish-bred son of Galileo broke his maiden March 21 at Fair Grounds.
Rounding out the Derby field is McCarty Racing LLC's Doubleoseven, Bourbon Lane Stable's Hard Rye Guy, Deuce Greathouse's Shady McGee, Jerry Marks Stables LLC's Slicked Back and Carmen Catizone's Eye of the Cat.
Six of seven weeks in the 2021 Colonial Downs summer meet have been completed. The final race week includes a 10-race card Monday, Aug. 30, the Derby program on Tuesday and an 11-race Virginia Breeder's card Wednesday, Sept. 1, which features five $100,000 stakes for Virginia-bred/sired horses.
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Medina Spirit Supplemented To Sunday’s Shared Belief Stakes
While his Kentucky Derby victory remains in limbo pending a Kentucky Horse Racing Commission ruling, the next start for Medina Spirit was made quite clear this morning.
Medina Spirit was supplemented, at a cost of $1,000, to Sunday's $100,000 Shared Belief Stakes, a one-mile event for 3-year-olds on the Del Mar main track. It will be the first start for the son of Protonico since finishing third, beaten 5 ½-lengths by Rombauer in the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico on May 15.
“I've entered him, he's running,” Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert said. “I figure I'll use this as a prep for the Penn ($1 million Pennsylvania Derby, Sept. 25) and see how he likes this track.”
Days earlier, Baffert had indicated the Shared Belief was being given strong consideration but he was waiting to see another workout before finalizing a decision. Medina Spirit covered five furlongs in :58.60 on Monday, tied with stablemate Ax Man for the fastest of 68 works at the distance and better than a half-second quicker than the next most rapid.
“He worked a little fast but he came out of it good,” Baffert said. “He's going to need the race, coming off a layoff, and he's got to go a mile. But if I can run him here that will set him up to go on to the Pennsylvania Derby.”
Medina Spirit joining previously committed Rock Your World in the Shared Belief would set up a rematch of the Santa Anita Derby in which Rock Your World prevailed by 4 ¼ lengths to go three-for-three to that point in his career.
Rock Your World, trained by John Sadler, would subsequently finish 17th, beaten 24 ¼ lengths by Medina Spirit, in the Kentucky Derby and sixth, beaten 22 lengths by Essential Quality in the Belmont Stakes on June 5.
The field for the Shared Belief Stakes from the rail with jockeys in parentheses: Willy The Cobbler (Victor Espinoza); Medina Spirit (John Velazquez); Rock Your World (Umberto Rispoli); Team Merchants (Mario Gutierrez); The Great One (Flavien Prat), and Stilleto Boy (Kent Desormeaux).
The post Medina Spirit Supplemented To Sunday’s Shared Belief Stakes appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
Breeders’ Cup and America’s Best Racing Launch Live Spanish Language Stream For Challenge Series Races
Lexington, Ky. (Aug. 26, 2021) – Breeders’ Cup and America’s Best Racing announced today the launch of “Breeders’ Cup En Vivo,” a series of six live digital handicapping shows in Spanish covering 13 of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series races.
