Reddam Racing | Horse Racing Free Tips

Second Chances: Ambivalent

In this continuing series, TDN’s Senior Editor Steve Sherack catches up with the connections of promising maidens to keep on your radar.

After kicking off his career with a promising runner-up effort at Santa Anita last month, the highly regarded 2-year-old Ambivalent (Constitution) will look to go one better at the upcoming Del Mar meeting.

“Being a son of Constitution, which is just a huge feather in your cap, he’s a horse that we’ve been excited about from day one,” two-time GI Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Doug O’Neill said.

Purchased for $550,000 by Reddam Racing at OBS March after gliding through a quarter in :20 4/5 from the Wavertree Stables consignment, the long-striding dark bay was sent off as the 2-1 second choice in his unveiling going 4 1/2 furlongs June 21 (video).

Outfooted in fourth in the early stages, Ambivalent traveled nicely on the inside behind the top three approaching the quarter pole. Kept along the fence by Mario Gutierrez as the front-running Weston (Hit It a Bomb) left the rail open as they straightened, Ambivalent continued on nicely while scraping the paint down the lane and reported home 1 1/4 lengths adrift the sharp pacesetter.

“He acts like the longer, the better,” O’Neill said. “He didn’t have the cleanest of trips in his debut, and going 4 1/2, it’s hard to win if you don’t have a real good, clean trip. I thought he ran dynamite. The goal is July 18–it’s the second straight maiden at Del Mar going 5 1/2, so he’ll have an extra furlong to navigate, which should benefit him.”

Bred in Kentucky by J. Stephen McDonald, Ambivalent was a $95,000 KEESEP yearling purchase by Red Wings prior to bringing the second-highest price for a colt in Ocala this March. He was produced by a Smart Strike-winning daughter of MGSW Roshani (Fantastic Light).

Ambivalent returned to the worktab with an easy three-furlong breeze in :36.40 (2/5) in Arcadia July 1.

“He’s doing really well,” O’Neill concluded. “We just put a little easy breeze into him and he’s down at Del Mar now. We’re hoping to breeze him this Friday, that’s the game plan. He came out of his debut in good shape. Like all these athletes, you just got to keep them injury free. The sky’s the limit with this guy. He’s got a real bright future.”

Previous standouts featured in ‘Second Chances’ include: GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby winner Honor A. P. (Honor Code), Royal Ascot G2 Norfolk S. runner-up Golden Pal (Uncle Mo), MGISW and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Paradise Woods (Union Rags), GSW Backyard Heaven (Tizway), MSW and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Gidu (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) and GII Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth S. runner-up Candy Tycoon (Twirling Candy).

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Sunday’s Racing Insights

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2nd-BEL, $64K, Msw, 2yo, 5 1/2f, 1:50 p.m.

Wesley Ward has a pair of Keeneland-based juveniles entered in this spot. Breeze Easy’s Roderick (Into Mischief) was a $550,000 KEESEP yearling and is a full-brother to two-turn GSW One Liner. He hails from the extended female family of highest-level winners Albertus Maximus, Daredevil and King Charlemagne. Roderick’s stablemate Copley (Air Force Blue) is from a Ned Evans family that includes the likes of Grade I winners Swagger Jack and Malibu Prayer. Winfromwithin (Into Mischief), just a $100,000 September yearling, was produced by a half-sister to turf MGSW and MGISP Shakis (Ire) (Machiavellian). Zebra Cake (Runhappy), yet another September buy ($200,000), is out of a half to GSW Mo Tom (Uncle Mo) and SW and MGISP juvenile Beautician (Dehere). Further down the page is talented GII Black-Eyed Susan S. winner Red Ruby (Tiznow). Peter Vegso homebred Berhanu (The Factor) is out of a debut and stakes-winning full-sister to GSW juvneile Aegean (Northern Afleet). TJCIS PPs

3rd-SA, $50K, Msw, 2yo, 4 1/2f, 4:30 p.m.

Doug O’Neill-trained Ambivalent (Constitution) was a $95,000 KEESEP yearling turned $550,000 OBS March juvenile–the fourth-highest price paid at that auction–off a powerful :20 4/5 breeze. The Reddam Racing colorbearer is a grandson of MGSW turfer Roshani (Fantastic Light). TJCIS PPs

11th-SA, $50K, Msw, 3yo/up, f/m, 6 1/2f, 8:33 p.m.

Bob Baffert will saddle a pair of well-bred fillies here. Newcomer Provocation (Into Mischief), a $350,000 OBS April pick-up last year (:20 3/5), is out of GISW Meadow Breeze (Meadowlake), making her a half to ‘TDN Rising Star‘ and turf GSW Magic Star (Scat Daddy) and GISP juvenile Royal Copy (Bodemeister). Meadow Breeze is half to GISW Overanalyze (Dixie Union), GISP Majesto (Tiznow) and GSP Mighty Monsoon (Forestry). Grand Farm Family’s Himiko (American Pharoah), a $1-million Fasig-Tipton November weanling, was eighth with some trouble when debuting in a turf sprint here May 16. She’s a half to the talented GISW and fellow Baffert pupil Bodemeister (Empire Maker). GSW and GISP dam Untouched Talent (Storm Cat), a $5,000,000 Fasig-Tipton November seller in 2012, is also responsible for MGISP Fascinating (Smart Strike). Himiko shares a second dam in MGSW Parade Queen (A.P. Indy) with last week’s GI Ogden Phipps S. heroine She’s a Julie (Elusive Quality).TJCIS PPs

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‘Exceptional’ Workouts Have Fore Left Ready For Belmont Stakes

Trainer Doug O'Neill has been highly impressed with the way Fore Left has been training, which is why he decided to alter course with the son of Twirling Candy and enter in the Grade 1, $1 million Belmont Stakes on Saturday.

Owned by Reddam Racing, Fore Left has been training forwardly at Belmont Park alongside a string of about a dozen horses that the southern California-based conditioner has kept in New York. In his first work over the Elmont oval, Fore Left drilled through five furlongs in 59.05 seconds over the main track on June 4.

Fore Left has recorded one start in 2020, which was an overseas stakes triumph in the Group 3 United Arab Emirates 2000 Guineas on February 5 at Meydan Racecourse. No stranger to stakes success over Big Sandy, Fore Left won the Tremont as a 2-year-old last season on the eve of the Belmont Stakes.

To properly account for the schedule adjustments and overall calendar for 3-year-olds in training, the race will be run at a distance of 1 1/8-miles, as opposed to its usual 1 1/2-mile distance. O'Neill believes that the distance change of the race will be to his horse's benefit.

“His last two works over the track were exceptional,” O'Neill said. “He's settled in well over there and he has a win over the track. He's just maturing into a really nice 3-year-old and I think that a one-turn mile and an eighth is going to be great for him. He wouldn't be up for a mile and a half right now.”

Of the three American Classics, the Belmont Stakes is the only one which O'Neill has not yet won. He won the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby twice with I'll Have Another (2012) and Nyquist (2016) with the former of the two winning the Grade 1 Preakness Stakes in his respective year.

O'Neill's lone Belmont Stakes starter was Blended Citizen, who ran ninth in 2018 to Triple Crown-winner Justify.

“It's one of the most prestigious races and even family and friends with very little to no knowledge of racing is familiar with the Belmont Stakes and it's an honor to be a part of it,” O'Neill said. “It's on all of our bucket lists and Paul and Zillah are pumped to have a horse good enough to compete. More than anything, we're just listening to the horse and he's showing us that he's ready.”

Boasting a consistent 9-4-0-2 record, Fore Left has won all four of his starts in wire-to-wire fashion. O'Neill said that the horse doesn't have to have the lead in Saturday's test, but that he will be in the front tier of horses in the early portion of the race.

“He's got gate speed and he'll without a doubt be forwardly placed. I like the fact that we drew the outside to some opposing speed in the race,” O'Neill said.

Fore Left spent the winter in Dubai, where O'Neill kept a small string of horses. The trainer praised the horse's maturation and development during his time in the Middle East.

“He came back fantastic,” O'Neill said. “We had around 12 horses over there for about three months. As opposed to a usual trip to Dubai where you ship in for the week and then ship out, he was over there for quite a while and he's really flourished and matured with his time out there.”

Bred in Kentucky by Machmer Hall, Fore Left is out of the Unbridled's Song broodmare Simply Sunny. He will receive the riding services of Jose Ortiz, who guided Tapwrit to victory in the 2017 Belmont Stakes.

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Fore Left Joins Belmont Field

Reddam Racing’s Fore Left (Twirling Candy), winner of the G2 UAE 2000 Guineas at Meydan in February, has been added to the field for Saturday’s GI Belmont S. The colt had been expected to go postward in Saturday’s seven-furlong GI Woody Stephens S.

“Fore Left has settled in and is training really well over the Belmont surface,” said trainer Doug O’Neill, confirming the story first reported by Daily Racing Form‘s Dave Grenig. “He’s coming off a really strong performance in Dubai and we really like the one-turn 1 1/8-miles layout and the lack of a lot of speed projected in there.”

Fore Left, third in last year’s GII Best Pal S., has not started since the Feb. 6 UAE Guineas. He has worked twice at Belmont Park this month, going five furlongs in :59.05 (1/19) June 4 and six furlongs in 1:12.52 (2/2) June 13.

“If we’re ever going to take a shot with him, he’s telling us that now is the time,” O’Neill said. “I’m optimistic he’ll put in a solid effort under Jose Ortiz.”

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