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Brad Cox Trying For Fourth Consecutive Trainer’s Title At Fair Grounds

Fresh off a record-tying four wins at the Breeders' Cup at Keeneland earlier this month, trainer Brad Cox will look to parlay that success to his fourth straight Fair Grounds trainer's title when the 149th meet kicks off Thanksgiving Day. Cox, who won 40 races last year and also led with 12 stakes wins, will have the maximum number of 44 allotted stalls, two of which will eventually be occupied by soon-to-be champions Essential Quality and Monomoy Girl, who, along with Knicks Go and Aunt Pearl, helped him tie Hall of Famer Richard Mandella for the most wins at one Breeders' Cup. And while he's the clear favorite to extend his local streak, it won't be at the top of his to-do list to start the meet.

“Honestly, I never go into a meet thinking about winning the trainer's title,” Cox said. “The goal is always to be competitive, and especially now to develop our younger horses, that's a huge part of it. If we get halfway through the meet and we're in contention, then that's great.”

At the top of the list of younger horses is Godolphin's homebred, Essential Quality, who won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile to cap a 3-for-3 campaign that will almost assuredly earn him an Eclipse Award for Champion 2-Year-Old Male. The son of Tapit is on the short list of Kentucky Derby contenders and could be a candidate for the March 20, $1 million Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby (G2), a race Cox won last year with Wells Bayou. Essential Quality has been given some time off after his Juvenile win and could resurface in mid-February, which means the local February 13 Risen Star (G2) could be in play.

“Right now, he's at Churchill jogging and will be there through November,” Cox said. “We'll eventually get him down to Fair Grounds and start mapping out a path to the Derby, with likely two preps. I don't have a spot picked out yet but Fair Grounds and their series is definitely in play.”

Michael Dubb, Monomoy Stables, The Elkstone Group, and Bethlehem Stables' Monomoy Girl won her second Breeders' Cup Distaff prior to being sold for $9.5 million to Spendthrift Farm at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Selected Mixed Sale but, in a somewhat surprise decision, will race in 2021. The 5-year-old daughter of Tapizar is 13-for-15 lifetime in a surefire Hall of Fame career, won the Eclipse Award as Champion 3-Year-old Filly in 2018 and is odds-on to win Champion Older Mare this year. Monomoy Girl, who won the local Rachel Alexandra (G2) in 2018, is another who will join Cox's stable during the meet, though a potential schedule has yet to be determined.

“It's great to have her back (for another season),” Cox said. “Obviously, the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar is the main goal, but right now we really haven't talked 2021 with her. We'll get together with Spendthrift to work out a schedule, let her tell us when she's ready, and we'll go from there.”

Korea Racing Authority's Knicks Go will be the third of the Cox-trainer Breeders' Cup winners to be stabled at Fair Grounds this meet, though he could be pointed to the Pegasus World Cup in January at Gulfstream Park. Cox, with an ever-growing stable, will also have horses at Palm Meadows in South Florida this year, as part of his Gulfstream contingent, though he will spend the majority of his time in New Orleans. Cox will kick off his title defense with runners in the last five races on the Opening Day card, including ERJ Racing, Madaket Stables, and Dave Kenney's Landeskog, who is 4-1 on the morning line for the featured $125,000 Thanksgiving Classic.

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Stakes Winner Honest Mischief Retired To Stud At Sequel Stallions

Stakes winning sprinter, Honest Mischief (Into Mischief – Honest Lady by Seattle Slew), has been retired to Sequel Stallions New York, where he will stand for a fee of $6,500 LFSN.

Bred and raced by leading global powerhouse, Juddmonte Farm, Honest Mischief broke his maiden in his second start by eight lengths at Keeneland becoming a TDN Rising Star and earning an outstanding 2 Ragozin Number. He became a stakes winner winning the Force The Pass City of Laurel Stakes and was second to the brilliantly fast Volatile in the Aristides Stakes at Churchill Downs. Honest Mischief became graded stakes-placed in the Grade 2 Amsterdam Stakes at Saratoga. He bested G1 stakes winners Mind Control and Complexity in the G1 Woody Stephens Stakes at Belmont. Honest Mischief retires with four wins, three seconds, and one third in nine career starts with earnings of $287,464.

“Honest Mischief identified himself very early as one of the best dirt prospects of his crop in our barn.” Said Chad Brown, Trainer. “He proved to be very fast, durable, and consistent in both the mornings and afternoons. He has all the qualities my really good Into Mischief's have. I have never had a horse run a 2 Ragozin Number so early in his 3-year-old year. He was very, very fast!”

Honest Mischief hails from one of the most significant families in the stud book today. His G1 stakes winning dam, Honest Lady, is a half-sister to 4 Graded Stakes winners including G1 Classic winner, Empire Maker, as well as sires, Chester House and Decarchy. Honest Lady established herself as one of the most important racehorses of her generation winning the G1 Santa Monica Handicap and running 2nd against colts in the Breeders' Cup Sprint. Honest Mischief is also the grandson of Broodmare Of The Year, Leslie's Lady, and Toussaud.

“Honest Mischief's pedigree epitomizes the simplistic Juddmonte approach of matching the world's best dirt stallion with Prince Khalid's best dirt family.” Said Garrett O'Rourke, Manager of Juddmonte Farm. “Honest Lady was a nose away from being a Breeders Cup Sprint G1 champion in the fastest ever Breeder's Cup Sprint. She also placed in a Met Mile G1 against colts, and was the most beautiful little mare with a regal personality. Then to be by Seattle Slew out of broodmare of the year, Toussaud, and dam of G1 winner, First Defense, illustrates the peerless quality of this pedigree. Honest Mischief was pegged as a real talent by our exercise riders from the very beginning. He had raw speed, he was sound, and he had desire. He placed behind stars like Shancelot and Volatile at the top of their games and when he won, he won like a G1 horse. Honest Mischief has such a genetic concentration of classic talent, on top and bottom of his pedigree, that expectation of his success at stud is just a given.”

“Into Mischief is the most dominant sire of our times, rocketing to stardom from the very ordinary mares originating from his first books. To stand at stud the son of such an incredible sire as well as the magnificent female family Honest Mischief exhibits is beyond exciting,” said Becky Thomas of Sequel New York. “I am a super fan of Into Mischief and am honored to bring Honest Mischief to New York with the support and participation of Juddmonte Farm.”

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Tom’s Ready Arrives At Old Friends Retirement Center

Old Friends, the Thoroughbred Retirement Center in Georgetown, KY, is proud to welcome multiple graded stakes winner Tom's Ready. The 7-year-old son of More Than Ready — Goodbye Stranger, by Broad Brush stood initially at Spendthrift Farm and then at Red River Farms in Louisiana.

Bred in Pennsylvania and campaigned by the late Tom Benson's GMB Racing and trainer Dallas Stewart, Tom's Ready broke his maiden in his third start as a 2-year-old at Churchill Downs, and followed that win with a close 2nd in the Street Sense Stakes. A second-place finish to Gun Runner in the Louisiana Derby (G2), qualified Tom's Ready for the Kentucky Derby, where he finished 12th behind winner Nyquist. His career apex came the following year when he captured the 2016 $500,000 Woody Stephens Stakes (G2) at Belmont Park. He went on to defeat older horses, including champion sprinter Runhappy, in the Ack Ack Stakes (G3), again at Churchill. He ended the season with a fifth-place finish in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile. At 4, he captured the Leemat Stakes at Presque Isle Downs and the Bold Ruler Handicap (G3) at Belmont Park. Tom's Ready retires with earnings of $1,036,267.

“I truly respect and appreciate the great work of the staff at Old Friends as we have come to know Michael Blowen and his great work,” said GMB Racing's Gayle Benson. “We have had St. Aloysius there for a number of years, and it gives us great pleasure to have our wonderful Tom's Ready retire to Old Friends. He was our first purchase, he is a Grade II winner, and he raced in the Kentucky Derby and the Breeder's Cup, so we are very proud of him and he is deserving of the great care that Old Friends will provide.”

“We're honored to add Tom's Ready to our other old friends,” said Old Friends founder and President Michael Blowen. “I'm certain that his many fans will be very excited to see him when we, hopefully, open for tours post-virus. Meanwhile, he already has his head in the carrot bucket.”

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‘The Case Is So Strong’ For Allowing Woodbine To Continue Racing, Says Lawson

News last weekend that new COVID-19 lockdown measures will force the closure of Woodbine before the end of its scheduled meet was met with frustration and uncertainty for track management and horsemen. The move seems unfair to Toronto Sun columnist Steve Buffery, who writes that the track has demonstrated an exemplary ability to keep COVID-19 at bay at a facility that sees 2,000 backstretch workers in the barn area every day.

Since the pandemic began, Buffery writes the track has seen one positive in its jockey colony, and that contact tracing determined the rider had been exposed to the virus outside of track property.

Training will still be permitted at Woodbine, which seems counterintuitive to Buffery, who points out that people will still need to enter the property for daily care of the horses associated with those activities.

According to the editorial published Tuesday, Woodbine Entertainment CEO Jim Lawson has reached out to government officials to discuss whether there is a way to allow the meet to complete its last few days. Lawson said he has not had a response from the government and has been unable to reach anyone on the phone.

Many have expressed concern for the futures of the horses (particularly those less successful runners) and the people who rely on them if the track can not complete the meet as planned. Woodbine will lose three weeks' worth of racing, with about $5.2 million in purses not being distributed as planned.

“They didn't do enough due diligence and homework to understand what we're doing,” Lawson told Buffery. “The decision was made without enough understanding of the Woodbine situation and the thousands of people that worked there in a COVID-free environment.

“The case is so strong.”