Tag: Racing

Recent Claim Fly On Angel Wires Field In Charles Town Oaks

Fly On Angel, claimed for $50,000 out of her last start at Parx Racing on Aug. 10, made a quick return on owner Joseph Besecker's investment with a wire-to-wire victory under Fredy Peltroche in Friday night's $200,000, Grade 3 Charles Town Oaks in West Virginia.

Wicked Whisper closed to within a half-length at the wire to finish second, a nose ahead of Princess Cadey in third, with Ankle Monitor fourth and 7-5 favorite Tonalist's Shape – who had to check sharply along the rail in the stretch – finishing fifth in the field of nine 3-year-old fillies.

Trained by Claudio Gonzalez, the winner is a daughter of Palace Malice out of Runge, by Posse, bred in Kentucky by Machmer Hall and Haymarket Farm. She covered seven furlongs on a fast track in 1:26.15 (after setting quick fractions of :22.81, :46.25 and 1:11.89 around the six-furlong oval) and paid $20.20 as a 9-1 outsider.

The victory was the fourth in nine starts and first in a black-type race for Fly On Angel, whose best previous stakes performance came in the Parx Juvenile Fillies last Nov. 4. She was a two-length wire-to-wire winner of the Aug. 10 race from which she was claimed for her former trainer, Guadalupe Preciado. Her previous owner, Nicholas Cammarano, purchased Fly On Angel for $23,000 at Fasig-Tipton's Midlantic Sale of 2-year-olds in training.

“We're really happy. All the fillies ran good,” said Gonzalez, who also sent out the third- and fourth-place finishers. “You don't know if they're going to like the track but they all did, especially Fly On Angel.   I was a little worried because it's not easy to go :22 and :46.  You just heard it's a [stakes] record and I was a little worried but when she got into the stretch she got four in front and I said 'come on' and we got lucky she held it.”

Fly On Angel earned $116,400 for the win.

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Selflessly Turns Tables On Sweet Melania In Lake George

Klaravich Stables' Selflessly finished well back of Sweet Melania when running fifth in the Grade 3 Wonder Again in June the previous time the two faced each other. But Friday, the Chad Brown trainee got the better of her rival, overtaking her in the final jumps for a victory by a nose in the Grade 3, $100,000 Lake George for 3-year-old fillies at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

After that effort in the one-mile Wonder Again at Belmont Park, Selflessly returned to the same distance at the Spa a fresh horse two months later. With David Cohen picking up the mount as Irad Ortiz, Jr. recovers from an injury, Selflessly tracked in fifth position as Windracer led the 10-horse field through the opening quarter-mile in 23.92 seconds and the half in 48.48 on the inner turf course labeled good.

Sweet Melania, the 3-5 favorite conditioned by Todd Pletcher, powered through an opening along the rail out of the final turn and was urged home by jockey Jose Ortiz. But the two-time graded stakes winner couldn't repel Selflessly, who Cohen angled out slightly to Sweet Melania's outside, gaining ground in the final sixteenth before getting up just ahead of hitting the wire in a final time of 1:36.06.

“We were happy to get a good trip behind the horse [Sweet Melania] I thought would take us the whole way,” said Cohen, who won his first graded stakes since 2018 and first at Saratoga since the 2012 Travers when he piloted Golden Ticket to a dead heat for first with Alpha. “You never really want to get stuck behind a horse that's going to back up into you. My filly really finished up strong and showed a lot of heart.

“Chad and I had the same idea,” Cohen added. “We thought there would be two or three to go and we really wanted to get her out aggressively and not get shuffled back into the first turn and played it by ear. If Sweet Melania was on the lead and I was fortunate to get behind her then great she would take me the rest of the way and if not just figure it out from there. We went to Plan B and Plan C real quick. Everything got bottled up into that first turn and as Chad requested, if we didn't send her out of there strong, we would have been shuffled seven eight back and probably never have the chance to get up for the win.”

The stretch drive featured a duel between the charges of the top-two leading trainers of the summer meet. With the win, Brown tied Pletcher for the top mark with 24 victories apiece. The 40-day meet has eight days remaining before closing on Labor Day, September 7.

Selflessly won her second graded stakes and first since capturing the Grade 2 Miss Grillo in September at Belmont. That preceded her fifth-place finish in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf at Santa Anita to cap her 2-year-old year. After a seven-month break, the More Than Ready filly made her sophomore bow in the Wonder Again before returning to Saratoga for the first time since her runner-up debut effort a year to the date of the Lake George.

“The first race of the year I was a little disappointed watching the race unfold and when we got her back to the barn, she had some cuts on the backs of her legs. She missed some training after that race to heal up, so she probably had an excuse in there,” Brown said. “My team at Belmont has had this horse all meet getting her ready and they really did a great job. David stepped in today when Irad couldn't ride and I'm really proud of him. He rode a great race and we were happy to put him on the horse. I use him occasionally and we certainly ride against him a lot. He rides particularly well on the turf saving ground.”

Off at 14-1, Selflessly returned $30.60 on a $2 win wager. She improved her career earnings to $219,000.

“Some loyal Chad Brown fans made money today, for sure,” Brown said about winning with a rare longshot at the Spa.

Sweet Melania, owned by Robert and Lawana Low, finished a half-length in front of Witez for second. The daughter of 2015 Triple Crown-winner American Pharoah has never finished off the board in eight starts, moving to 3-2-3.

“Todd handicapped the race really well and he thought the two outside horses had more speed than we did,” Ortiz said. “In my mind, I was going to save when I break and those two went fast at the break, so it was easy for me to sit there. I sat very controlled the whole way around and had a good spot on the rail. She gave me a good run. The last couple of jumps, the other horse came to me, but she dug in and fought hard. It was a good race. Tough beat.”

Micheline, Sugar Fix, American Giant, My Sassy Sarah, Windracer, Velvet Crush and Cat's Pajamas completed the order of finish. Miss Peppina, entered for the main track only, was scratched.

Live racing resumes Saturday at Saratoga with an action packed 11-race card which will feature four graded stakes races, including the  Grade 1, $300,000 Forego presented by America's Best Racing at seven furlongs over the main track, the Grade 1, $500,000 Sword Dancer going 1 ½ miles over the inner turf, the Grade 3, $100,000 Saranac for 3-year-olds going one mile over the inner turf and the Grade 2, $150,000 Amsterdam for 3-year-olds going six furlongs over the main track. First post is 1:10 p.m.

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Math Wizard Tops Overflow Field For Friday Night’s Charles Town Classic

An overflow field of ten runners, led by Grade 1 winner Math Wizard will take to the gate on Friday night at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races as the track hosts its premier event of the season – the rescheduled $600,000 Charles Town Classic (G2) for older horses going the three-turn distance of 1 1/8 miles. West Virginia's most lucrative race highlights a card that includes seven stakes with purses totalling $1.25 million and marks the first time the track has held two graded events on the same day. Post time for the first race on the card is 5:00pm EST.

After following up his signature win in the 2019 Pennsylvania Derby (G1) with a fifth-place effort in the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1), the Saffie Joseph trained Math Wizard spent some time on the sidelines before a return to the races produced a subpar performance in the Razorback (G3) at Oaklawn Park in February. After the ongoing Covid pandemic threw Math Wizard's schedule up in the air, he spent another four months away from the races, resurfacing in a handicap at Gulfstream Park where he checked in fifth beaten 3 3/4 lengths.

However, in his last start on Haskell day in the Monmouth Cup, Math Wizard signaled a potential return to form when he closed well to finish second, beaten 1 1/2-lengths for the top spot by Global Campaign. Since his effort at Monmouth, the son of Algorithms has flourished in his training up at Saratoga and his conditioner thought the lucrative Classic was a race that suited his colt well.

“He ran one of the best races of his life last time out according to the numbers, and he's been training great coming out of it,” said the native of Barbados who will saddle his first ever starters at Charles Town on Friday. “I think he's going to continue to progress and take another step forward on Friday.”

While Joseph has enjoyed a couple of breakout years as a trainer with 2020 Kentucky Derby (G1) contender Ny Traffic, multiple stakes winner Chance it and multiple graded stakes winner and 2020 Charles Town Oaks starter Tonalist's Shape, it's still his lone Grade 1 winner to date that he credits for getting the ball rolling in his stable's quest to join the sport's upper echelon.

“I think when we look back in 15 or 20 or however many years, we'll say that Math Wizard will be the horse that put us on the map. He's just an incredibly special horse to us and always will be.”

This Friday evening, Math Wizard will have the services of jockey Christian Hiraldo as he breaks from Post 4 as the 3-to-1 favorite.

Back for another run in the Charles Town Classic is Imaginary Stables and Glenn K. Ellis' War Story, the eight-year-old gelding who was last seen finishing third in the Pegasus World Cup (G1) at Gulfstream Park earlier this year. With his start in the Classic on Friday night, War Story will join two-time winner Imperative as the only horses to make four starts in Charles Town's marquee race and the son of Northern Afleet has come tantalizingly close to adding a Charles Town Classic score to his resume which already includes three graded stakes victories and earnings of more than $3.2 million.

Now trained by Elizabeth Dobles, War Story has checked in third in both the 2017 and 2019 runnings and second in 2018, a fact that led his connections to target this race after a trip to Dubai earlier in 2020 fell through.

The handicap division veteran has shown few signs of slowing down over the past two years taking graded stakes at both Monmouth Park in the 2019 Monmouth Cup (G3) and Gulfstream Park in the Harlan's Holiday (G3) prior to his run behind Mucho Gusto and Mr. Freeze in the Pegasus.

War Story will have his fourth different rider in the Charles Town Classic as J.D. Acosta jumps on board the 4-to-1 second choice.

Much like his fellow Charles Town Classic runner Math Wizard, Allied Racing Stable LLC and Spendthrift Farm LLC's Mr. Money is looking to recapture the 2019 form that eventually saw him sent off as the third choice in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) behind the likes of Omaha Beach and Improbable.

After stringing together a four race winning streak in a quartet of Grade 3 events as a three-year-old, including the West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer, the Bret Calhoun trainee came within a neck of becoming a Grade 1 winner when he was caught in the final strides of the Pennsylvania Derby by his rival on Friday night. When he emerged after five months on the sidelines, Mr. Money caught a wet track – as well as Tom's d'Etat and Improbable – in the Oaklawn Mile and followed that up with a wide trip that resulted in a fourth place finish in the Blame at Churchill before only mustering a sixth place effort in a cutback to 6 1/2 furlongs at Keeneland in his most recent outing.

In the Charles Town Classic, Mr. Money stretches back out to a distance that seems more to his liking but, either way, his trainer isn't concerned about what he's seen thus far in 2020.

“He had a great year last year and has had a rocky start to this year, but it's not really his doing,” said Calhoun. “He caught a sloppy track that he didn't like at Oaklawn. I thought he ran a pretty good race in the Blame at Churchill with a really wide trip. Then we got stuck without a spot with so many races getting canceled. So we ran him in that race at Keeneland and 61/2 furlongs is not his deal. So it really hasn't been his fault. He's trained forwardly all along and we're looking forward to getting him back on track this Friday.”

Gerald Almodovar rides Mr. Money who breaks from Post 6.

Winchell Thoroughbreds' Tenfold is himself out to recapture some past form and find the winners' circle for the first time since the 2019 Pimlico Special (G3) and provide trainer Steve Asmussen with a win in his first Charles Town Classic.

Third, beaten less than a length by Justify, in the 2018 Preakness (G1) and a winner of the Jim Dandy (G2) later in his three-year-old season, the Winchell Thoroughbreds homebred eclipsed the $1 million mark in career earnings earlier this year and is looking to rebound from a third place finish in the Hollywood Gold Cup (G1) in June.

While Tenfold marks Asmussen's first Charles Town Classic runner, he's developed a solid record over the years at Charles Town with 6 wins from 14 stakes outings, a run that started with Rock Slide back in the 1987 West Virginia Lottery Breeders' Classic.

Luis Batista rides Tenfold who stands at 5-to-1 on the morning line.

2019 Charles Town hero Runnin'toluvya is back to defend his crown and will seek to do what Duke of Mischief, Game on Dude, Imperative, Stanford and Something Awesome could not do – join Researcher as the only back-to-back winner of the Charles Town Classic.

In 2019, the West Virginia-bred son of Fiber Sonde entered the race red hot after stringing together eight consecutive wins over the Charles Town oval. 2020 will be a bit of a different story, however, as the popular gelding has dropped four of his last five decisions and comes into the race without a start since May 30.

However, neither his recent record nor the layoff is of great concern for Runnin'toluvya's trainer Tim Grams who also owns the six-year-old along with his wife, Judy.

“He's doing really good. I breezed him last week, and he did it handily. It's going to be a tough race, but we're going in without hesitation because of how well he's doing. It was an unfortunate trip last time out. You know, it's hard even for the really good ones to have to start and stop three or four times like he did. Obviously for my peace of mind I would like to be coming in off of a good race, but that was the hand we were dealt.”

As for the layoff, Friday will mark the fifth time Runnin'toluvya has started off a layoff of at least 90 days in his career, with the prior four outings resulting in three wins and a runner-up finish. Even without a race since the end of May, Grams has kept his stable star sharp and ready for his bid at a Classic repeat.

“I felt like last year, we had him in training without a race to point towards and he got a little dull. But this year he's been staying a lot sharper and he's fit. We'll just have to see how it goes. I just hope he breaks clean and gets a good position in the clear so that when it's time to run, he can run.”

Antonio Lopez has the call on Runnin'toluvya in the Charles Town Classic.

Another Charles Town Classic entrant looking to find the winner's circle once again is the well-traveled Multiplier, who came up just a neck short of posting an upset in the Santa Anita Handicap (G1) earlier this year but has gone more than two years without a victory despite banking north of $500,000 in his career.

A winner of the Illinois Derby (G3) back in 2017, Multiplier was most recently seen knocking heads with divisional heavyweights Tom's d'Etat and By My Standards in the Stephen Foster (G2) – a race where the now six-year-old finished fourth, beaten eight lengths. Despite Multiplier only being trainer Peter Miller's second ever starter over the Charles Town oval, there was a familiarity with some of the track's leading connections that made the trip to West Virginia more appealing.

“We're excited and the horse is doing great,” said the California based Miller. “He's been training up at Monmouth and doing really well over there. We've got the top rider [Arnaldo Bocachica] which is good and he'll go to [Jeff] Runco's barn for the week. I have worked with Jeff for a while and he's great. So we'll just hope for a good trip. We're looking forward to it.”

As Miller alluded to, Multiplier will have the services of Charles Town's leading rider, Arnaldo Bocachica on Friday night and will break from Post 10.

Plus Que Parfait, winner of the 2019 UAE Derby (G2) in Dubai, Sleepy Eyes Todd, and Ohio-breds Forewarned and Mo Dont No complete the body of the Charles Town Classic field with Awesome D J on the also-eligible list.

Post time for the Charles Town Classic is set for 10:18 PM EST and the race can be seen on TVG as well as heard on the Horse Racing Radio Network. The Classic will be the penultimate race in the Charles Town 6-12 sequence – a Pick 6 with a low 12% takeout – that sports a mandatory of the carryover on Classic day with a total of $111,750 in the carryover going into the track's Thursday night card.

$600,000 CHARLES TOWN CLASSIC (G2)
August 28, 2020
Race 11 – Post time 10:18 PM EST
3&up, 1 1/8 Miles
PP. Horse, Jockey, Weight, Trainer
1. Forewarned, Sunday Diaz, Jr., 118, Uriah St. Lewis
2. Tenfold, Luis A. Batista, 118, Steven M. Asmussen
3. Mo Dont No, Wesley Ho, 118, Jeffrey A. Radosevich
4. Math Wizard, Christian Hiraldo, 118, Saffie A. Joseph, Jr.
5. Runnin'toluvya, Antonio Lopez, 118, Timothy C. Grams
6. Mr. Money, Gerald Almodovar, 118, W. Bret Calhoun
7. Sleepy Eyes Todd, Open, 118, Miguel Angel Silva
8. Plus Que Parfait, Reshawn Latchman, 118, Brendan P. Walsh
9. War Story, J.D. Acosta, 118, Elizabeth L. Dobles
10. Multiplier, Arnaldo Bocachica, 118, Peter Miller
Also Eligible
11. Awesome D J, Fredy Peltroche, 118, Jose Corrales

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