Runhappy Colt Nicky The Vest ‘Ran A Good Number’ Winning Debut For Jonathan Thomas

Robert LaPenta's Nicky the Vest impressed trainer Jonathan Thomas in his career debut win in the finale on Friday's program, where he led gate-to-wire in securing a 3 ¼-length triumph under Kendrick Carmouche in a time of 1:40.67.

Bred in New York by Highclere, the juvenile son of freshman sire Runhappy garnered an 82 Beyer first out against his Empire State-bred counterparts at odds of 5-1 going a one-turn mile.

Thomas has not thought past Nicky the Vest's debut victory but will sort out his options and expressed excitement in what the future holds.

“The scenario played out well and the horse did everything you could ask a firster to do,” Thomas said. “We're still going to see how he comes out of his race. I'm sure we'll keep options open and see how things shake out. He ran a good number, a good number no matter the company. We're really happy with what we saw the other day. He had been training nicely in the morning, so it was good to see that replicated in the afternoon.”

Nicky the Vest is out of the Cat Thief mare Tazarine, whose six offspring of racing age are all winners. He was purchased for $110,000 from the 2019 OBS October Yearling Sale from consigner Stuart Morris.

The post Runhappy Colt Nicky The Vest ‘Ran A Good Number’ Winning Debut For Jonathan Thomas appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Fourth Time’s A Charm: Whitmore Stages Bold Rally To Win Breeders’ Cup Sprint

In a career that's seen him do just about everything, Whitmore ticked one of the few boxes left to check on Saturday at Keeneland with a convincing score in his fourth attempt at the Breeders' Cup Sprint.

The 7-year-old Pleasantly Perfect gelding settled in the middle of the pack across the backstretch as Japanese longshot Jasper Prince shot to the lead from one of the outside posts, followed a couple lengths back by Empire of Gold and favorite Yaupon. Jasper Prince and jockey Jose Ortiz led the field through an opening quarter-mile in :21.64 seconds, and he continued to guide it to the half-mile mark in :44.66 seconds.

As the field turned for home, Empire of Gold drew up to the outside of Jasper Prince, while a crush of horses ran behind them trying to stage a stretch drive. Those potential challengers bottlenecked in the stretch, which opened up a seam for jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. to continue a rail rally he'd begun staging in the turn. As Jasper Prince faded, Irad Ortiz took his mount off the rail to pass the tiring pacesetter, and swung three-wide to take aim on upset candidate Empire of Gold.

Whitmore's momentum blew him past Empire of Gold as they passed the eighth pole, and he was well clear by the final sixteenth. He crossed the wire 3 1/4 lengths ahead of a steadily-gaining C Z Rocket, who was himself a neck ahead of Firenze Fire on the rail. Empire of Gold carried on for fourth, three-quarters of a length behind Firenze Fire.

Whitmore won the six-furlong Breeders' Cup Sprint in 1:08.61 over a fast main track at Keeneland. He paid $38.80 to win.

Ron Moquett trains the winner, and he co-owns the gelding with Robert LaPenta, and Head of Plains Partners. The Sprint was Moquett's first Breeders' Cup win in six attempts.

Four of those tries have come with Whitmore in the Sprint. He finished eighth in the 2017 edition, then finished second and third in the years that followed.

What Whitmore has become runs in stark contrast to the early years of his six-year career, when he was groomed to be a classic contender. After consistently performing well on the Oaklawn Park branch of the Triple Crown trail, he was entered in the 2016 Kentucky Derby, where he finished second-to-last. He was moved to the sprint ranks after the Derby, and established his place as one of the division's top runners for the years to come.

The 7-year-old Whitmore is a Kentucky-bred son of Pleasantly Perfect out of the Scat Daddy mare Melody's Spirit. The victory was worth $1,100,000 and boosted his earnings to $4,307,850 with a record of 38-15-11-3. It is his second Grade 1 victory to go with a score in the 2018 Forego at Saratoga. 

To view the full chart, click here.

Race Quotes: 

Winning trainer Ron Moquett (Whitmore) – “I said in the pre-race interview that whenever there are this many track records, it's almost impossible to think a closer is going to do well. For him to run against the bias the way he did and the patience of the rider, the willingness to listen, it all worked out. I'm so proud of the horse, proud for the connections. I'm proud for everyone out there that's thinking when you run last in the Kentucky Derby, kick them out, do right by the horse come back, and you have a shot to reach other dreams. You don't discard them. You just do right by the horse and it keeps working out.

“I'm just grateful. Grateful for the horse. Grateful to everyone that sends me well wishes and congratulations after the race. Just grateful.”

Winning jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. (Whitmore) – “He had a great trip. We wanted to break and have him relax and that's what we did. He relaxed so good. I was able to cut the corner on the turn and when I tipped him out he just exploded. He's a nice horse. He's been running for so many years. He's a warrior.”

Second-place trainer Peter Miller (C Z Rocket) –“He ran his eyeballs out. I think the draw really hurt us. If we drew where Whitmore drew, I think it's a different deal, but that's horse racing. We had to ride him away from there and that's not the way he really wants to run, but he had no choice on this speed-favoring racetrack. From the inside, you don't want to get shuffled back to last. He rode a super race. It was just circumstance. Speed favoring track and an inside draw on a horse who wants to sit and doesn't want to be ridden away from there, but I couldn't be prouder of the horse. He's shown up every time we ran him.”

Second-place jockey Luis Saez (C Z Rocket) – “He had a beautiful trip. I thought he was going to win but he just kind of stayed there. But he ran a nice race.” 

Third-place jockey Jose Lezcano (Firenze Fire) – “We kind of lost a little bit of contact early. The pace was very fast early and he was a little bit more behind than I wanted to be. From the five-sixteenths to the three-sixteenths I didn't have any place to go. I was waiting and waiting and when I really asked him to go he gave me a good kick. He really came running. If we could have gotten a little clear earlier we would have been right there.  He gave me a good race.” 

Eighth-place jockey Joel Rosario (Yaupon, favorite) – “Coming out of the gate he kind of hesitated for a little bit. I think that cost the chances for us to probably win the race.” 

The post Fourth Time’s A Charm: Whitmore Stages Bold Rally To Win Breeders’ Cup Sprint appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

One More Race for the Partners in a `Horse of a Lifetime’

After Uni (GB) (More Than Ready)’s five-year-old campaign which concluded in the Champion Turf Female award, bloodstock advisors suggested to the partners in her ownership group that it might be time to retire and sell her. After all, the owners had probably already gotten more than they had bargained for: they  had campaigned her at 3, 4, and 5, and watched her win three Grade I stakes as well as Grade II, Grade III and Listed events.

But, “Sol and I are and Bobby are racing guys,” said Michael Dubb of the decision made by him and partners Sol Kumin and Bob LaPenta to bring her back for one more year. “We want to race and she’s six years old now. Typically these broodmares are retired at five. And against the advice of bloodstock agents, we went ahead and raced her at six years old because we had so much fun winning the Breeders’ Cup once with her, and so we said, “Why not try to do it again?” So she will be pointing to the Breeders’ Cup at Keeneland–the mile race against the boys.”

The decision to keep her in training for one more year has already proven to be a sound one, as Uni picked up her fourth Grade I win in Keeneland’s First Lady last out, had another Grade I placing earlier in the year, and has earned almost a quarter-million dollars in 2020. She’ll head into the Breeders’ Cup Mile as one of the top choices before selling at Fasig-Tipton November as Hip 228 for Elite Sales.

For Dubb, there’s another reason to keep her around for this year’s Breeders’ Cup: he was unable to see her 2019 win in person, and instead watched it on his iPhone standing on 10th Street in Manhattan.

“I could not be there last year because it was my daughter’s engagement party in New York City,” said Dubb. “I had to walk out of the restaurant and watch the race on my iPhone leaning on the hood of somebody’s car. And fortunately, my son walked out to see what his crazy dad was doing and to see the bedlam that was ensuing on 10th Street when the horse crossed the wire and made that tremendous come-from-behind run. So that was truly the greatest moment, but there have been so many with Uni.”

Uni was bred by Nicolas de Chambure’s Haras d’Etreham, and Dubb and Kumin bought into her early in her three-year-old year on the recommendation of Nicolas de Watrigant and Bradley Weisbord. She remained in France for her two races for the new ownership group, winning the Prix Matchem at Maisons-Laffitte against colts. Transferred to Chad Brown’s barn at Belmont in June, 2017, she was third first out in the GI Belmont Oaks Invitational. The new owners bought out de Chambure, added Bob LaPenta to their group, and were off to the races.

Since that time, Uni has been consistently brilliant, winning four Grade Is, turning in a perfect four-for-four year in 2018, and was three-for-four in 2019 with a Breeders’ Cup win. Overall, she has won 10 of 17 starts and earned over $2.5 million.

Her win in the Breeders’ Cup Mile against males puts her in a rarefied air, as she joined some of the great race fillies and mares of all time in the feat, including Miesque, Goldikova and Tepin, becoming just the seventh filly or mare to win the race.

Her consistency and durability have been defining qualities, with her owners enjoying successful three, four, five and six-year-old seasons with her.

“We’ve watched and enjoyed Uni over an extended period of time,” said Fasig-Tipton CEO Boyd Browning. “She has maintained her form at the Grade I level for four seasons now. It was really interesting and really cool to see the performance that she put on recently in the First Lady, coming back and winning another Grade I in 2020 against an outstanding field. She’s been durable, she’s been consistent, but she’s also been brilliant. Those are certainly some of the characteristics that everyone’s looking for from a broodmare prospect with the potential that she would have on a long-term basis.”

Moreover, said Browning, she offers a rather unique pedigree.

“One of the things that’s really intriguing about Uni is her pedigree,” he said. “Not only is she by More Than Ready, who’s certainly become a sire who has had worldwide great success, both in the Northern and Southern Hemisphere, but she’s out of a Dansili (GB) mare whose dam is by Generous. I think that you’ve got a really unique opportunity to kind of craft and create your own vision to utilize those bloodlines.

“It’s a great outcross pedigree, and it’s a family full of significant runners for many, many, many generations. But you’ve really got an opportunity to kind of put your fingerprint on it, and create a legacy that should hopefully endure for generations to come.”

For Dubb and his partners, though, enjoying her for these past four seasons has been the ride of a lifetime.

“Looking forward, we hope she can be a two-time winner against the boys of the Breeders’ Cup Mile,” he said. “And I will be at the Breeders’ Cup with my binoculars in my hands, cheering and clapping. But whether she does it or not, she has given us indescribable pleasure and joy.

“If you’re in the game as long as I am,” Dubb said, “this kind of horse sticks out. She’s really special. She’s the horse of a lifetime.”

The post One More Race for the Partners in a `Horse of a Lifetime’ appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

$2 Million Tapit Colt Headlines Day 2 Of Keeneland September Yearling Sale

A partnership of Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Robert LaPenta, Gainesway, and Winchell Thoroughbreds paid $2 million for a colt by leading sire Tapit out of Grade 1 winner Tara's Tango to top Monday's second session of the Keeneland September Yearling Sale, which was marked by competitive bidding and the sale of nine yearlings for $1 million or more.

For today's final session of the two-day premier Book 1, Keeneland sold 100 yearlings for $44,535,000, for an average of $445,350 and a median of $360,000. Cumulatively, 209 horses have grossed $85,215,000, for an average of $407,727 and a median of $330,000. Fourteen yearlings sold for $1 million or more through the first two sessions and were purchased by 13 different domestic and international buyers.

Monday's session closed with four million-dollar horses sold within the last 11 hip numbers.

“It was a frantic end to the session, and we appreciate Barbara Banke for her support of Keeneland and congratulate her on having another top-priced horse,” Keeneland Director of Sales Operations Geoffrey Russell said, referring to the breeder of the session topper. “Under the current circumstances, we are very pleased with the session. We are back to that great intensity of bidding, the going back and forth. The atmosphere and electricity returned, so that is wonderful.”

“For 30 minutes at the end of the sale we felt like there was no COVID,” Keeneland President-Elect and Interim Head of Sales Shannon Arvin said.

Eaton Sales, agent for Banke's Stonestreet Bred & Raised, consigned the session topper. By Unbridled's Song, Tara's Tango is a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Visionaire and Grade 3 winners Scarlet Strike and Madison's Luna.

Aron Wellman of Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners signed the ticket for the colt.

“Partnerships are so prevalent in today's market,” Wellman said. “It is wild to think how far partnerships have come. We had a fabulous relationship with Cot Campbell of Dogwood Stable going back to when Eclipse first started. To think how the partnership model has evolved and that now we as a partnership company are partnering with moguls in the industry. It speaks volumes.

“Barbara Banke has been gracious about staying in as a partner,” he continued. “She adores this colt. Hopefully between all of us we have plenty of good mojo. All I care about is that you are interviewing our partnership after (the colt) wins a Grade 1.”

Larry Best's OXO Equine acquired a filly by Into Mischief for $1.9 million. Consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency, agent, she is out of the stakes-winning Medaglia d'Oro mare Taylor S, a half-sister to Grade 1 winner and sire Liam's Map and Grade 3 winner and sire Not This Time.

“Book 1 has been unbelievably strong,” said Best, who paid $1 million for an Into Mischief colt on Sunday. “It blew away my expectations. Keeneland should be very happy.”

Taylor Made was the session's leading consignor, recording sales of $6.92 million for 14 horses.

Three of Monday's seven-figure horses are by Into Mischief, sire of recent Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve winner Authentic. Into Mischief was the leading sire by gross on Monday, with 11 yearlings selling for $8.25 million. He is also the leading sire by gross for Book 1, represented by 20 yearlings that brought $13,085,000.

Another three of day's top-priced horses are by Medaglia d'Oro.

Shadwell Estate Company Ltd. of Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum paid $1.6 million for a filly by Medaglia d'Oro who is a half-sister to English and Irish stakes winner Sergei Prokofiev.

Rick Nichols, Vice President and General Manager of Sheikh Hamdan's Shadwell Farm in Lexington, signed the ticket.

“She is a beautiful filly – the kind you have to have,” Nichols said. “Sheikh Hamdan told me this morning to try to concentrate on getting some really nice fillies. We send all of our good fillies to England, and he keeps promising to send them back (but he doesn't). Our broodmare band is starting to get a little old, and we need to rejuvenate it a little bit. I am pretty sure she will stay (in the U.S.) because the (offspring of) Medaglia d'Oro seem to do better here.”

Anderson Farms, agent, consigned the filly, whose dam is the Tapit mare Orchard Beach. In 2017, Sergei Prokofiev sold for $1.1 million at the September Sale.

“I'm very emotional right now,” David Anderson said. “I bred the mother and I bred this filly and she's probably the most athletic filly I've ever had on the farm. We came here fairly confident that everyone would feel the same way I do, and I know that Mr. Nichols bought her for Shadwell. I want to thank Mr. (Joe) Allen for being the underbidder on the filly. There were many wonderful people that I respect that came by to see the filly and bid on her. It means a lot to a little guy from Canada.”

Robbie Medina, agent, spent $1.4 million for a Medaglia d'Oro filly who is a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Salty. Baccari Bloodstock, agent, consigned the filly, whose dam is the stakes-placed Dixie Union mare Theycallmeladyluck.

A colt by Curlin and a filly by American Pharoah sold for $1.2 million each.

The partnership of Repole Stable, St. Elias, Gainesway, John Oxley and Grandview spent the amount on the Curlin colt, whose dam is multiple Grade 1 winner Midnight Lucky, by Midnight Lute. Hill 'n' Dale Sales Agency, agent, consigned the colt, who is from the family of Grade 1 winners Hookedonthefeelin, Pussycat Doll and Jimmy Creed.

Mike Rutherford purchased the American Pharoah filly, who was consigned by Betz Thoroughbreds, agent. Out of Grade 1-placed winner Modification, by Vindication, she a half-sister to undefeated Amsterdam (G2) winner Yaupon.

Rutherford said his current racing stable consists of six offspring of American Pharoah, the 2015 Triple Crown winner.

“She is beautiful, gorgeous. Best filly I have seen,” Rutherford said about his latest acquisition. “Let's hope she can run.”

Medaglia d'Oro also sired a filly that sold for $1.1 million. Indian Creek, agent, consigned the daughter of the stakes-winning Indian Charlie mare Thirteen Arrows. Out of multiple Grade 1 winner Stop Traffic, Thirteen Arrows is a half-sister to Grade 1 winner and sire Cross Traffic.

Two fillies by Into Mischief brought $1.025 million apiece.

Don Adam's Courtlandt Farm purchased the first, whose third dam is Hall of Famer Personal Ensign. Clearsky Farms, agent, consigned the filly, who is out of the winning stakes-placed Distorted Humor mare Mary Rita.

“We've looked at a few Into Mischiefs,” Courtland Farm Manager Ernie Retamoza said. “Yesterday, we got outbid on the colt that brought $1 million. We're a big fan of Into Mischief. We thought (this filly) had a lot of substance and a lot of class, and she's the kind of filly we want in our race program.

“It seems like for all the better ones you have to go further than you thought you'd want to go. But that's the way the sale is going. Everybody is on the same ones it seems like.”

BSW/Crow acquired the second seven-figure Into Mischief filly, a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Gift Box and Grade 2 winner Stonetastic. She is out of the Unbridled's Song mare Special Me.

Liz Crow, who signed the ticket for an undisclosed client, said she first saw the filly at the farm before the sale.

“She has a great attitude, just the way that she carried herself and presented herself with a lot of class,” Crow recalled about that visit. “She did the same here. Every time I saw her she just was classier than the last time.”

The filly was consigned by Machmer Hall Sales, agent for Machmer Hall I.

“This means so much because I bought Special Me (at the 2009 Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale for $6,000) as a broodmare prospect,” Carrie Brogden of Machmer Hall said. “It has been a whole progression of seeing and raising all of her foals. She is a great mom and is easy to get in foal and raises nothing but runners. She is the little mare that could.”

BSW/Crow was the session's leading buyer, spending $2.84 million for four horses.

The September Sale takes a one-day hiatus tomorrow then resumes Wednesday with the first session of the two-day Book 2 beginning at 10 a.m. ET.

To view the full results, click here.

The post $2 Million Tapit Colt Headlines Day 2 Of Keeneland September Yearling Sale appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights