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Hold The Salsa, It’s Gravy Combine For Foodie Exacta In NYSS Great White Way

Hold the Salsa ran down Market Alert in the final furlong and fended off It's Gravy's late bid from the outside for a victory by a neck in Sunday's $250,000 New York Stallion Stakes Series Great White Way in the final stakes of the 18-day fall meet at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

Owned, bred and trained by Richard Lugovich, Hold the Salsa registered his second stakes win in three attempts, adding to his victory in the Bertram F. Bongard on October 2 at Belmont going seven furlongs.

Running the same one-turn distance in the 36th running of the Great White Way for eligible New York-sired juveniles, Hold the Salsa was kept off the speed by jockey Junior Alvarado as The King Cheek led the 11-horse field through the opening quarter-mile in 22.80 seconds on the fast main track.

Market Alert took the lead with the half-mile in 46.45 with the favorite Dreamer's Disease, who was rushed into contention after a slow start, in close pursuit. Out of the turn, Market Alert was kept to the inside by Jose Lezcano, fending off a tiring Dreamer's Disease who took back. But Alvarado set down Hold the Salsa from the outside, where he surged past Market Alert and pressed on as It's Gravy made his push from the outside.

Hold the Salsa prevailed in hitting the wire in 1:25.70, registering his third win in six career starts.

“I was pretty confident coming into today. He had already won going seven furlongs,” Lugovich said. “He's a pretty hard horse to gauge because he's very quiet. Coming into the winner's circle, he doesn't look like he has much energy, but he's a very good horse. He's just quiet.”

Off at 5-1, the Hold Me Back colt returned $12.40 on a $2 win bet. The New York-bred more than doubled his career earnings to $237,775.

“When he's good, he takes me there,” said Alvarado, who will head to Gulfstream to ride in the winter. “By the five-sixteenths, I was very happy with where he was and the way he was traveling. I knew he was going to have a little something left at the end. He showed up today. I'm happy to have won the last stakes of the meet.”

Lugovich said he might try Hold the Salsa on turf in his sophomore campaign.

“It's interesting because if you look at his breeding, he's probably a mile-and-a-quarter horse on the grass,” he said. “He's only a 2-year-old, so he could see that eventually. I'll see what we can do with him next year and see how he comes up. I'm in no rush with him.”

It's Gravy, trained by Kelly Breen, maintained his maiden status but has run in the money in all four of his starts, moving to 0-2-2 after besting Market Alert by one length.

Windy Nations, Prospect Mountain, Horn of Plenty, Dreamer's Disease, The King Cheek New York One, Jacoba and Jack's American Pie completed the order of finsh. Uno was scratched.

Thoroughbred action continues at Aqueduct Racetrack for the 56-day winter meet that begins Thursday, December 10 and runs through Sunday, March 28. In total, 42 stakes worth $4.57 million in purses will be offered, with live racing generally conducted Thursday through Sunday until the end of February with a holiday break set for December 24 – 27 and the addition of special Monday cards on January 18 for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and February 15 for Presidents' Day.

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Laopanonaprayer Much Best In Fifth Avenue Division Of New York Stallion Series

Kendrick Carmouche captured his first New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) riding title by guiding Laobanonaprayer to a convincing victory in Sunday's $250,000 NYSSS Fifth Avenue, a seven-furlong sprint for eligible New York-sired juvenile fillies at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

Carmouche entered the day with 21 wins, four more than second-place Jose Lezcano and clinched the title in style with an eight-length score aboard Laobanonaprayer, who is owned and trained by Daniel Velazquez.

“I got the best post position,” said Carmouche. “The best thing to do was to just watch everything go on to the inside of me and go from there. Everything set up perfect. I just had to be patient and let my horse run on. I'm just very happy for my buddy Danny Velazquez and his family and his team. We all came together to win another race. It's wonderful when you are in the winner's circle.”

Laobanonaprayer assumed a stalking position in fourth as Flower's Fortune set a contested opening quarter-mile of 23.95 seconds under pressure from U Should B Dancing and the rail-surging Jill's a Hot Mess.

Jill's a Hot Mess wrestled the lead away heading into the turn through a half-mile in 47.30 as Carmouche asked Laobanonaprayer to shift into gear racing outside of rivals. Moving comfortably throughout, Laobanonaprayer kicked clear of Jill's a Hot Mess down the lane and sprinted home in 1:24.95 on the fast main track.

Jill's a Hot Mess stayed on strong to complete the exacta by 3 1/2-lengths over Shanes Pretty Lady.

Rounding out the order of finish were Pop the Bubbly, Pazzion, Ms Wicked, Gray Destiny, Vive La Liberty, Flower's Fortune, Athena Dancer and U Should B Dancing. Tangerine Dream was scratched.

Following a pair of on-the-board efforts at Delaware Park to start her career, Velazquez added blinkers and the services of Carmouche for the filly's 5 1/2-length maiden win in the Maid of the Mist on Empire Showcase Day at Belmont Park.

Velazquez said he was confident of a strong effort despite a slight cutback in distance from her last out one-mile win over state-breds.

“I knew we came prepared,” said Velazquez. “I was questioning the distance but I knew she could handle it. I think she can actually go a mile and an eighth. I'm really looking forward to testing her against open company. That's where we'll really know where she is. It's fun to compete in these stakes, but we got to test her against open company.

Bred in the Empire State by Christina Deronda, Laobanonaprayer banked $137,500 in victory while improving her record to 4-2-1-1. A bay daughter of Laoban, out of the Raffie's Majesty mare Raffie's Chance, Laobanonaprayer returned $4 on a $2 win bet.

Live racing resumes Thursday at the Big A with a nine-race card to kick off Opening Day of the 56-day winter meet, which will include 42 stakes races worth $4.57 million in purse money. First post is 12:20 p.m.

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Cigar Mile Winner May Head For Taller Timber In Pegasus, Saudi Cup

Cigars and timber are not usually a good pairing. But Calumet Farm's True Timber proved his talent at the highest level with a 5 1/2-length win over Snapper Sinclair in Saturday's Grade 1, $250,000 Cigar Mile Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

Trainer Jack Sisterson said True Timber will fly to Keeneland on Monday and could start preparations for another challenging race, with the nine-furlong Grade 1, $3 million Pegasus World Cup on January 23 a possibility, along with the nine-furlong $20 million Saudi Cup on February 20 at King Abdulaziz Racetrack in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

“He's going on 7 [years old] and I don't want to take away what he loves to do, which is train and run,” Sisterson said. “He's not slowing down any. You need to capitalize. We'll look to bring him down to Palm Meadows in Florida and look at the Pegasus race form. We've also been invited to the Saudi Cup. We'll look at options like that and stretch him out. It'll be the first time around two turns for us, so we'll train him a little differently and see if he takes to that, and we'll go from there.”

True Timber registered his first win since September 2018, earning a trip to the winner's circle for the first time in 14 starts. The son of Mineshaft capped his 6-year-old year by capturing a race in which he's come close in the past, having run second by three-quarters of a length to Patternrecognition in 2018 and third in 2019 to Maximum Security.

“For True Timber, what impressed me the most was proving to people that he could win a big race and do it impressively,” said Sisterson. “He showed us in the morning that he has such a will to compete at a level like that. But from the outside looking in, the general public may have questioned his talent. He put forth his best effort, which we knew he had, yesterday.”

True Timber gave both his rider and conditioner an early Christmas gift. Jockey Kendrick Carmouche, who has been riding professionally since 2000, earned his first career Grade 1 victory after piloting the bay Kentucky bred.

The victory also marked the second career Grade 1 score for Sisterson, who took over True Timber's training duties this summer when Kiaran McLaughlin retired to become a jockey agent. Sisterson, who started on his own as a trainer in 2018, previously won the Personal Ensign with Vexatious this summer at Saratoga Race Course.

True Timber graduated at second asking in December 2016 on the Big A inner track with Carmouche in the irons. The pair have partnered up on nine occasions for a record of 3-1-3. Carmouche entered Sunday's Closing Day leading Jose Lezcano by four wins for the fall meet's leading rider.

“It means a lot for me for my staff who does all the hard work and to have someone like Kendrick say he'd ride them back, it gave us a lot of confidence and means a lot,” Sisterson said. “To be able to team up and win a race like that, it's been a long time coming but a well-deserved victory for Kendrick, who is a talented jockey and deserves a win like that. I didn't give him any instructions. He just told me, 'I got you, brother,' before the race in a text. We are just fortunate enough to add one victory to what is hopefully a riding title for him.”

Though True Timber was on a winless streak, he still registered competitive efforts against top-flight competition, including a third in the Grade 1 Forego on August 29 over a sloppy Saratoga track. With the Cigar Mile being contested over another sloppy and sealed track, Sisterson said that experience proved beneficial in preparing him to take dirt, as he tracked in third position through the opening half-mile on Saturday behind pacesetter Mr. Buff and King Guillermo.

“I think what benefitted him the most yesterday was his outside position,” said Sisterson on True Timber leaving from post 5 in the six-horse field. “We learned in his training and in the runs that he had, he doesn't like being shut on the inside. We don't work him on the inside in company; he's always on the outside, and he breezes like a happy horse and trains like a happy horse on the outside.

“He ran a credible race in the Forego and I think if he was on the outside and not pressured, he might have hung around to not be beat as far, but he still finished a good third. I think his outside position yesterday really helped him out.”

Sisterson's other Cigar Mile entrant, Bon Raison, finished last of six but came out of the effort in good order. The 5-year-old son of Raison d'Etat entered off a 10th-place finish in last month's Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Sprint at Keeneland and will now receive a freshening after running nine times in 2020.

“We took a shot. He's a homebred and a beautiful horse who has talent and I think as a plan for him moving forward, he'll get a well-deserved break,” Sisterson said. “We think he has a few nice wins in him. Maybe not at that sort of caliber, but if we pick and choose our spots, we can bring him back in the springtime and have some fun with him next year.”

Also owned by Calumet, Bon Raison won against on October 16 going six furlongs against optional claimers at Keeneland.

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Undefeated Demoiselle Winner Malathaat Florida-Bound; Pletcher Thinking Kentucky Oaks For Curlin Filly

The ability to overcome adversity and will to win were on full display in Saturday's nine-furlong Grade 2, $150,000 Demoiselle for juvenile fillies at Aqueduct in Ozone Park, N.Y., when Shadwell Stable's Malathaat overcame unfavorable circumstances with a furious rally to make the grade in her third career start.

Breaking from the rail under Hall of Famer John Velazquez, Malathaat appeared to be uncomfortable taking some kickback when in behind horses, but allowed her class to prevail with a five-wide move around the turn as she collared Millefeuille in the final strides.

Trainer Todd Pletcher said he was impressed with the winning effort.

“She had to overcome a lot. I was proud of her for persevering,” Pletcher said. “When she got in the clear, she put in a strong run. It was an impressive performance considering all the adversity along the road.”

In winning the Demoiselle, Malathaat earned 10 qualifying points toward the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks, scheduled for April 30, 2021, at Churchill Downs. Pletcher said he would like to give her two starts prior to the Oaks, which he won with Ashado (2004), Rags to Riches (2007) and Princess of Sylmar (2013).

Pletcher said the Curlin bay would ship to his winter division at Palm Beach Downs in South Florida this week

“She'll ship to Palm Beach Downs early this week and we'll give her an easy month. I don't know what her next target will be, we'll just see how she's doing,” Pletcher said. “Ideally, we would be looking at two races prior to the Kentucky Oaks if everything goes according to plan.”

Unbeaten in three starts, Malathaat gave Velazquez his 2,000th victory at Belmont Park with a 1 ¾-length win in a seven-furlong maiden special weight on October 9 at Belmont Park. She mirrored her winning ways into stakes company when leading at every point of call to take the one-mile Tempted on November 6 at Aqueduct. The Demoiselle was her first start going two turns.

Bred in Kentucky by Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings, Malathaat is the first offspring out of the Grade 1-winning A.P. Indy mare Dreaming of Julia, who also was conditioned by Pletcher. She was bought for $1.05 million at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

Her triumph in the Demoiselle made her a third generation graded stakes winner. Her maternal granddam Dream Rush was a four-time graded stakes winner, including the Grade 1 Test in 2007 at Saratoga.

“She's shown that she's special from very early on,” Pletcher said. “It's very hard to win three consecutive races and she's done it at three different distances now at Belmont, and over a sloppy track at Aqueduct. I'm not sure that she really relished the going but she still was able to keep finding a little more and I was proud of the effort.”

Pletcher also sent out Known Agenda for the Grade 2 Remsen, where he finished a distant third to Brooklyn Strong.

Like Malathaat, Remsen third-place finisher Known Agenda also appeared to not handle the sloppy going on Saturday, where he picked up two Kentucky Derby qualifying points.

Pletcher said he was still pleased with the effort from the Curlin chestnut out of Grade 1-winner Byrama. Owned by Vincent Viola's St. Elias Stable, Known Agenda notched a second out maiden triumph at the Remsen's nine-furlong distance on November 8 at the Big A.

“He was never comfortable and finally when he got out late in the clear he found some ground. His last quarter was pretty much the same time as the previous two, it's just at the quarter pole he was in a hopeless position,” Pletcher said. “Part of it is immaturity, greenness and not relishing the sloppy conditions. I still think he's a horse with some upside. He's still putting it together. I think a race like that and the experience he gained hopefully will move him forward, so we'll take him down to Florida as well. We'll target some of these Derby preps. There are a lot of good options. We'll play it by ear.”

Shadwell Stable's Mutasaabeq graduated in August at 5 ½ furlongs ahead of a third in the seven-furlong Grade 1 Hopeful, both on the Saratoga main track. The Into Mischief bay made his last two starts on the Keeneland turf, winning the Grade 2 Bourbon on October 4 and a last out 10th in the Grade 1 Breeders' cup Juvenile Turf.

Pletcher said Mutasaabeq could go back to the main track for the $100,000 Mucho Macho Man on January 2 at Gulfstream Park.

“We're thinking about the Mucho Macho Man with him and give him another try on the dirt,” Pletcher said. “He's been training pretty well on the dirt, so we'll explore that. We can always go back to the turf if we need to.

“We were very fortunate to be able to train for them. It's a tremendous organization,” Pletcher added regarding Shadwell Stable. “It's been an honor and a pleasure and it's nice to have some good horses for them. We've been fortunate to win three graded stakes so far this year with them.”

Repole Stable, St. Elias Stable and Stonestreet Stables' Likeable, 13th in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile last out, and worked a half-mile in 51.40 on November 25 at Palm Beach Downs.

“We have a lot of options for him, including an allowance race. We'll get him started around the first of January. We'll see what the new condition book at Gulfstream has to offer,” Pletcher said.

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