Tag: Racing

Most folks at Del Mar on Sunday thought trainer Bob Baffert had a real live one for the Best Pal Stakes (G3) in the expensive colt Muth. Well, Muth ran a good race, as predicted, but it wasn't good enough as another Baffert runner, Prince of Monaco, stormed through the lane to take the $200,000 race by a handy 4 1/4 lengths over his highly touted stablemate.

Flavien Prat, a seven-time seaside riding champion who has been plying his trade of late on the East Coast, flew in for the assignment on the winning son of 2004 champion sprinter Speightstown and handled his charge perfectly, letting a pair of speedsters go fast early, then taking over at the head of the lane and finishing strongly.

Prince of Monaco's final time – 1:09.19 – was the fastest six furlongs of the meet. It bested the previous mark of 1:09.24, set by win machine The Chosen Vron in capturing the Bing Crosby Stakes (G1) on July 29.

Prince of Monaco, who cost “only” $950,000 at the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select Yearling Sale (stablemate Muth cost $2-million earlier this year at the OBS March Two-Year-Olds In Training Sale) is owned by an extended partnership consisting of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Stonestreet Stables, Dianne Bashor, Robert Masterson, Waves Edge Capital, Catherine Donovan, and Tom Ryan.

Muth, who races in the silks of Zedan Racing Stables, was second, 4 1/2 lengths ahead of Raging Torrent.

Prince of Monaco, the 9-5 second choice in the wagering (Muth went favored at 1-2), returned $5.60 to win.

The winner's share of the purse was $120,000 and increased Prince of Monaco's bankroll to $147,000. He won his only other start, a straight maiden race at Los Alamitos on July 9 where he was an eight-length winner.

The score in the Best Pal was Baffert's record 10th in the race. It was Prat's second.

Best Pal Quotes

JOCKEY FLAVIEN PRAT (Prince of Monaco, winner) – “Mr. Baffert called me and asked me to come out and ride a horse for him. And so here I am. He was very comfortable out there; felt good all the way. I saw the pace was hot and I just waited my turn. He's a nice colt. And yes, I think he can run farther.”

TRAINER BOB BAFFERT (Prince of Monaco, winner) – “He (Prat) rode that filly (in Race 3) really fast and I said 'That's OK, just don't do that on this one.' We knew the other horse was really quick and I was hoping Muth would lay off the pace but he just engaged early. Prat saw what was going on and he took back and I like the way the horse responded and he had a good post for it. You put good riders on good horses, but it was really key that he rode that filly for me in the third race.” (That filly was favored Elegant, who showed speed, but fell back and finished fifth.)

FRACTIONS: :21.76 :44.76 :56.90 1:09.19

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Trainer and co-owner Adam Rice continued a torrid run of form at Saratoga Race Course by earning his sixth win from just nine Spa starters when 19-1 shot Closethegame Sugar upset Sunday's $150,000 Mahony, a 5 1/2-furlong Mellon turf sprint for sophomores.

The 32-year-old conditioner, who previously captured the 2020 Fitz Dixon Jr. Memorial with Like a Saltshaker at his Presque Isle Downs base, was overcome with emotion in the winner's circle.

“It's only my second career stakes win and to have it be here is something special,” Rice said of the special Spa score engineered by Jose Lezcano. “You're reaching coming up here some days coming out of Presque Isle – [but] the horses are nice, and if they're nice, they tell you what they want to do, and he's one of my favorite horses to ride every day. I can't talk and I might be tearing up a little bit.”

Rice, who saddled Dancing Spirit [No. 10, $18] for a victory in Race 2 earlier on the card, won with his first Saratoga starter when Don't Be So Salty posted a maiden special weight score at 9-1 odds in August 2015. The Tiz Wonderful gelding followed up two weeks later with a third-place finish in front of stablemate Montauk Cove in the Spa's Schenectady.

His other Spa winners include Monster Bea [MSW, 2015], Shekky Shebaz [CLM, 2019] and the now two-time local hero Closethegame Sugar, who won a restricted maiden special weight over good turf here last summer with Jose Ortiz up, besting next-out winner Webslinger, who is now a graded stakes-winning millionaire.

Closethegame Sugar, co-owned by Rice and Sugar Diaz, was put away after his maiden score and returned on June 5 to finish a close second in the six-furlong Tom Ridge over the Presque Isle Downs synthetic.

“I tell you what, there's so much fight in this horse it's not even funny. He gives every bit you ask of him,” Rice said. “His first [time] out, he was a little bit short I think and that horse [Webslinger] gave it to him, and he still gave it. Jose [Ortiz] was excited when he got off of him. Jose couldn't ride him today, but Jose Lezcano brought it home.”

Dual stakes winner Uncashed, a front-running victor of 5-of-6 starts, was hustled out of the gate by the Spa's leading rider Irad Ortiz Jr. to set splits of :21.49 and :44.64 over the firm footing under pressure from stakes-placed Harry Time with stakes-winning mutuel favorite No Nay Hudson in third.

Closethegame Sugar, who raced with hind shoes on, settled into fifth position, racing to the inside of Private Creed as the front-end battled raged on through the turn. No Nay Hudson took over as the field straightened away and his Wesley Ward-trained stablemate, the New York-bred Eye Witness, loomed large with a menacing move. A patient Lezcano stayed near the rail before tipping out late in the turn and diving through an opening between a tiring Uncashed and putting a head in front of the surging No Nay Hudson.

Private Creed, with Joel Rosario up, found his best stride in deep stretch, bumping with the Jose Ortiz-piloted Eye Witness to his inside as No Nay Hudson tried in vain to stay with Closethegame Sugar. But there was no denying a game and determined Closethegame Sugar, who staved off a cavalry charge of rivals to secure a half-length win over Private Creed in a final time of 1:02.54. It was a half-length back to Eye Witness in third, who was a neck better than No Nay Hudson.

“He broke sharp and he was right there,” Lezcano said. “The horses up on the front end of the pace went fast early on. I had plenty left in the tank. When I asked him, my horse gave a good kick and went on and won the race. He kept running, finished very strong and galloped out very well.”

Son of a Birch, Gaslight Dancer, Drew's Gold, Uncashed and Harry Time rounded out the order of finish. Crispy Cat, who finished fifth earlier today in the Select at Monmouth Park, was scratched. A claim of foul by Ortiz, aboard Eye Witness, against Rosario and Private Creed for interference late in the lane was denied.

Rosario said he was focused on his mount as the battle heated up in deep stretch with Eye Witness.

“There was a little room for him to go in there but I don't know how much room there was. I just kept riding my horse where I was,” Rosario explained. “My horse had a good trip, it looked like for a second my horse was going to get there but the horse on the inside [Closethegame Sugar] got his inside trip. It was a good run for my horse.”

Rice said that while he would like to try Closethegame Sugar on dirt, he has yet to consider a next start for the Girvin gelding, who was purchased for $10,000 at the 2021 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

“Man, I'm still trying to get through today. I've got to go back to Presque Isle and train horses in the morning,” said Rice, with a laugh.

Bred in Kentucky by Brereton C. Jones, who stands Girvin at his Airdrie Stud in Midway, Ky.,  Closethegame Sugar is out of the Magna Graduate mare Casual Cocktail, who is a half-sister to graded stakes-placed Rum Go. He banked $82,500 in victory while improving his record to 3-2-1-0 and returned $41 for a $2 win bet.

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Amerman Racing's Tumbarumba thundered down the center of Ellis Park and scored his first stakes victory in Sunday's featured sixth running of the $250,000 Ellis Park Derby (Listed).

Tumbarumba was ridden to victory by Rafael Bejarano for trainer Brian Lynch. Tumbarumba covered the one-mile distance in 1:36.02.

The field of eight 3-year-olds broke well in the Ellis Park Derby as longshot Olazabal was hustled to the early lead under jockey Alex Achard. Tumbarumba broke from the rail but Bejarano moved the Louisiana-bred gelding in the two-path and settled in fourth.

Following a strong half-mile in :46.33, Olazabal began to tire as Transect and Blue Light dueled on the lead. At the quarter pole, Bejarano tipped Tumbarumba to the four-path outside Transect and the closing Loyal Company as he began to show his best stride. Nearing the final sixteenth, Tumbarumba was able to gain the lead over the battling rivals and pulled clear late for a three-quarters of a length victory.

Transect held the place photo over Loyal Company.

“I had a great opportunity to ride a really nice horse today,” Bejarano said of Tumbarumba ($9.40). “This horse was training really good, I knew he'd come with his run. I watched his last few races with jockey Luis Saez aboard and he had to be aggressive with this horse about a half-mile out. I tried to do the same thing and it really worked out.”

“He threw a clunker here in the Maxfield Stakes over a sloppy track,” Lynch said. “I drove home gutted after that. But we got a fast, dry track today. He worked together with Oscar Eclipse the other day and he won earlier on the card. Tumbarumba worked better than he did. When (Oscar Eclipse) won I was very confident he'd run well. There isn't any quit to him.”

Tumbarumba's record now stands at 9-4-1-1 and  purse earnings of $254,870. The son of the former Lynch-trained Oscar Performance was bred in Louisiana by Coteau Grove Farms from the Street Sense mare Naive Enough. Offered by Eaton Sales at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale, he sold to Lynch for $30,000.

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Me and My Shadow was full of run turning for home en route to victory in the $250,000 Bison City Stakes, for Canadian-foaled 3-year-old fillies Sunday at Woodbine.

Seattle Causeway, at 13-1, broke running from the rail in the second jewel of the Canadian Triple Tiara as did Fashionably Fab and Collect Dattt, the trio taking the field of eight (Delphia was scratched at the gate) into the first turn. It was Seattle Causeway who established command and held a 1½-length lead over her closest pursuer through an opening quarter in :24.09, while Emma-Jayne Wilson settled Me and My Shadow into seventh spot in the early going.

After widening her advantage to two lengths after a half in :48.35, Seattle Causeway and jockey Leo Salles started to increase their lead ahead of the turn for home, but Wilson and Me and My Shadow were already rolling on the outside and loomed a major threat as the field straightened for the stretch drive.

On top by a half-length at the stretch call, the daughter of Violence out of Silhouette, by Smart Strike,  dashed away from her pursuers to record an emphatic 3½-length triumph in a time of 1:44.30 for 1 1/16 miles on the Tapeta. Tito's Calling was a neck in front of Fashionably Fab for second. Seattle Causeway was fourth.

“Her acceleration through the turn was pretty epic,” said Wilson, who won her third Bison City following triumphs aboard Free Fee Lady in 2010 and Brooklynsway in 2015. “When we straightened on and dug in some more, it was all over.”

The Bison City marked the first stakes win for Me and My Shadow.

The D. J. Racing Stable sophomore, trained by Mark Casse, came into the race off a fourth to Elysian Field in the Woodbine Oaks, the first jewel in the Triple Tiara, on July 23 at Woodbine.

“This filly, I've been riding her since she was two and she's really developed,” Wilson said. “We had a little bit of an unlucky trip in the Oaks from the 14-hole, but she still ran a massive race that day. She seems to really be putting it all together.”

Me and My Shadow, now 2-2-1 from eight starts, paid $5.80 for the win. She was bred by Hill 'n' Dale Equine Holdings, Inc. and N.E.T.P.

The final race of the Canadian Triple Tiara, the $250,000 Wonder Where Stakes, at 1 ¼ miles on Woodbine's E.P. Taylor turf, is set for September 10.

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