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‘Quirky Old Horse’: Galleon Mast Needs The Right Timing In Mecke Stakes

Timing will be everything for Anne D. Scott's Galleon Mast in Saturday's $60,000 Mecke at Gulfstream Park.

The 7-year-old gelding has built a rather impressive resume during his 36-race career, winning 10 races, including six stakes, and finishing in the money in 29 races, including 16 stakes.

However, the son of Mizzen Mast has been a source of frustration for trainer David Fawkes due to his inclination to idle in the stretch after making the lead, a bad habit that has surely contributed to his total of 13 second-place finishes.

“It can get frustrating, but he's a good horse. He's a lot of fun to have in the barn. You want horses like him in your barn,” Fawkes said. “He's as good as any horse can be when he gets the right trip.”

The key to success for Galleon Mast is for the jockey to time things just right in the stretch, not giving the graded stakes-placed veteran an opportunity to idle by making the lead too far away from the finish line.

Galleon Mast appeared to be on his way to his seventh stakes victory in the Soldier's Dancer at Gulfstream June 6 after making a three-wide sweep off the turn into the homestretch under Paco Lopez. However, the Florida-bred gelding took the lead in mid-stretch, giving Muggsamatic more than enough time to mount a winning rally.

“Paco screwed up. He sent him too soon,” Fawkes said.

Lopez, who had been victorious in his two previous rides on Galleon Mast (in the 2018 and 2019 Sunshine Millions Turf Preview), is currently riding at Monmouth Park and will be replaced by Emisael Jaramillo, who finished a late-closing second last year the only time he has ridden Galleon Mast.

Prior to his second-place finish last time out, Galleon Mast finished eighth in the Pan American (G2), in which he never settled under Joe Bravo.

“That didn't work out at all. He's a very quirky horse. If he doesn't like you, he won't run a jump,” Fawkes said. “We had a situation when he came back from his long layoff, he dropped the exercise rider, because it wasn't his regular exercise rider, who was on vacation – and he's the kind of horse that never does anything bad. He's a neat horse, but he's a quirky old horse.”

Galleon Mast holds a wide advantage of stakes experience over his rivals in the Mecke, in which three of his rivals will step into stakes company after victories in optional claiming allowances – Owner/Trainer Louie Roussel III's Sailing Solo, D P Racing Inc.'s Harbour Master, and Donarra Thoroughbreds LLC's Lahinch.

Sailing Solo, a 5-year-old son of Smart Strike, was particularly impressive while making his Gulfstream debut June 26, registering a front-running 2 ¼-length victory under Hall of Fame jockey Edgar Prado. Harbour Master, a British import who was stakes-placed in California, rounded into form in his third start for trainer Patrick Biancone July 5, rallying to victory under Luca Panici. Joe Orseno-trained Lahinch, stakes-placed last year, scored by 1 ½ lengths in his second start off a long layoff June 5.

Champion Equine LLC's Battle of Blenheim, Jerick Llopiz's Forever Mo, Michael Newcomer's Il Faraone, Muzeyyen Karabulut's Sharm El Sheikh and My Purple Haze Stables' Thunder Ride round out the main body of the field.

Monarch Stables Inc.'s Art G Is Back tops a list of five main-track only entrants. The Ron Spatz-trained 4-year-old, a multiple-stakes winner on dirt who is also multiple stakes-placed on turf, is scheduled to make his 2020 debut if the Mecke is moved from the turf to the main track.

Louis Roussel III's Examiner, My Purple Haze Stables' Sqeezadios, Heehaw Racing's Snap Hook and Midnight Rider LLC's I'm a G Six are also main-track-only entrants.

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Champion Sistercharlie Returns To Action In Saturday’s Ballston Spa

Champion Turf Mare Sistercharlie will kick off her 2020 campaign in the 32nd running of Saturday's Grade 2, $200,000 Ballston Spa for older fillies and mares going 1 1/16 miles over the Mellon turf at Saratoga Race Course.

Trained by Chad Brown and owned by Peter Brant, Sistercharlie has put together a sensational record of 15-10-3-1, including seven Grade 1 triumphs while boasting $3,662,003 in lifetime earnings. In 2018, the daughter of Myboycharlie was named Champion Turf Female after winning all four of her Grade 1 efforts that year, which registered triple-digit Beyer Speed Figures. Two starts after kicking off her subsequent championship-worthy year with a victory in the Grade 1 Jenny Wiley at Keeneland, she mimicked such winning ways in the Grade 1 Diana at Saratoga en route to Grade 1 scores in the Beverly D. at Arlington Park and the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf at Churchill Downs, where she beat six Grade/Group 1 winners.

Sistercharlie did not return to action until July 2019, where she notched repeat victories in the Diana and Beverly D. before winning the Grade 1 Flower Bowl Invitational at Belmont Park, where she joined 2010 Horse of the Year and Hall of Famer Zenyatta [who won nine straight] as the only other North American-based horse to win six straight Grade 1 events. She has not raced since November, finishing third to Iridessa in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf at Santa Anita.

“She's been training really well,” said Brown, who is targeting a sixth Ballston Spa victory. “It's only a mile and a sixteenth, which is a little shorter than the Diana was last year, but she did it a couple of years ago in the Jenny Wiley. She's been ready to run for a little while now. It's great that he [Peter Brant] decided to race her as a 6-year-old. To have a star horse like this in training is good for the entire industry, so hopefully she has another great year.”

Sistercharlie has been training forwardly for Brown into her 2020 debut, most recently working a half-mile over the Oklahoma turf course in company with Eliade, completing the distance in 50.44 seconds.

“She did well. It was a final piece of work to get her to stretch her legs. She seems ready to go,” Brown said.

Bred in Ireland by Ecurie Des Monceaux, Sistercharlie is out of the Galileo broodmare Starlet's Sister and is a half-sister to Sottsass, a dual Group 1-winner in France.

Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez has been aboard Sistercharlie in all 10 of her North American starts and will have the call from post 5 as he attempts his sixth Ballston Spa triumph.

Brown also will send out maiden special weight winner North Broadway for Brant. The dark bay daughter of Quality Road was a 3 ½-length winner of her second career start on May 20 over the turf at Gulfstream Park before facing winners at Monmouth Park, where she was rank in the early stages, tracked in second and faded to sixth, beaten seven lengths as the favorite.

Jockey Tyler Gaffalione will pilot North Broadway from post 3.

Trainer Christophe Clement has enjoyed a superb start to the Saratoga meet, saddling two turf stakes winners with Decorated Invader in the Grade 2 National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame and Speaktomeofsummer in the Grade 2 Lake Placid on back-to-back days, and will seek to keep such winning ways afloat when giving Call Me Love a cutback in distance.

Owned by R Unicorn Stable, the chestnut daughter of Sea the Stars is a two-time group stakes winner in Italy and seeks her first triumph since winning the Group 2 Premio Lydia Tesio on November 3. After making her North American debut with a runner-up finish to Rushing Fall going a mile and a sixteenth in the Grade 3 Beaugay on June 5 at Belmont Park, she finished fourth beaten eight lengths in the Grade 2 New York going 1 ¼ miles.

Clement will attempt a third win in the Ballston Spa having previously won with Danish [1996] and Penny's Gold [2001].

Jockey Joel Rosario will pilot Call Me Love from post 1.

Blue Heaven Farm's reigning Canadian Horse of the Year Starship Jubilee has done no wrong in her trio of starts this season and has not finished worse than third in her last 10 races. The Florida-bred bay mare will try to keep a consistent pattern intact while attempting an eighth graded stakes victory for trainer Kevin Attard.

Starship Jubilee has captured all three starts in her 7-year-old campaign, beginning at Gulfstream with scores in the Sunshine Millions Filly and Mare Turf in January and the Grade 3 Suwanee River in February before taking the Grade 2 Hillsborough last out on March 7 at Tampa Bay Downs.

Attard said a planned layoff coincided with the interruption to the national stakes calendar amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We were planning on giving her a break anyway. We wanted to keep her fresh for this year,” said Attard. “At one point, we were pointing toward the Jenny Wiley at Keeneland in April but then COVID took over and plans changed. We sent her to the farm after her race at Tampa and she had a bit of a freshening before we got her back into training.”

Starship Jubilee enters Saturday's test off a four-month layoff, but her ledger includes eight works at Woodbine topped by a bullet half-mile breeze in 47.40 on July 18 on the dirt training track.

“I think she's ready. It took her a little bit longer to come around, but she is getting a little bit older,” said Attard. “Her last few works have been good and I saw enough in her last work that I think she's ready to ship and compete.”

Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano was aboard Starship Jubilee in her last out Hillsborough victory and retains the mount breaking from post 6.

Completing the field is Ballybrit Stable's Bramble Queen, who arrives off allowance optional claiming victories at Tampa Bay Downs and Delaware Park for trainer Michael Dini.

The 5-year-old Silent Name mare owns one stakes triumph, which took place in last year's Illini Princess Handicap at Hawthorne.

Jockey Jose Lezcano, who guided Laughing to a Ballston Spa score in 2013, will be aboard Bramble Queen from post 2.

Another Broad [post 4] has been entered for main track only.

The Ballston Spa is slated as Race 3 on Saturday's 11-race card, which offers a first post of 1:10 p.m. Eastern. Saratoga Live will present daily television coverage of the 40-day summer meet on FOX Sports and MSG Networks. For the complete Saratoga Live broadcast schedule, and additional programming information, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule.

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Cross Border Much The Best In Wedensday’s Lubash At Saratoga

Three Diamonds Farm's Cross Border supported his heavy favoritism and kept a perfect record at Saratoga intact with a 6 ¼-length triumph in the inaugural running of the $85,000 Lubash on Wednesday over the Mellon turf at Saratoga Race Course.

The Mike Maker-trained dark bay son of English Channel arrived at the 1 1/16-mile event for New York-breds off a fifth-place finish in the Grade 1 Manhattan on July 4 at Belmont Park, where he finished a length behind Instilled Regard. Wednesday's race was his first start against his Empire State-bred counterpart since winning an allowance optional claiming event over Saratoga's inner turf in August 2019.

Breaking from the inside post under jockey Jose Ortiz, Cross Border took back and tipped off the inside moving into the three-path in third position as Blewitt led the field into the first turn. With The J Y tracking right to his outside in second, Blewitt controlled the pace through easy opening fractions of 25.48 seconds for the quarter-mile and 48.95 for the half over the firm turf course.

Around the far turn, Cross Border began inching his way into contention as Blewitt maintained his advantage under Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez. Past the three-sixteenths pole, Cross Border had it all wrapped up, hitting the wire in 1:41.75. Rapt was second, a nose ahead of Blewitt. The J Y completed the order of finish. Dante's Fire and main track only entrant Yankee Division were scratched.

Returning $2.60 for a $2 win bet, Cross Border made his eighth trip to the winner's circle in 25 starts. Additionally, the Lubash was a first stakes triumph for Cross Border, who previously earned graded stakes black type when second in the Grade 3 W.L. McKnight at Gulfstream Park on January 25. Banking $46,750 in victory, Cross Border has now accumulated lifetime earnings of $396,971. A three-time winner over the turf at Saratoga last year, Cross Border is now unbeaten in four starts at the Spa.

“It looked like Todd's horse [Blewitt, No. 6] and Cross Border were the speed of the race. He's done well in the past stalking but on paper he looked like the class,” Maker said. “I think his tactical speed helps him, but also being a New York-bred and the conditions he had really helped him last year. Plus, it was a four-horse field here and a drop in class can't hurt.”

Maker did not rule out a start in the Grade 1, $500,000 Sword Dancer on August 29 at Saratoga, which offers an automatic berth into the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Turf on November 7 at Keeneland.

“It could be against New York-breds or it could be the Sword Dancer, but it will be something up here,” Maker said. “He's run very well up here last year and started off well here this year.”

Ortiz said that the trip went according to plan.

“He can go for bigger things in the future. He did it pretty easy,” Ortiz said. “I knew I had the 1-hole so I decided to take him back from the get-go and put him in that winning position. I knew Blewitt had some speed and the other horse outside me [The J Y, No. 2] had some speed, too. I didn't want get into a bad position with him, I just wanted to ride him like he was much the best.”

Bred in New York by Berkshire Stud and B.D. Gibbs, Cross Border is out of the Empire Maker broodmare Empress Josephine and comes from the same family as leading New York sire Central Banker.

Live racing returns on Thursday with a 10-race card which features the $100,000 New York Stallion Stakes Series (Statue of Liberty) for 3-year-old fillies over the Mellon turf course and the Grade 1, $100,000 A.P. Smithwick Memorial Steeplechase going 2 1/16 miles. First post is 12:50 p.m. Eastern.

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Top Stayer Stradivarius To Chase Historic Fourth Victory In Goodwood Cup

Stradivarius heads a field of seven runners entered for next weeks Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup on day one of the Qatar Goodwood Festival.

The Stayers King has become a household name in the racing world as a whole and next Tuesday he will look to tread where no horse has trodden before – a fourth visit to the Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup winner's enclosure.

A record in this race will be another glittering achievement on a CV that already consists of three Gold Cups, two Yorkshire Cups, one Doncaster Cup and one QIPCO British Champions Long Distance Cup.

Six rivals stand between the much-loved John Gosden-trained chestnut and a fourth victory on the Sussex Downs.

His most serious opponent appears the Aidan O'Brien trained Santiago. The progressive son of Authorized looked very smart when winning the Queen's Vase at Royal Ascot before stepping up again to win the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby last time out.

Other notable runners in the field include Nayef Road who was beaten 10 lengths in to second by Stradivarius in the Gold Cup, and Eagles By Day who ran out a ready winner of the John Smith's Silver Cup at York last weekend.

All eyes, however, will be on one horse as he bids to further cement his name into British racing folk-law.

Full Entries:

Eagles By Day, Euchen Glen, Nayef Road, Santiago, Spanish Mission, Stradivarius, Who Dares Wins

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