Tom Pedulla presents five takeaways from the weekend in horse racing, including Kentucky Derby preparations and the results of the Sword Dancer Stakes at Saratoga and other major races:
Tag: Racing
Breeze On By Leads 1-2-3-4 Finish For Stonehedge In FSS Affirmed
Breeze On By led a 1-2-3-4 finish for Stonehedge LLC at Gulfstream Park with a commanding 7 1/2-length victory in Saturday's $200,000 Affirmed, the second leg of the FTBOA Florida Sire Stakes for juveniles sired by accredited Florida stallions at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla..
The Affirmed, a seven furlong open division, co-headlined Saturday's program with the $200,000 Susan's Girl, a seven-furlong stakes for fillies, which were supported by the $75,000 Proud Truth, a mile turf stakes for 2-year-olds, and the $75,000 Sharp Susan, a mile turf stakes for juvenile fillies. All four stakes were included in the six-race sequence of the Rainbow 6 on a day when a mandatory payout was held.
Trainer Ralph Nicks, who saddled Breeze On By for a victory in the $100,000 Dr. Fager in the first leg of the Florida Sire Stakes four weeks earlier, won his fourth consecutive running of the Affirmed. The son of Cajun Breeze also gave Nicks his eighth Florida Sire Stakes success since 2016 while providing Gil Campbell's Stonehedge Farm with a 15th victory in the tradition-rich series.
“I just feel blessed to be in Florida for seven years and win this many [Sire] Series,” said Nicks, who also captured the Affirmed the previous three seasons with Soutache (2017), Garter and Tie (2018) and Liam's Lucky Charm (2019). “I learned early on that you need to be a part of this and was lucky to have owners send me some talented horses and it's worked.”
The Nicks-trained Big Daddy Dave and Seazan finished second and third, respectively, while the Kathleen O'Connell-trained Top Boss finished fourth to round out the Stonehedge superfecta.
Breeze On By, the 4-5 favorite ridden by Emisael Jaramillo, broke alertly from the starting gate but was beaten for the early lead by Gatsby, the 5-2 second choice who showed the way along the backstretch under a hustling ride by Hector Berrios. Breeze On By pressed the pace during swift fractions of 22.14 and 44.22 for the first half mile before putting away the tiring pacesetter on the turn into the homestretch and drawing away to a comfortable victory.
Breeze On By, undefeated in three starts, ran seven furlongs in 1:22.75. Big Daddy Dave made a wide bid of the final turn and finished second, 2 ½ lengths ahead of a late-rallying Seazan.
“They're nice horses. Thank you to Stonehedge for sending us some great horses. We're lucky to work with such talented horses,” Nicks said. “Breeze On By was able to rate and sit there with Big Daddy Dave in the hunt and could have pushed if he needed to, but he will settle and follow if he needs to.}
Breeze On By is scheduled to make a bid to become the fifth male to sweep the Florida Sire Stakes in the $400,000 In Reality, the 1 1/16-mile series finale Sept. 26. With a victory he would join Three Rules (2016), Sir Oscar (2003), Seacliff (1995) and Smile (1984)
“Doing this series is tough on them and we'll see. There are two other horses in this race that ran well so nothing will be a gift, but it's nice to have a horse this talented and have those options in front of you.”
The post Breeze On By Leads 1-2-3-4 Finish For Stonehedge In FSS Affirmed appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
Princess Secret Scores Hard-Earned Victory In FSS Susan’s Girl
Princess Secret shook off an upset in the $100,000 Desert Vixen four weeks ago and a stretch-long bid Saturday by a relentless Oh Deborah to score a hard-earned victory in the $200,000 Susan's Girl, the second leg of the FTBOA Florida Sire Stakes for juveniles sired by accredited Florida stallions at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.
The Susan's Girl, a seven-furlong stakes for fillies, co-headlined Saturday's program with the $200,000 Affirmed, a seven-furlong open division, which were supported by the $75,000 Proud Truth, a mile turf stakes for 2-year-olds, and the $75,000 Sharp Susan, a mile turf stakes for juvenile fillies. All four stakes were included in the six-race sequence for the Rainbow 6 on a day when a mandatory payout was held.
Princess Secret, who finished second in the first leg of the Florida Sire Stakes Series as the even-money favorite for owner/trainer Daniel Pita, came through in the Susan's Girl, scoring by three-quarters of a lengths over Oh Deborah as the 6-5 favorite. The daughter of Khozan chased longshot pacesetter Lyrical during fractions of 22.64 and 45.22 seconds for the first half-mile before moving to the lead on the turn into the homestretch, only to immediately meet an outside challenge from Oh Deborah.
Princess Secret responded gamely to jockey Miguel Vasquez's urging to prevail over Oh Deborah, completing seven furlongs in 1:23.02.
“She's a very gutsy filly. She doesn't like to lose,” Pita said.
Making her first start since winning her July 19 debut by 3 1/4 lengths, Oh Deborah finished four lengths clear of third-place finisher Go Jo Jo Go.
Princess Secret, who was purchased for $30,000 at the 2019 OBS October sale, debuted at Gulfstream with an impressive four-length triumph May 7. The Florida-bred filly returned two months later to finish a close second against the boys in the first allowance race for 2-year-olds of the Spring/Summer Meet to earn favoritism while facing fillies in the Desert Vixen. She set an early pace before being overtaken by Go Jo Jo Go in the stretch.
“This is hope for when you go to the sales and pick yearlings. We don't have millions of dollars. We always try to get some sort of bargain. She was a nice purchase by a stallion that seems to get nice runners. We were lucky enough to get her,” Pita said.
Pita is confident that Princess Secret will carry her speed around two turns in the $400,000 My Dear Girl, the 1 1/16-mile finale of the Florida Sires Stakes series Sept. 26.
“I think breeding is going to be the biggest factor in the next leg of the series. I think she showed it today,” Pita said. “Hopefully, she'll come out of the race in good order and we'll see you in four weeks.”
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Win Win Win Strikes Gold In Forego With Last-To-First Rally
Despite a heavy downpour of rain just minutes before post time, Win Win Win did just that, coming from well off the pace and passing five rivals through an assertive stretch run to take the 41st running of the seven-furlong Grade 1, $300,000 Forego presented by America's Best Racing at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
Owned by Charlotte Weber's Live Oak Plantation and trained by Mike Trombetta, Win Win Win, a 4-year-old son of Hat Trick, arrived off a runner-up finish to fellow Forego contender Complexity in a one mile allowance optional claiming tilt on July 2 at Belmont Park.
Breaking from post 7, Win Win Win was initially last in the 11-horse field, 16 1/4 lengths off the pace as Complexity dueled up front alongside True Timber through an opening quarter-mile in 22.28 seconds and a half in 44.63 over the sloppy and sealed main track.
Around the far turn, Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano engaged his charge at the three-eighths pole while Complexity and True Timber continued their upfront battle. At the top of the stretch, Castellano angled Win Win Win, still last, nine wide and in pursuit as Complexity established a one-length lead with True Timber still fighting to the inside and Funny Guy putting in a bid to the outside. In the final strides to the wire, Win Win Win found a new gear and powered home a half-length winner in a final time of 1:21.71.
Win Win Win at the wire in the Forego
Castellano, who scored his first Forego victory since piloting Mass Media to victory in 2005, picked up the mount aboard Win Win Win in his last out runner-up effort and said that his first time aboard the son of Hat Trick was a learning experience.
“What an amazing horse. I'm truly honored to ride the horse and very blessed with the way everything went,” Castellano said. “He was very far back and made a huge run to win the race. Not too many horses can do that. He did it and in a nice way. He's a really nice horse. I rode him last time at Belmont and he didn't break out of the gate. I rushed to get the spot I was looking for and didn't have the best result. I think I learned through that experience and today it paid off with a Grade 1 win in the Forego.”
Complexity finished another three-quarters of a length to True Timber, who garnered graded stakes black type for the eighth time in his career.
Rounding out the order of finish were Funny Guy, Lexitonian, Everfast, 2018 Forego winner Whitmore, Mind Control, Majestic Dunhill, Fortin Hill and Firenze Fire.
The victory was a first graded stakes triumph for Win Win Win, who was a stakes winner on dirt and turf. Last January, he won the Pasco at Tampa Bay Downs and broke the track record for seven-furlongs finishing the race in 1:20.89 and capped off his 3-year-old campaign with a victory in his turf debut in the Manila over the Widener turf last July at Belmont Park.
Trombetta had been anxious to get his horse back to the seven-furlong distance over the main track and was thrilled to see him display such an effort.
“It's a distance he likes, but he doesn't have the best gate speed,” Trombetta said. “The way this track has been playing, it's very hard to close. Well, what he did, I haven't seen the whole meet.”
Trombetta said he was a bit concerned when Win Win Win was so far back.
“I honestly don't know what to say; he dropped so far back, and his chicklet and number actually went off the screen and I couldn't even see across the track,” Trombetta said. “I thought he was absolutely out of the race and might not have had a chance to even finish. But then turning for home, he came back on the screen. It's just unbelievable.”
Win Win Win was off the board in last year's Grade 1 Kentucky Derby and Grade 1 Preakness Stakes and Trombetta said that he had shorter races in the back of his mind for a while.
“It's been on my mind for a long time,” Trombetta said. “We got caught up in the Triple Crown, for which he made a good run at it. We tried him on the grass, and he won there. He's just a good horse. These races are a little hard to find, but he certainly deserves it.”
Returning $16.20 for a $2 win bet, Win Win Win enhanced his consistent lifetime record to 12-5-3-1 and his earnings past the half-million dollar mark to $601,600.
Live racing resumes on Sunday at Saratoga with an 11-race card which features the Grade 3, $125,000 Shuvee going 1 1/8 miles for older fillies and mares on the main track. First post is 1:10 p.m.
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