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Performer Returns With Sharp Win; McGaughey Says Cigar Mile Could Be Next

Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey said he was delighted to see a triumphant return to racing action for Phipps Stable and Claiborne Farm's Performer, who emerged off an 11-month layoff to an effortless allowance victory going one mile over the Belmont Park main track.

The 4-year-old son of Speightstown, who was a last out winner of the Grade 3 Discovery on Nov. 30, 2019, saved ground along the rail and was nudged by jockey Joel Rosario around the three-eighths pole and strolled home to an in-hand 1 3/4-length triumph. He earned a 98 Beyer Speed Figure in victory.

“I know it was a light field, but I was pleased with the way he went over there and did it,” McGaughey said. “He was very professional with everything he did. I didn't know what the speed was going to do. I thought the horse to the inside of us [three-time winner Empty Tomb] was going to show more speed. Joel was just patient; he knew what he had and just took it from there.”

McGaughey said he is giving strong consideration to the Grade 1, $250,000 Cigar Mile on December 5 at Aqueduct.

“It would be a big option,” said McGaughey, who won the 1996 Cigar Mile with Gold Fever.

There is a chance that McGaughey could saddle two top-level contenders for the final Grade 1 event of the year on the NYRA racing calendar as W.S. Farish's Code of Honor also is possible for the race. McGaughey said Code of Honor would be more likely for the nine-furlong two-turn G1, $500,000 Clark on Nov. 27 at Churchill Downs.

“Either the Clark [for Code of Honor], or I would run the two in the Cigar Mile,” McGaughey said. “I'd be more inclined to run Code of Honor around two turns. He ran well over that track.”

A two-time G1 winner when taking last year's Travers at Saratoga and Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont, Code of Honor was elevated to second in last year's G1 Kentucky Derby following the disqualification of Maximum Security, who won last year's Cigar Mile.

A direct descendant of undefeated Hall of Famer Personal Ensign and four-time G1-winning millionaire My Flag, who also were trained by McGaughey, Performer is the third progeny out of graded stakes-placed Protesting who also produced turf stakes winner Breaking the Rules. His grandam On Parade was a full-sister to 2002 Champion 2-Year-Old Filly Storm Flag Flying.

“They both have distance of ground,” McGaughey said of Performer and Breaking the Rules. “She [Protesting] wanted to run long. She was fourth in three Grade 1 stakes and was second in the Demoiselle at Aqueduct. They're both nice horses, but run on different surfaces. Not that Performer couldn't run on turf, being by Speightstown.”

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Gonzalez Holds Strong Hand In Advance Of Oct. 24 Jim McKay Maryland Million

Claudio Gonzalez-trained stablemates Harpers First Ride, Galerio and Tap the Mark, each pre-entered for the $150,000 Maryland Million Classic Oct. 24 at Laurel Park, breezed a half-mile over its main track on a busy Saturday morning at the Laurel, Md., track.

The 1 1/8-mile Classic for 3-year-olds and up is the richest of eight stakes and four starter stakes on the 35th Jim McKay Maryland Million program. Created in 1986, “Maryland's Day at the Races” celebrates progeny of stallions standing in the state and the groundbreaking concept has spawned copycat events across North America.

Winner of back-to-back stakes including the historic Pimlico Special (G3) last out Oct. 3 at Pimlico Race Course, MCA Racing Stable's Harpers First Ride was clocked in 47.80 seconds. It was the fastest move of the Classic trio and ranked seventh among 58 horses at the distance.

Harpers First Ride has won four of his last six starts for Gonzalez, Maryland's leading trainer three years running. Prior to the 1 3/16-mile Pimlico Special, the 4-year-old gelding captured the 1 1/16-mile Deputed Testamony at Laurel, where he has six wins from seven career tries.

Among other Maryland-breds to win the Pimlico Special are Hall of Famers Cigar (1995) and Challedon (1939-40) as well as Include (2001) and Vertex (1958).

Robert D. Bone's Galerio breezed four furlongs in 48 seconds, eighth-fastest of 58 horses, while BB Horses' Tap the Mark went the distance in 48.40, ranking 11th. Entered in a one-mile optional claiming allowance Oct. 22, Galerio also has a stellar record over Laurel's main track with five wins and five seconds from 13 starts. After going winless in eight starts with five seconds in 2019, the 4-year-old gelding has won six of 10 races this year including his most recent, a 1 1/16-mile allowance Sept. 17.

Tap the Mark, a 4-year-old son of late Maryland sire Tritap, exits an optional claiming allowance victory going 1 1/16 miles Oct. 2 at Pimlico over fellow Classic pre-entrants Toughest 'Ombre and Tattooed. He has an overall record of 7-4-3 from 21 starts with nearly $200,000 in purse earnings.

“He is pointing for the Classic,” Gonzalez said. “He breezed really good today. It all depends, if he continues like this we're going to run in the Classic.”

Gonzalez also sent out Bone's Eastern Bay for a half-mile move in 47.70 seconds, second-fastest on the morning. The 6-year-old gelding, winner of the Polynesian Stakes Sept. 5 at Laurel and second by a nose in the Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash (G3) Oct. 3 at Pimlico, is pre-entered in the $100,000 Maryland Million Sprint for 3-year-olds and up. All three races are at six furlongs.

“All the horses that ran on the big weekend, Preakness weekend, they came back good, especially [Eastern Bay],” Gonzalez said. “We have to wait and see if we get in, but we wanted to be ready.”

Fellow Sprint pre-entrant Onmoregreattime was also on Saturday's work tab, going four furlongs in 49 seconds. Clover Hill Farm Inc. and Clover Hill Racing's 5-year-old gelding, trained by Jerry O'Dwyer, fifth in the Polynesian last out, will be making his fourth straight Million appearance. He finished third in the 2017 Nursery and respectively fourth and sixth in the 2018 and 2019 Sprint for previous trainer John Robb.

Robb has a pair of promising juveniles in Lucky 7 Stables' undefeated Street Lute and No Guts No Glory Farm's Moochie, each pre-entered in both the $100,000 Nursery for 2-year-olds and $100,000 Lassie for 2-year-old fillies. Both worked five furlongs Saturday at Laurel, with Moochie going in 1:02 (fifth-fastest of 16 horses) and Street Lute in 1:02.20 (ranking eighth).

Street Lute, by Street Magician, has made both her starts this year at Delaware Park, winning a five-furlong maiden special weight Sept. 7 and the 5 1/2-furlong Small Wonder Stakes Sept. 26, the latter by five lengths. Moochie was a debut winner June 29 at Delaware, then got loose and was fractious at the gate before running seventh in the Colleen, a turf sprint stakes Aug. 2 at Monmouth Park.

Another notable worker Saturday was 3-year-old filly Coconut Cake, going a half-mile in 49.20 seconds. Owned by NRS Stable, James Chambers and trainer Tim Keefe's Avalon Farm, the daughter of 2014 General George (G3) winner Bandbox has won her last three starts and was beaten a half-length when third on debut May 31, her only loss.

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Warren’s Showtime Gives Craig Lewis 1,000th Career Victory In Autumn Miss Stakes

In what amounted to a storybook ending, Benjamin and Sally Warren's homebred Warren's Showtime pinned her ears late and would not be denied en route to a gutty neck victory in Saturday's Grade 3, $100,000 Autumn Miss Stakes at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif. Ridden by Flavien Prat, the 3-year-old chestnut daughter of Clubhouse Ride provided trainer Craig Lewis with his 1,000th career victory while getting a flat mile on turf in 1:33.77.

Breaking sharply from her number five post position, Warren's Showtime was immediately taken off the pace while a joint fourth, about six lengths off of pace-setting Quiet Secretary mid-way around the clubhouse turn. Fifth by a similar margin three furlongs out, Warren's Showtime wheeled four-wide at the top of the stretch and, in a resolute effort, overhauled Going to Vegas close home to notch her first graded stakes win while providing Lewis with his career milestone.

“What was going through my mind was she might not get there!” said Lewis. “I've been very fortunate. I've had a lot of great horses in my career. Cutlass Reality…Music Merci…Larry the Legend. I've had multiple other good horses and a lot of great owners. I'm very thankful and feel very fortunate, very grateful to be in this situation.

“Fillies like her (bring me back). There are a lot of bumps in the road. A trainer's life is not all pie and ice cream, but when things like this happen it makes it all worthwhile. The early mornings, the things that go wrong. The difficult situations, but situations like this overcome all the negative involved.”

Most recently a close third at a mile and one eighth on turf in the G1 Del Mar Oaks Aug. 22, Warren's Showtime, who is out of the Warrens' G1 stakes winner Warren's Veneda, was the solid 3-5 favorite in a field of seven sophomore fillies and paid $3.40, $2.60 and $2.20.

“I've been on her in the morning and I was pretty pleased with the way she was going,” said Prat, who had never ridden Warren's Showtime in the afternoon. “She's always running in great races. She definitely deserved a graded stakes (win). She definitely gives you everything. I thought it was a pretty strong pace up front, so I was taking my time and when I asked her to go she responded well.”

The lone California-bred in the field, Warren's Showtime picked up her fifth stakes win and improved her overall mark to 13-6-0-5. With the winner's share of $60,000 she increased her earnings to $520,251.

Attentive to the pace throughout, longshot Going to Vegas ran too good to lose under Mario Gutierrez, as she finished a half length in front of her stablemate Nasty. Trained by Richard Baltas, Going to Vegas was off at 14-1 and paid $8.40 and $3.80.

Second throughout, Nasty got on terms with Quiet Secretary at the quarter pole and made the lead inside the eighth pole, but was third-best on the day. Off at 7-1 with Ricky Gonzalez up, she paid $4.20 to show.

Fractions on the race were 22.50, 45.42, 1:09.69 and 1:21.65.

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Souper Sensational Gives Casse Ninth Glorious Song Stakes Triumph

Live Oak Plantation's 2-year-old filly Souper Sensational kept her record perfect with a stunning score on Saturday at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, while giving Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse a record ninth Glorious Song Stakes title.

Jockey Patrick Husbands sent the 3-5 favorite to the lead through a first quarter in :22.76 in the seven-furlong main track sprint. Heidi (Daisuke Fukumoto) pressed the pacesetter to the half in :45.78 with Rocket Reload (Justin Stein) looming outside, but Souper Sensational left them all in the dust down the lane as she kicked four lengths clear to score in 1:21.84.

“She's on her game right now and I don't want to disappoint her. I want to ride her like the best horse,” said Husbands of his front-end strategy.

Souper Sensational paid $3.20 to win. Javanica (Emma-Jayne Wilson) won the race for place as she closed along the rail from the back, while another Casse trainee, Right to Freedom (Rafael Hernandez), bested the late-closing Charlie's Penny (Kazushi Kimura) for third prize after stalking the winner throughout.

“I don't want to be smart, but she's one of the best so far I've got on as a 2-year-old,” praised Husbands, who noted he was immediately impressed by the filly in her morning works and was aboard for her 2 1/4-length winning debut on September 26. “All this horse has got is 'green light.' You could do anything with her. She's just a three-year-old in a two-year-old body.”

Bred in Kentucky by Newtownanner Stud, the daughter of Curlin was a $725,000 yearling purchase at the Fasig-Tipton New York Saratoga Select Sale. She is the third foal out of the Indian Charlie mare Kateri, a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Tiz Miz Sue and 2018 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint winner Bulletin.

Casse and Husbands, who is now a seven-time winner of the Glorious Song, have teamed up for five of their wins. Live Oak Plantation has won this event three times in partnership with Casse, starting with Let It Ride Mom (Rafael Hernandez) in 2016 and Souper Charlotte (Eurico Rosa Da Silva) in 2018.

The victory in Saturday's featured event gave Casse his fourth win through the first eight races on the card.

Live Thoroughbred racing continues on Sunday with a stellar stakes program featuring the $600,000 E. P. Taylor Stakes (Grade 1) and the $300,000 Northern Dancer Turf Stakes presented by Pattison (Grade 1). The $250,000 Nearctic (Grade 2) and $100,000 Display complete the stakes line-up. First race post time is set for 1:10 p.m.

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