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Fast Boat Overhauls Carotari To Upset Troy Stakes On Saratoga Turf

Brad Grady's Fast Boat motored in deep stretch to overtake pacesetter Carotari from the outside, getting up in the final jumps for a half-length score in Friday's Grade 3, $200,000 Troy presented by Horse Racing Ireland for 4-year-olds and up sprinting 5 1/2 furlongs on Saratoga Race Course's Mellon turf in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Fast Boat won for the third time in four starts, utilizing a patient trip from jockey Tyler Gaffalione from the inside post as Carotari led the nine-horse field through the opening quarter-mile in 21.74 seconds and the half in 44.15 over firm going under Hall of Famer Javier Castellano.

Out of the turn, Gaffalione kept Fast Boat wide, providing the 6-year-old son of City Zip plenty of racing room in front of him. Gaffalione's charge capitalized on the daylight and picked off multiple rivals one-by-one until setting his sights on Carotari.

In the final sixteenth, Gaffalione alternated from right-handed to left-handed encouragement, and Fast Boat collared his rival in the shadow of the wire, completing the course in 1:01.24 for trainer Joe Sharp.

“During the stretch run I was jumping off the ground,” Sharp said. “I got a little taller inside the eighth pole. You could tell by his momentum that he was going to get there, but the horse on the lead, Javier's horse [Carotari], dug in when he got to him. When he fires his big ones it's always fun to watch from the quarter-pole home. We figured he'd like this turf course here, and he sure did.”

Fast Boat registered his third stakes win of the campaign, adding to scores in the Pulse Power Turf Sprint in January at Sam Houston and the Grade 2 Turf Sprint in April at Churchill Downs, before running sixth last out in the Grade 1 Jackpocket Jaipur on Belmont Stakes Day June 5.

“He was training very forwardly into the race,” Sharp said. “He's a horse we've gotten to know really well and we know all his 'isms.' When he's doing well and when he's going to run a big race and everything pointed to his effort today. The weather cooperated today. He prefers a firm turf course, and for the Jaipur, he lost his opportunity at the Grade 1 with the give in the ground. But I'm not taking anything away from today. We're super proud to be here and honored. Winning at Saratoga is big, let alone winning a graded stake.”

Off at 10-1, Fast Boat returned $23.80 on a $2 win wager. He improved his career earnings to $659,849.

Gaffalione won the Troy for a third consecutive year for three different trainers, starting with Leinster and Rusty Arnold in 2019 and winning aboard the Wayne Potts-conditioned American Sailor last year.

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“I didn't expect to be that close, but he was travelling pretty easy and I just let him do his thing,” Gaffalione said. “I didn't want to get in his way and when I tipped him out he really finished his job. Mr. Sharp has done a great job with him. You can tell when he's in that five-and-a-half to three-quarters range, he really runs his race.”

Carotari, trained by Brian Lynch, went off at 23-1 but outkicked Gear Jockey by one length for second, marking the third time in four starts the Artie Schiller gelding has hit the board in his 5-year-old year.

“He had been training so well going into this race,” Castellano said. “You could see on paper how good he was working. I really like how he did it today. I was really satisfied with his race.”

Imprimis, Bound for Nowhere, Front Run the Fed, Lazuli, Chewing Gum and Classy John completed the order of finish. Backtohisroots, Chateau and Casa Creed scratched.

Saturday will feature a stacked 12-race card at Saratoga comprising five stakes, highlighted by the Grade 1, $1 million Whitney for 4-year-olds and up going 1 1/8 miles in Race 10; the Grade 1, $1 million Saratoga Derby Invitational as the second leg of the Turf Triple series for 3-year-olds at 1 3/16 miles in Race 9; the Grade 1, $500,000 Longinest Test in a seven-furlong sprint for 3-year-old fillies in Race 8; the Grade 2, $250,000 Glens Falls for older fillies and mares at 1 1/2 miles on turf in Race 7; and the $120,000 Fasig-Tipton Lure for 4-year-olds and up competing at 1 1/16 miles on grass in Race 6. First post is 12:35 p.m. Eastern.

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Now In Mott Barn, Art Collector Scores On Front End In Alydar At Saratoga

Bruce Lunsford's Art Collector, confidently handled by Luis Saez, captured Friday's $120,000 Alydar, a nine-furlong test for older horses who have not won a stakes other than state-bred in 2021, at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Recently transferred to the care of Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott, the 4-year-old Bernardini colt utilized a front-running approach to secure his first win since capturing a pair of nine-furlong stakes last summer for his former conditioner, Tom Drury, in the Grade 2 Blue Grass at Keeneland and the Ellis Park Derby.

“If you look at his nine-furlong races, you saw he had done very well for the previous trainer,” said Mott. “Both Tom Drury and I had trained for Bruce and Bruce wanted the horse in Saratoga, so Tommy sent the horse up to us and he was in good shape when he came. We've had him six weeks and he's done well since he's been here.”

Art Collector, exiting post 4, cleared the field of eight into the first turn as a forwardly-placed Core Beliefs protected his inside run with Bourbon War, Math Wizard and Night Ops also jostling for position through an opening quarter-mile in 24.51 seconds on the fast main track.

Jesus' Team, runner-up in the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup in January, was slow away from the gate but rushed up into sixth down the backstretch by Junior Alvarado as the half-mile ticked by in 48.80.

Art Collector, moving confidently under Saez, dictated terms into the final turn as Night Ops continued to press with the duo gaining three lengths of separation on Core Beliefs in third.

As the field straightened away for the stretch run, Art Collector opened up by three-lengths under a hand ride as Night Ops continued his dogged pursuit and started to close the gap. But an alert Saez shook the reins and his charge responded in kind to secure the 1 1/2-length win in a final time of 1:48.20.

Saez, who guided Art Collector to a runner-up effort on debut in August 2019 at the Spa, said he wanted to be forwardly placed.

“I rode the horse when he was a baby and he liked to be a free runner,” Saez said. “The plan was to break well from our post and see if we can get the lead, and everything went the way we planned it. Breaking from there, we got ahead and he kept going. I saw Manny coming, but I knew I had a lot of horse, so I was patient with him.”

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Night Ops completed the exacta by 8 1/2-lengths over Math Wizard. Rounding out the order of finish were Core Beliefs, Limonite, Prioritize, Bourbon War and Jesus' Team.

“When I was in my position stuck in second, I didn't think the pace was too quick, so I had to do my work because no one else went with [Art Collector],” Franco said. “My horse is a horse that never gives up. He always tries. I have to give credit to the winner, but my horse was second-best today.”

Art Collector, who completed his sophomore campaign with off-the-board efforts in the Grade 1 Preakness in October at Pimlico and the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile in November at Keeneland, was transferred to Mott following a sixth-place finish in the Kelly's Landing in June at Churchill Downs.

Mott said Art Collector will now potentially target the Grade 1, $500,000 Woodward on October 2 at Belmont Park.

Bred in Kentucky by his owner, Art Collector banked $66,000 in victory while improving his record to 13-6-1-0. He paid $3.80 for a $2 win ticket.

Live racing resumes Saturday with a loaded 12-race card headlined by the Grade 1, $1 million Whitney at nine furlongs for older horses, a Breeders' Cup “Win And You're In” qualifier for the Grade 1, $6 million Breeders' Cup Classic.

Whitney Day also features two other Grade 1 events with the $1 million Saratoga Derby Invitational for 3-year-olds going 1 3/16 miles over the Mellon turf and the $500,000 Longines Test for 3-year-old fillies at seven furlongs over the main track.

Also featured on the card are the Grade 2, $250,000 Glens Falls for older fillies and mares travelling 1 1/2 miles over the inner turf and the $120,000 Fasig-Tipton Lure for 4-year-olds and upward over the Mellon turf. First post is 12:35 p.m. Eastern.

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Amussen Ties Baird, Has 14 in Saturday

With a perfect two-for-two day Friday, Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen picked up career wins 9,444 and 9,445. That moved him into a tie with Dale Baird, the King of Waterford Park, for the most wins of all-time by a North American-based trainer.

Asmussen began his day with a win at Saratoga, taking home the honors in the fourth race with Jalen Journey (With Distinction), who was sent off at 3-1 in the allowance/optional claimer. About 1 hour and 45 minutes later and about 940 miles southwest of Saratoga, the trainer drew even with Baird when Shanghai's Dream (Shanghai Bobby) won a $30,000 claimer at Ellis Park. The colt was 2-1 and closed from last to win by three-quarters of a length under Rafael Bejarano.

“That's how I feel about it, it was meant to be,” Asmussen told the Ellis notes team. “Unbelievably significant win to me and the family. To be able to share the lead-up, getting close, all of the unbelievable support I've had and the well wishes, to be able to get to 9,445-which we've strived for quite some time—to be surrounded by family, what could be better?”

Asmussen spent the day in Saratoga and these were his only two starters on the afternoon. Barring what would be nothing less than an extraordinarily bad day from one of the sport's most consistent barns, the record will fall on Saturday. Asmussen has 14 horses entered on the day in 13 races at four tracks.

He may, however, have to wait until later in the day to get the record. His first entrant is Under the Gun (Gun Runner) in the first at Saratoga, but the horse is entered for main track only. His next starters will come in the fifth at Saratoga, where he has two entered. The race is a seven-furlong maiden special weight for 2-year-olds and his starters are Vodka Mardini (Bernardini) and Stellar Tap (Tapit). Both are first-time starters. Stellar Tap is 5-1 in the morning line and Vodka Mardini is 8-1.

From there, it will get very busy. He will send out Classical Romance (Classic Empire) in a maiden special weight race at Monmouth for 2-year-old fillies. Next up will be the first at Louisiana Downs, where the Asmussen-trained Policy Limit (Bradester) is the 2-1 favorite in the line in the $5,000 claimer. From 4 pm (ET) on, he will have nine starters, one at Louisiana Downs, three at Saratoga, three at Ellis Park and two more at Monmouth Park. His starters include Silver State (Hard Spun), who will take a six-race winning streak into the GI Whitney S. at Saratoga.

When the record falls, it will come in Asmussen's 36th year as a trainer. He started slowly, going just 1-for-15 in his first year, 1986. His first winner of his career came with in a July 19, 1986 race at Ruidoso Downs that had a purse of $2,600. His father, Keith, was aboard that day for the win.

Baird's career ended in 2007 when he died in an automobile accident. Asmussen still trails Peruvian-trainer Juan Suarez, who, as of Aug. 5, had 9,897 winners.

The post Amussen Ties Baird, Has 14 in Saturday appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Pletcher, Casse, American Pharoah Highlight Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony

The combined ceremony for the 2020 and 2021 Hall of Fame induction classes was, as usual, filled with laughter and tears for the honorees, highlighted by trainers Todd Pletcher and Mark Casse. The ceremony took place Aug. 6 at the Fasig-Tipton sales pavilion in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Pletcher, who was introduced with a fond series of recollections by longtime owner Mike Repole, received a standing ovation when accepting his plaque. Pletcher, who shows no signs of slowing down, already has seven Eclipse Awards to his credit alongside five Triple Crown wins, 11 Breeders' Cup victories, and 60 individual meet titles, including 14 at Saratoga.

Pletcher is widely cited as one of the jewels in the prominent training tree of fellow Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas, whose tutelage he acknowledged during his acceptance speech. Pletcher said he is often asked what the most important lesson was that he took from his time with Lukas.

“The answer is there's not one thing, it's everything,” said Pletcher. “Every horse matters. Every owner matters.”

Pletcher set his sights on training from a young age, encouraged by his father, who is a former trainer and owns a Florida training center, and his mother, who helped him take out his first loan when he wanted to open his own barn. He put out his shingle in 1995.

Mark Casse also became a Hall of Famer on Friday morning – an incredible evolution for the man who remembered visiting the hall with his father in 1972 at the age of 11.

“At the end of the visit, I confidently told my dad, 'I'll be in here some day,'” an emotional Casse remembered. “As any good father would do, he told me, 'Yes, Mark, you will.' Well, we did it.”

Casse has won 13 Sovereign Awards, two American Triple Crown races, eight Canadian Triple Crown races, five Breeders' Cup races, and was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2016.

Casse and Pletcher both acknowledged the tremendous support from owners, family, and staff that helped them reach this moment in their careers. Although Casse was shepherded into the racing world by his father Norman, who built Cardinal Hill Stable in Ocala, Fla., and was chair of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company, Mark Casse recalled that he owes his mother just as great a debt for his career. When his parents divorced, Casse was asked to choose which parent he would live with. His mother would be leaving the farm, and his father would continue to be hands on with the horses. Overwhelmed with emotion, Casse asked his wife Tina to read the part of his speech that acknowledged her contribution to his career.

“I asked my mom a simple question that would change the course of my life,” Casse had written. “'Mom, do you truly love me?' 'With all my heart,' she said. I said, 'Mom, if you truly love me, you'll let me stay with Dad.' I know that had to have killed her, but she granted me a true sign of love by letting me stay on the farm. Who knows where my life would be today if it wasn't for her sacrifice.”

The induction ceremony also marked the entry of 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah into the Hall of Fame. Embattled owner/breeder Ahmed Zayat accepted the plaque on behalf of the horse. Zayat recalled his favorite moments from the horse's career, including the enormous fan following generated by “America's horse.”

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“I've never seen 20,000 people come in the morning to see a horse gallop,” said Zayat, recalling the horse's workout at Saratoga ahead of his loss in the Grade 1 Travers. “I don't think we'll ever see that again. American Pharoah loved the crowd. He loved the people.”

Wise Dan also took his place in the Hall, marking the crowning achievement in a career that included two Horse of the Year awards, four other Eclipses, earnings of $7.5 million, track records at three tracks, and 19 graded stakes wins.

Trainer Charlie LoPresti was on hand to accept the plaque for Wise Dan.

“My only regret is that Mr. [Morton] Fink is not here to accept this award because he was so proud of that horse,” said LoPresti. “He used to tell me all the time, 'Charlie, the only thing that keeps me alive is that horse.' …I think it put years on his life.”

Additional honorees Aug. 6 included steeplechase trainer Jack Fisher, historic review jockey Darrel McHargue, Pillars of the Turf J. Keene Daingerfield, Jr., George D. Widener, Jr., and Alice Headley Chandler, and historic review horse Tom Bowling.

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