Tag: Racing

Overwhelming favorite Liberty Island claimed this year's $1,822,000 Shuka Sho (G1) Sunday at Kyoto Racecourse to sweep Japan's Triple Crown for fillies, which includes her victories this spring in the Oka Sho (G1) (Japanese 1000 Guineas) and the Yushun Himba (G1) (Japanese Oaks).

Liberty Island is the seventh filly to dominate all three' Triple Crown races for fillies, following Mejiro Ramonu (1986), Still in Love (2003), Apapane (2010), Gentildonna (2012), Almond Eye (2018),and Daring Tact (2020). She also extended her Group 1-winning streak to four, including last year's Hanshin Juvenile Fillies, which earned her the JRA Award's Best Two-Year-Old Filly title.

Starting this year, a Japanese-bred horse that achieves the filly Triple Crown title will receive a bonus of 100 million yen (approximately $668,846).

Liberty Island broke smoothly and settled two-wide in good position behind the leaders, around seventh along the backstretch, and made headway 600 meters out while turning the last corners wide. After taking command around the 400-meter pole, the Duramente filly found another gear to exert a strong drive along the stretch and, although threatened by the fast-closing chase by Masked Diva before the wire, managed to hold off the Rulership filly by a length margin for her Triple Crown title.

Time for the 2,000 meters (about 1 1/4 miles) was 2:01.1 on turf rated as good.

“I'm grateful that we were able to achieve the Triple Crown,” said winning rider Yuga Kawada. “She is a horse with great ability, so I placed top priority on letting her run comfortably and finding a good path for her. I was confident of her victory when we had an open space at the third corner. She has great potential, and her dreams for the future are wide open, but first of all, I would like to praise her for achieving the Triple Crown.”

Liberty Island is trained by Mitsumasa Nakauchida for owner Sunday Racing Co. Ltd. She was bred by Northern Racing from the All American mare Yankee Rose.

Third pick Masked Diva broke sharply and eased back to settle around 13th. Though meeting traffic at the top of the stretch, the filly found an opening 300 meters out and dislodged a powerful late charge that timed the fastest last three furlongs to close in on the leader but was a length short at the wire to finish second.

Second pick Harper sat around fifth in front of the winner, angled out slightly turning the final corner and, while unable to keep up with the winner's speed, managed to pass the tiring frontrunners 100 meters out but missed the runner-up spot before the wire for third.

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Trainer Jose D'Angelo hopes to relive a career achievement at Gulfstream Park, when he saddles his undefeated duo of Bentornato and Welcome Back for starts in Saturday's second leg of the 2023 FTBOA Florida Sire Stakes series.

D'Angelo, who is locked in a tight three-way battle for the Sunshine Meet training title with Saffie Joseph Jr. and Victor Barboza Jr., saddled King Leon Stable Corp.'s Bentornato for a romping victory in the Dr. Fager and Averill Racing and Two Eight Racing LLC's Welcome Back for a fast-closing narrow triumph in the Desert Vixen to sweep the six-furlong first-leg races for juveniles sired by accredited Florida stallions.

Bentornato looms as a big favorite in a field of 12 entered Sunday for the $200,000 Affirmed, which will be contested at seven furlongs. Welcome Back appears to have a tougher task in the $200,000 Susan's Girl, the seven-furlong co-feature for fillies.

Bentornato has two stakes victories on his unblemished three-race resume. After rallying for a narrow debut victory at five furlongs July 1, the son of Valiant Minister overcame early bumping to register an eye-catching 4¼-length front-running score in six-furlong Proud Man Aug. 12. He came right back with a dominating 7 ½-length front-running win in the Dr. Fager.

Emisael Jaramillo has been aboard for all three wins and has been awarded the return mount.

Ironhorse Racing Stable LLC and Harlow Stables LLC's Mattingly is scheduled to make his main track debut in the Affirmed with an impressive record on Tapeta. The Joe Orseno-trained son of Bucchero has three stakes placings, including a victory last time out in the Hollywood Beach at Gulfstream, and a maiden score on his four-race record.

Trainer Christophe Clement has entered Reeves Thoroughbred Racing's Hurricane Nelson in the Affirmed. The son of Kozan will seek to graduate Saturday after finishing second in her first two starts in New York. She fell a half-length short of graduating in his Aug. 12 debut at Saratoga before checking in second again a month later at Aqueduct.

Brad Grady and David Grund's Seminole Chief, a son of Girvin, is scheduled to make his stakes debut for trainer Jack Sisterson after capturing his Sept. 11 debut at Finger Lakes by a going-away eight lengths.

Shooting Star Thoroughbreds LLC's Echo Lane, Champion Equine LLC's Esperon, Arindel's Lasso, Just For Fun Stable Inc.'s Roar Ready, Scott Savin and Savin Sisters Stable's Rye's My Guy, Cammarota Racing LLC's Secret Lover, Lawson Racing Stables' Sound of the Beast, and Screen Door Stables LLC's Squints round out the field.

Soldi Stable LLC's Welcome Back is slated to seek her third-straight victory while facing 11 other fillies in the Susan's Girl. The daughter of Adios Charlie took on winners in her July 29 debut, a five-furlong optional claiming allowance on Tapeta in which she closed from far back and drew off to a 1 ¾-length score. She was the odds-on favorite for her return in the Desert Vixen but had to work for a nose decision after being steadied in traffic on the turn into the homestretch under returning rider Edwin Gonzalez.

Welcome Back figures to have her work cut out for her if she is to emerge undefeated from the Susan's Girl, in which she will be challenged by undefeated R Harper Rose.

Averill Racing and Two Eight Racing LLC's R Harper Rose was the morning-line favorite for the Desert Vixen, only to be scratched after coming down with a slight fever a few days earlier. The daughter of Khozan recovered quickly and made an impressive return to action while capturing a 5 ½-furlong optional claiming allowance Sept. 22 by 5 ¾ lengths. The Saffie Joseph Jr.-trained filly had previously debuted with a front-running debut victory by 6 ¼ lengths. Edgard Zayas has the return mount.

Arindel's Mist, a homebred daughter of Brethren, will seek to turn the tables on Welcome Back, after coming within a nose of victory in the Desert Vixen.

Brad Grady's Honey Dijon is scheduled to ship in from Kentucky for the Susan's Girl. The Joe Sharp-trained daughter of Girvin broke her maiden at seven furlongs at Saratoga in her second career start before finishing an even sixth over Kentucky Downs turf in the Untapable Stakes.

Robyn Kaiser's Bucchera, Quintessential Racing Florida and Rocky Top Stable's Dancing N Dixie, Jacks or Better Farm Inc.'s Fields of Green, BC Racing LLC's Haunted, Just For Fun Stable Inc.'s Jazzin, Gelfenstein Farm LLC's Reina Mar, and Alex and JoAnn Lieblong's Unrelentless round out the field.

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Twin Creeks Racing Stables' Kentucky homebred Law Professor worked Saturday for the first time since finishing third in the Woodward (G2) on October 1 at Belmont at the Big A, covering a half-mile solo in :49.41 over the Belmont Park training track for trainer Rob Atras.

“I saw the rain coming and was going to wait until tomorrow, but he went today and went really good,” said Atras. “The rider gave me a good report. We're just kind of getting him back on schedule.”

Law Professor hit the board for a second consecutive year in the Woodward, adding to a runner-up effort last year to Life Is Good when the race held Grade 1 status. This year, the Constitution dark bay tracked in third throughout under Manny Franco and was within 1 1/2 lengths of the lead at the stretch call, but could not reel in the victorious Zandon and settled for show 4 1/2 lengths back.

“I was very happy with it and thought he came back good off a little bit of a layoff,” said Atras. “He ran a good race.”

Atras said Law Professor, who captured the 2021 off-the-turf Santa Anita Mathis Mile (G2) and the Excelsior and Queens County this year at the Big A, has several options for his next start. Possible targets include the one-mile $300,000 Forty Niner (G2) on October 28 at Belmont at the Big A, the nine-furlong Fayette (G2) on the same day at Keeneland, or the 1 1/16-mile  Autumn (G2) on November 4 over the Tapeta at Woodbine.

“I'm not 100 percent sure where we're going. We did nominate for the Fayette and for the Forty Niner, but I don't think a mile is really his game,” said Atras. “The Fayette is a mile and an eighth, so we're going to look at that. He settled into Kentucky last fall pretty good, so I wouldn't worry about shipping to Keeneland. I should nominate to the race in Toronto, too. He seems like he can run on anything.”

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Gary Broad's Vergara and e Five Racing Thoroughbreds' Transient (GB), who ran 1-2 in the Aristocrat Ladies Marathon (G3) at Kentucky Downs on Sept. 9, headline a field of nine fillies and mares entered for next Sunday's 32nd running of the $300,000 Rood & Riddle Dowager (G3) to be run at 1½ miles on the grass.

Trained by Graham Motion, who has won the Dowager three times, Vergara prevailed by three-quarters of a length at Kentucky Downs to earn her first victory of 2023 from four races. Joel Rosario, who was aboard that day, retains the mount and will exit post position 3.

Motion will have a second starter in Team Valor International's Romagna Mia (GB). A Group 2 winner last year in Italy, Romagna Mia was third in the Beverly D. (G1) in her U.S. debut at Colonial Downs on Aug. 12. John Velazquez has the mount and will exit post 6.

Saffie Joseph Jr. trains Transient, who is three times graded-stakes placed in 2023. Tyler Gaffalione retains the mount and will break from post position 9.

The field for the Rood & Riddle Dowager, with riders and weights from the rail out, is: Henrietta Topham (James Graham, 121 pounds), Viva La Red (Vincent Cheminaud, 121), Vergara (Rosario, 123), Be Up (Luis Saez, 121), Personal Best (Flavien Prat, 123), Romagna Mia (GB) (Velazquez, 121), Loved Reiko (Julien Leparoux, 121), Lovely Princess (Brian Hernandez Jr., 121), Transient (GB) (Gaffalione, 121).

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