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Saffie Joseph, Jr. Points Mischevious Alex To Forego At Saratoga

Trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. said Cash is King and LC Racing's Mischevious Alex had a good breeze back on Friday in his first timed work since an off-the-board finish in the Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt on July 31 at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

The 4-year-old Into Mischief bay worked a half-mile solo in :48.45 on the main track in preparation for a start in the $600,000 Grade 1 Forego at seven furlongs on the main track on Travers Day August 28.

“He's bounced out of the race good. We haven't seen anything to deter us running back in the Forego,” Joseph, Jr. said. “He got the thumps last time pretty bad. Hopefully, that was the reason for his performance.”

A multiple graded stakes winner, Mischevious Alex has won 3-of-5 starts this year, including scores in the Grade 3 Gulfstream Park Sprint at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., in February and the Grade 1 Carter Handicap in April at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

Joseph Jr. said Friday's breeze have him confidence that Mischevious Alex could return to form in the Forego.

“He went a good half by himself. Hopefully, the real Alex shows up and if he does, he'll have a good chance,” Joseph, Jr. said.

Slam Dunk Racing, Madaket Stables, Wonder Stables, and Michael Nentwig's Drain the Clock, a sophomore son of Maclean's Music, also breezed Friday covering a half-mile in :48.83 on the main track.

Boasting a record of six wins and two seconds from nine starts, Drain the Clock bested Jackie's Warrior by a neck on June 5 at Belmont in the Grade 1 Woody Stephens.

Last out, in the 6 1/2-furlong Grade 2 Amsterdam, Jackie's Warrior turned the tables with a romping 7 1/4-length score over a sloppy and sealed Saratoga main track.

Joseph Jr. said he is hopeful Drain the Clock will one-up his familiar foe in the $500,000 Grade 1 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial on Travers Day.

“No one was beating Jackie that day. He ran dynamite. Maybe our horse didn't run his best that day but all credit to Jackie,” Joseph, Jr. said. “We have no excuse. We had a good trip. The record is one and one. He's beat us once, we beat him once. We'll try again in the Allen Jerkens.”

John Fanelli, Cash is King, LC Racing, Paul Braverman, and Team Hanley's Ny Traffic, a 4-year-old New York-bred son of Cross Traffic, breezed a half-mile in :48 flat Sunday on the main track.

The talented colt finished second in a trio of graded events last year, including the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby in March at Fair Grounds in New Orleans, La., the Grade 3 Matt Winn in May at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., and the Grade 1 Haskell at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J., in July in which he finished just a nose back of Authentic.

Ny Traffic won his seasonal debut in May at Belmont by 6 3/4-lengths sprinting seven furlongs against fellow state-breds in an optional claimer and followed with a close second in the Grade 3 Salvator Mile in June at Monmouth.

Last out, Ny Traffic faded to fourth in the nine-furlong Grade 3 Monmouth Cup on July 17.

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“He went good this morning. It was his first breeze back since Monmouth, I had him in 47 and 4. It was a good work back,” Joseph Jr. said. “There's a possibility he could go in the Forego or the Charles Town Classic.”

Joseph Jr. said Ny Traffic will breeze again next weekend before he decides on cutting back to seven furlongs for the Forego or stretching out to nine furlongs for the Grade 2 Charles Town Classic at Charles Town in Charles Town, W.Va. on August 27.

Overall, Joseph, Jr. said he has been pleased with Ny Traffic's performances this season.

“He won his debut at Belmont and in his second race at Monmouth he ran second but it was a good race,” Joseph, Jr. said. “Last time he disappointed a little bit if you just look at the running lines, but the reality is that he acted up pre-race back at the barn and I think he lost his race there. It wasn't a true run.”

Joseph, Jr. said e Five Racing Thoroughbreds' Gibberish will turn back to nine furlongs for the $120,000 Summer Colony on August 22 at the Spa.

Last out, the 4-year-old daughter of Lea was a game second to Miss Marissa in the 10-furlong Grade 2 Delaware Handicap on July 10.

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Drain the Clock, Jackie’s Warrior Meet Again in Amsterdam

Drain the Clock (Maclean's Music) and Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) hooked up in a memorable duel in the June 5 GI Woody Stephens S., with Drain the Clock grinding out a narrow victory in the seven-furlong event. The two sophomores match up again in the 6 1/2-furlong GII Amsterdam S. at Saratoga Sunday.

Slam Dunk Racing and Madaket Stables' Drain the Clock, 2-1 on the morning line, captured the seven-furlong GIII Swale S. at Gulfstream in January and was second in the 1 1/16-mile GII Fountain of Youth S. Shipped north and cut back to seven furlongs, the chestnut colt won the Apr. 3 GIII Bay Shore S. before his Woody Stephens victory.

“Most of his one-turn races were won in hand,” trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. said. “He was basically geared down the last sixteenth in the Bay Shore. We always thought he had more to give but until you see it you don't know for sure and the Woody Stephens was definitely his breakout race. He earned his respect that day and beat a game horse in Jackie's Warrior. He's in good form and I think he's going over there with a really good chance.”

J. Kirk and Judy Robison's Jackie's Warrior is already a two-time graded winner over the Saratoga surface having won last year's GII Saratoga Special and GI Hopeful S. during his flashy juvenile campaign. Fourth in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile and third when again trying 1 1/16 miles in the Feb. 27 GIII Southwest S., he was cut back in distance to win the May 1 GII Pat Day Mile and was game in defeat in the Woody Stephens. The bay colt, trained by Steve Asmussen, is 6-5 on the morning line.

Klaravich Stables' Crowded Trade (More Than Ready) graduated going one mile at Aqueduct in his Jan. 28 debut and jumped right up to graded company where he was nosed out of the win when second in the Mar. 6 GIII Gotham S. He was third in the Apr. 3 GII Wood Memorial and will be making his first start since finishing fifth in the GI Preakness S. May 15. The Chad Brown trainee is 7-2 on the morning line.

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Drain The Clock Outlasts Jackie’s Warrior To Win Woody Stephens Stakes

The Grade 1 Woody Stephens Stakes at Belmont Park was a slugfest between sons of Hill 'n' Dale Farms' Maclean's Music on Saturday, with Drain the Clock getting the best of favorite Jackie's Warrior in the deep stretch.

Drain the Clock grabbed the lead out of the gate, and set a hot pace through the first furlong of the backstretch before being joined by Jackie's Warrior on the inside. Jackie's Warrior wrestled the lead away from Drain the Clock as they passed the opening quarter in :22.09 seconds.

Jackie's Warrior was in the driver's seat heading into the turn in the seven-furlong race, with Drain the Clock on his outside hip. Jockey Joel Rosario drifted Jackie's Warrior wide as they hit the crux of the turn, and floated Drain the Clock out with him.

The opening half-mile went by in a blistering :44.19 seconds, and the pair were several paths wide entering the home stretch. Behind them, Dream Shake had a clear path on the rail and Nova Rags was advancing through a wide trip, but neither would contend with the two leaders.

Jackie's Warrior continued to keep Drain the Clock at bay after three-quarters of a mile in 1:08.88, at which point jockey Jose Ortiz, who picked up the mount in place of his injured brother Irad, started asking Drain the Clock in earnest. Drain the Clock drew even with a game Jackie's Warrior inside the final furlong, and he carried on to win by a neck. Nova Rags was 7 1/4 lengths behind the runner-up.

Drain the Clock completed the seven-furlong race in 1:22.27 over a good main track. He paid $17 to win as the field's fourth choice.

With the Woody Stephens victory, Drain the Clock improved his lifetime record to six wins in eight starts for earnings of $539,550. Saturday's race was the latest rung in what has been a steady climbing of the ladder for the colt in 2021, starting with a 7 1/2-length drubbing of the black type Limehouse Stakes at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 2. He carried on to win the G3 Swale Stakes by 6 1/4 lengths, then stretched out to two turns to finish second in the G2 Fountain of Youth Stakes. He headed into the Woody Stephens off a return to one-turn racing in the G3 Bay Shore Stakes, which he won in a front-running trip.

Drain the Clock is trained by Saffie Joseph Jr., for owners Slam Dunk Racing, Madaket Stables, Wonder Stables, and Michael Nentwig. He was bred in Kentucky by Nick Cosato, out of the Arch mare Manki.

To view the Equibase chart, click here.

G1 Woody Stephens Quotes, Courtesy of the NYRA Notes Team

Saffie Joseph, Jr., winning trainer of Drain the Clock (No. 2, $17): “We talked it over so much with [co-owner] Nick Cosato [of Slam Dunk Racing] and he wanted to break well and use him for the lead. We just left it up to Jose [Ortiz]. We told him the break was important and to make Rosario [aboard Jackie's Warrior, No. 3] make a decision. If they're going to let you lead, lead.

“Obviously, Jackie's Warrior missed the break and after that he ran up on the inside and we were in a good spot. If we were good enough then we were going to win. At the quarter pole, I thought we were going to be second. It looked like he was backing up a little bit. He dug in after that, and then Jackie's Warrior wouldn't give up. All credit to the horse.”

On taking a departure from the Triple Crown trail: “This is the benefit of making a tough decision because he got 20 points [for the Kentucky Derby] and he could have picked up more. Would he have won? Probably not. That's stretching him. After that, it was just cut back. We figured let's have a good horse at one turn.”

On a potential start in the Grade 2, $500,000 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial on August 28 at Saratoga: “That's the plan.”

Jose Ortiz, winning jockey aboard Drain the Clock (No. 2): “If [Joel] Rosario [on Jackie's Warrior] wanted the lead, I'd rather have him rush inside of me. It was my game plan to break better, outrun him out of the gate in the first couple jumps and go as far out as I could, as long as I was clear. I wasn't planning to mess with anybody; you can see as soon as Rosario came back in, I came back in. I didn't want him outside of me putting pressure on me the whole way.”

On the stretch-duel between Drain the Clock and Jackie's Warrior: “It was great. It's great for racing. That's what it's all about, people want to come here to see those kinds of duels. It was a great race, everybody gave their best. I'm just happy we came out with the win and I'm happy filling in for Irad [Ortiz] and not messing it up. He told me the horse was very classy, Saffie was great, and the owner was great, too. The owner was the one that told me if you can outrun him out of the gate and make him go inside, that would be great, to have him inside of us.”

Joel Rosario, jockey aboard runner-up Jackie's Warrior (No. 3): “He just kind of stumbled a little bit coming out of the gate and missed the break. Then he went and did his best, but I think the break out of the gate was the key. He still ran his race.”

Junior Alvarado, jockey aboard third-place finisher Nova Rags (No. 1): “The track is still playing a little bit to the fast side, which will benefit horses on the lead. My horse broke good and I let him settle and make a run. He was there for me. He was trying for me at the end.”

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Drain the Clock Up in Time in Woody Stephens

Drain the Clock (c, 3, Maclean's Music–Manki, by Arch) outslugged favored Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) by a neck to lead home a one-two finish for his sire in a thrilling renewal of the GI Woody Stephens S. at Belmont Park Saturday. It was 7 1/4 lengths back to Nova Rags (Union Rags) in third.

With Jose Ortiz subbing for his sidelined brother Irad Ortiz, Jr., the last out GIII Bay Shore S. winner broke sharply and very briefly cleared the field of six. Jackie's Warrior, off a step slowly after getting bumped at the start, rushed up and challenged from the inside as those two locked horns through an opening quarter in :22.09 and half mile in :44.19.

Last year's GI Champagne S. winner held a slight advantage and floated Drain the Clock into the seven path as they hit the quarter pole. Jackie's Warrior led by a length at the stretch call and continued to dig down gamely, but Drain the Clock just kept on coming on the outside and wore down that rival to win in a pulsating finish at odds of 7-1.

A runaway winner of Gulfstream's Limehouse S. Jan. 2 and GIII Claiborne Farm Swale S. Jan. 30, Drain the Clock stretched to 1 1/16 miles with a solid second after setting the pace in the GII Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth S. Feb. 27. He bypassed the Triple Crown trail and turned back to seven furlongs for an easy score in the Bay Shore Apr. 3.

“We talked it over so much with [co-owner] Nick Cosato [of Slam Dunk Racing] and he wanted to break well and use him for the lead,” winning trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. said. “We just left it up to Jose [Ortiz]. We told him the break was important and to make [Joel] Rosario [aboard Jackie's Warrior] make a decision. If they're going to let you lead, lead.

“Obviously, Jackie's Warrior missed the break and after that he ran up on the inside and we were in a good spot. If we were good enough, then we were going to win. At the quarter pole, I thought we were going to be second. It looked like he was backing up a little bit. He dug in after that, and then Jackie's Warrior wouldn't give up. All credit to the horse.”

Ortiz added, “That's what it's all about, people want to come here to see those kinds of duels. It was a great race, everybody gave their best. I'm just happy we came out with the win and I'm happy filling in for Irad [Ortiz] and not messing it up.”

Joseph added that the GI Allen Jerkens Memorial S. at Saratoga Aug. 28 would be next for Drain the Clock.

Pedigree Notes:

Drain the Clock is one of five graded winners for promising young sire Maclean's Music. This is his fourth Grade I winner. Arch is the broodmare sire of 31 graded winners, including standouts such as dual Classic winner I'll Have Another and champion Uncle Mo.

The winner's dam Manki aborted her 2019 foal by Mr Speaker, but has since produced a Mineshaft colt in 2020 and a filly by Vino Rosso in 2021. Winless in four career starts, she most recently RNA'd for $55,000 at the 2015 KEEJAN sale.

Drain the Clock's Group 3-winning third dam was responsible for Midnight Line (Kris S.), third in the 1998 G1 Vodafone Oaks and later a Grade II winner and multiple Grade I-placed in North America. Midnight Line is the dam of MGSW & MG1SP Communique (Ire) (Casamento {Ire}).

Saturday, Belmont Park
WOODY STEPHENS S. PRESENTED BY NASSAU COUNTY INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY-GI, $392,000, Belmont, 6-5, 3yo, 7f, 1:22.27, gd.
1–DRAIN THE CLOCK, 124, c, 3, by Maclean's Music
                1st Dam: Manki, by Arch
                2nd Dam: Private Ice (GB), by Pivotal (GB)
                3rd Dam: Midnight Air, by Green Dancer
1ST GRADE I WIN. O-Slam Dunk Racing, Madaket Stables LLC,
Wonder Stables and Nentwig, Michael; B-Nick Cosato (KY);
T-Saffie A. Joseph, Jr.; J-Jose L. Ortiz. $220,000. Lifetime
Record: 8-6-1-0, $539,550. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for
eNick report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Jackie's Warrior, 124, c, 3, Maclean's Music–Unicorn Girl, by
A. P. Five Hundred. ($95,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-J Kirk &
Judy Robison; B-J & J Stables (KY); T-Steven M. Asmussen.
$80,000.
3–Nova Rags, 122, c, 3, Union Rags–Wishful Splendor, by Smart
Strike. ($275,000 RNA Ylg '19 KEESEP). O/B-Michael P. Shanley
(KY); T-William I. Mott. $48,000.
Margins: NK, 7 1/4, 3/4. Odds: 7.50, 1.05, 11.70.
Also Ran: Dream Shake, Tulane Tryst, Caddo River.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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