Tag: Racing

Tagg’s Belmont Maiden Winner Hombre May Be On Course For Queen’s Plate

Robert Cudney's Hombre earned an 83 Beyer Speed Figure for an impressive 3 3/4-length maiden win Sunday over yielding turf in a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight for 3-year-olds and up at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

Trained by Barclay Tagg, the 3-year-old Tourist colt was bred in Ontario by Joey Gee Thoroughbreds. Out of the Perfect Soul mare Classic Soul, Hombre is a half-brother to the graded stakes-placed Speedy Soul.

With Dylan Davis up in Sunday's second-out maiden score, Hombre rallied three-wide through the turn and made his winning bid at the five-sixteenths marker before drawing clear.

“When they got to the pole and he started to move, I thought don't move too soon now, but he was just so smooth,” said Tagg. “He wasn't chasing after him, he just went right around the other horses. It's a pleasure to watch that.”

Hombre ran fifth on debut in April at Belmont after experiencing some trouble at the break.

“We thought he'd run well yesterday, but you never know. He'd only had one race,” said Tagg. “It was pretty smooth. He was running the whole way and when the jockey asked him for more, he went on with it.”

Tagg said the connections would like to point Hombre to the 10-furlong Queen's Plate, first leg of the Canadian Triple Crown slated for August 22 on the Tapeta at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario.

Hombre, who breezed over the Woodbine Tapeta last year when in the care of trainer Liz Elder, was sent to Tagg over the winter to prepare for a sophomore campaign.

Tagg said Hombre should be able to handle the surface change and stretch out in distance for the Queen's Plate.

“We can send him up there a couple days ahead of time and let him gallop on it,” said Tagg regarding the Tapeta. “I don't think he'd have any distance issues, but you don't know until you try. He's a nice-looking horse. He's well balanced, strong up front and strong behind.”

Tagg said Hombre came out of the race well and could make one start at the end of July at Saratoga before heading to Woodbine.

Hayward R. Pressman, Diamond M Stable, and Donna R. Pressman's Step Dancer breezed on the Belmont inner turf Monday.

Tagg said the War Dancer sophomore, who rallied to finish second last out in the NYSSS Spectacular Bid on June 19 at Belmont, will target the NYSSS Cab Calloway, a one-mile turf test for eligible New York-sired sophomores on July 28 at Saratoga.

“That's his first work since he ran. He went a half-mile on the turf and went well,” said Tagg. “We'll probably run him back in the New York stallion race on July 28 at one mile on the inner turf.”

Step Dancer, bred in the Empire State by Sugar Plum Farm and Richard Pressman, finished third in the Grade 2 Pilgrim on October 3 at Belmont ahead of a score in Awad at 1 1/16-miles over yielding turf at the same track.

Tagg, who conditioned famous New York-breds Tiz the Law and Funny Cide, said Step Dancer has the talent to eventually return to graded stakes races.

“I think so,” said Tagg. “We've been pretty lucky with a couple New York-breds, but you never know where they're going to come from. He's not that big, but he's put together well and moves well.”

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She’sonthewarpath Holds Off Dominga To Take Ellis Park Turf

She'sonthewarpath was. And the result was a neck victory over favored Dominga in Sunday's $75,000 Ellis Park Turf at the RUNHAPPY Meet at Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky.

Trainer by Steve Margolis for Robert and Lawana Low, She'sonthewarpath closed from mid-pack to win three stakes last year. However, facing a field devoid of natural front-runners in the field of six fillies and mares, jockey Adam Beschizza didn't wait on anyone else to do the dirty work for She'sonthewarpath.

Beschizza sent the 5-year-old mare to the initial lead out of the gate from her outside post, before letting her settle just off of the Brad Cox-trained Dominga, who broke on the rail under Shaun Bridgmohan.

Dominga loped through a crawling early pace, but Beschizza kept She'sonthewarpath within pouncing position and went after the favorite heading into the far turn.

“I told Adam, 'Bridgmohan is on a nice filly for Brad. Just don't let her steal it. Keep her in your sights,'” Margolis said. “You let a horse like that get loose, it's going to be tough to catch her.”

Rounding into the stretch, She'sonthewarpath wrested a narrow lead in a bunched-up field and had a length advantage with an eighth of a mile to go. Dominga wasn't finished and tried to come back on the rail only to fall a couple of feet short.

“We know she's pretty fast,” Beschizza said. “She ran at 5 1/2 furlongs at Churchill Downs this year, so we know she's got speed. We know she can rate. She's probably one of those that can turn it off and turn it on. You just have to be a little bit more aggressive with her out of the gate. She seemed to get a nice perch going around there. We know she's got the ability and the engine, and that turn of gear.

“We were in prime position, and as soon as I pulled the trigger, she delivered. She's got that turn of gear that can sort of put horses into shock mode as soon as we turn into the stretch. We took Brad Cox's horse in there seriously. We knew she was going to go to the lead. The field size was small and sometimes when they get an easy ride on the front end, it can get a bit tactical. It doesn't usually go to plan like that. But super-pleased for Steve. He's done a great job with her, and she's a real barn favorite.”

It was another 1 1/4 lengths back to the late-running Pass the Plate, followed by Sister Hanan, High Regard, and Nope. Enjoyitwhilewecan and Alnassem were scratched.

“I got to the spot where I needed to be, and she was comfortable,” Bridgmohan said. “She was game, though. She tried to come back on the other horse. She tried hard.”

Said Paul McGee, trainer of Pass the Plate: “They got away with slow early fractions, so it's hard to close into that. She ran a good race.”

She'sonthewarpath, a daughter of Declaration of War, completed the mile over firm turf in 1:44.07, the last sixteenth-mile going in :05.84 seconds as she picked up the pace throughout. The fractions were :25.43, :50.65, 1:15.65, and 1:38.23.

The bay mare now is 7-2-3 in 18 starts, earning $432,820 for the Lows, who are also her breeders.

In her last start, Beschizza backed out of a potential jam early on and She'sonthewarpath closed to be third in a tough field for Churchill Downs' Grade 3 Mint Julep.

“I probably wasn't aggressive enough as I should have been, getting a position,” he said. “She rated on me going into the first turn and got a little bump. It just took her off of her game. She came with a flying run at the end. She's all heart. But we got her day today.”

She'sonthewarpath ran in last year's $100,000 Kentucky Downs Preview Ladies Turf, showing speed that day and finishing second. Margolis said that stakes is a logical objective, with the ultimate goal being the $750,000 Kentucky Downs Ladies Turf at Kentucky Downs.

“The Lows are great,” Margolis said. “They always do right by the horses they give me. She's a hard-knocker who always tries. Just grateful to have her. When you have a mare like her, a horse who always tries, you know they're going to always fire. You just hope everything goes right. She's such a classy mare. You ask her to go, like Adam says, she gives you everything she's got.”

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Original Prevails In Manila Stakes on Belmont Turf

Eric Fein's Original picked up his first stakes win in Sunday's $100,000 Manila, holding off a furious late rally from Public Sector in the one-mile Widener turf test for sophomores at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

The graded stakes-placed Quality Road colt turned the tables on his rival Sunday after fading to third last out when Public Sector prevailed in a one-mile optional-claiming event contested over yielding turf on June 4 at Belmont.

With Luis Saez up once more in the seventh renewal of the Manila, Original broke alertly from post 4 and made all the running, holding off even-money favorite Public Sector's late run to secure a narrow head score.

“I saw him [Public Sector] coming,” said Original trainer John Terranova. “But Luis rode him beautiful and had a little clearance coming to the top of the stretch and was able to hold on.”

Original set splits of :24.85, :50.30, and 1:14.44 over a turf course rated good with It's a Gamble stalking from second position outside of Hot Blooded and a hard-held Straw Into Gold riding the hedge in fourth.

Public Sector, who settled in fifth after the break under Flavien Prat, tipped outside of Hot Blooded and the fading It's a Gamble late in the turn as Straw Into Gold launched his bid up the rail. But there was no reeling in Original, who stayed on stubbornly to secure the win in a final time of 1:37.75.

Public Sector completed the exacta by 1 1/2-lengths over Straw Into Gold. Rounding out the order of finish were It's a Gamble, the slow-starting Annex, and Hot Blooded.

Like the King, who ran second in Saturday's Grade 3 Kent at Delaware Park; and Ridin With Biden, who will race in Monday's $250,000 Grade 3 Dwyer at one-mile on Big Sandy, were scratched.

A maiden winner at second asking over yielding Aqueduct Racetrack turf in November, Original ran third in the Grade 3 Kitten's Joy in January at Gulfstream Park and followed with a third in the Woodhaven in April at the Big A.

The victory marked the second stakes win of the meet for Terranova, who said he felt confident throughout.

“I knew we were going easy. The fractions were slow but the turf is very soft, so I didn't expect too fast fractions,” said Terranova. “They let him out there easy. The only thing we talked to Luis about was if they came to us at the quarter-pole, to kick away a little, because they're going to be kicking down the stretch. We wanted to get a little clear from there, which he did, and it worked out beautiful.”

Saez said his charge was touting himself on the way to the gate.

“Today, I knew I had horse. When I took him away from the pony I could feel it. He was ready. He was on his game today,” said Saez. “He was the speed of the race and he did his thing. He broke pretty well and set the pace. When we came into the top of the stretch, I had a lot of horse, and he came and gave me a fight in the last few jumps. It was an exciting race.”

Bred in Kentucky by Peter E. Blum Thoroughbreds, Original banked $55,000 in victory while improving his record to 7-2-0-3. He returned $15.80 for a $2 win ticket.

Live racing resumes Monday at Belmont with a nine-race card highlighted by the $150,000 Grand Couturier in Race 6 and the Grade 3, $250,000 Dwyer in Race 8. First post is 1 p.m. Eastern.

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