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Street Sense Filly Runs to Short Odds in Forward Gal

Shadwell's Zaajel leap-frogged over her allowance condition into graded stakes company for Saturday's GIII Forward Gal S., but the move proved no problem for the daughter of Street Sense. A runaway 7 1/4-length winner in her career debut going seven furlongs at Gulfstream Dec. 20, she had been posting a steady string of works since, including a sharp five-furlong move in a bullet :59.93 at Palm Beach Downs Jan. 23. The well-backed 3-5 choice to make it two straight here, she didn't make the greatest of exits, relegating herself to the back of field early. With Queen Arella (Speightster) showing the way following an opening quarter in :22.77, Zaajel worked her way into contention from her outside berth through a :46.03 half. Putting the screws to the tiring leader approaching the quarter pole, she held a slim advantage straightening for home, was about a length clear through much of the stretch and, despite having showing the effects of her slow start late, she had enough to fend off 8-1 chance Lady Traveler by 1 1/4 lengths and the wire.

“She was misbehaving in the gate and she missed the break a little,” winning jockey Luis Saez. “After that, she just kept coming and everything went well, and she kept coming.”

Added Pletcher, “I was really pleased with the outcome. I was pretty concerned at the start. She got a little antsy in the gate and missed the break, and she put in a long, sustained run. That's hard to do, especially in her second start going from a maiden to a graded stake. But she's trained like a quality filly and she overcame some adversity today, so we're proud of her.”

Pedigree Notes:
Lightly-raced Asiya, a two-time winner for Shadwell and trainer Kiaran McLaughlin, placed in a pair of stakes during her abbreviated racing career. A daughter of Shadwell's GI Cigar Mile winner Daaher, himself a full-brother to dual Grade I-winning Spun Sugar, Asiya's first foal Ajaaweed (Curlin) showed some promise at two winning his route debut in his second start before finishing a close-up second in the GII Remsen S. later that season. In his sole start at three, he finished third in last year's GIII Sam F. Davis S. In two subsequent seasons, the 11-year-old mare's foals failed to survive and she was bred to Blame on her latest cover.

Saturday, Gulfstream
FORWARD GAL S.-GIII, $100,000, Gulfstream, 1-30, 3yo, f, 7f, 1:24.72, ft.
1–ZAAJEL, 118, f, 3, by Street Sense
                1st Dam: Asiya (MSP, $136,200), by Daaher
                2nd Dam: Khalila, by Elusive Quality
                3rd Dam: Indy Flash, by A.P. Indy
   1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN.
O/B-Shadwell Farm, LLC (KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher; J-Luis Saez.
$60,140. Lifetime Record: 2-2-0-0, $84,140. *1/2 to Ajaaweed
(Curlin), MGSP, $139,850. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for the
   eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Lady Traveler, 118, f, 3, Quality Road–Ask the Question, by
Silver Deputy. ($350,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-West Point
Thoroughbreds, Ballantyne, John A., Freeman, William T. and
Valdes, Michael; B-Hidden Brook Farm, Candy Meadows LLC &
Chris Swann (KY); T-Dale L. Romans. $19,400.
3–Wholebodemeister, 120, f, 3, Bodemeister–Wholelottashakin,
by Scat Daddy. O/B-Sabana Farm, LLC (KY); T-Juan Carlos Avila.
$9,700.
Margins: 1 1/4, HF, 3/4. Odds: 0.60, 8.90, 17.70.
Also Ran: Dial to Win, Coach Jer's Joy, Competitive Speed, Three Tipsy Chix, Queen Arella. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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Maxfield Past ‘Hiccup’ In Training, Potential Targets Include Mineshaft, Saudi Cup

Though a minor illness knocked undefeated Maxfield out of contention for this weekend's Pegasus World Cup, the 4-year-old son of Street Sense has fully recovered and recorded a half-mile breeze in :49.80 last Saturday at the Fair Grounds.

According to the Daily Racing Form, trainer Brendan Walsh and the Godolphin ownership are planning to start Maxfield in either the $20 million Saudi Cup on Feb. 20, or the G3 Mineshaft Handicap at the Fair Grounds on Feb. 13.

“He looked good and he came back good,” Walsh told drf.com on Wednesday. “It seems like he got over that little hiccup just fine. He trained this morning before I left, and he looks great.”

Maxfield won the G1 Breeders' Futurity in 2019 at Keeneland, then missed the Breeders' Cup due to injury. He returned to win Churchill's G3 Matt Winn Stakes in May of 2020, but missed time again until he returned to win the listed Tenacious Stakes at the Fair Grounds on Dec. 19.

Triple Crown Weekend Prep Report Card: Life Is Good, Not Great, So Far

As we moved into the first weekend of 2021 (anyone sorry to leave 2020 behind?), there were three races that can be looked upon as early-season preps for the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby that is scheduled to be run on May 1.

Only one of the three preps – Saturday's Grade 3 Sham Stakes at Santa Anita – was graded, and two of the races – the Sham and the Jerome at Aqueduct – received a total of 17 qualifying points for the Derby on a 10-4-2-1 basis for the top four finishers.

The third contest, the Mucho Macho Man Stakes at Gulfstream Park, was neither graded nor an official points race, but it is the first leg of the South Florida track's road to the G1 Florida Derby, which has become the major East Coast prep for the Kentucky Derby.

Here is my first report card on the major Triple Crown prep races of 2021. Grades are entirely subjective and based on my personal “eyeball test,” Beyer Speed Figures, historical significance of the race, and perceived quality of the fields. Please keep this caveat in mind: I am not particularly easy on my “grading curve” and am not easily impressed.

Jan. 1: Jerome Stakes, one mile, Aqueduct

Capo Kane is a California-bred colt by Street Sense who handily defeated a pair of New York-bred stakes winners and two other maiden winners in a race that has had no historical impact on the Kentucky Derby since moving to early January at Aqueduct in 2011. Trained by Parx-based Harold Wyner, Capo Kane eased to the front shortly after the start under Dylan Davis, went quarter miles in :23.53, :24.30, and :24.79 for the first six furlongs in the one-turn mile before running his final quarter mile in :25.40 to win by 6 1/4 lengths. He was coming off a similar front-running score at Parx on Nov. 25 when he beat maidens by 4 1/2 lengths, earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 73. He was given a Beyer of 84 in the Jerome.

Visually, Capo Kane looked OK, racing comfortably on the lead, but then drifted out in the stretch, probably more a matter of losing his focus more than anything else. He was the fourth betting choice in a five-horse field, with 7-5 favorite Swill chucking it in after prompting the early pace. Weak field in a historically weak race.

Grade: C-

Jan. 2: Mucho Macho Man Stakes, one mile, Gulfstream Park

Mutasaabeq was made the 11-10 favorite in this one-turn mile stakes at Gulfstream Park in his return to the dirt after two turf races, including an impressive last-to-first victory in the G2 Bourbon Stakes at Keeneland. He then finished 10th in the G1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf.

Trained by Todd Pletcher, the Into Mischief colt was purchased by Shadwell as a weanling for $425,000 at the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale and won his debut on dirt at Saratoga Aug. 8 as a well-intentioned 4-5 favorite. Next out he was third of seven runners in the G1 Hopeful on dirt, then shifted to turf for his next two starts.

Nine horses broke from the gate in the Mucho Macho Man, including two other stakes winners: Pickin' Time, winner of the G3 Nashua Nov. 8 at Aqueduct; and Big Thorn, who won a Florida-bred event at Gulfstream Nov. 22.

Unlike the Bourbon Stakes, where Mutasaabeq displayed a brilliant turn of foot from the three-eighths pole to the furlong marker to gain the advantage and draw off by 2 1/4 lengths, he was more of a grinder in the Mucho Macho Man.

Under Luis Saez, Mutasaabeq was kept in the clear to the outside of pacesetter Awesome Gerry in the long run down the backstretch. He engaged the leader on the turn for home under aggressive handling from Luis Saez and was kept to his task down the stretch to win off by 1 1/2 lengths. Papetu, a 20-1 outsider who hadn't raced since running fifth in the aforementioned Hopeful, kept Mutasaabeq honest down the lane, ultimately finishing 1 1/21 lengths back.

Final time was 1:35.98, with quarter-mile fractions of :23.70, :22.45, :23.81 and :26.02. The Beyer Speed Figure team gave Mutasaabeq an 87 for the effort, three points above his maiden-breaking effort at Saratoga last August.

Grade: C

Jan. 2: Sham Stakes, one mile, Santa Anita

There was a lot of hype here. The Sham Stakes has had some very good winners in the past (Colonel John, Tapizar, Goldencents, McKinzie), but Authentic put the race on the map in 2020 when he won by 7 3/4 lengths despite nearly going over the rail while goofing off down the stretch. The Into Mischief colt went on to win the G2 San Felipe, G1 Haskell, G1 Kentucky Derby, and G1 Breeders' Cup Classic for trainer Bob Baffert and is the Horse of the Year favorite.

Authentic earned a 90 Beyer Speed Figure in the 2020 Sham off a maiden win sprinting at Del Mar.

Life Is Good, like Authentic a son of Spendthrift Farm's leading stallion Into Mischief, earned a 91 Beyer Speed Figure while breaking his maiden for Baffert in a Del Mar sprint on Nov. 22, drawing off by 9 1/2 lengths. Bred by Mary and Gary West Stable, Inc., he was purchased for $525,000 as a yearling at the Keeneland September Sale.

It's not surprising for Baffert to have the favorite in a graded stakes for horses being pointed toward the Kentucky Derby, but the debut of Life Is Good had the aura of a horse that was something special. He did not disappoint that day.

In the days leading up to the Swaps, Baffert downplayed Life Is Good's superiority, saying you never know if a horse can stretch out from sprint distances to two turns until they try it. Nevertheless, he went off the 1-5 favorite in a five-horse field that didn't include a single stakes winner. Second choice was Parnelli, a John Shirreffs-trained colt who needed four starts to break his maiden, earning a 79 Beyer for his win. Third choice was a second Baffert runner, Medina Spirit, a Florida-bred son of Protonico who sold for $1,000 as a yearling at the OBS winter sale and $35,000 at the OBS July Sale as a 2-year-old. He'd broken his maiden at Los Alamitos on Dec. 11 by three lengths, getting a 76 Beyer.

Under Mike Smith, Life Is Good broke from the outside No. 5 post and was in front into the first turn while four wide. Never challenged through the first six furlongs, he set fractions of :23.56, :23.11 and :23.99 while leading by three to four lengths, according to the Equibase chart.

With a furlong left and a four-length advantage, Life Is Good looked home free. But Abel Cedillo aboard Medina Spirit, who chased from second throughout, cut into that margin — gradually at first and then more dramatically in the final yards. As Medina Spirit gained on Life Is Good in the final sixteenth of a mile, Smith went to work on his mount (much as he did when he thought Authentic was home free in the Haskell, leading by 2 1/2 lengths at furlong pole and then barely holding on against Ny Traffic to win by a nose).

Life Is Good drifted out several paths late, possibly intimidating Medina Spirit and Cedillo, who wasn't able to give the most aggressive ride in the final yards. The winning margin was three-quarters of a length and the final quarter mile was run in :25.97. This was not the performance I was expecting to see.

The Beyer team gave Life Is Good a 101 Speed Figure, by far the fastest of the three weekend Derby preps.

Grade: B-

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Withers Next For Jerome Winner Capo Kane On ‘Long Road To The Derby’

Bing Cherry Racing and Leonard Liberto's Capo Kane registered a career-best 84 Beyer Speed Figure with a frontrunning score under Dylan Davis in Friday's $150,000 Jerome at the Big A, which earned the Street Sense colt 10 Kentucky Derby qualifying points.

The victory also marked the first stakes score for Capo Kane and his Manchester, England-born conditioner Harold Wyner.

“I was happy with how he ran,” said Wyner. “Dylan rode an excellent race and he followed to what I told him in the paddock. I told him to break sharp and if you find yourself on the lead to just ride his race. This horse will dictate where he wants to be.”

Wyner noted following the Jerome win that Capo Kane drifted out a bit in his Nov. 25 maiden score at Parx when traveling a two-turn mile and seventy yards. On Friday, Capo Kane drew off to a 6 1/4-length score in the one-turn mile Jerome, while again using the center of the track down the lane.

“We'll work on it. I asked Dylan if he was drifting out and he said, 'No. I put him out there in the middle of the track,'” said Wyner. “But when I watched the head-on and Dylan switched to his left-hand stick and showed it to him, that's when he shied away. When he hit him right-handed, he straightened up again. So, we'll have to work on that with him. It's just green stuff. He's just learning and I don't think we've seen the full potential of this horse yet.”

Wyner, who gallops many of his own horses in the morning, said he will continue to work with the lightly raced Capo Kane, who has a record of 3-2-1-0.

“I try and get on all of my horses two or three times a week, but I get on him about four times a week,” said Wyner. “When he was a 2-year-old he was very playful and laid back to gallop. When he came off his maiden victory he got to be very tough to gallop and he wanted to find his own speed to gallop in the morning. When a horse came up alongside him, it was game on for him. He just wanted to be in front of that horse.

“He has a high rate of speed when he gallops and a big, long stride,” continued Wyner. “I usually take a long hold and let him dictate to me how he wants to do it. In the morning, the further we gallop the stronger he gets. He just doesn't know when to stop. He wants to run.”

Wyner was previously a steeplechase rider for trainer Michael Dickinson in England. When Dickinson moved his base to America in 1987, Wyner decided to make the journey as well, working as a groom and exercise rider.

“I won a couple races over jumps and then moved over here with Michael and worked for him at Fair Hill,” said Wyner. “I got my weight down to become a flat jockey and I rode on the flats.”

Equibase statistics report that Wyner posted a record of 14-24-27 through 462 mounts from 1990-92.

“I rode at Delaware and I actually rode in a couple races at Belmont against Angel Cordero, Jr., that's my claim to fame. He beat me obviously, but I did get to ride against him,” said Wyner.

Wyner eventually became an assistant trainer for Mark Hennig in New York and also worked with conditioner Jimmy Bond before hanging his shingle at Parx.

The veteran conditioner, who oversees a stable of 24 horses at his Parx Racing base in Pennsylvania, said Capo Kane will look to make his next start in the nine-furlong Grade 3, $250,000 Withers on February 6 at the Big A, which offers 10-4-2-1 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the top-four finishers.

“I was talking with the owners this morning and that's the step we're going to push him to,” said Wyner. “I ran him two turns at Parx going a mile and seventy in his maiden win and he did it so easy. The further he goes the better.”

Wyner has demonstrated a good eye for selecting potential Derby prospects having picked out Capo Kane for $26,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale.

“I liked the size of him. He was a big boned horse,” said Wyner. “He had size and substance to him and that's what I look for in a 2-year-old. He was very well built.”

He was also the initial conditioner of Ny Traffic, who finished eighth in last year's Kentucky Derby for trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr.

Ny Traffic made his first for four starts for Wyner in 2019, including a second-out maiden score at Parx ahead of a fourth in the Parx Juvenile and a fifth in the Notebook at the Big A.

Wyner said he spotted Ny Traffic at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale where the horse didn't meet his reserve and arranged a private purchase for $22,000. Ny Traffic, who shipped to Joseph Jr.'s care in Florida on the cusp of the COVID-19 pandemic, has now banked $565,470.

“After the sale when he RNA'd, we negotiated and they took $22,000 for him. He was a little lighter framed than this horse,” said Wyner. “Capo Kane is a lot bigger boned and heavier than what Ny Traffic was, but he was still a nice horse. I got lucky. You need a little bit of luck in this game.”

A day removed from his first stakes win, Wyner said he is appreciative of the opportunity to train Capo Kane and is looking forward to a run on the Kentucky Derby trail.

“I knew Capo would run real well, but I didn't expect him to win by the margin he did. It was a very impressive win for him,” said Wyner. “Things are going great, let's hope they keep up. It's a long road to the Derby and anything can happen. Hopefully, we keep moving forward.”

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