Breaking from the outside 12th gate, Thorpedo Anna left her post in razor-sharp fashion to immediately join the first flight. Rider Brian Hernandez, Jr. kept her quiet and on the outside in third as previously unbeaten Recharge (Gun Runner), winner of the Sunland Park Oaks in her stakes debut Feb. 18, and Candy Aisle (Gun Runner), second at in that same race at Sunland, showed the way through :23.45 and :47.90 fractions. Still third on the turn, the Kenny McPeek trainee moved up on the outside with no visual urging, took control with ease long before Hernandez showed her the stick once to keep her mind on business, and left no doubt about the best filly in the race on the day. Her ears pricked, she eased up before the wire with a final time for the 1 1/6 miles of 1:44.24.

The Fantasy marked the fourth win on the card for the duo of McPeek and Hernandez.

McPeek, who has a long list of savvy buys to his credit, picked up Thorpedo Anna for $40,000 at the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky October yearling sale. Bred by Judy Hicks in Kentucky, who stayed in on the filly, the ownership team also includes Mark Edwards, Brookdale Racing, and the McPeek family's Magdalena Racing. She is reportedly named for a relative of Edwards who shares the name 'Anna' with the filly's sire and is a swimmer. 'Thorpedo' is a well-known nickname of multiple gold medalist Ian Thorpe, an Australian swimmer who is now retired.

The Fantasy winner debuted at Keeneland last October in a maiden special weight restricted to fillies who sold or RNA'd for $50,000 or less and promptly blew the field away by open daylight. She wowed again just over two weeks later in a Churchill optional allowance, netting her the 'Rising Star' tag. Intricate (Gun Runner), who has since been beaten twice by GI Kentucky Oaks favorite Tarifa (Bernardini), bested Thorpedo Anna in the Golden Rod and is the only horse to finish in front of the dark bay in her four starts. It was soon after the Golden Rod that McPeek indicated Thorpedo Anna needed time off due to a bruise on her hip. She began working again in earnest in February and had posted six works coming into the Fantasy, all at Fair Grounds, including a most recent 1:01 2/5 for five furlongs (17/36) Mar. 23. She is a regular work partner of Mystik Dan (Goldencents), the Feb. 3 GIII Southwest S. winner who was third in the GI Arkansas Derby one race after the Fantasy.

Pedigree Notes:

Thorpedo Anna is the first graded winner for the late Three Chimneys stallion Fast Anna, whose five modest-sized crops have netted 14 black-type winners, all in North America. The son of Medaglia d'Oro, second in the 2014 GI King's Bishop S., was out of 2006's champion 2-year-old filly Dreaming of Anna (Rahy). He lost a battle with laminitis just prior to the 2021 breeding season.

Thorpedo Anna is not the first prominent 3-year-old this season for Uncle Mo as a broodmare sire, as fellow 'TDN Rising Star' Muth (Good Magic), who won the GI Arkansas Derby one race later on the Oaklawn card, is also out of one of his daughters. Uncle Mo, who stands at Coolmore America, has a total of 18 stakes winners as a dam sire. Sataves is unraced, as is her dam, Pacific Sky. However, the latter is a half-sister to GISW Eskendereya (Giant's Causeway) and to English G1SW Balmont (Stravinsky).

Sataves has a 2-year-old Cloud Computing colt named McAfee, who sold to Maddie Mattmiller for $40,000 at Keeneland September, and a Known Agenda filly born Mar. 15 and already named After the Storm.

Saturday, Oaklawn Park
FANTASY S.-GII, $750,000, Oaklawn, 3-30, 3yo, f, 1 1/16m, 1:44.24, ft.
1–THORPEDO ANNA, 118, f, 3, by Fast Anna
                1st Dam: Sataves, by Uncle Mo
                2nd Dam: Pacific Sky, by Stormy Atlantic
                3rd Dam: Aldebaran Light, by Seattle Slew
   1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($40,000 Ylg
'22 FTKOCT). O-Brookdale Racing, Inc., Mark Edwards, Judy
Hicks, & Magdalena Racing (Sherri McPeek); B-Judy Hicks (KY);
T-Kenneth G. McPeek; J-Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr. $393,750.
Lifetime Record: 4-3-1-0, $584,363. Werk Nick Rating: A++.
   Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree or the
   free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–West Omaha, 122, f, 3, West Coast–Birthday Bash, by
Medaglia d'Oro. O-Gary and Mary West; B-Gary & Mary West
Stables Inc. (KY); T-Brad H. Cox. $131,250.
3–Tapit Jenallie, 122, f, 3, Tapit–Take Charge Tressa, by War
Front. O/B-Willis Horton Racing LLC (KY); T-Eddie Milligan, Jr.
$65,625.
Margins: 4, 3 1/4, NK. Odds: 2.70, 3.60, 27.20.
Also Ran: All Things Go, Recharge, Ba Dee Yah, Lemon Muffin, My Mane Squeeze, Candy Aisle, In Just My Heels. Scratched: Midshipman's Dance, Where's My Ring. Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

“Kentucky Oaks, you bet!”- @3coltshandicap

#12 THORPEDO ANNA ($7.00) dominates the $750,000 Fantasy Stakes (G3) and gets 100 Kentucky Oaks points. @b_hernandezjr and @KennyMcPeek team up for their fourth win on the card. Congrats to all the connections! pic.twitter.com/aOC5ecnSYW

— TVG (@TVG) March 30, 2024

The post Fast Anna’s Thorpedo Anna Stylish in Fantasy Win Off Layoff appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Well, for true disciples of Tolkein, you understand the 'Two Towers' reference is a major theme in the trilogy, but for our purposes it simply denotes coverage.

This Saturday, both Oaklawn Park and Gulfstream Park are those poles of power when it comes to authoring graded stakes. Their cards feature Kentucky Derby and Oaks points races.

So, get your palantir ready–alright, alright–here is the slate for Saturday.

The Eye of Timberlake

The GI Arkansas Derby offers 100 Derby points to the winner at Oaklawn as the town of Hot Springs will be invaded by horse enthusiasts who are keen to watch a pair of 'TDN Rising Stars' do battle.

Timberlake (Into Mischief) earned that merit badge at second asking as a 2-year-old. Though he was fourth in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile, the Brad Cox trainee certainly came out of the break to put on a show in last month's GII Rebel S. The WinStar and Siena-owned colt has the Beyer figures to prove he belongs among the top contenders for the first Saturday in May.

“I really like the timing of the Arkansas Derby to the Kentucky Derby,” said Cox. “Obviously, he has the experience there now after winning the Rebel. I kind of thought the Rebel was the spot when we were getting started this winter. That worked out well and it leads nicely to the Arkansas Derby.”

Muth | Benoit

Opposing him are some other strong candidates like the winner of the GIII Southwest S. Mystik Dan (Goldencents), as well as Liberal Arts (Arrogate) and Time for Truth (Omaha Beach), but Timberlake's main rival is Zedan Racing's Muth (Good Magic). The $2-million 2023 OBS March topper is the latest shipper to Oaklawn for trainer Bob Baffert. Though his connections cannot collect Derby points, his front-running speed makes him a threat. The 3-year-old began his career with a 'Rising Star'-effort at Santa Anita back in June. After running second to Fierceness (City of Light) in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, he cut back to take the GII San Vincente S. in early January.

The road to the GI Kentucky Oaks travels down Central Avenue and through the GII Fantasy S. The top three finishers from the GIII Honeybee S. return in Lemon Muffin (Collected), Tapit Jenallie (Tapit) and West Omaha (West Coast), but there are some true 'x-factors' drawn. One of them is Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna), who was last seen as the runner-up in the GII Golden Rod S. at Churchill Downs in November. Also making the Fantasy gate are the top two runners from the Sunland Park Oaks–undefeated Recharge (Gun Runner) and Candy Aisle (Gun Runner).

One other graded race on Saturday in Hot Springs is the GIII Oaklawn Mile.

Fierceness In His Voice

Coming into the GI Curlin Florida Derby, champion 2-year-old colt and 'TDN Rising Star' Fierceness is looking to get back to the winner's circle after running third in his only start this year. Owned by Repole Stable, the Todd Pletcher trainee is going to get another crack at the horse that won the GIII Holy Bull S. Feb. 3, Hades (Awesome Slew).

Fierceness | Ryan Thompson

“Normally I'd be afraid of the outside post but Forte won from the 11 last year so you can overcome that,” said Pletcher. “Everybody knows Gulfstream two-turn races are tricky and I think that's why the start is so important, getting away cleanly. I think what happens in a lot of these two-turn races is the jockeys are so conscious of having to get to the first turn in good position that it can get a little rough leaving the gate sometimes. … The horse gives you a lot of confidence watching him breeze. It seems like he's in really good form, so we're expecting a good performance from him.”

Among the other challengers who are chasing the 100-point Churchill Downs offering is another 'Rising Star'. Conquest Warrior (City of Light) garnered honors from the paper when he won by five lengths going nine furlongs against optional claimers in Hallandale Mar. 1.

“I feel good,” said Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey about Conquest Warrior. “We've had two good races here and I still have a pretty fresh horse. He's trained good over it. He's had a race going a mile and an eighth here, which he handled, obviously, very easily. He came out of it good. I don't think we took anything out of him.”

In the GII Gulfstream Park Oaks–the local 100-point Kentucky Oaks feeder–'TDN Rising Star' Ways and Means (Practical Joke) gets back on track for trainer Chad Brown. The Klaravich homebred debuted a winner by 12 3/4 lengths at Saratoga last summer and was last seen running second in the GI Spinaway S. upstate.

Standing in her way is the heroine of the GII Davona Dale S., Fiona's Magic (St Patrick's Day), and Power Squeeze (Union Rags), who returns to South Florida after raiding the Suncoast S. at Tampa Bay Downs.

The Gulfstream Park undercard has three other graded races as part of the program, including the GII Pan American S., the GIII Ghostzapper S. and the GIII Orchid S.

The post The Two Towers Of Graded Stakes, Oaklawn And Gulfstream, Align Saturday appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Never far from the leaders while traveling comfortably in midpack, she launched her winning bid entering the lane, and despite contact with Tapit Jenallie (Tapit), kicked home to win with open air between them. A jockey's objection from the runner-up was quickly dismissed. West Omaha (West Coast) kept on to collect third.

With her victory here, it tallies as jockey Keith Asmussen's first career Graded stakes win as well as give conditioner D. Wayne Lukas the hat trick on the day.

#7 Lemon Muffin ($58.20) breaks her maiden impressively in the Honeybee Stakes (G3)! The three-year-old filly by @AirdrieStud's Collected earns 50 Kentucky Oaks points for trainer D. Wayne Lukas with @keithasm7 in the irons. pic.twitter.com/l3HLSxaL1l

— TVG (@TVG) February 24, 2024

Sales history: $20,000 Ylg '22 KEESEP, $140,000 2yo '23 OBSAPR. O-Aaron Sones; B-Mr. & Mrs. Theodore R. Kuster & Collected Syndicate (KY); T-D. Wayne Lukas.

The post Lemon Muffin Leads Longshot Exacta Home in Honeybee appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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