Tag: Racing

Town and Country Racing's Temple City Terror, perfectly handled by Jose Ortiz, rallied to a comfortable 1 1/2-length score in Friday's $300,000 Long Island (G3), an 11-furlong inner turf test for fillies and mares at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Trained by Brendan Walsh, the 6-year-old daughter of Temple City paid immediate dividends for her new connections, who purchased Temple City Terror for $600,000 at the recently concluded Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.

Walsh said he was pleased to have the veteran mare return to his stable following the sale.

“We were delighted. She's a barn favorite and you have these horses for so many years and you become very attached to them as do all your staff,” Walsh said. “She's a credit to all of them as much as me. They've done a great job with her to keep her going and stay sound for this long.”

Temple City Terror, who made the grade last out in the Grade 3 Dowager at Keeneland, saved ground at the back of the pack as longshot Big Time Lady set splits of :24.72 and :50.19 over the firm footing. The Manny Franco-piloted Rocky Sky, one of three Chad Brown trainees in the six-horse field, tracked in second with stablemates Kalifornia Queen and Capital Structure in third and fourth, respectively, through three-quarters in 1:15.70.

Kalifornia Queen surged up the rail into the final turn as Big Time Lady tired and checked out sharply causing the Irad Ortiz Jr.-piloted Capital Structure to take up. A patient Ortiz saved ground with Temple City Terror through the turn and avoided the trouble before tipping out to pass Kalifornia Queen and take aim at Rocky Sky.

Temple City Terror, full of run, easily overtook Rocky Sky at the furlong marker and drew off to win in a final time of 2:15.56. Rocky Sky completed the exacta by 6 3/4-lengths over Kalifornia Queen with Capital Structure, Tic Tic Tic Boom and Big Time Lady completing the order of finish. A stewards inquiry and a claim of foul by Ortiz into the incident at the three-eighths pole resulted in no change.

Ortiz said a clean trip proved beneficial.

“We got a great trip and then it was a bit of a mess with the horses in front of me at the three-eighths pole, but that honestly helped me and cleared the way for me,” Ortiz said. “She has a beautiful turn of foot and when I wanted to go, she was there for me. I was just the pilot and she was much the best. I just hand rode her and I knew she had it.”

Temple City Terror has enjoyed a solid 6-year-old campaign, including a successful title defense in the Keertana in May at Churchill Downs and a game second to multiple Grade 1-winner War Like Goddess in the Grade 2 Flower Bowl in September at Saratoga Race Course.

Shannon Potter, CEO of Town and Country Racing, said it was Walsh that convinced the new connections to continue racing the classy mare.

“She showed us today that she's not done,” Potter said. “We'll continue to see what happens. Running her as a 7-year-old is not out of the question now.

“Brendan's team has done a wonderful job with her. All the credit goes to them,” Potter added. “We bought in within the last month. He gets all the credit, just telling us what to do. And now, as he says, she's getting better with age and keeps rolling. We'll probably keep going with her through Gulfstream Park.”

Bred in Kentucky by Upson Downs Farm, Temple City Terror banked $165,000 in victory while improving her record to 29-7-5-5 for purse earnings of $861,218. She returned $3.30 for a $2 win ticket.

The post ‘She Showed Us Today That She’s Not Done’: Recently Purchased Temple City Terror Makes Case To Keep Racing With Long Island Win appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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My Racehorse Stable and Spendthrift Farm's Sixtythreecaliber fended off a strong late rally from favorite Kathleen O. to score the first graded win of her career in Friday's $175,000 Comely (G3) for sophomore fillies at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Trained by Tom Amoss, Sixtythreecaliber extended her win streak to three-in-a-row after a last-out victory in the Seneca Overnight on Sept. 24 at Churchill Downs and an optional claiming score in August at Horseshoe Indianapolis with Edgar Morales in the irons. It was her second attempt at a graded victory, her other effort a distant fourth-place finish in the Grade 3 Indiana Oaks in July.

“She's a filly that has really improved from her first start to now, and I'm fortunate enough to work for the My Racehorse group that gave me the time to work with her and never pressured me into when I was going to run,” Amoss said. “Her races are fairly spread out. She's a horse that has started – with all due respect to the other racetracks – in more minor league types of races, speaking comparatively to the New York racing circuit. But she is certainly no minor league horse. She used those races to build confidence and it showed up today.”

With Kendrick Carmouche up for the first time, Sixtythreecaliber broke from post 2 and settled in second behind Tizzy in the Sky, who stumbled slightly from the outermost post 8 and rushed up to lead the field to the first turn through an opening quarter-mile in :24.63 over the fast main track.

Positions remained unchanged down the backstretch as Tizzy in the Sky completed the half-mile in 49.94, but the dynamics soon changed as Carmouche roused his mount for more and went on even terms with the pacesetter as the pair rounded the turn. Kathleen O., last-of-7 under a patient ride from Hall of Famer Javier Castellano, made steady progression into the turn and by the stretch call, was within striking range of her two rivals up front.

Sixtythreecaliber took a clear advantage into the stretch and soundly put away a tiring Tizzy in the Sky, but was quickly challenged by a closing Kathleen O. down the center of the racetrack. With strong encouragement from Carmouche, Sixtythreecaliber gamely fended off her determined foe to secure the half-length victory in a final time of 1:53.89 for the 1 1/8 miles on the fast main track.

The late-running Morning Matcha held onto show honors by a neck over Falconet, with Tizzy in the Sky, Skratch Kat, and Nostalgic rounding out the order of finish. Pistol Liz Ablazen was scratched.

Carmouche said he was able to establish his position when Tizzy and the Sky and Falconet did not show their usual speed.

“I had a perfect trip. I just wanted to make sure I used my inside post good,” said Carmouche. “I didn't see both speed horses outside break good outside and once the one cleared [Tizzy in the Sky] me, I just put her in the clear because that's the way she's run all the races when she won. I didn't want to take that away from her.

“Going down the backside at the half-mile, I reached and grabbed her and she jumped on the bit,” Carmouche added. “I looked underneath my arms and knew I had to wait a little bit longer and then I pulled the trigger because nine times out of ten on this track, as deep as it is, it takes a lot of strides for a horse to catch up with you. At the sixteenth pole, she kind of waited and then as soon as she saw that horse [Kathleen O.] she pinned her ears and went right back at it again.”

Bred in Kentucky by Lee Pokoik, Sixtythreecaliber was a $250,000 purchase at the 2020 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. The bay daughter of Gun Runner became the 10th graded stakes winner for her red-hot sire and banked $96,250 while improving her record to 7-5-0-0. She returned $24.40 for a $2 win wager.

Amoss said a next start is still to be determined for Sixtythreecaliber.

“I really haven't thought beyond this race. She's now a graded stakes winner which speaks to her value off the racetrack,” said Amoss. “She's got to be by one of the hottest sires of our time in Gun Runner. The My Racehorse management crew and I will get together and go from there. She will leave New York and go back to Kentucky in the next couple of days. She'll come to Fair Grounds and that's where she'll train. Where we go after that will be decided by what races come up after Jan. 1.”

Castellano praised the effort from the multiple graded stakes-winning Kathleen O., who made her first start off a six-month layoff after finishing fifth in the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks for Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey.

“She did really well but it seemed to me the two horses that had speed outside didn't go,” said Castellano. “The pace was very slow in 49 and change and 1:15. For those type of horses, they're walking nearly every single step of the way. My horse is a come-from-behind horse and you can tell the way she did it today, she responded so well.

“I'm satisfied how she did it and I'm happy she came back in good order,” Castellano continued. “I think this is the first step back for her. Unfortunately, the way the race developed today, it was hard for horses to come from behind but still, she almost did. With a little more pace, we'd be right there. Most importantly, she came back good and I'm looking forward to the long term.”

The post Sixtythreecaliber Fires In Comely For First Graded Stakes Victory appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Reeves Thoroughbred Racing's Acoustic Ave secured his third consecutive stakes score, outdueling favored D'ont Lose Cruz to the wire in Friday's $100,000 Notebook, a six-furlong sprint for New York-bred juveniles, at Aqueduct Racetrack.

The dramatic stretch run kicked off the first of four stakes on a lucrative nine-race card that also features the $300,000 Long Island (G3) in Race 6; the $175,000 Comely (G3) in Race 7; and the $150,000 Aqueduct Turf Sprint Championship in Race 8.

Trained by Christophe Clement and piloted by Manny Franco, the Maclean's Music chestnut was off a step slow and tracked in second as the Irad Ortiz Jr.-piloted D'ont Lose Cruz blitzed through splits of :23.38 and :47.59 over the fast main track. Acoustic Ave pressed to the outside of the pacesetter into the turn as Starquist advanced to third position and angled off the rail for the stretch run.

Acoustic Ave and D'ont Lose Cruz went eye-to-eye for the stretch run with both competitors digging in gamely, but the more seasoned colt pulled away in the final jumps to prevail by a half-length in a final time of 1:13.68. D'ont Lose Cruz held second by a head over the hard-charging Starquist with Flashy Alex and Mshindi rounding out the order of finish. General Banker was scratched.

It was a record third Notebook score for Clement, who won this race previously with Sea Foam [2017] and Senbei – last year's New York-bred champion 2-year-old male, who is co-owned by Reeves Thoroughbred Racing and Darlene Bilinski.

“He has a tremendous amount of life and a great level of energy,” Clement said. “I love the fact that Manny did not actually have to chase the speed. He just sat off the pace and the horse responded. He was game and finished all the way until the end.”

Franco said he resorted to the backup plan after the sluggish start.

“He kind of broke a step slow and my plan was to go [to the lead], but it was perfect,” Franco said. “The four horse [D'ont Lose Cruz] was clear and we went around him and then he did the rest.

“I like him when he's on the front end, but today he sat off another horse and that was good,” added Franco. “I like him and he fights hard.”

Ortiz said D'ont Lose Cruz, who entered from an impressive gate-to-wire maiden win at Aqueduct on October 27, was hard to handle down the lane.

“My horse broke good and did everything right. He just got beat down the lane,” Ortiz said. “He wasn't helping me too much with drifting a little. I had to fight with him the whole stretch.”

Acoustic Ave, a $200,000 OBS Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training purchase, has made all five of his career starts against fellow state-breds, graduating on debut in July at Saratoga Race Course ahead of a distant third in a muddy and sealed edition of the Spa's Funny Cide won by well-regarded Andiamo a Firenze. He entered the Notebook from back-to-back wins at Finger Lakes, romping by 9 1/4-lengths in the Aspirant in September ahead of a last-out nose score over Andiamo a Firenze in the New York Breeders' Futurity on October 26 that the third-place finisher, Stonewall Star, exited to win the Key Cents here last weekend.

“He's a 2-year-old with five starts and three stakes wins. He's obviously very tough in his own division,” Clement said. “We'll more than likely put him away for the winter and bring him back in the spring and see what happens. He's a fun horse. He's very game as you can see. He was very game in his last race and he was very game today as well.”

Bred in the Empire State by Chester and Mary Broman, Acoustic Ave is out of the Street Boss mare Rock Ave. Road, who is a half sister to stakes winner Can You Diggit. He banked $55,000 in victory while improving his record to 5-4-0-1. Acoustic Ave returned $5.60 for a $2 win ticket.

The post ‘He Fights Hard’: Acoustic Ave Edges Past Tenacious Rival Late To Win Notebook appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Millionaire Santin, who ships in from Kentucky to try his luck in the $250,000 Seabiscuit Handicap (G2) Saturday, looms as the one to beat in the nine-horse lineup for the Thanksgiving weekend headliner at Del Mar.

The son of Distorted Humor figures strongly in the 1 1/16-mile turf test, which has drawn  a competitive field of nine.

Santin ran previously at Del Mar last year as a 3-year-old in the Hollywood Derby (G1) and finished a neck second to Beyond Brilliant, who he'll face again Saturday. Also in the hunt is another millionaire, the speedy 5-year-old horse Smooth Like Strait. Then, just to make the stew extra spicy, a pair of last-out stakes winners in Masteroffoxhounds and Hong Kong Harry, as well as another stakes-winning Kentucky shipper in Set Piece also are entered.

All in all, it adds up to one of the most intriguing races Del Mar fans are likely to see this fall.

Santin has a bankroll that reads $1,449,600. Among his four victories is the Arlington Million (G1), run this year at a special meet at Churchill Downs on August 13. The bay also captured the Turf Classic (G1) at Churchill on May 7. He's trained by veteran Brendan Walsh.

Beyond Brilliant is a triple stakes winner who has earned $726,780 under the care of conditioner John Shirreffs. His most recent tally was the City of Hope Mile (G2) at Santa Anita on October 1.

Smooth Like Strait rarely runs a bad race and has 19 in-the-money finishes in 23 outings, good for $1,795,573 in winnings. The quick son of former sprint champion Midnight Lute knows only one way to go – to the front – and no doubt will be the one they'll all have to catch Saturday. He's trained by Mike McCarthy.

Masteroffoxhounds is a last-out winner, having captured the John Henry Turf Championship (G2) at Santa Anita on October 1. His stablemate, Hong Kong Harry, also is a last-out winner, proving best in the Del Mar Mile (G2) on September 3. Both horses are trained by Phil D'Amato.

Set Piece was shipped west by top trainer Brad Cox. The 6-year-old Dansili gelding is an 11-time winner who sports a bankroll of $919,573.

The full field for Seabiscuit from the rail out with owners, riders, morning line odds: Godolphin's Santin, Umberto Rispoli, 3-1; Rockingham Ranch's Masteroffoxhounds (Mike Smith, 12-1); Anastasi, Ukegawa or Valazza's Hong Kong Harry (Flavien Prat, 7-2); Cannon Thoroughbreds' Smooth Like Strait (John Velazquez, 4-1); C R K Stable's Beyond Brilliant (Victor Espinoza, 4-1); Supreme Racing or Rockingham Ranch's Lincoln Hawk (Joe Bravo, 20-1); Pozo de Luna's Irideo (Hector Berrios, 10-1); Juddmonte's Set Piece (Juan Hernandez, 5-1), and BBN Racing's Kentucky Ghost (Ramon Vazques, 20-1).

Seabiscuit was one of America's great racehorses. He took part in a famed match race at Del Mar in 1938 that helped put the fledging track on the map. It also was the forerunner of his match race at Pimlico with Triple Crown winner War Admiral. “The Biscuit” won them both.

The post Millionaires Santin, Smooth Like Strait Among Nine To Square Off In Del Mar’s Seabiscuit appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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