Tag: Racing

Belmont Oaks Winner Magic Attitude Came To Delacour Barn With ‘Precise Instructions’ From France

The English-bred Magic Attitude wasn't a complete unknown entering Saturday's Grade 1, $250,000 Belmont Oaks Invitational at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., having won a Group 3 race in France and finishing second in a Group 1 before being shipped across the Atlantic.

But in her North American debut, the sophomore Galileo filly showed that her talents translate across the world, rallying from last-of-five for a 2 1/4-length victory in the 42nd running of the Belmont Oaks going 1 1/4 miles on the inner turf.

Magic Attitude earned a 93 Beyer Speed Figure in her first race since being transferred to the care of trainer Arnaud Delacour, who said she traveled well to her base back at Fair Hill in Maryland, where she recorded all four of her works before her Belmont Oaks triumph.

“It looks like she came out of the race very well and she went back to Fair Hill and looked great this morning,” Delacour said. “I was very happy with her. Yesterday, even the horse to her inside [Setting the Mood] was a little bit fractious in the gate and was rattling a little bit, and it didn't bother her even a little bit.”

Bred in Great Britain by Katsumi Yoshida, Lael Stable's Magic Attitude is a full-sister to 2018 Group 2 Prix de Sandringham winner Mission Impassible, who is also multiple Grade/Group 1-placed. She came to North America with experience running against high caliber competition, winning the Group 3 Prix Vanteaux in May at France's famed Longchamp course when racing off a nearly eight-month layoff for former conditioner Fabrice Chappet.

Magic Attitude, out of Group 1-winner Margot Did, then ran second in the 10-furlong Group 1 Prix Saint Alary in June at Chantilly in a race won by the undefeated Tawkeel, who then captured the Group 2 Prix de la Nonette at Deauville.

In her previous effort before her Belmont Oaks victory, she competed in the Group 1 Prix de Diane at Chantilly, where she ran a strong fifth, defeated three lengths to Fancy Blue in the 1 5/16-miles test known as the French Oaks.

“She came with very precise and accurate instructions for her training and the way she runs,” Delacour said. “Fabrice knew her well and gave us the right instructions and everything has gone according to plan already.”

Magic Attitude could potentially make a start in the in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf on November 7 at Keeneland, with Delacour saying the Grade 1, $500,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup on October 10 at Keeneland could be a potential prep if she continues to train forwardly.

“The Queen Elizabeth could be a spot to bring her back in, but it's coming back a little quick, so everything would have to go right between now and then, but we'll definitely look at the race,” Delacour said.

Delacour won his third career Grade 1 race, with his previous two both coming in 2016 with A.P. Indian, who won the Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap and the Forego during that campaign's summer meet at Saratoga Race Course.

“It's great and means a lot, because it's our first Grade 1 for Lael Stables and we've had a lot of seconds,” said Delacour, referring to 2018 Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint runner-up Chalon and 2017 Grade 1 First Lady runner-up Hawksmoor. “It means a lot to win a Grade 1.”

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Clement’s ‘Declaration Of War’ On Belmont Derby Led By Decorated Invader, Gufo

Trainer Christophe Clement breezed a number of turf workers on Sunday morning at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., including the graded stakes-winning pair of Decorated Invader and Gufo, both of whom are targeting the Grade 1, $250,000 Belmont Derby Invitational at 10 furlongs for sophomores on October 3 over the inner turf.

The two 3-year-old sons of Declaration of War worked in company, covering a half-mile in an easy 51.01 seconds over the inner turf.

“They both had a very good work together,” Clement said. “They started slow but finished up great. They will be nominated to the Belmont Derby and we'll go from there. A back up race could be a race like the [Grade 2, $150,000] Hill Prince [on October 12], but at the moment both are being trained to the Belmont Derby.”

Owned by West Point Thoroughbreds, William T. Freeman, William Sandbrook and Cheryl Manning, Decorated Invader finished a close fifth in the Saratoga Derby Invitational on August 15 as the beaten favorite, where Otter Bend Stables' Gufo finished a closing second, a head back to Domestic Spending.

A three-time graded stakes winner, Decorated Invader won last year's Grade 1 Summer at Woodbine before recording a productive sophomore campaign, with victories in the Cutler Bay on March 28 at Gulfstream Park, the Grade 2 Pennine Ridge on June 20 at Belmont and the Grade 2 National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame on July 18 at Saratoga.

Never off the board in six lifetime starts, Gufo captured his stakes debut from well off the pace in the English Channel on May 2 at Gulfstream Park before capturing the Grade 3 Kent on July 4 at Delaware Park over next-out stakes winners Pixelate and Vanzzy.

Clement said City Man, who worked a half-mile in 50.66 seconds over the inner turf Sunday, could also target the Belmont Derby. Owned by Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, and Peter and Patty Searles, the son of Mucho Macho Man was a recent second in the Albany at Saratoga.

Bred in New York by Moonstar Farm, City Man is 2-2-1 in nine career starts.

Michael Dubb, Madaket Stable and Bethlehem Stable's Plum Ali logged her first work since winning the Mint Juvenile Fillies on September 7 at Kentucky Downs with a half-mile effort in 50.66 over the inner turf and will target the Grade 2, $150,000 Miss Grillo on October 4.

“It was her first work since winning at Kentucky Downs. That was a half-million dollar race so it was a good race to win,” Clement said. “The plan is to run her in the Miss Grillo. I wanted to run in Saratoga, but the P.G. Johnson came off the turf.”

A 2-year-old daughter of First Samurai, Plum Ali won her career debut going 1 1/16 miles over the Mellon turf at Saratoga on July 23.

Clement also spoke of Space Launch, a first-out winner on Friday afternoon's program who broke his maiden by 1 1/2 lengths going one mile over the Widener turf and registered a 71 Beyer Speed Figure for the debut win.

“Space Launch is a nice horse,” Clement said. “He's trained well and we have always liked him. He always trained better on the turf than on dirt. He's a well-bred horse. So far, he came back in good shape.”

Owned by Athlone Racing, Daniel Burke and Jane Burke, the son of Bernardini is out of multiple black type-producing Awesome Again mare Spacy Tracy, who also produced main track graded stakes winners Benner Island and Victim of Love.

“That [the main track graded-stakes winning progeny] was the reason I kept asking myself if I was doing the right thing by running him on turf,” Clement said. “But his turf works were just so much better than his dirt works.”

Clement said that Space Launch could return to action in the $80,000 Awad on October 31 at Belmont Park.

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Sam-Son Farm, Cox Strike Again, Upsetting Singspiel Stakes With Count Again

For the second Saturday in a row, a Sam-Son Farm homebred trained by Gail Cox posted an upset of a graded stakes at Woodbine racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, this time winning the Grade 3 Singspiel Stakes with the 5-year-old Awesome Again gelding Count Again by about 1 3/4 lengths.

Ridden by Luis Contreras, Count Again only had Sam-Son/Cox stablemate Say the Word beaten midway through the 1 1/4-mile turf test for 3-year-olds and up. But he swung wide into the stretch and rallied for the victory over Stronach Stables' Sir Sahib, with Say the Word getting up for third, Nakamura finishing fourth, Woodbridge fifth, Standard Deviation sixth, Tiz a Slam seventh, Skywire eighth and Jungle Fighter last in the field of nine. Standard Deviation, Tiz a Slam and Nakamura each went off at 7-2 as co-favorites.

Stewards reviewed the stretch run after Count Again veered inwardly in midstretch, causing a chain reaction that forced runner-up Sir Sahib to alter course. The original order of finish was allowed to stand.

Count Again, an Ontario-bred produced from the stakes-winning Red Ransom mare Count to Three, covered 1 1/4 miles on firm turf in 2:00.67 and paid $21.20 for the win.

On Sept. 12, Sam-Son and Cox teamed up to win the G2 Canadian Stakes with the Candy Ride filly Rideforthecause, who upset heavy favorite Cambier Parc.

Tiz a Slam, a Roger Attfield trainee who won the 2019 Singspiel, went to the front of this year's renewal, setting early fractions of :25.82 and :49.91 for the opening half-mile. After six furlongs in 1:13.65, Jungle Fighter and Nakamura applied some pressure to Tiz a Slam's outside, with Contreras beginning to put Count Again in gear on the outside after he had slipped toward the rear of the field in the run down the long backstretch.

Nakamura engaged Tiz a Slam at the top of the stretch, briefly putting his head in front after a mile in 1:37.20, but Count Again was sailing along toward the lead on the outside. The gelding ducked in, forcing Nakamura to shift in. That led Daisuke Fukumoto, who'd saved ground throughout on Sir Sahib, to alter course and chase after Count Again in the final furlong after going around Nakamura. Once clear, Sir Sahib didn't make up any ground on the winner.

The Singspiel was the stakes debut for Count Again, who debuted at Ellis Park for trainer Neil Howard in August 2019, finishing third in a dirt sprint. He graduated from the maiden ranks in his second start at Keeneland on Oct. 9, then was off until winning an April 3 allowance race at Tampa Bay Downs when under the care of J. Kent Sweezey.

Count Again had two local runs for Cox, finishing third in a June 20 allowance/optional claiming race going 1 1/6 miles on turf, then getting beaten a neck by Woodbridge in a 1 1/4-mile allowance/optional claiming race Aug. 29. Contreras was aboard for both of those races.

 

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