Tag: Racing

Trainer Kenny McPeek's magic touch with 2-year-olds at Oaklawn continued Sunday when Daniel Mc Greevy's Ice Cold overhauled heavily favored Denim and Pearls in deep stretch to win the $200,000 Year's End Stakes for fillies.

In the companion feature, the $150,000 Renaissance for sprinters, heavily favored Valentine Candy became the meet's first two-time stakes winner and was among four winners on the card for trainer Steve Asmussen.

Sunday's 10-race program marked the second exclusively for 2-year-olds in Oaklawn history.

McPeek won four in last year's inaugural format, including the Year's End with future Grade 1 winner Defining Purpose. McPeek added two more victories Sunday. The biggest came with Ice Cold ($8.80), who was ridden to her three-quarter length victory by Julien Leparoux. She covered the mile over a fast track in 1:38.97.

“I got the trip that I wanted,” Leparoux said. “Stayed pretty close to the Brad Cox filly (Denim and Pearls). From the three-eighths pole to the quarter pole, it looks like (Denim and Pearls) is going to go away from me. But (Ice Cold) kept digging. When I got to the straight, she switched leads and re-broke. She won nicely today.”

McPeek said Ice Cold has figured out going two turns.

“She just grinds it out,” he said. “Just a really hard-knocking filly. Tom Mc Greevy and Dan (Mc Greevy), the main owner and his brother, are fun guys to work for, too. Those kind are always great. It's good (last two years on Oaklawn's cards exclusively for 2-year-olds).”

Ice Cold, from the first crop of 2019 champion male sprinter and Spendthrift Farm resident sire Mitole, raised her career earnings to $190,129 following her second victory from five starts.

Valentine Candy ($3.40) was in traffic on the turn before taking command in midstretch after finding running room. Ridden by Joel Rosario, Valentine Candy's winning time for six furlongs over a fast track was 1:11.29.

“Very tough trip,” Rosario said. “…He did great. He was always there for me. Turning for home, I was able to work my way out and he did the work.”

Valentine Candy also won the $150,000 Advent Stakes Dec. 8 at Oaklawn. The son of Triple Crown winner Justify has a 3-1-1 mark from six starts and earnings of $263,925. He is campaigned by William L. and Corrine  Heiligbrodt, Jackpot Farm, Whispering Oaks Farm LLC, and Coteau Grove Farms LLC

Sunday's estimated attendance was 15,000.

The post Ice Cold Takes Year’s End, Valentine Candy Wins Renaissance On Oaklawn’s 2YO Card appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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St. Elias Stable and Repole Stable's Crupi outfinished a trio of rivals in a thrilling blanket finish to take the final New York stakes of 2023 in Sunday's $150,000 Queens County, a listed 1 1/8-mile test for 3-year-olds and up at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Trained by Todd Pletcher, Crupi notched back-to-back stakes scores after a 1 1/4-length victory last out in the Discovery going the same distance under returning rider Kendrick Carmouche. The talented sophomore son of Curlin has now won four of his last five outings, including an eighth-out graduation in July at Monmouth Park and an allowance score against elders in August at Saratoga Race Course.

Away a step slow from post 4, Crupi settled near the rear of the eight-horse field after checking behind the Manny Franco-piloted Quality Chic and King Kumbalay in a scramble for early position. Crupi's ambitious stablemate Lost Ark was sent strongly by Trevor McCarthy along the inside to take charge from a pressing Kinetic Sky through the first turn and mark an opening quarter-mile in :24.15 over the fast main track.

“We got in a little jam [in the first turn] because I was wanting to be forward and Manny was making it tight on everybody,” Carmouche said. “I just had to squeeze back and let everything develop again. After that, he got back underneath me and I was in the perfect spot the whole race.”

Kinetic Sky made a swift move and challenged for the lead down the backstretch, but a determined Lost Ark would not relinquish his advantage and held steady at the front as a three-wide Quality Chic vied for third position with the rail-skimming Constitutionlawyer. Crupi patiently awaited his cue while racing in sixth approaching the turn and was asked for his best with a sweeping four-wide bid after a half-mile in :48.59.

Post-time favorite Signator, who was away slowly from post 5, followed the run of Crupi midway through the turn and ranged up widest of all for his bid towards a resolute Kinetic Sky, who overtook the lead from a retreating Lost Ark at the top of the stretch while under pressure from Quality Chic through three-quarters in 1:13.04.

Kinetic Sky, who was racing on just three days' rest after winning a local allowance on Thursday, dug in at the sixteenth pole in tandem with Kinetic Sky as Signator and Crupi ranged up on the outside to make it four horses across the track. It appeared to be anyone's race in the final strides with each horse giving their all, but Crupi had the superior momentum to reach the wire first by a neck over Quality Chic and complete the course in 1:50.13.

Quality Chic put his nose in front of Kinetic Sky for place honors while Signator finished another neck back in fourth. King Kumbalay, Constitutionlawyer, Lost Ark, and Forewarned, who trailed throughout, completed the order of finish.

Carmouche, who rode Crupi in the last-out Discovery, expressed his delight in seeing the chestnut colt show maturity.

“The last eighth of a mile, he's the one who won the race. Crupi won the race the last eighth of a mile,” said Carmouche. “He just took the bit out of my hand and accelerated the last sixteenth. I'm so glad this horse is improving with age. I look forward to see where we go from here.”

Amelia Green, Pletcher's Belmont Park-based assistant, shared a similar sentiment about Crupi's progression.

“He's really matured, mentally. Even as a 2-year-old, he was so immature and as a 3-year-old still,” said Green. “Now, finally, he's maturing turning four. I feel he's always had the fight in him, he was just so immature in the mind and the gate was his problem – he broke pretty good today, minus the first turn with all that drama. I think he's starting to figure it out and learn he likes to run and enjoy it.”

Bred in Kentucky by Claiborne Farm, Crupi was produced by the Malibu Moon mare Don'tforgetaboutme. Offered by his breeder at the 2021 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, Crupi sold for $275,000. With Sunday's win, he brought his record to 12-4-2-3 and banked $82,500 in victory, boosting his total purse earnings to $372,750.

Crupi returned $14.80 on a $2 win ticket.

Javier Castellano said the Shug McGaughey-trained Signator, who had scratched from Saturday's Grade 3 Harlan's Holiday at Gulfstream Park in favor of this spot, would have benefitted from swifter fractions.

“For those type of horse, they went :24 and change and :48 and [1:13] I'm very satisfied with the horse — he finished,” said Castellano. “When I stepped him outside, he finished. But those horses, they didn't come back to me. They all carried their speed all the way to the wire. I don't have nothing to complain about the horse – he ran a huge race and made a great effort, and I'm very satisfied the way he did it today.”

The post ‘He’s Always Had The Fight In Him’: Crupi Prevails In Queens County Thriller appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Saturday's $100,000 Woodchopper at Fair Grounds came down to a stretch duel as Gigante got the better of Northern Invader for the third time during the burgeoning turf stars' sophomore campaigns.

Winning by a neck, Iapetus Racing and Diamond T Racing's Gigante made the Woodchopper the fifth stakes victory of his career.

Beating out eight other 3-year-olds, Gigante clocked in at 1:36.70 going about one mile on the firm Stall-Wilson turf course with the portable rail set at nine feet. Trained by Steve Asmussen, the Virginia-bred son of Not This Time received the fine handling of Edgar Morales.

“This horse has really improved this year,” said Asmussen's assistant trainer on the grounds, Scott Blasi. “He won the Secretariat (G2) at Colonial. We were off the grass at Churchill last time and saw another big effort out of him. I really liked the trip he got today. Saved ground, got tipped out where he needed to be, and ran hard to the wire.”

Deccan Prince led the pack through the first two points of call of :23.75 and :47.99 with Northern Invader engaging him into the first turn but then settling into a comfortable stalking trip just to his outside. After getting pinched by two foes out of the gates, Gigante traveled along the rail before being positioned in the far turn to tip out and kick home. As Northern Invader went to the front in the stretch, Gigante engaged that familiar foe and the two dueled to the wire. After checking in the far turn, Point Proven rallied for third.

“We got a little bump out of the gate, but after that we got a great trip,” Morales said. “I followed the favorite all around there, and when I tipped him out, he did his job and battled to the wire.”

Gigante ($8.20) was bred by Ann Mudge Backer and Smitten Farm. He is out of the Empire Maker mare Summertime Green and sold to Andrew Dean for $120,000 at the 2021 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, where Taylor Made Sales Agency consigned him.

Boasting a lifetime record of 13-6-0-1, Gigante is poised to surpass the million-dollar career earnings mark with $975,475.

Tufani Dazzles Wins Pago Hop By Open Lengths

Also on Saturday, Susan Moulton's Tufani unleashed a dazzling turn of foot in the final stages to win the $100,000 Pago Hop by two lengths. The 2-1 top preference in the market was followed home by longshot filly Condensation who was a head best in the blanket finish for a piece.

Trained by Mike Stidham, Tufani, a Virginia-bred 3-year-old daughter of Distorted Humor secured not only her first stakes victory with the Pago Hop score, but also her pilot Ben Curtis' first stateside stakes win.

“(Tufani) has always shown us a lot of talent since we first got her,” Stidham said. “She's developed. She's learned to relax. I think the arrow is pointing up for her. Ben (Curtis) has done a great job with getting her to settle and come running like that. I'm very pleased with what he's done for us.”

Given a patient ride, Tufani bested 10 rivals, covering about one mile in 1:37.82 on the firm Stall-Wilson turf course with the portable rail set at nine feet.

“(Tufani) was impressive,” Curtis said. “The key to her is to get her to relax. When you're rounding the final turn she comes alive and you're able to put her where you want. It's easy to take gaps when they're traveling as strong as she does and she has an electric turn of foot. So when I let her down I was confident coming to the last eighth pole.”

Quite accomplished overseas, Curtis entered his first meet at Fair Grounds having tallied over 1,000 winners in England as well as hundreds more in other countries.

“To get a first stakes win over here is fantastic,” Curtis said. “Thanks to Mike (Stidham) and the owners for the honor.”

An investment in Tufani's Pago Hop success paid $6.80, $4.40, $2.80. Condensation rallied the rail to reward backers at $19.00, $11.60. Watch This Birdie was spotted on the tote board at $3.40.

Having not debuted until April of this year, Tufani's wins as 3-year-old outweigh her defeats at 7-4-1-0, and the ledgers read $173,942 for her efforts. The bay filly is out of the Mineshaft mare Windhoek. She was a $140,000 purchase at the 2021 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, where she was presented by Mill Ridge Sales. She was bred by Chance Farm and Distorted Humor Syndicate.

The post VA-Breds Gigante, Tufani Score Respective Stakes Wins In Woodchopper, Pago Hop At Fair Grounds appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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