Next stop, 3-year-old stakes. The last of 11 Kentucky Derby qualifying stakes for 2-year-olds takes place Saturday at Fair Grounds with the $100,000 Gun Runner Stakes. The 1 1/16-mile stakes drew a field of eight who will vie for the qualifying points for the 2024 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve that will be awarded to the top five finishers on a 10-5-3-2-1 basis.
Tag: Racing
Road To The Kentucky Oaks: West Omaha, Legadema Face Two-Turn Test In Untapable
Off a convincing four-length maiden breaker over seven furlongs last out at Churchill Downs, Gary and Mary West's West Omaha will look to prove her merits over a route of ground against five rivals in Saturday's Untapable. In addition to the $100,000 purse, the Untapable will offer 2-year-old fillies, soon to be three, 10-5-3-2-1 points on the Road to the Longines Kentucky Oaks.
Installed as Mike Diliberto's lukewarm 5-2 morning line favorite, the homebred daughter of West Coast ran into all sorts of trouble in her career debut on September 21 at Churchill. Losing several lengths when crowded at the start, she raced in the clear near the back of the pack early on. Five-wide off the far turn, the Brad Cox-trainee rallied off heels and finished strongly to be third (placed 2nd following DQ of the winner), ¾ of a length. Over the same seven-furlong trip in her next start, West Omaha enjoyed a much cleaner start. She made the lead, but despite being pressured every step of the way, she drew off in the end to win by four convincing lengths.
“I think she'll stretch out based on her pedigree,” Cox said. “And physically she looks able to handle two turns. We like her. She had a good work this past weekend. Hopefully she can get a good trip.”
With Joel Rosario in the saddle, West Omaha will break from post 6.
Unlike her Cox-trained stablemate West Omaha, Full of Run Racing & Madaket Stable's Alpine Princess already has a two-turn win on her resume. Third in advance of a maiden win in a pair of Saratoga sprints this summer, the daughter of Classic Empire stretched out for the first time in the Alcibiades (G1) at Keeneland. Six-wide on the first turn and four-deep on the backstretch, she would finish a distant seventh of eight.
“She reared up in the gate prior to the start which I think threw her off her game a little bit (in the Alcibiades),” Cox said. “She didn't break as well as we thought she would the first time going two turns. That was something we had never seen from her and have not seen since. Hopefully she can get a clean trip from the one hole.”
Dropped back down for her subsequent start at Churchill on November 26, Alpine Princess broke from the rail and raced from the pocket on the backstretch. Held up late on the far turn, she split horses at the top of the stretch and proved two lengths better than fellow Untapable starter Sistina Chapel.
“She rebounded after we gave her around seven weeks between her runs,” Cox said. “I thought she responded really well. She's always been a really good workhorse, that's a big reason why we took her to Saratoga over the summer. We liked her first time out and she didn't get away well. She finished up well and was able to get the job done in her second start.”
At the co-second choice at 3-1 in the morning line, Alpine Princess will break from post 1 with Florent Geroux back aboard.
With four graded stakes wins, including their first grade one, and nearly $4 million in purse earnings, it's already been a banner year for Rigney Racing and trainer Phil Bauer, and they look to end their 2023 on a high note with Untapable contender Legadema.
“We feel like this filly is all quality,” Bauer said. “Early on in the summer we thought this horse would be our Breeders' Cup horse for the Juvenile Fillies. But we had a couple hiccups and just lost all momentum.”
A $590,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase, this daughter of Arrogate served notice in her November 23 debut at Churchill. Away alertly in the 6 ½ furlong sprint, she went right to the lead with Martin Garcia aboard, swatted away the pace pressers, and held firm for a convincing 2 ¼ length score.
“On Thanksgiving it was just one of those deals,” Bauer said. “The race was put up as an extra, and we were going to work her out of the gate again that weekend, so we thought what's another half-furlong. If that extra hadn't been there, she might not have run at the Churchill meet. I thought that day she was good enough. It was just a matter of if she was tight enough. I think this is an extremely big ask for her in this race, but the important thing is stepping stones and getting a good read on her moving forward. We're trying to keep some of these fillies separated. We could have run two in the sprint but we felt this filly really has a lot of upside so let's go ahead and try her in here.”
By Arrogate, there is reason to believe Saturday's two-turn distance won't be an issue.
“I like horses that have natural pace but the thing that's nice about this filly is she is very easy to get along with,” Bauer said. “So I think she'll avoid trouble with her tactical speed, but she's one that if you reach up and grab her she'll listen to the rider, so we're excited to see where she goes from here.”
At the co-second choice at 3-1 in the morning line, Legadema will be reunited with jockey Martin Garcia and the team will leave from post 5.
With a post time of 4 p.m. CT, the Untapable is scheduled as the 9th race on Saturday's 12-race “Road to the Derby Kickoff Day” card. The program also features the Gun Runner, a points race on the road to the Kentucky Derby 150 presented by Woodford Reserve, and six other stakes. First post is noon CT.
Here is the complete field for the Untapable from the rail out (with jockey, trainer and morning line odds): 1. Alpine Princess (Florent Geroux, Brad Cox, 3-1); 2. Band of Gold (Brian Hernandez, Jr., Ken McPeek, 8-1); 3. Sistina Chapel (Corey Lanerie, Ken McPeek, 5-1); 4. Fibber (Mitchell Murrill, Bret Calhoun, 4-1); 5. Legadema (Martin Garcia., Phil Bauer, 3-1); 6. West Omaha (Joel Rosario, Brad Cox, 5-2).
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U.S. Trainers With Outstanding Safety Records Share Their Secrets
BloodHorse story by Tim Sullivan Ray Handal is looking for longevity. He trains his horses with a level of caution not always conducive to keeping clients, but one that has earned him a rare distinction. Now in his 10th year as a trainer, after more than 1,500 starts and more than $13 million in earnings, Handal has yet to have a horse die in his care. Not from racing. Not in training. Not from illness. Not by accident. Not from natural causes.
Well-Traveled My Destiny Gets To Make Final Start At Home In Saturday’s Sugar Swirl
After crisscrossing the country with stops in Kentucky, California, Oklahoma and Ohio, Sam Wilensky's multiple stakes winner My Destiny is back home for what is expected to be her last race in Saturday's $125,000 Sugar Swirl (G3) at Gulfstream Park.
The 41st running of the six-furlong Sugar Swirl for fillies and mares 3 and up is among four $125,000 stakes on an 11-race Christmas weekend program, joined by the seven-furlong Mr. Prospector (G3) for 3-year-olds and up, Tropical Park Derby for 3-year-olds and Tropical Park Oaks for 3-year-old fillies, both scheduled for 1 1/16 miles on the grass.
First race post time is 12:10 p.m.
Trained by Wilensky's father, Herman, 6-year-old My Destiny will begin her new career as a broodmare in 2024, already booked to 2022 champion male sprinter Elite Power. She is enjoying her best season to date with four wins, two in stakes, from eight starts including a career-best performance to capture the six-furlong Flashy Lady Handicap by 5 ¼ lengths Sept. 24 at Remington Park.
The Sugar Swirl will be My Destiny's 27th start and 11th at Gulfstream, but just her first since capturing a 6 ½-furlong optional claimer March 24 by three lengths as the favorite under Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano.
“It feels like she never gets to race here,” Sam Wilensky said. “Unfortunately, there's only so many stakes that are offered and she's gone through all her conditions so it's just kind of rare to have an opportunity at home, but this works out perfectly.
“This will probably be her last race and then she's going to retire to be a broodmare,” he added. “There's a small chance of one more race depending on how this race goes. If she hits the board first, second or third in the Grade 3, that'll kind of complete the resume.”
Wilensky claimed My Destiny for $12,500 out of a Nov. 5, 2021 win at Gulfstream, and since then has registered seven wins, two seconds and two thirds from 16 Thoroughbred starts, as well as a 1,000-yard mixed breed race last August at Los Alamitos.
“You could never expect a [$12,500], non-winners of three life filly to do what she's done,” he said. “She's just a pleasure, not only because of what she's done for us but her attitude and the way she carries herself. She's by far my favorite horse we've ever had, so it's going to be more than bittersweet to not see her here in the morning. But if you can get off the track safely and go have babies that hopefully we can train one day, we can't ask for more.”
My Destiny enters the Sugar Swirl having run second as the favorite in the six-furlong Mahoning Valley Distaff Nov. 20, beaten a half-length after setting the pace. Her other stakes win came in the five-furlong Orleans Jan. 6 at Delta Downs.
“She's a filly who brings it every time,” Wilensky said. “That was not her best performance up in Ohio but I think that was more about the surface. Those fillies went 1:12 that day; My Destiny goes 1:09 and change or 1:10 flat. Mahoning is a different type of racetrack. She's happy to be home and going over this surface again. She's doing phenomenal, so I couldn't be happier about that.”
Edwin Gonzalez, a five-time winner on My Destiny up for each of her last two starts, gets the return call from Post 2 in a field of eight.
“It'll be interesting to see who comes down and how they do on our home field for once,” Wilensky said. “We're excited. Hopefully she can go out on the right note and it can be an end to a great career by her.”
Two-time defending Championship Meet leading trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. wheels Ed Seltzer's 7-year-old homebred mare Bluefield back just two weeks off a determined neck victory in the seven-furlong FTBOA City of Ocala Florida Sire Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs.
It was the eighth career victory and first in a stakes for Bluefield, who also captured the 6 ½-furlong Musical Romance overnight handicap May 28 over Gulfstream's main track.
“She went up to Tampa and it was nice to get a stakes win on her resume at this age. She came to us late but she just keeps getting better and better,” Joseph said. “She's never run back this quick, but she's in good order so I think she should run well. Hopefully she has a good week leading up to it.”
Bluefield joined Joseph's string last year after registering five wins and two thirds in her first 12 races, all but one coming in the Mid-Atlantic region. She went nine months between starts and has gone 3-3-1 in eight tries since, the only time worse than third coming when fourth behind stablemate Three Witches in the Oct. 7 Princess Rooney (G3). She was also second behind Grade 3-winning millionaire Yuugiri in the July 7 Saylorville at Prairie Meadows.
“She came to us with some good form and then she got some time off and that really helped her,” Joseph said. “She's been very consistent ever since she came back.”
Edgard Zayas will be aboard from the rail.
Joseph will also send out 4-year-old Intrepid Daydream, a recent private purchase by Miller Racing that has put together four consecutive wins including the six-furlong Shine Again and Politely and seven-furlong Maryland Million Distaff, all at Laurel Park. She arrived at Gulfstream Monday.
“It all came about very late. The owner was looking for fillies to buy and he was able to close the deal [Dec. 15],” Joseph said. “She's been running well up there against restricted company so hopefully she can come down here and run the same way.”
Tyler Gaffalione has the assignment from Post 4.
Also entered are Magna Massa, a last-out winner over older horses in a six-furlong allowance Nov. 9 at Horseshoe Indiana; Olivia Darling, runner-up in the six-furlong Skipat May 20 at Pimlico on the Preakness (G1) undercard; Headland, a 10-time winner of nearly $700,000 in purses from 43 lifetieme starts; Spirit Wind, winner of the Musical Romance and second in the Princess Rooney, then a Grade 2, last spring and summer at Gulfstream; and Napa Candy.
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