sagamore farm | Horse Racing Free Tips

Runhappy Travers: Now In Mott Barn, South Bend Works In Company With Tacitus

South Bend, a recent addition to the barn of Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott, worked five furlongs in company with 4-year-old multiple graded-stakes winner Tacitus Sunday on the Oklahoma training track at Saratoga in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Campaigned by Sagamore Farm through his first 11 starts, including a victory in the Street Sense last fall at Churchill Downs and Grade 3 placings on both turf and dirt, South Bend was acquired by a partnership group that includes Gary Barber, Adam Wachtel, Peter Deutsch and Leonard Schleifer of Pantofel Stable.

South Bend, starting a length back of the veteran Tacitus, was clocked five-eighths in 1:00.70 and finished up on even terms with Tacitus, who stopped the clock in 1:01.15.

Mott said South Bend, an Algorithms bay, worked well in his final breeze in preparation for a start in Saturday's G1 Runhappy Travers.

“He went well. He went with Tacitus and they breezed nicely and finished up together,” said Mott. “He made up a length to the finish. We had him go out a little stronger. He's a nice horse and pretty easy to train.”

Mott said Jose Ortiz, co-leading rider at the Spa, will have the call on South Bend for the 1 1/4-mile Mid-Summer Derby, the centerpiece of the Saratoga meet being contested for the 151st time but first as a point qualifier for the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby September 5 with 100-40-20-10 qualifying points on offer for the top-four finishers.

Mott said Juddmonte Farms homebred Tacitus, by Tapit and out of champion Close Hatches, continues to work well toward the Grade 1, $500,000 Woodward, a 1 1/4-mile test for 3-year-olds and up on September 5.

“He's good. He's been on a regular breeze schedule,” said Mott.

Wachtel Stable, Gary Barber, R.A. Hill Stable and Reeves Thoroughbred Racing's 6-year-old Canadian-bred Channel Maker ran third in Saturday's Grade 2 Bowling Green. The multiple Grade 1-winning chestnut was making his third appearance in the Bowling Green having won it in 2018 and finishing third a year ago.

“He came out of it good. He's a war horse,” said Mott.

The post Runhappy Travers: Now In Mott Barn, South Bend Works In Company With Tacitus appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

New Owners Consider Runhappy Travers for South Bend

South Bend (Algorithms), purchased privately by a partnership group that includes Gary Barber, Adam Wachtel, Peter Deutsch and Leonard Schleifer of Pantofel Stable following a runner-up effort in the June 27 GIII Ohio Derby, could make his first start for the new connections in the Aug. 8 GI Runhappy Travers S.

“We’re leaning toward the Travers,” confirmed the colt’s new trainer Bill Mott. “The partnership group wants to have a good look at that. He’ll work probably the first part of the week.”

Previously campaigned by Sagamore Farm and trainer Stanley Hough, South Bend won last year’s Street Sense S. over the main track at Churchill Downs and his three stakes placings over the turf include a third-place finish in the Feb. 29 GIII Palm Beach S.

Of the colt’s versatility, Mott said, “I think that’s one of the reasons they bought him. He looks good on both surfaces.”

In his first work for Mott, South Bend went four furlongs in :49.12 (5/31) at Saratoga July 27.

“We breezed him the one time. We like the horse, he’s doing well,” Mott said. “He’s a nice horse to train. He moves well and he worked well for us. I’m happy with him.”

Trainer Mike Stidham confirmed that Godolphin homebred Mystic Guide (Ghostzapper), most recently a closing third in the July 16 GIII Peter Pan S., is also under consideration for the Travers.

“The Travers is a possibility. He’ll work [Saturday] and we’ll know more after he works,” said Stidham. “Ultimately, he has to put himself in a better position early. You can’t win those types of races with that much to do late in the race. Our goal was to try blinkers on him and see what type of response he gives, so we can try to be a little bit closer.”

The post New Owners Consider Runhappy Travers for South Bend appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

21st Career Win For Veteran Gelding Oak Bluffs Is 900th For Trainer Eppler

Veteran campaigner Oak Bluffs, a 10-year-old gelding making his 59th career start, came with a measured run from dead last to roll past five rivals in the stretch and earn his 21st career victory and the 900th for owner-trainer Mary Eppler as live racing returned Thursday to Laurel Park in Laurel, Md.

Under patient handling from 16-year-old apprentice Charlie Marquez, Oak Bluffs ($8) was unhurried in the early stages of the 5 1/2-furlong sprint for claimers 3 and up over Laurel's world-class turf course, trailing by 7 1/2 lengths after the opening quarter-mile.

Oak Bluffs circled the far turn in the three path, was floated out five wide once straightened for home, ranged up on pacesetter Stroll Smokin inside the eighth pole and pulled clear to win by three-quarters of a length in 1:02.98 on Kelso layout labeled firm.

“It looked like he won pretty easily,” Eppler said. “You don't see many horses win 21 times, but we've taken good care of him.”

Oak Bluffs debuted Aug. 18, 2013, at Monmouth Park and raced three times for breeder Patricia Generazio and trainer Bruce Alexander before making her first start for trainer Teresa Pompay in May 2014. Trainer Jamie Ness claimed him for his Jagger Inc. stable in February 2015 and Eppler spent $5,000 to halter him nine months later out of a show finish at Laurel Park.

Eppler lost Oak Bluffs for a $25,000 tag in March 2019 at Gulfstream Park, claiming him back that June for $20,000 out of a turf sprint win at Monmouth Park. Overall, the bay son of Defrere has a record of 21-9-6 with $721,846 in purse earnings.

“He's been so much fun, and that's why I claimed him back,” Eppler said. “I want to make sure he has a good home.”

Oak Bluffs is a three-time stakes winner – the 2015 My Frenchman and 2019 Joey P. Handicap at Monmouth, and the 2018 Pennsylvania Governor's Cup at Penn National, the latter two for Eppler. Best known for her work with retired claimer-turned-multiple Grade 3-winning millionaire Page McKenney, Eppler won her first two races in 1980 with Maryland-bred Jet to Victory.

Eppler, a 66-year-old Baltimore native, became the first female to win a training title at Laurel Park with 24 victories during the 2016 fall meet. Holder of an accounting degree from Loyola College and a one-time actuary analyst in the medical insurance industry, she got her start breaking and hot walking horses at Sagamore Farm, later training 1996 Futurity (G1) winner Traitor for the late Alfred G. Vanderbilt.

“[The 900^th win] couldn't have come with a better horse. I'm very thankful,” Eppler said. “He's wonderful. He's so nice. Real easy to deal with, real easy to train, just like Page.”

Notes: Jockey Feargal Lynch missed his third straight racing day since being unseated during Laurel's third race Thursday, July 23. Replaced on each of his five mounts, he is named in six of nine races on Friday's card … Jockey Angel Cruz rode back-to-back $8 winners Thursday, Forfiftyfiverocket in Race 2 and HRH Jellybean in Race 3 … Jevian Toledo also won twice, with Tweet Away Robin ($3.60) in Race 7 and Melisande ($4.20) in Race 9 … No one had all six winners in Thursday's 20-cent Rainbow 6, growing the carryover jackpot to $4,201.79 for Friday. Tickets with five of six winners each returned $260.02 … There will also be a carryover of $1,946.06 in the $1 Super Hi-5.

The post 21st Career Win For Veteran Gelding Oak Bluffs Is 900th For Trainer Eppler appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

No Passing Lane: Global Campaign Rerallies To Win Monmouth Cup

Passed by Bal Harbour at the top of the stretch after being pressured on the front end by another rival, Global Campaign rerallied in the final sixteenth of a mile to win the Grade 3 Monmouth Cup by 1 1/2 lengths at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J., on Saturday.

Ridden by Jorge Vargas Jr. and trained by Stanley Hough, Global Campaign — a 4-year-old colt by Curlin – covered 1 1/8 miles on a fast main track in 1:50.47 after setting fractions of :23.77, :47.91, 1:11.69 and 1:37.55.

Math Wizard, winner of the G1 Pennsylvania Derby in 2019, closed from last in the field fo nine to finish second, one length ahead of Bal Harbour, who looked like a winner at the top of the stretch.

Global Campaign, who raced without blinkers for the first time in an eight-race career and was favored at 5-2, was winning for the fifth time. This was his second graded stakes win, having taken the G3 Peter Pan at Belmont Park last year.

Owned by WinStar Farm and Sagamore Farm, Global Campaign was bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm. He is out of the A.P. Indy mare, Globe Trot.

“I didn't like seeing all the pressure on him all race,” Hough said. “But I can't say I'm surprised he withstood it. I had my doubts when he got headed in the stretch by Bal Harbour. But Jorge Vargas rode him good and the horse responded great. He's a very, very talented horse, so it's good to see him come back like this. Hopefully he continues to show himself. I'm very pleased with this effort. He was kind of rambunctious as a 3-year-old last and he'd look around and get distracted so I kept the blinkers on him. But I never felt he really needed them. I just thought it would let him see around a little by taking them off for this race. I've been working him without them so he was used to it again. He's shown from the start that he's a good horse. He's well-bred and gosh he has so much talent. He has kind of been his own worst enemy. But he is finally maturing and maybe we can build from here.”

“I was pretty excited when I found out I was going to ride him,” said Vargas. “I went back and watched all of his races. I knew how talented he is. If you saw him this race, even with those horses putting pressure on him all race, he kept his ears pricked and he was relaxed and off the bit. When I asked him a little bit he jumped on the bit and he had something left. He was very strong. I just moved to Monmouth Park for the summer for the first time this year and this is my first win of the meet so it's pretty special.”

The post No Passing Lane: Global Campaign Rerallies To Win Monmouth Cup appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post