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Uni and Got Stormy Meet Again in Fourstardave

Champion Uni (More Than Ready) and MGISW Got Stormy (Get Stormy) continue their rivalry Saturday as they look to continue dominating their male counterparts in Saratoga’s GI Fourstardave H.

The two chestnuts met for the first time in last year’s renewal of this event, in which Got Stormy was a 2 1/2-length victress over the re-opposing Raging Bull (Fr) (Dark Angel {Ire}) with Uni in third. After that Got Stormy went to the GI Woodbine Mile, hoping to follow in the famous hoofprints of fellow Mark Casse trainee Tepin (Bernstein), but came up a half-length short. Meanwhile, Uni went to Keeneland, where she scored a decisive victory in the GI First Lady S. in October.

The pair met again at Santa Anita in the GI Breeders’ Cup Mile Nov. 2 and this time Uni got the better of her rival, storming home to a 1 1/2-length triumph over Got Stormy with stablemate Without Parole (Frankel {GB}) in third. Clinching the Eclipse Award for top turf female with that win, Uni made her first start of the season at Belmont June 27, completing the trifecta behind her talented younger stablemate Newspaperofrecord (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}).

“She missed some time with a splint issue, and we stopped breezing for five or six weeks,” said Bradley Weisbord of BSW/Crow Bloodstock, who manages Uni on behalf of her owners. “The ground might have been a little soften the Just a Game and Joel didn’t think she got through it great, but she was short, and she really needed the race. She just had her best breeze of the year last week and we weren’t completely sure about this race. We were 50-50 between the Fourstardave and the [GII] Distaff Turf Mile at Churchill, but the breeze is what gave Chad the confidence to run her, so she’s sitting on go.”

Got Stormy, on the other hand has made five starts since the Breeders’ Cup, closing 2019 with a win in the GI Matriarch S. Dec. 1. Fourth in the GIII Endeavour S. at Tampa Feb. 8, her best effort so far this season was a close second in the GI Frank E. Kilroe Mile Mar. 7. The Gary Barber colorbearer checked in fourth in her last two outings at Belmont in the June 3 GIII Beaugay S. and the July 4 GIII Poker S.

“She’s training well and she’s back to Saratoga, which is where she did her best running last year, so we’re hoping for the best,” Casse said. “We know she likes that course, we know that she likes firm turf. She’s got to come with her A game. She’s the same horse, she looks great and trains great. She’s just been a little bit unlucky. She ran over some good turf courses and she wants it to be really firm.”

Raging Bull kicked off this term with a win in the GI Shoemaker Mile S. at Santa Anita May 25 and was a close third behind Classic winner War of Will (War Front) in Keeneland’s rescheduled GI Maker’s Mark Mile July 10.

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Take Five: Big Day At Saratoga For Saez, Winning On 5 Of 6 Mounts

Luis Saez became the second jockey to notch a five-win day during the 2020 summer meet at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., going 5-for-6 on his mounts on Thursday's nine-race card.

“This was an amazing day. I'm so grateful and so blessed. Especially to do this in Saratoga, where it can be tough to even win one, winning five is big,” said Saez. “I was confident today. The first horse I rode, she stumbled and still won easily. The track is good, the rail is a little bit heavy, but the outside is pretty good

Saez kicked off the flat racing portion of Thursday's card by guiding Thankful [No. 6, $3.60] to a maiden win as the favorite in Race 2. He followed up in Race 4 with a front-running score aboard favored Threepointninenine [No. 8, $4.90] as the Tom Morley-trained gelding graduated at third asking.

The veteran rider utilized a prominent approach in Race 5 to guide mutuel favorite Leaveuwithasmile [No. 6, $4.90] to a neck score in a claiming sprint and was on the engine again in Race 6 aboard Wild William [No. 4, $11.40] en route to a 1 1/4-length win in a turf claiming sprint.

In Race 7, the $85,000 Tale of the Cat, Saez piloted T Loves a Fight to a dead-heat for third with Binkster in his lone non-winning mount.

Saez completed the quintet of victories in Race 9 with a hard-fought win aboard Foolish Ghost [No. 6, $13.60] after battling to the wire to edge a game Bronx Bomber.

Saez now boasts 20 wins at the Saratoga summer meet, good for fifth in the standings.

Irad Ortiz, Jr., won with 5-of-8 mounts on July 23rd during a 10-race card at the Spa.

Live racing returns on Friday with a nine-race card which features the $85,000 Skidmore for juveniles going 5 ½ furlongs over the Mellon turf. First post is 1:10 p.m. Eastern.

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Sistercharlie Chasing Historic Three-Peat In Grade 1 Diana

Trainer Chad Brown will enter Sunday's Grade 1, $500,000 Diana at Saratoga Race Course loaded for bear, saddling two former Breeders' Cup winners in Rushing Fall and Sistercharlie as he looks to win the race for a fifth consecutive year.

The 82nd running of the Diana for older fillies and mares going 1 1/8 miles on the Mellon turf course will see Brown attempt his sixth win in the prestigious race, for which he has conditioned the previous four winners after first earning a victory with Zagora in 2011.

Sistercharlie has captured the last two runnings for Brown and will look to achieve a three-peat in headlining the six-horse field. The now 6-year-old daughter of Myboycharlie won the 2018 Eclipse Award as Champion Turf Female for a campaign that included her first Diana victory as well as scores in that year's Grade 1 Jenny Wiley, Grade 1 Beverly D. and Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf.

After ending 2018 with three straight Grade 1 wins, the Irish-bred owned by Peter Brant started 2019 with three additional victories against the highest caliber, defeating Rushing Fall by 1 ¾ lengths to repeat in the Diana before winning the Beverly D. again and adding a three-quarter length triumph in the Flower Bowl in October at Belmont Park.

All seven of Sistercharlie's North American wins have come in Grade 1s. With 10 career wins in 16 starts, she also counts a Group 3 win in the 2017 Prix Penelope in France among her accomplishments.

Sistercharlie is one of just six repeat Diana winners, joining Forever Together [2008-09]; Glowing Honor [1988-89]; Shuvee (1970-71]; Tempted [1959-60]; and Miss Grillo [1946-47]. The race, which had its first running in 1939, has never seen a horse win three straight.

“That would be an amazing accomplishment,” Brown said.

Hall of Famer John Velazquez, aboard Sistercharlie for the two Diana wins, will go for three straight, breaking from post 5.

Sistercharlie's stablemate, Rushing Fall, is a five-time Grade 1 winner, including last out when she outkicked Jolie Olimpica by three-quarters of a length to repeat in the Jenny Wiley on July 11 at Keeneland. The winner of the 2017 Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf is already Grade 1-winner at ages 2, 3, 4 and 5, including the 2018 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup at Keeneland.

Owned by e Five Racing Thoroughbreds, Rushing Fall is 10-2-0 in 13 career starts, with her only off-the-board finish coming when fourth in the Grade 1 First Lady last October at Keeneland. The More Than Ready mare has registered triple digit Beyer Speed Figures in four of her last five starts, notching identical 103 figures for winning last year's Grade 1 Just a Game at Belmont Park and running second in the Diana. She also matched that figure in her two starts this year, winning both the Grade 3 Beaugay on June 3 at Belmont before besting an eight-horse Jenny Wiley field.

“They both seem to be training very well and coming into the race the right way. There are some nice horses in the race, so it looks like another great edition of the Diana,” Brown said.

Hall of Famer Javier Castellano, a two-time Diana winner, will be in the irons from post 3.

R Unicorn Stable's Call Me Love has come close to breaking through since arriving in the United States this year from her native Europe. The English-bred filly made her first North American start in the 1 1/16-mile Grade 3 Beaugay, running third behind the Brown-trained Diana duo, before running fourth in the Grade 2 New York just three weeks later at 1 ¼ miles over the Belmont turf.

Cutting back to 1 1/16 miles, Call Me Love was second by a neck to fellow Diana contender Starship Jubilee in the Grade 2 Ballston Spa on July 25 at Saratoga over firm turf. Clement said Sunday's distance, along with the possibility of inclement weather, could be the key if she wants to win for the first time since her last race in Europe in the Group 2 Premio Lydia Tesio in November in Italy.

Since the Ballston Spa, Call Me Love has breezed three times over the Oklahoma turf training track at Saratoga, including a four-furlong work in 49.11 seconds on Sunday.

“She's been training great. Not OK. Great,” Clement said. “I think the distance suits her well – a mile and a sixteenth to a mile an eighth is good for her. There might be some rain in the forecast and she's run well on softer turf before, so we're ready to go.”

Joel Rosario will ride from the inside post.

Alex G. Campbell, Jr.'s Mean Mary is undefeated as a 4-year-old, starting 3-for-3 after ending her sophomore campaign with a victory against optional claimers in December at Gulfstream Park. In 2020, the Graham Motion trainee has racked up three straight graded stakes wins, taking the Grade 3 La Prevoyante at 1 ½ miles over Gulfstream Park's turf before winning the 1 3/8-mile Grade 3 Orchid at the same track in March.

Returning off a three-month respite, the Scat Daddy filly recorded a career-best 101 Beyer for her 5 ¼-length win in the Grade 2 New York at 1 ¼ miles on June 27 at Belmont, giving her four straight victories overall.

Motion said he is anxious to see how Mean Mary handles a slight cut back as he looks towards the Grade 1, $2 million Breeder's Cup Filly and Mare Turf contested at 1 3/16 miles in November at Keeneland.

“She's been pointing to this race for a long time,” Motion said. “With the Breeders' Cup, I need to find out if she can handle these shorter distances. She certainly did before we started running her at these longer races, but not at this level. She's trained really well for this race and hasn't really missed a beat. It'll be a small but solid group of horses she's facing.”

Since running fifth in her debut in September at Laurel Park, Mean Mary has won five of six, with her second-place effort against allowance company in November at Aqueduct Racetrack marking the lone race that didn't end with a winner's circle visit.

“I'd be lying if I told you I always knew she was going to be this caliber. She's been a progression,” Motion said. “I think she really enjoys it. She gets out there and is just galloping.”

Luis Saez, aboard for her wins during the current streak, will return, drawing post 6.

Motion will also send out the 5-year-old veteran Secret Message, who ran fourth in last year's Diana and is coming off a third-place finish in the 1 1/16-mile Perfect Sting on August 14 at the Spa.

Wheeled back a week later, Motion said the Hat Trick filly, who started her 2020 with a victory in the Grade 3 Mint Julep going 1 1/16 miles in May at Churchill, has showed good energy leading into a return engagement.

“The fact that she's a big, robust filly, we felt she could handle a quick turnaround,” said Motion, who has saddled five second-place finishers in the Diana. “It's not going to be an oversized field and we feel like she's been doing really well. She really ran the last quarter-mile last weekend and really sprinted home. She sprinted home as fast as anyone.”

Irad Ortiz, Jr. will pick up the mount from post 2.

Blue Heaven Farm's Starship Jubilee also enters Sunday on a four-race winning streak, with all those efforts against stakes company for trainer Kevin Attard. The 7-year-old veteran is the field's most experienced entrant, compiling an 18-5-3 record in 36 starts.

Last out, Starship Jubilee bested Diana rivals Call Me Love and Sistercharlie to win the Grade 2 Ballston Spa by a neck, building on her win in the Grade 2 Hillsborough in March at Tampa Bay Downs. The daughter of Indy Wind is 4-for-4 this year, adding scores in the Grade 3 Suwannee River and the Sunshine Millions Filly and Mare Turf this winter at Gulfstream.

Jose Ortiz will pick up the call from post 4.

The Diana, Sunday's featured race, is slated as Race 8 on the nine-race card, which offers a first post at 1:10 p.m. Eastern. Saratoga Live will present daily television coverage of the 40-day summer meet on FOX Sports and MSG Networks. For the complete Saratoga Live broadcast schedule, and additional programming information, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule.

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Rashaan Earns First North American Victory In New York Turf Writers Cup

Rashaan didn't arrive in the United States until his 7-year-old campaign in 2019. On Thursday, he proved to his connections that he was worth the wait, leading a six-horse field out of the final hurdles and fending off stablemate Redicean's stretch-drive push to win the Grade 1, $100,000 New York Turf Writers Cup steeplechase in the card's opener at Saratoga Race Course.

Making just his fourth North American start, Rashaan won his first graded stakes and first since shipping from his native Ireland last year, posting a two-length score in the 2 3/8-mile race over the firm inner turf course.

Pravalaguna led the field and was still in command heading over the ninth and final hurdle with Rashaan tracking close in second under jockey Thomas Garner. Into the flat portion of the race, Rashaan overtook the pacesetter and was set down entering the stretch.

Straightening for home, Redicean, also trained by Young, made a bid to Rashaan's inside, but Garner kept his charge alert and they dueled in the final sixteenth before drawing away, posting a final time of 4:34.20.

Garner, who won the New York Turf Writers Cup for the second straight year after piloting the Jonathan Sheppard-trained Winston C in 2019, had his choice to ride either Rashaan and Redicean entering Thursday and said he doubted his selection only for a moment.

“The plan was to be handy with him,” Garner said. “He's a horse that's not easy at all. He has all the ability in the world, but it's only on his terms. Training him at home, if he doesn't want to train in the morning, he won't go anywhere. He's a real tricky one.

“The team did a great job with him,” he added. “I ride him every day. He's a happy horse and he really enjoyed his work. I came here hopeful rather than confident, I actually thought the better horse was Redicean and I'd made the wrong choice but he put his best foot forward. He's got so much ability and when he wants to do it, there's not a lot that will get by him.”

Owned by Bruton Street-US, Rashaan was a 13-time winner in Europe in a career that started in 2015. Trained by Leslie Young, he did not finish his first start in the country in the Grade 1 Grand National Hurdle on October 19 at Far Hills before running back seven days later to finish fifth in the Grade 2 David L. Ferguson Memorial Hurdle.

Off an eight-month break, Rashaan earned his first North American blacktype by running third in the Grade 3 Temple Gwathmey Hurdle on June 13 at Glenwood Park At Middleburg before earning a trip to the winner's circle in his Saratoga debut.

“Rashaan has all of the ability. He's won 13 races in Ireland and he was bred by the Aga Khan and is related well to serious flat horses,” Young said. “He had been training very well. We had a horse win last week and they all worked very well, but he was doing it very easily. I thought if he could just do this in a race without overthinking it.

Off at 8-1, Rashaan returned $18 on $2 win wager. He improved his career earnings to $358,687.

His stablemate, Redicean, was fourth in the Grade 1 A.P. Smithwick Memorial on July 23 at Saratoga but finished 3 ¾ lengths clear of 8-5 Moscato for second. That marked Redicean's best finish in six starts, with his previous win coming at the Spa in last year's Jonathan Kiser Novice.

“Redicean had also been training very well and last time when he ran in the A.P. we got a little bit excited, and I think he likes to go on a little longer,” Young said. “We were hopeful going in today and we're happy it worked out.”

Gibralfaro, 8-5 favorite and defending New York Turf Writers Cup-winner Optimus Prime and Pravalaguna completed the order of finish. Belisarius and Zanjabeel scratched.

Live racing resumes Friday at Saratoga with a nine-race card that includes the Grade 1, $85,000 Skidmore for 2-year-olds in Race 3 going 5 ½ furlongs on turf at 2:20 p.m. First post is 1:10 p.m.

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