Tag: Racing

Malathaat Guts Out Emotional Victory In Kentucky Oaks

It was an emotional Friday under the Twin Spires for members of the global racing and breeding operation Shadwell Stable. The organization's founder, Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, died on March 24, 2021, just five weeks before the running of the 2021 Kentucky Oaks.

The rangy bay filly with a wide star on her head may have understood the extra significance of the day. Malathaat, a daughter of Curlin out of Grade 1 winner Dreaming of Julia, was undefeated entering the fillies' classic for trainer Todd Pletcher.

This afternoon at Churchill Downs, Malathaat (5-2) faced a field of 12 other sophomore fillies all vying for the coveted garland of lilies. At the head of the lane, there were three across the track putting on a show for 41,472 fans at Churchill Downs.: Malathaat on the outside, frontrunner Travel Column (7-2) at the rail, and the also undefeated Search Results (5-1) between them.

Try as they might, neither of those rivals could get by Malathaat and John Velazquez. Not on this day. They brought home a first U.S. Classic victory for Shadwell, carrying the white and blue colors across the line a neck in front of Search Results. Malathaat completed nine furlongs over the fast main track in 1:48.99.

“It's just fantastic for our whole operation, such a big lift,” said Rick Nichols, Vice President and General Manager of Shadwell Stable. “I know in my heart he saw her win. He loved racing too much to miss this one.”

After the wire, Search Results' jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. reached over to congratulate Velazquez with a pat on the back.

Irad Ortiz, right, congratulates John Velazquez, left, after his Kentucky Oaks win aboard Malathaat.

Malathaat's triumph marks the fourth Kentucky Oaks win for Hall of Fame nominee Todd Pletcher, and the second for Velazquez. Velazquez and Pletcher teamed to win the Oaks in 2004 with Ashado, as well as the 2017 Kentucky Derby with Always Dreaming. Pletcher's other Oaks victories came with Princess of Sylmar in 2013 and Rags to Riches in 2007.

The victory puts Pletcher and Velazquez in position to make history Saturday in the $3 million Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (G1). No trainer since Ben Jones in 1952 has won the Oaks and Derby in the same year. Jones also did it in 1949 and Dick Thompson did it in 1933.

Seven riders have won the Oaks and Derby in the same year with the most recent being Calvin Borel in 2009.

Bumped from each side at the start, Malathaat looked as though she'd be shuffled back to the rear of the field. Instead, her Hall of Fame jockey sent her through a narrow hole to be three-wide in sixth position around the clubhouse turn.

Up front, Travel Column set a mild pace of :23.60 and :47.47, a half-length ahead of Moraz and Search Results. Pauline's Pearl got a cozy spot against the rail in fourth, while Malathaat was able to secure the outside position in fifth for the run up the backstretch. After six furlongs in 1:11.31, both Search Results and Malathaat were winding up and bearing down on Travel Column.

Search Results and Travel Column appeared to bump one another at the head of the lane, while Malathaat stayed in the clear in about the four-path. Despite her wide trip early in the race, Velazquez allowed Malathaat to drift in as Search Results did, the pair ending up against the rail with Malathaat on the outside. In the final eighth of a mile, Malathaat was all heart to fend off Search Results in the shadow of the wire.

“She got away from there just a bit slow, but Johnny (Velazquez) moved her up and got her in a much better position,” Pletcher said. “He had to lose some ground and go wide to do it, but it was the right thing to do. She wants a target to run at and she got one here. Delighted with the outcome.”

Malathaat was a neck in front of Search Results at the finish. It was three lengths back to Will's Secret in third, just a nose in front of late-running Clairiere. The remaining order of finish was: Travel Column, Millefeuille, Maracuja, Pauline's Pearl, Coach, Crazy Beautiful, Moraz, Pass the Champagne, and Competitive Speed. Ava's Grace was scratched earlier in the week.

Chad Brown, trainer of runner-up Search Results, said: “I'm so proud of the filly and the way she ran. She put it all out there on the track for us and you can't ask for anything more than that. She ran her eyeballs out, she really did. She battled all the way to the end and we got beat by a really good filly. She delivered and hopefully we'll get one of these one day.”

The winner was bred in Kentucky by Stonestreet Thoroughbreds, who campaigned her dam, Dreaming of Julia (A.P. Indy), with Pletcher to earnings of $874,500. Malathaat is the second foal out of the mare, and commanded a final bid of $1.05 million from Shadwell at the Keeneland September Yearling sale.

She broke her maiden at first asking, won a listed stakes race at Aqueduct, and then the G2 Demoiselle to cap her juvenile season. Malathaat returned off a four-month layoff to post a gutsy win in the G1 Ashland, and now the Kentucky Oaks victory has the filly's record standing at 5-for-5, with earnings of over $1.1 million.

Malathaat (Curlin) wins the Kentucky Oaks (G1) at Churchill Downs on 4.30.21. John Velazquez up, Todd Pletcher trainer, Shadwell Stables owner.

Shadwell's legacy began in 1980, when Sheikh Hamdan founded his racing and breeding operation.

It peaked in the U.S. with an Eclipse Award as outstanding owner in 2007. That season was led by Hall of Famer Invasor, who won the Dubai World Cup and Grade 1 Donn Handicap that season.

However, the Shadwell operation's U.S. interests will probably be best remembered for its 2006 campaign, when Invasor secured Horse of the Year honors with victories in the Breeders' Cup Classic, Whitney Handicap, and Pimlico Special. That season also saw Sheikh Hamdan win his first U.S. classic when Jazil executed his signature closing move to win the Belmont Stakes.

While Shadwell's operation was successful in the U.S., its true power lied in Europe, and especially in the U.K. The stable was represented by two winners of the English 2000 Guineas (Nashwan in 1989 and Haafhd in 2004), and two Epsom Derby winners (Nashwan in the same year and Erhaab in 1994).

Sheikh Hamdan also had five winners of the English 1000 Guineas and three Epsom Oaks winners. He was also a regular presence at the prestigious Royal Ascot meet, where he earned the meet's leading owner title in 2020 with six winners.

Shadwell has earned Great Britain's leading owner title on five occasions, most recently in 2020. Shadwell won the Irish Derby in 1990 with Salsabil, the Irish 2000 Guineas with Awtaad in 2016, and five runnings of the Irish 1000 Guineas from 1985 to 2010.

In his native U.A.E., Sheikh Hamdan won the signature Dubai World Cup on two occasions, first winning it with Almutawakel in 1999, then taking it again with Invasor in 2007.

Shadwell also had an extensive Southern Hemisphere operation, particularly in Australia, where Sheikh Hamdan won the Melbourne Cup on two occasions: At Talaq in 1986, and Jeune in 1994.

The post Malathaat Guts Out Emotional Victory In Kentucky Oaks appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Fast Boat Motors To Twin Spires Turf Sprint Win With Powerful Closing Effort

Although trainer Joe Sharp initially had concerns about heavy Thursday rains making the Churchill Downs turf course heavy, his sprinter Fast Boat apparently didn't. The 6-year-old gelding powered to victory over Sombeyay in the Grade 2 Twin Spires Turf Sprint Stakes Friday with an impressive closing kick under jockey Irad Ortiz Jr.

Fast Boat sat second or third last for the early part of the five-and-a-half furlong contest, saving ground on the rail through the turn. Just Might and Fiya dueled on the lead early, wearing each other down while favored Diamond Oops encountered traffic trouble early. Fast Boat hustled out to a wide position in the later part of the turn, driving down the center of the track and hooking up with Sombeyay to overtake the early leaders and outrun a last-minute rail effort from Diamond Oops at the wire.

The final time was 1:03.29 with fractional times of :22.15, :45.01, and :57.11. Sombeyay was second, and Classy John was third. Diamond Oops finished fourth.

Sharp trains Fast Boat for owner Brad Grady and brought the gelding to this contest off a narrow win in the Pulse Power Turf Sprint at Sam Houston Park in January. This is the first graded stakes victory for Fast Boat, who was bred in Kentucky by R.S. Evans. He is the son of City Zip out of Lemon Drop Kid mare Yellow Boat.

Fast Boat paid $10.40 to win. The course was officially rated as firm.

The post Fast Boat Motors To Twin Spires Turf Sprint Win With Powerful Closing Effort appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Obligatory Flies Late To Snatch Eight Belles Victory From Dayoutoftheoffice

“Pace makes the race.”

So said jockey Jose Ortiz, who figured going into Friday's Grade 2 Eight Belles Stakes at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., that the early fractions were going to be fast.

Aboard Juddmonte Farms homebred Obligatory in the seven-furlong race for 3-year-old fillies, Ortiz could see all but one of the 12 runners ahead of him as the field rounded the turn into the stretch.

But, as Ortiz surmised, the pace was fast: 21.89 for the opening quarter mile and :44.46 for the half mile. Dayoutoftheoffice – the 3-1 favorite making her first start since finishing second in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies last Nov. 6 at Keeneland – had chased the early leaders and was moving to the lead with just under a quarter mile to go.

The Into Mischief filly looked home free after six furlongs in 1:09.16, but a gray blur on the outside in the form of Obligatory – a daughter of Curlin – was closing relentlessly. She seized command in the final sixteenth and drew off to win by a length. Time for the seven furlongs on a fast track was 1:21.89.

Dayoutoftheoffice finished second, with Make Mischief 1 3/4 lengths back in third and Souper Sensational fourth. She was followed by Abrogate, Li'l Tootsie, Caramel Swirl, Slumber Party, Cantata, Euphoric and Windmill. Kalypso, according to the Equibase chart, bled and was eased in the stretch.

Obligatory, trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, who was winning the Eight Belles for the third time, paid $35 for the upset.

Longshot Euphoric jumped out to the early lead, with Windmill breathing down her neck in the long run down the backstretch. Dayoutoftheoffice raced in third, three wide, just behind the leading pair. Ortiz allowed Obligatory to trail the field.

Jockey Gerardo Corrales made his move to the lead on Dayoutoftheoffice as the top pair began to fade, opening a 2 1/2-length advantage with a furlong to run. But his filly was not able to hold off the late-running winner.

“She ran her heart out,” said Corrales. “I thought my filly was in a good position turning for home but could not hold off the winner.”

“They were going very fast,” said Ortiz. “It looked on paper, too, before the race they were gonna go pretty fast. I just tried to sit chilly and make one run on her. That's what I did and she gave it to me. The pace makes the race.”

Obligatory was coming off a fourth-place finish going two turns in the Grade 2 Fair Grounds Oaks on March 20, and Ortiz thinks the cutback in distance also helped the filly. Plus, he pointed out, the top two finishers that day – Travel Column and Clairiere – were two top-class fillies who would be competing later Friday in the Kentucky Oaks.

The Eight Belles was Obligatory's second win in four starts and first in a stakes. She left the maiden ranks in her second start going a one-turn mile at Gulfstream Park on Feb. 7.

“I think she was a little confused when she ran two turns in New Orleans (Fair Grounds Oaks),” said Mott. “She ran a very big effort at Gulfstream, had a little trouble, had to check coming around, you could see visually it was a very good effort. We thought she was good enough to go to the Fair Grounds Oaks, I think she's good enough, but she's green and the two turns confused the heck out of her. Maybe we could find out down the road that she's a better one-turn horse. I think five weeks away, they run the Acorn. I have no reason to believe she can't get a mile. And sometimes the two-turn deal could be a greenness thing. The pace today turned out good. We both knew there was a tremendous amount of speed in the race. She was able to close into it. She had a good kick. You just hope it didn't take too much out of her, she got the win and I think she earned a ticket into a good race like the Acorn.”

Trainer Bill Mott and jockey Jose Ortiz fist bump after the Eight Belles win by Obligatory

The post Obligatory Flies Late To Snatch Eight Belles Victory From Dayoutoftheoffice appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Shedaresthedevil Refuses To Lose In La Troienne Stakes Triumph

The last time Shedaresthedevil entered the starting gate at Churchill Downs, she was a longshot who was forwardly placed and fought doggedly to win the Kentucky Oaks. Seven months later in the Grade 1 La Troienne Stakes, Shedaresthedevil was now the giant to slay, but everything else remained the same.

The 4-year-old daughter of Daredevil was put on the lead coming out of the gate by jockey Florent Geroux on Friday afternoon, followed closely on the rail by Envoutante, and on the outside by Bajan Girl. Shedaresthedevil held a one-length advantage over her closest rivals through the first turn, and went through the opening quarter-mile in :23.99 seconds.

Bajan Girl, an 18-1 longshot, remained on the outside hip of the favorite across the backstretch, while jockey Brian Hernandez Jr., settled Envoutante a bit on the rail through the straightaway, another length behind the first two. Under a restrained trip by Geroux, Shedaresthedevil entered the final turn after a half-mile in :47.94 seconds.

Geroux started to give his mount a little more rein through the turn, as others moved up to challenge, including Envoutante on the inside and Dunbar Road and Bajan Girl in the middle of the track. After going six furlongs in 1:11.71, it appeared as though the momentum belonged to any number of challengers to the leader, particularly Envoutante moving through the rail path.

Envoutante drew about even with Shedaresthedevil with about a furlong to go, but the pacesetter never let the challenger pass her as they separated from the rest of the field. Under aggressive riding and a left-handed crop from Geroux, Shedaresthedevil dug in to snuff the bid attempt from Envoutante, and draw off to win by a length.

Finite looped around the also-rans to finish a distant third, about a half-length ahead of Bajan Girl.

Shedaresthedevil completed the 1 1/16-mile race in 1:42.69, and she paid $5.40 to win as the 8-5 favorite.

This is the second consecutive year that Geroux has teamed up with trainer Brad Cox to win the La Troienne, after booting home champion Monomoy Girl for the Eclipse Award-winning trainer in 2020. Geroux also won the La Troienne in 2017 aboard Tom Amoss trainee Big World.

Shedaresthedevil is owned by the partnership of Flurry Racing Stables, Qatar Racing Ltd. and Big Aut Farms. She was bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm, out of the Congrats mare Sharship Warpspeed.

Friday's victory improves Shedaresthedevil's record to seven wins in 13 starts for earnings of $1,807,318. The La Troienne was her fifth career graded stakes victory, and her second against Grade 1 competition.

The filly is now a perfect three-for-three at Churchill Downs. In addition to her triumph in last year's rescheduled Kentucky Oaks, she won her debut start at the Louisville track as a juvenile in June 2019.

To view the Equibase chart, click here.

Shedaresthedevil triumphs in the G1 La Troienne Stakes at Churchill Downs.

Florent Geroux (Jockey, Shedaresthedevil, winner) – “She loves to race at Churchill; she showed it again today. They made me work hard for this. When we turned for home, she kept her head up and I could tell she was digging in. Those other fillies came to her but she showed a lot of heart and a lot of grit and I knew she wasn't going to let them by.”

Brad Cox (Trainer, Shedaresthedevil, winner) – “This is huge. She has been training really well coming up to this. We freshened her up after the Spinster last year. We didn't want to try and chase the Breeders' Cup Distaff. It was obviously the right move. She's moved forward at four. She's shown that in her two starts. She has a lot of fight and determination down the lane. She showed that again today down the lane. She's now a Grade 1 winner at 4. We'll target the Breeders' Cup Distaff and work our way back from that. There are some obvious races in New York and one at Del Mar we are thinking about.”

Brian Hernandez Jr. (Jockey, Envoutante, runner-up) – “She ran hard. Turning for home when it opened up, I thought 'Oh good, I'm going to get through and win.' She spurted for me but the other filly just had more. On paper it looked like there would be a little more speed than they showed. I thought for sure somebody was going to press her, but the one filly that tried just wasn't good enough. She went for a half but that was it. The winner is a fighter and she got a breather out there and that made it tough.”

The post Shedaresthedevil Refuses To Lose In La Troienne Stakes Triumph appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights