Wildatlanticstorm keyed a lot of firsts, winning the $400,000 Springboard Mile Dec. 17 for trainer Ray Ashford at 15-1 odds. The large chestnut colt scored the biggest 2-year-old stakes race of the Remington Park season.
Tag: Racing
The Punisher Wins Carlos Pellegrini In Argentina To Kick Off 2023 Breeders’ Cup Challenge ‘Win And You’re In’ Series
Haras El Angel De Venecia's homebred The Punisher passed El Musical in deep stretch to capture Saturday's 1 ½-mile Gran Premio Carlos Pellegrini-Internacional (G1) at Hipodromo de San Isidro in Buenos Aires. With the win, The Punisher earned an automatic berth into next year's $4-million Longines Breeders' Cup Turf (G1) through the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In.
The Gran Premio Carlos Pellegrini-Internacional, South America's most prestigious race, is the first Breeders' Cup Challenge Series race of the 2023 season.
The Punisher ($22.70), a 3-year-old son of Cityscape out of O.k. Angie, by Orpen, is trained by Carlos D. Etchechoury and was ridden by Martin Valle. The victory brought Etchechoury his fourth win in the Carlos Pellegrini.
Breaking alertly from post 6 in a 15-horse field, The Punisher was rated off the rail by Valle in sixth place through the first 800 meters as two-time Group 1 winner Irwin set the pace along with Hacer Un Puente. El Musical, at 5-1, ranged up along the rail at the top of the stretch to engage the front-runner as Irwin began to fade. The Punisher began a concerted drive outside of the leaders and engaged El Musical in a furious stretch battle, passing his rival in the final yards to prevail by three-quarters of a length. El Cid Campeador finished third followed by Don Tigre in fourth and Irwin in fifth.
The Punisher completed the 1 ½ miles in 2:24.47 over a course listed as normal. It was his third win in six starts and his first Group 1 triumph. The Punisher finished third in the Gran Premio Jockey Club (G1) at San Isidro in his previous start on Oct. 15.
The Breeders' Cup Challenge Series is an international series of stakes races whose winners receive automatic starting positions and fees paid into a corresponding race of the 2023 Breeders' Cup World Championships, which is scheduled to be held on Nov. 3-4 at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California.
As a part of the benefits of the Challenge series, the Breeders' Cup will pay the entry fees for The Punisher to start in the 1 ½-mile Longines Breeders' Cup Turf. Breeders' Cup also will provide a $40,000 travel allowance for all starters based outside of North America to compete in the World Championships.
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Oaklawn: Bal Harbour Gives Diodoro Second Straight Tinsel Win, Pretty Birdie Goes Gate To Wire In Poinsettia
Trainer Robertino Diodoro, Oaklawn's leading trainer in 2020, is off to a fast start at the 2022-2023 meet, picking up his second stakes win since the Dec. 9 opening and his second straight $200,000 Tinsel Stakes victory on Saturday with John Holleman's Bal Harbour.
Last Saturday, Diodoro won the Mistletoe Stakes with Lovely Ride. He won the 2021 Tinsel Stakes with Lone Rock.
In this year's edition of the Tinsel, Bal Harbour broke on top and had his own way through early fractions of :23.53 and :47.41 for the first half mile. The 7-year-old First Samurai gelding, who held a 2 ½-length advantage entering the stretch had just enough left in the tank to hold off 2022 Oaklawn Handicap (G2) winner Last Samurai by a neck under jockey Cristian Torres. Scarlet Fusion was third with 6-5 favorite Run Classic a neck behind in fourth. The winning time was 1:49.22 over a fast track.
Bal Harbour was making just the second start for his connections after being claimed for $50,000 Sept. 5 at Saratoga. In his first start for Diodoro and Holleman, he had finished third in the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance Stakes at Keeneland Nov. 4. Overall, he has a record of 7-5-10 in 34 starts and has won $870,880. He returned $13.60.
Bred in Kentucky by Red Oak Stable, Bal Harbour was produced by the Carson City mare Casino Transaction.
Two races earlier, Marylou Whitney Stables' homebred Pretty Birdie won the $150,000 Poinsettia Stakes in front-running fashion to give trainer Norm Casse his second victory of the day. It was the second Oaklawn stakes victory for Casse and the 3-year-old filly, who won the Purple Martin Stakes in March during the 2021-2022 season.
Breaking from post seven under jockey David Cabrera, Pretty Birdie went right to the lead and set fractions of :22.34 and :45.81 for the first half mile. The winner was never seriously threatened as she easily won by two lengths over Sarah Harper in 1:03.46 for 5 ½ furlongs over a fast track. Carribean Caper, the slight 5-2 favorite, got up late for third.
Pretty Birdie, a Bird Song filly out of the Street Sense mare Bird Sense, won for the fourth time in nine career starts and has earned $462,388. She returned $10.60.
TINSEL STAKES QUOTES
Winning Jockey Cristian Torres (Bal Harbour): “There was only one horse with speed. I came to the paddock, and I told Robertino (Diodoro): 'The last time this horse won was on the lead. I'm going to take a chance and break and go.' It worked out perfectly. As soon as I mentioned it to him, he agreed completely. We took the race and we took the win.”
Winning Trainer Robertino Diodoro (Bal Harbour): “Nancy (Holthus) interviewed me yesterday. I wasn't being arrogant or anything. I just said: 'I know there's lot of speed on paper and that's really against us because we really want to be the speed.' But at the same time, I said we're not changing our running style. There's really no Plan B here. We're going to the front. Again, I wasn't being arrogant or anything. That's the way horse runs the best and I'm worried about my horse. I'm not going to worry about five other horses with speed. Told Cristian: 'Just go into the gate like we're the only speed. You have the attitude you're the only speed in the race and we're going to the front.'”
Trainer Bret Calhoun (beaten favorite Run Classic, fourth): “Brian (Hernandez) gave him a great ride. Great move into the first turn, switched outside and had him in a great spot all the way along. He (Run Classic) didn't seem to take him along like he has in some of his last few races. You could see he wasn't towing him up there. He was in a good spot and he just wasn't taking him there, like he has in his last few races. He warmed up great, had a great trip, great position. Just didn't fire his best race today.”
POINSETTIA STAKES QUOTES
Winning Jockey David Cabrera (Pretty Birdie): “I knew there was a lot of speed in the race. She's so quick out of the gates that, you just saw it today, she's so speedy out of the gates, I felt really comfortable. I saw there was a lot of speed, but I felt comfortable. I said, 'If somebody wants to take the lead, that's fine. We'll lay off of it.' She's gotten way more professional from earlier this year, so I felt really confident. Going into the race, I was like, 'She'll be all right.' We broke on top, I was like, 'What else can we ask for, right?'”
Winning trainer Norm Casse (Pretty Birdie): “I was very apprehensive going 5 1/2 (furlongs), that that would be a detriment today. But as long as she breaks on top, she's pretty damn fast. I think she's a much better filly than before. She was always very temperamental, was kind of nasty to be around. I say that with respect. After the break during the summer, she really became a much more professional horse. I just had a lot of confidence coming over today that we were going to run really big.”
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Practical Move Makes Move To Inside En Route To Los Alamitos Futurity Win
Pierre and Leslie Amestoy and Roger K. Beasley's Practical Move shook off rivals at the eighth pole and cruised clear to win the $200,000 Los Alamitos Futurity (G2) Saturday at Los Alamitos Race Course.
The Kentucky-bred Practical Joke colt, ridden by Ramon Vazquez for trainer Tim Yakteen, scored by 3 1/4 lengths while earning his first stakes victory.
Yakteen got the best of his former boss, Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, who saddled 60% of the field while seeking his eighth Futurity win in the nine years it has been run at Los Alamitos. Baffert had to settle for second, third, and fifth with his trio of Carmel Road, Fort Bragg and Arabian Lion, who disappointed in his first try around two turns, trailing as the 2-5 favorite.
Practical Move finished the 1 1/16-mile test in 1:41.65 on a fast track while notching the second win of his career. He came into Saturday's race off a third-place finish in the seven-furlong Bob Hope (G3) Nov. 20 at Del Mar.
The colt tracked pacesetter and runner-up Carmel Road and Arabian Lion from third down the backstretch and was guided inside Carmel Road near the five-sixteenths pole. He eagerly took charge at the quarter pole and raced clear of rivals with a furlong to run for the easy win.
Vazquez, who quadrupled Saturday to all but cement a sweep of the three local riding titles – he also led the Los Angeles County Fair and September meets earlier in the year – thinks the Futurity winner has a bright future.
“This is the first time I've ever been on this horse and he really impressed me,” Vazquez said of Practical Move. “He relaxed perfectly and then I had to make a decision turning for home whether to go inside or outside. When the leader (Carmel Road) drifted out a bit there was an opening. He came right through and gave me a very nice finish.''
After laying down fractions of :23.61 and :46.66 for a half-mile, Carmel Road held for second, 4 1/4 lengths in front of third-place finisher Fort Bragg. Tall Boy was fourth, and Arabian Lion faded to last in the five-horse field.
“He's been steadily improving race after race,” Yakteen said of Practical Move. “I'm definitely hoping that he's going to continue to get better as a 3-year-old and that's the impression he has been giving me.
“I'm surprised because we were going up against the king (Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, who had won this race seven of the first eight times it was run at Los Alamitos), but I'm not surprised because my horse was doing really well. That it all worked out is just fantastic. We had a great trip and I'm just thrilled to death with the horse and his effort today.
“This one's really special because Bob is a good friend, and we have a great relationship. I hate to take him down, but it ended up that I got the better of him today and he usually gets the better of me. We're just going to give the horse a breather now right now and regroup and then go from there.''
Practical Move returned $23.20. His career line stands at 2-1-2 from five lifetime starts. The $120,000 winner's share of the Lo Alamitos Futurity purse increased his career purse earnings to $194,200.
Bred by Chad Brown and Head of Plains Partners, Practical Move is out of the Afleet Alex mare Ack Naughty. He was a $230,000 purchase from consignor Eisaman Equine at the Ocala Breeders' Sale Co. Spring Two-Year-Olds in Training Sale.
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