Tag: toby sheets

National Treasure, Red Route One Work for Belmont

GI Preakness S. winner National Treasure (Quality Road) worked five furlongs in :59.55 seconds over Belmont Park's main track on Monday in preparation for Saturday's $1.5 million GI Belmont S. With exercise rider Erick Garcia aboard, the colt galloped out six furlongs in 1:11.20 and seven furlongs in 1:25.20.

“He worked very well this morning,” trainer Bob Baffert's assistant, Jimmy Barnes, said. “It's a big track and you can find yourself lost out there. Erick did an excellent job working him and now we're just waiting for the race.”

National Treasure is owned by the partnership of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert Masterson, Stonestreet Stables, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital and Catherine Donovan. Hall of Famer John Velazquez will be aboard for the 1 1/2-mile Classic.

Also working Monday was Winchell Thoroughbreds' Red Route One (Gun Runner), who posted a half-mile in :50.20 over Belmont Park's training track. The colt most recently finished fourth behind National Treasure in the Preakness.

“I thought he went beautiful,” Toby Sheets, trainer Steve Asmussen's Belmont-based assistant, said. “It was nice and fluid and he came back with good energy. I'm very happy with him. We wanted to be out on the track before it got really busy. He's doing everything right and I have no complaints.”

Raise Cain (Violence), winner of the GIII Gotham S. and most recently eighth in the GI Kentucky Derby will skip the Belmont, trainer Ben Colebrook confirmed Monday. The colt will instead go postward the following day in the GIII Matt Winn S., which was originally scheduled to be run at Churchill Downs, but will now be run at Ellis Park.

“It shifted to Ellis and the distance changed to a mile and an eighth…That kind of moved the needle,” Colebrook explained.

Post positions for the 155th Belmont will be drawn Tuesday morning at 11:05 a.m. ET.

Post positions for the 155th Belmont will be drawn Tuesday morning at 11:05 a.m. ET.

The post National Treasure, Red Route One Work for Belmont appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Red Route One Breezes Towards Belmont

Winchell Thoroughbreds' homebred Red Route One (Gun Runner), beaten just under five lengths when fourth to National Treasure (Quality Road) in the GI Preakness S. May 20, worked an easy half-mile in :50.85 at Belmont Park Monday morning as he readies for his next start in the GI Belmont S. Presented by NYRA Bets June 10.

Trained by Steve Asmussen, who conditioned Creator (Tapit) to victory in the 2016 renewal, the chestnut worked on his own and NYRA clockers caught him galloping out five furlongs in 1:04.

“It was good, he seems like he got something out of it,” said Toby Sheets, Asmussen's Belmont-based assistant.

Third to 'TDN Rising Star' and future champion Forte (Violence) in the GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity at two, Red Route One was runner-up in the GIII Southwest S. and GII Rebel S., but was only sixth in the GI Arkansas Derby. He was victorious in the Bath House Row S. Apr. 22 and went for an early move at Old Hilltop while racing handier than is his custom and finished evenly.

 

 

The post Red Route One Breezes Towards Belmont appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Morello Romps In Jimmy Winkfield; Gotham Could Be Next Stop

Blue Lion Thoroughbreds, Craig Taylor and Victoria Taylor's Morello swooped to an emphatic score in Sunday's rescheduled $100,000 Jimmy Winkfield, a seven-furlong sprint for sophomores at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

The Jimmy Winkfield was initially slated for last Sunday's card which was cancelled due to the impact of a powerful winter storm in the New York City metropolitan area.

Trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen and piloted by Jose Lezcano, Morello broke sharp from the outermost post 5, settling in third position as Hagler punched his way to the front through an opening quarter-mile in 22.60 seconds over the good main track.

Hagler led the field to the turn with Life Is Great stalking in second and Beast Or Famine advancing along the rail. Morello made an early wide move prompting Life Is Great to pop outside of Hagler mid-way through the turn to take command after a half-mile in 45.55.

Morello continued to make up ground outside of Life Is Great and surged clear down the lane en route to a five-length win in a final time of 1:23.30. Life Is Great completed the exacta by 4 1/2-lengths over Beast Or Famine with Dance Code and Hagler rounding out the order of finish.

A $250,000 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Two-Year-Olds in Training Sale purchase, the Classic Empire chestnut entered from an impressive 4 1/4-length debut score over next-out winner Inevtabl Conection in a six-furlong maiden special weight on November 27 at the Big A.

“He broke very good today. Last time, he broke a little slow but today it was good, Lezcano said. “He was in the bridle the whole way and was really going like a good horse. I didn't have to touch him with the whip or anything. I just let him go. He had the same kick as last time.”

Dave Lyon, founder and managing partner of Blue Lion Thoroughbreds, said he was impressed with the effort by the colt he named after Tom Morello, guitarist for the rock band Rage Against the Machine.

“This was the plan all along. Sprint him, then take him to seven,” Lyon said. “The allowance race we were looking at didn't go, but we thought this would be the right race to move forward. It looked like by the way he galloped out he could go longer. He handled this field pretty well and we're excited for the future.”

Lyon said he will speak to Asmussen and his Belmont-based assistant Toby Sheets about a potential start in the Grade 3, $300,000 Gotham, a one-turn mile for sophomores on March 5 at the Big A offering 50-20-10-5 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the top-four finishers.

“I'm going to let Steve and Toby make that decision, but I think it's a realistic spot. I don't think he needs too much time,” Lyon said. “That race is on March 5, so we'll talk to the guys who lead the charge in the training barn and make a decision on that. We're excited, we think we have a good quality horse.”

Bred in Kentucky by Robert B. Tillyer and Dr. Chet Blackey, Morello banked $55,000 in victory while remaining perfect through two starts. Sent to post as the 7-5 mutuel favorite, Morello returned $4.80 for a $2 win bet.

Live racing resumes Thursday at the Big A with an eight-race card. First post is 12:50 p.m. Eastern.

America's Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the winter meet at Aqueduct Racetrack on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule.

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Aqueduct Racetrack, and the best way to bet every race of the winter meet. Available to horseplayers nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.

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Captain Bombastic Best In Polynesian Stakes At Laurel

Team Hanley's Captain Bombastic, a New York-bred son of Forty Tales trained by Steve Asmussen and ridden by Feargal Lynch, pulled away from Grade 1 winner Roadster down the stretch to win the $100,000 Polynesian Saturday at Laurel Park in Laurel, Md.

A 10-1 longshot, Captain Bombastic's victory was his first under the shedrow of Hall of Famer Asmussen. The colt was previously trained by Chad Brown and Jeremiah Englehart. Captain Bombastic covered the mile in 1:36.11, winning by a length over Cordmaker, who was disqualified from second and placed sixth for interference down the stretch. Phat Man, who finished third, was placed second.

The Polynesian victory capped a big day for Asmussen and Lynch. Just 30 minutes earlier, Jalen Journey, trained by Asmussen and ridden by Lynch, was placed first in the $200,000 Grade 3 Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash after winning favorite Wondrwherecraigis was disqualified from first for interfering with Jalen Journey down the stretch.

“It was a great day,” Lynch said. “Getting put up is never ideal. You don't want to win that way. But sometimes you're the windscreen and sometimes you're the bug.”

Toby Sheets, assistant trainer to Asmussen, said of Captain Bombastic: “He had been training well. We gave him a bit of a break and lightened up on him and he came right back around. [Lynch] saw a hole and probably thought he should go for it after the last race.”

Captain Bombastic, whose last victory came in August of 2020 in the New York Stallion Stakes, was fourth in last year's Grade 1 H. Allen Jerkens at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., and sixth in the Grade 3 Chick Lang at Pimlico. On Saturday, in his second start for Asmussen, the 4-year-old raced third down the backstretch behind a :23.68 opening quarter set by Roadster and Hall of Fame rider Mike Smith, riding at Laurel for the first time since 2007. Approaching the turn, Lynch saw an opening along the rail and guided Captain Bombastic to the front. Roadster stayed outside Captain Bombastic past a :47.05 half mile and poked his nose in front again around the turn. But Lynch took the lead back entering the stretch and Roadster couldn't keep up.

“With Steve's horses, you don't get in their way and you just get good position,” Lynch said. “When Mike left the rail open, it was either go in there or take back. But Steve's horses…they're warriors. It's so hard to describe. You look at their ears, they're flat back and they want to win more than anybody.”

Roadster, a $525,000 yearling in 2017, was a highly regarded juvenile and later a Kentucky Derby contender after winning the 2019 Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby for trainer Bob Baffert. But that victory has remained his last trip to the winner's circle. He came into the Polynesian off a fourth-place finish in April in the Grade 2 Alysheba at Churchill Downs.

The post Captain Bombastic Best In Polynesian Stakes At Laurel appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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