Spice Is Nice | Horse Racing Free Tips

Unbeaten Happy Saver Returns For Pletcher On Friday; Mind Control Joins Todd’s Squad

Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher expressed excitement for the 4-year-old debut of Wertheimer et Frere's undefeated Happy Saver, who is entered in Race 3 on Belmont's Friday program – a one mile allowance optional claiming event at the Elmont, N.Y., track.

The son of Super Saver last raced in the Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup in September at Belmont, where he defeated subsequent Group 1 Dubai World Cup winner Mystic Guide.

Following some down time at WinStar Farm in Versailles, Ky., Happy Saver began working regularly at Palm Beach Downs in early April before shipping to Pletcher's division in Saratoga. His most recent breeze was a five-furlong work in 1:01.70 on May 21 over the Saratoga main track.

“I'm happy to get his season underway. Hopefully, we've done enough with him to have him ready, but I'm looking forward to getting him going,” Pletcher said.

Happy Saver will face a compact-but-salty field that includes stakes-placed Three Technique and recent winner Locally Owned.

Jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr., who has piloted Happy Saver to three of his four wins, retains the mount from post 3.

Pletcher recently added a new member to his already stellar stable in Red Oak Stable and Madaket Stables' multiple Grade 1-winner Mind Control, who is targeting the Grade 2, $250,000 John A. Nerud, a seven-furlong sprint for older horses on July 4 offering a “Win and You're In” berth to the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Sprint.

Mind Control, a five-time graded-stakes winner for his former trainer Gregg Sacco, posted both his Grade 1 wins at the Spa, capturing the 2018 Hopeful as a juvenile and added the H. Allen Jerkens to conclude his sophomore season.

The talented horse followed his H. Allen Jerkens score with Grade 3 wins in the Toboggan and Tom Fool last year at the Big A to kick off his 4-year-old campaign.

Mind Control, who was second in the Grade 1 Carter Handicap in April, was seventh last out in the Grade 1 Churchill Downs on May 1.

The 5-year-old Stay Thirsty bay worked a half-mile in 48.30 seconds Saturday on the Belmont dirt training track.

“The John Nerud is what we're targeting at the moment,” Pletcher said. “He came to me in great shape and he's a very straightforward and good-training horse. He looks good.”

A Kentucky homebred, Mind Control is out of the turf stakes-winning Lightnin N Thunder mare Feel That Fire, who has an unraced 2-year-old Mineshaft filly named Goddess of Fire.

Robert and Lawanna Low's Spice Is Nice made the grade in the Grade 3 Allaire DuPont Distaff on May 14 at Pimlico and Pletcher said the chestnut Curlin filly, out of Grade 1-winner Dame Dorothy, is a possibility for the Grade 2, $300,000 Fleur de Lis on June 26 at Churchill Downs.

Spice Is Nice entered the Allaire DuPont from a sharp allowance victory on April 9 at Keeneland, when making her first start since finishing a distant sixth in the Grade 1 Alabama in August at Saratoga.

“She needed a break at that point,” Pletcher said. “She got a good break and came back better for it.”

Pletcher is expected to saddle Bourbonic, Known Agenda and Overtook in the Grade 1, $1.5 million Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets on Saturday, June 5.

The veteran conditioner will also have a number of runners during the three-day Belmont Stakes Racing Festival which kicks off on Thursday, June 3 and will include 17 stakes races in total with eight Grade 1 races to be contested on Belmont Stakes Day.

Day 1 of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival on Thursday, June 3 is a twilight racing program with a first post of 3:05 p.m. First post on Friday, June 4 is 12:50 p.m. First post on Belmont Stakes Day is 11:35 a.m.

Pletcher said his Belmont Stakes Day lineup will include Valiance in the Grade 1, $500,000 Ogden Phipps, a Breeders' Cup “Win And You're In” event for the Distaff; as well as Ajaaweed, Portos and Moretti for the Grade 2, $400,000 Brooklyn Invitational presented by Northwell Health.

Always Shopping, a graded stakes winner on both dirt and turf, will target the Grade 2, $750,000 New York on Friday, June 4.

For information and details on Belmont Stakes hospitality offerings, ticket packages and pricing, visit BelmontStakes.com. For full terms and conditions, visit https://www.belmontstakes.com/tickets.

For additional information on health and safety protocols in effect for the 2021 Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, please visit: https://www.belmontstakes.com/tickets/know-before-you-go.

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Velazquez Pilots Spice Is Nice To Confident Win In Allaire DuPont

Jockey John Velazquez hoped Friday's Grade 3 Allaire DuPont Stakes would signal good fortune to come as he guided Spice Is Nice to a confident victory on the Black-Eyed Susan undercard. The Todd Pletcher trainee came out of the gate easily in the 1 1/8-mile contest and Velazquez later said he would have been happy to sit third or fourth, but found himself tucked in next to early leader Dreamalildreamofu so he allowed his mount to stay where she seemed happy. Spice Is Nice remained comfortable on the outside of her rival and got a nose out in front on the turn. Dreamalildreamofu did not give up easily, fighting back through the turn and throughout the stretch, while both turned away a brief bid by closing long shot Landing Zone.

The final time was 1:48.71.

Dreamalildreamofu held on for second, while Getridofwhatailesu was third. Horologist, who was the 8-5 favorite, was fourth.

See the full chart here.

Spice Is Nice went off at odds of 2-1 and paid $6.60 to win.

The race is the first graded stakes win for the 4-year-old, who is owned by Robert and Lawana Low. The chestnut came to the race off an allowance/optional claimer win at Keeneland on April 9. She was bred in Kentucky by B Flay Thoroughbreds and is the daughter of Curlin and Bernardini mare Dame Dorothy. The filly was sold as a yearling at Keeneland September for $1.05 million to the Lows and West Bloodstock, having been consigned by Stone Farm.

The fractional times were :23.54, :47.62, 1:11.15, and 1:35.93.

$150,000 Allaire du Pont (G3) Quotes, courtesy Pimlico press office

Winning trainer Todd Pletcher (Spice is Nice): “She's a filly we've always thought a lot of. I trained her mother. She's a big strong filly that took a little time to get it all together. After the Alabama last year, she just lost some weight and we needed to regroup and gave her some time off. It seems like it has paid dividends. She's come back, put on some weight. We had a perfect prep race back and felt like this was good timing and knew she would handle the mile and an eighth.

“When she came by the wire the first time I was very happy. We weren't exactly sure who all was going to show some speed. Our main focus was just getting her away in good order and getting her into a good rhythm. When she does that she's very effective.”

Winning jockey John Velazquez (Spice Is Nice): “We talked about it with Todd. There didn't seem like a lot of speed. [Trainer Shug] McGaughey's filly (#6 Mrs. Danvers) showed a little speed but not on a fast pace. So does the [Trainer Bill] Mott filly (#5 Horologist). The only horse that showed a little speed was the horse inside who had the lead going into the first turn. So we thought we might as well come out of there running and get a position. And if those two horses go, we can sit third or fourth and I ended up having the lead by the time we got to the backstretch. She was doing it comfortably, so I was pleased the way she was doing it. She's not used to being that close and then on the lead. She was waiting for the competition to come to her. So she kind of fooled with the horse inside of her, but she was waiting.”

“We always liked this filly since she was very young. She's a big filly. She's kind of come back better this year. She's stronger mentally and kind of put it all together.”

Trainer Brad Cox (Dreamalildreamofu, 2^nd); Getridofwhatailesu, 3^rd): “I super-pleased with the effort [of Dreamalildreamofu]. She kind of got pressed a little ways around but she stayed on well. I'm really proud of her.

“[Getridofwhatailesu] ran well, too. She rallied for third. She was last, stayed down on the inside, then came running to finish well.”

Jockey Florent Geroux (Dreamalildreamofu, 2^nd): “She ran a big race. It set up with nice honest fractions. The winner was right next to us. It looked like she was trying to come back on her at the eighth pole. The winner was just the best filly down the lane.

“She won very easy in New Orleans. Usually when you win by that many lengths (9 ¼) you're hoping for big things. She won the last time on the synthetic. Stakes winner, graded stakes-placed. I'm sure the connections are happy. She ran hard down the lane, but the winner was just a little bit better today.”

Jockey Junior Alvarado (Horologist, beaten favorite; 4^th): “I had a great trip, right where I wanted to be. One thing I just found out today is she doesn't want to be covered up. The couple times I have won on her she's been outside in the clear. When she was covered up like that she dropped the bridle and after that and didn't really take me through. It was a great trip but she doesn't want to be inside covered up.”

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Timing Right for Horologist in Allaire Du Pont

Horologist (Gemologist) aims to collect her sixth career stakes victory in Friday's GIII Allaire du Pont S. at Pimlico. The du Pont returns to its traditional spot on Preakness weekend after being moved to late December because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Transferred to trainer Bill Mott last summer, the New Jersey bred kicked off her tenure with the Hall of Famer with a score in Monmouth's GIII Molly Pitcher S. in July before finishing third in Churchill's GI La Troienne S. in September. Victorious in the Oct. 4 GII Beldame Invitational S., the bay tired to ninth in the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff at Keeneland Nov. 7, but rebounded to take Aqueduct's Top Flight Invitational S. Apr. 10.

Horologist can give Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott his second du Pont victory, following Ajinia–1997's champion 3-year-old filly– in 1998.

Brad Cox enters Friday's nine-furlong contest with the pair of Dreamalildreamofu (Commissioner) and Getridofwhatailesu (Ghostzapper). The Elkstone Group's Getridofwhatailesu won the Jan. 23 Pippin S. at Oaklawn before finishing third in the GII Azeri S. won by 2020 GI Kentucky Oaks-winning stablemate Shedaresthedevil (Daredevil). In her latest start, she finished fourth behind the front-running Letruska (Super Saver) with Cox-trained two-time champion Monomoy Girl (Tapizar) second in the Apr. 17 GI Apple Blossom S.

“She's a stakes-winner and hopefully we can make her a graded-stakes winner,” Cox said. “She's doing great, and probably is going to get a little class relief. No Letruskas or Monomoy Girls in this group.”

Full of Run Racing's Dreamalildreamofu exits a narrow triumph in the eight-furlong Latonia S. over Turfway Park's all-weather surface in March. A winner on all three surfaces, she is making her graded-stakes debut Fridy.

“Dreamalildreamofu is coming off a synthetic race,” Cox said. “She's performed well on three different surfaces–turf, dirt and synthetic. So, we have options with her.”

Robert and Lawana Low's Spice Is Nice (Curlin) is seeking her first career stakes win in the du Pont, a race her trainer Todd Pletcher won with Pool Land (2006), Super Espresso (2011) and Stopchargingmaria (2015).

Second in Gulfstream's GII Davona Dale S. following a 12-length debut triumph early in 2020, the chetsnut won an optional claiming allowance at Belmont later in July before running sixth the following month in the 10-furlong GI Alabama S., in what turned out to be her seasonal finale. She returned to win a 8 1/2-furlong optional claiming allowance at Keeneland Apr. 9, her first start in nearly eight months.

“She had a nice allowance win at Keeneland. The timing is good for this,” Pletcher said. “She's a nice filly that had a good break and came back well from it. So, we're making the step back into the graded stakes ranks and feel good about the way she is doing.”

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Spice is Nice Returns a Winner at Keeneland

6th-Keeneland, $82,488, Alw (NW2$X)/Opt. Clm ($62,500), 4-9, 4yo/up, f/m, 1 1/16m, 1:43.01, ft, 2 1/4 lengths.

SPICE IS NICE (f, 4, Curlin–Dame Dorothy {GISW, $749,740}, by Bernardini) made her return to the races a winning one with an optional claimer score at Keeneland Friday. Hammered down to 1-2 favoritism for this return after eight months on the bench, the $1.05-million KEESEP buy raced two-wide in a joint third through opening splits of :24.15 and :48.63. Scrubbed on by Hall of Famer John Velazquez, the chestnut swept up to confront the leader Market Rumor (Afleet Alex) approaching the turn. The duo pulled well clear of their three remaining rivals as the battled down the lane with Spice is Nice bounding clear late to score by 2 1/4 lengths. It was another 11 lengths back to the third-place finisher. Tabbed a 'TDN Rising Star' after romping by 12 lengths in her Gulfstream debut in January of 2020, Spice is Nice finished second in that venue's GII Davona Dale S. six weeks later and rallied to be fifth next out in the GII Gulfstream Park Oaks last March. Winning a Belmont optional claimer when next seen July 3, she was sixth last time out in the 10-furlong GI Alabama S. at Saratoga Aug. 15. Spice is Nice is the first foal out of Grade I winner Dame Dorothy, who is a half-sister to MGISW Mrs. Lindsay (Theatrical {Ire}). Her second foal, a now-2-year-old colt by Medaglia d'Oro, brought $650,000 from Juddmonte, Bridlewood and Winchell Thoroughbreds at Keeneland September. She produced an Uncle Mo colt in May of 2020 and was barren when bred back to Curlin. Sales history: $1,050,000 Ylg '18 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSP, 6-3-1-0, $164,528. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

O-Lawana L. and Robert E. Low; B-B. Flay Thoroughbreds LLC (KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher.

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