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Winchell Has Strong Hand With Midnight Bourbon, Silver State At Parx

Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC's Midnight Bourbon, 3-1 morning line second choice will try to capture his first Grade 1 victory in Saturday's $1 million Pennsylvania Derby, and enters after falling short of victory by a neck in the Grade 1 Travers at Saratoga.

Multiple graded stakes winner Silver State owned by Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC and Willis Horton Racing, will look to begin another win streak in the $200,000 Parx Dirt Mile after his string of six consecutive victories came to an end in the Grade 1 Whitney at Saratoga.

Trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, both look to be strong contenders according to Winchell's Racing Manager David Fiske.

“I think both spots are really good for them,” Fiske said. “The two-turn mile for Silver State should set him up for the Breeders' Cup Mile. Midnight Bourbon, he keeps knocking on the door. I think eventually he's going to knock one of these off. He's a really cool horse. Big personality. I saw a little video of him schooling in the paddock yesterday. Man, he looked like something else.”

Midnight Bourbon began the year with a victory in the Grade 3 Lecomte at Fair Grounds and then added a third-place finish in the Grade 2 Risen Star, also in Louisiana.

Next came a second in the Louisiana Derby before finishing sixth in the Kentucky Derby.

The colt by Tiznow then added a runner-up finish in the Preakness, before clipping heels with Hot Rod Charlie in the stretch run during the Grade 1 Haskell and losing jockey Paco Lopez.

“Hopefully, Saturday is his turn,” said Fiske. “It's been a peculiar year. Most years, the field for the Kentucky Derby evaporates the day after the Derby. This year we've had Essential Quality, Midnight Bourbon, Hot Rod Charlie, Medina Spirit — even though he scratched — he's still going. There are a lot of them out there and they're all quality colts.”

As far as Midnight Bourbon goes, Fiske knows this:

“He's a cool horse,” he said. “He seems to show up every time. He ran well in the Preakness, ran well in the Travers, ran well in the Derby. He's just a cool customer. He's a high energy guy. You need to be on your toes around him all the time.”

Silver State ended his 3-year-old year with a seventh-place finish in the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby, then returned the following year with a seven-length victory against allowance competition at Keeneland. From there the son of Hard Spun added three more victories before returning to face graded stakes competition where he won the Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap and Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap

“It's unusual for any horse to win that many races in a row,” Fiske said. “We had a horse a long time ago that won an Eclipse Award named Tight Spot. He won eight in a row. Then, we had a little horse that ran fourth in the Derby [1981 Kentucky Derby] named Classic Go Go that Tony Black rode. He won seven in a row. One of those was at the old Keystone Park as a matter of fact. He would win a race on Saturday then win a race at Keystone on Thursday. He made 26 starts as a 3-year-old. You do the math on that.”

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Silver State Possible For Woodward Or Kelso

Winchell Thoroughbreds and Willis Horton Racing's Silver State (Hard Spun), who had a six-race winning streak snapped with a third-place effort behind Knicks Go (Paynter) in the GI Whitney S. Aug. 7, going remain at the nine-furlong distance for the GI Woodward S. Oct. 2 or could cut back to Belmont's one-turn mile for the GII Kelso S. Sept. 25.

The 4-year-old has already shown an affinity for the latter track and trip, having made the GI Hill 'n' Dale Metropolitan H. the last of his half-dozen victories in a row June 5.

“He's doing great,” David Fiske, manager and bloodstock advisor to Ron Winchell, told the NYRA notes team. “He's been remarkably sound all year.”

Fiske also reported that Wicked Halo (Gun Runner), wire-to-wire winner of the GII Adirondack S. at Saratoga Aug. 8, is getting some down time.

“She's taking a little break,” Fiske said. “After the Adirondack we decided to just give her some time and get her ready for the later part of the year. [Trainer] Steve [Asmussen]'s relying on his experience with her mother [fellow Adirondack winner Just Wicked {Tapit}), and he felt that he might have rushed her a little bit, so he didn't want to make the same mistake.”

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Whitney Third Silver State Could Target Kelso Or Woodward

Following a third-place finish in the Grade 1 Whitney, Silver State is scheduled to have his next start at Belmont Park, but which race he enters is still unknown said David Fiske manager and bloodstock adviser for Winchell Thoroughbreds, who own Silver State in partnership with Willis Horton Racing.

Fiske said the one-mile Grade 2, $300,000 Kelso on Sept. 25 or the nine-furlong Grade 1, $500,000 Woodward on Oct. 2 are the two most likely options for the 4-year-old son of Hard Spun.

Silver State, trained by Hall of Fame Steve Asmussen, arrived at the Whitney on a six-race win streak, including three stakes triumphs at Oaklawn Park as well as a victory in the Grade 1 Hill 'N' Dale Metropolitan Handicap on June 5 at Belmont.

“He's doing great,” Fiske said. “He's been remarkably sound all year.”

Fiske said plans for Winchell Thoroughbreds' Midnight Bourbon are still in flux after a runner-up effort in the Grade 1 Runhappy Travers.

Options for the son of Tiznow could include training up to the Grade 1, $6 million Breeders' Cup Classic, or bypassing the Classic to target races like the Grade 1 Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs and the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park.

“He put in a pretty big effort in the Travers, so we'll see how he bounces out of it,” Fiske said.

Fiske also reported that Grade 2 Adirondack-winner Wicked Halo is getting some rest and could target something toward the end of the year. The daughter of leading first crop sire Gun Runner won the Adirondack in wire-to-wire fashion by 3 ½ lengths. Her dam Just Wicked won the Adirondack in 2015.

“She's taking a little break. After the Adirondack we decided to just give her some time and get her ready for the later part of the year,” Fiske said. “Steve's relying on his experience with her mother, and he felt that he might have rushed her a little bit, so he didn't want to make the same mistake.”

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Malathaat Becomes Fourth Female To Be Ranked In NTRA’s Top Thoroughbred Poll

Korea Racing Authority's 5-year-old Knicks Go kept his No. 1 rating in the NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll for the third straight week, while the 3-year-old filly Malathaat, winner of the Grade 1 Alabama Stakes, moved into eighth place. Malathaat joined Letruska, Gamine and Shedaresthedevil as the fourth female star in the top 10.

Knicks Go, trained by Brad Cox, received 30 first-place votes and 359 points. A winner three times in five starts this year, Knicks Go captured the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Invitational at Gulfstream Park, the Grade 3 Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap, and scored a dominant, front-running victory in the Grade 1 Whitney at Saratoga on Aug. 7.

Places two through seven in the poll remained unchanged. St. George Stable's 5-year-old mare Letruska is in second place with five first-place votes and 320 points. Letruska has won four races this year for trainer Fausto Gutierrez, including the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps at Belmont Park and the Grade 2 Fleur de Lis at Churchill Downs.

Godolphin's 3-year-old Essential Quality, who won the July 31 Grade 2 Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga, remained in third place with one first-place vote and 271 points. Also trained by Cox, Essential Quality, who captured the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes on June 5, is expected to start in this Saturday's Grade 1 Runhappy Travers Stakes at Saratoga.

Godolphin's 4-year-old Maxfield, winner of the Grade 2 Stephen Foster Stakes at Churchill Downs and second in the Whitney, is in fourth place. Trained by Brendan Walsh, Maxfield has 237 points.

Klaravich Stables' 4-year-old gelding Domestic Spending, the only turf horse in the top 10, is in fifth place with one first-place vote and 156 points. Second in the Grade 1 Mr. D. Stakes at Arlington Park on Aug. 14, Domestic Spending, trained by Chad Brown, finished in a dead heat for first in the Grade 1 Old Forester Bourbon Turf Classic at Churchill Downs, and won the Grade 1 Resorts World Casino Manhattan Stakes at Belmont Park.

Winchell Thoroughbreds and Willis Horton Racing's Silver State, winner of four races in 2021 including the Grade 1 Hill 'N' Dale Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont Park, remained in sixth place with 135 points.

Michael Lund Petersen's 4-year-old Gamine, the 2020 champion female sprinter, is in seventh place with 90 points. Unbeaten in three starts this year for trainer Bob Baffert, Gamine is slated to run in this Saturday's Grade 1 Ketel One Ballerina at Saratoga.

Shadwell Stable's Malathaat, a determined 1 ½-length winner in the Alabama, jumped from 20th to eighth place this week with 85 points. Trained by Todd Pletcher, Malathaat has won three races in four starts this year, highlighted by two other the Grade 1 victories in the Central Bank Ashland Stakes at Keeneland and the Longines Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs. Her lone defeat was a second-place finish by a head in the Grade 1 Coaching Club American Oaks to Maracuja at Saratoga on July 24. A daughter of two-time Horse of the Year Curlin, Malathaat finished fifth in the final NTRA Top 3-Year-Old Poll in June.

Boat Racing, Gainesway Stable, Roadrunner Racing, and William Strauss's Hot Rod Charlie dropped one spot to ninth place with 65 points. Trained by Doug O'Neill, Hot Rod Charlie, third in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve, crossed the wire first in the Grade 1 TVG.com Haskell Stakes on July 17 but was disqualified and placed seventh due to interference.

Flurry Racing Stables, Qatar Racing and Big Aut Farms' 4-year-old filly Shedaresthedevil is in 10th place. Also trained by Cox, Shedaresthedevil has won three of four starts this year, including the Grade 1 Clement Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar on Aug. 1.

The NTRA Top Thoroughbred polls are the sport's most comprehensive surveys of experts. Every week eligible journalists and broadcasters cast votes for their top 10 horses, with points awarded on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. All horses that have raced in the U.S., are in training in the U.S., or are known to be pointing to a major event in the U.S. are eligible for the NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll. Voting in the Top Thoroughbred Poll is scheduled to be conducted through Nov. 6.

The full results for the NTRA Thoroughbred Polls can be found on the NTRA website at: https://www.ntra.com/ntra-top-thoroughbred-poll-august-16-2021/

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