Todd Pletcher | Horse Racing Free Tips

Philly Eagles, Let’s Be Clear Headline P.G. Johnson Field At Saratoga

Tracy Farmer's Philly Eagles made a stellar debut in winning in Great Britain in June. She will now look to notch a victory on the opposite side of the Atlantic in Thursday's $120,000 P.G. Johnson for juvenile fillies going 1 1/16 miles on the inner turf at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Philly Eagles was a half-length victor in a maiden weight-for-age contest going seven furlongs on June 26 at Doncaster with Alice Haynes as her conditioner. The daughter of Havana, now in the care of Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse, breezed three times this month over Saratoga's Oklahoma training turf, including a five-furlong work in 1:03.45 on August 22.

On Thursday, the Irish-bred Philly Eagles is slated to break from post 4 while picking up the services of jockey Ricardo Santana, Jr.

“It's the first time running her here in the country,” Casse said. “She's training well and we're excited about Santana riding her. Everything is all set. She looks good and we're looking forward to it.”

Mystic Eyes was also a debut winner, posting a gate-to-wire 4 1/2-length score on August 5 in a 5 1/2-furlong turf sprint at the Spa. Owned by MeB Racing Stables and Vincent Esopi, Mystic Eyes earned a field-high 77 Beyer Speed Figure for her win over firm going.

Trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, Mystic Eyes will look to handle the stretch out in distance, drawing the outermost post with Hall of Famer John Velazquez in the irons.

Conditioner Christophe Clement will send out Manzanita Stables' Silvery Rill, who ran second in her debut on August 1 at the Spa in a 1 1/16-mile contest. Silvery Rill, a daughter of War Front, will see Joel Rosario ride from post 5.

Let's Be Clear ran a competitive second for reigning Eclipse Award-winning trainer Brad Cox in her debut going five furlongs on June 11 over the Churchill Downs main track, finishing a head back to Sax, before graduating at 5 1/2 furlongs on July 21 on the Spa dirt.

Cox will now try the Munnings filly on turf for the first time. Owned by Michael Dubb, Madaket Stables, and Michael Caruso, Let's Be Clear will make the foray to the grass with Manny Franco picking up the mount from post 8.

Meet-leading trainer Chad Brown will see Klaravich Stables' Expand the Map look to break her maiden after running second on debut on July 22 at Saratoga. The Irish-bred daughter of Dark Angel will break from post 3 with Irad Ortiz, Jr. aboard.

Joel Politi's Take the Backroads, a Will Take Charge filly, enters with momentum following a 4 3/4-length victory in her first start on the turf on August 4 at Saratoga in a five-furlong sprint.

Take the Backroads has progressed in each of her three starts, building on a third-place effort behind Let's Be Clear in that June 11 contest before running second to her emerging rival on July 21, this time finishing just one length back to Let's Be Clear on dirt. The duo will face each other for a third time and the first time on turf, as the Tom Amoss trainee drew post 6 with Tyler Gaffalione aboard.

Treadyway Racing Stable's Sail By earned stakes back type last out, building on her first-out win on June 18 at Belmont by running second to Miss Alacrity in the Colleen on August 1 at Monmouth Park. Trained by Leah Gyarmati, Sail By will have Junior Alvarado ride from post 7.

Owner and trainer Kevin Rice will see Runaway Breeze, who made her first three starts at Presque Isle Downs, including a win last out on August 18, look to make an impression at Saratoga. Runaway Breeze drew the inside post with Dylan Davis scheduled to ride.

Pletcher also entered Miss Interpret for the main track only.

The 17th running of the P.G. Johnson, slated as Race 9 on the 10-race card with a 1:05 p.m. Eastern first post, honors the late Hall of Fame trainer who crafted a distinguished career that spanned six decades. Philip George Johnson was the leading trainer at Saratoga in 1983 and according to the National Museum of Racing, won at least one race each year at the Spa from 1962 to 2003. His biggest career victory came in 2002 with a horse he co-owned named Volponi, who pulled off a 43-1 upset of the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Classic.

Saratoga Live will present daily television coverage of the 40-day summer meet on FOX Sports. For the complete Saratoga Live broadcast schedule, and additional programming information, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule.

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Saratoga Race Course, and the best way to bet every race of the 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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Wit, Happy Saver Work In Preparation For Upcoming Saratoga Starts

Repole Stable, St. Elias Stable, and Gainesway Stable's 2-year-old Wit, dominant winner of the Grade 3 Sanford July 17, put in his final preparation for the $300,000 Grade 1 Hopeful on September 6 with a half-mile breeze Sunday morning at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Wit, with jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. up, went four furlongs in :49.22 over a main track rated fast, ranking 16th of 24 horses at the distance. It was the fifth work in Saratoga since an eight-length triumph in the six-furlong Sanford for Wit, who went five furlongs in 1:01.42 on the Oklahoma training track August 23, the fastest of five horses.

“[It was] a good maintenance work,” Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher said. “He had a really solid work last week so we were just kind of looking for the final prep, and it went smoothly.”

By Practical Joke out of the Medaglia d'Oro mare Numero d'Oro, Wit fetched $575,000 as a yearling last fall at Keeneland. He was a six-length winner of his June 5 debut at Belmont Park, where he did all his prep work for the Sanford.

Wit's sire won the Grade 1 H. Allen Jerkens in 2017, formerly the King's Bishop, in the first year it was renamed for the late Hall of Fame trainer. The Hopeful for 2-year-olds, like the Jerkens contested at seven furlongs, will be run on Labor Day, September 6 – closing day of the Saratoga meet.

“He's a really easy horse to train. He's very professional. He's very responsive to whatever you want him to do,” Pletcher said. “He'll sit off a horse and he'll accelerate on command. He's really been push-button so far.”

Wit worked in company with Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable's Power Agenda, purchased for $120,000 out of the same sale. A gutsy front-running nose winner of his debut, a six-furlong maiden special weight August 4 at Saratoga, Power Agenda was timed in :49.25 and is also under Hopeful consideration.

“Power Agenda worked well also. We'll see how he bounces out of it, but right now we're leaning toward running both,” Pletcher said. “He showed that he's got some fight to him. He had trained well leading up to it, so we weren't surprised, but we've been happy with the way he's come out of it.”

Pletcher said he was thrilled with the efforts of both Life Is Good and Following Sea, who respectively ran second and third in Saturday's Jerkens. CHC Inc. and WinStar Farm's Life Is Good set blazing fractions of :21.97 and :44.16 and dug in through a protracted stretch duel with Jackie's Warrior before coming up a neck short.

Life Is Good joined Pletcher's stable earlier this summer and was racing for the first time since a victory in the Grade 2 San Felipe March 6 at Santa Anita for previous trainer Bob Baffert. The Jerkens marked his first loss in four career starts.

“Both horses came out of it in good order this morning,” Pletcher said. “[Life Is Good] ran a spectacular race off the layoff. [He] went really fast and just got nipped by a really good horse.”

Pletcher said there is no specific race yet picked out for Life Is Good following the Jerkens.

“We're kind of surveying all of our options,” he said. “We'll give it a little time just to digest the race and assess how he comes out of it. I think he's versatile enough that there's a lot of potential options.”

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Spendthrift Farm homebred Following Sea made a late run to be third, 8 ¾ lengths behind the top two. In his prior start, he finished third in a three-way photo finish in the Grade 1 Haskell July 17 at Monmouth Park but was elevated to second following the disqualification of top finisher Hot Rod Charlie.

“I thought he ran on well,” Pletcher said of the Jerkens. “He got a little confused when he got hit by dirt. He hadn't had a whole lot of experience with dirt in his face, but once he got going I thought he put in a nice run down the lane to get up for third.”

Wertheimer and Frere homebred Happy Saver, unraced since suffering his first loss in five career starts in the Grade 2 Suburban July 3 at Belmont, remains on track to defend his 2020 victory in the Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup.

Previously held at Belmont, the $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup for 3-year-olds and up going 1 ¼ miles was moved to Saratoga this year and will be run Saturday, September 4.

Happy Saver, whose other stakes win came in the 2020 Federico Tesio last September at Laurel Park in Laurel Md., has experience racing over at Saratoga, winning a 1 1/8-mile allowance last July in his second career start. He breezed five furlongs in 1:00.66 Saturday on Saratoga's main track.

“He worked well yesterday and looked good this morning,” Pletcher said. “We've kind of been pointing for this for a little while.”

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Half-Sister to Into Mischief Dies in Saratoga Training Accident

The unraced 3-year-old filly America's Joy (American Pharoah), a half-sister to Into Mischief (Harlan's Holiday), Beholder (Henny Hughes) and Mendelssohn (Scat Daddy), out of the 2016 Broodmare of the year Leslie's Lady suffered a fatal injury Sunday morning during a workout at Saratoga, according to Mandy Pope's Whisper Hill Farm.

Pope purchased the filly for a record $8.2 million at the 2019 Keeneland September sale.

The news was a severe blow to her connections, who were anxiously awaiting the debut of a filly who appeared to have unlimited potential.

Trainer Todd Pletcher sent her out for what was supposed to be her last workout before beginning her career early next month at Belmont. Pletcher told Pope that America's Joy went down just after the work had been concluded and that by the time he reached her she was dead. It appears, Pope said, that the filly fractured her left front sesamoid, which caused her to fall and break her neck.

“She brought a lot of joy to everybody's life,” Pope said. “She was just a perfect horse in every way. She was so sweet and so kind. She was just such a classy, classy horse. I'm sorry that the racing world will never get to see all of the accomplishments she was about to make on the track and as a mama. May she rest in peace.”

Pope said that the filly was given some time off as a 2-year-old because of some growing issues. She had her first work for Pletcher July 5 and had a steady stream of works leading into Sunday's, which clockers recorded as a half-mile breeze in :47.80 over the main track. In an indication of what Pletcher thought of America's Joy, he had, on at least two occasions, sent her out to work in company with 2020 GI Jockey Club Gold Cup winner Happy Saver (Super Saver).

“She took to training early and right away did everything great,” Pope said. “We brought her along slowly and then sent her to Todd. He was very excited about her. He was working her with graded stakes horses because she was just playing with other horses. She could even outwork the stakes horses.”

America's Joy was consigned by her breeder, Clarkland Farm. Sheikh Mohammed of Godolphin and B. Wayne Hughes of Spendthrift Farm were also bidding on the filly, but Pope prevailed.

“You can't fault her,” she told the TDN after the Keeneland purchase. “She's perfectly balanced, she's gorgeous, she's not too big, not too small. Obviously, we're hoping that Beholder hits it as a broodmare. She certainly has tremendous value should she not get to the races for whatever reason. Like everything else, it's a big gamble; fingers crossed, lots of prayers and wish us well.”

Leslie's Lady was pensioned from breeding duties this spring. She has also produced a 2-year-old filly by Not This Time and a yearling filly by Kantharos.

“There are a lot of people to whom I'd like to express my gratitude for having taken such good care of her,” Pope said. “There's Todd Quast, Lynda and her crew at Whisper Hill Farm. There's Lee and his crew at Whisper Hill Training Center and Dr. Greg Bonen Clark. I'd like to thank Fred Mitchell and Clarkland Farm, Todd Pletcher and her fan club.”

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Constitution Colt Romps in Albany

Americanrevolution added another impressive tally to his resume with a dominant score in the Albany. Riding the rail in fifth through a :23.49 opening quarter, the chestnut maintained that position as Bobby Bo put up a :47.33 half-mile. Taking closer order on the backstretch run, Americanrevolution ranged up to confront the leader turning for home and the pair battled to the wire with Americanrevolution drawing clear late to win. Bobby Bo held second and it was a long way back to third-place horse.

“I thought we would be a little closer to the pacesetter, but we got a little traffic and a little dirt around the turn,” said winning trainer Todd Pletcher. “He came away in good position turning up the backside and continued to improve his spot. It seemed like he was always traveling well.”

Fourth behind GI Haskell Invitational S. winner Mandaloun (Into Mischief) on debut against open company at Keeneland in October, he was transferred from trainer Rodolphe Brisset to New York-based Pletcher. Graduating by a neck in an Empire-bred event at Belmont June 20, he romped by 7 1/4 lengths when extended to two turns in the state-bred New York Derby at Finger Lakes July 19.

Polly Freeze is also responsible for the unraced juvenile colt Bold Journey (Hard Spun) and a yearling filly by Collected. She was bred to Frosted last spring. Polly Freeze is a half-sister to MGSW Gouldings Green (Charismatic) and SW Filare L'Oro (Hard Spun), dam of MGSW Silver Dust (Tapit) and GSP Forza Di Oro (Speightstown). Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

ALBANY S., $250,000, Saratoga, 8-27, (S), 3yo, 1 1/8m, 1:49.94, ft.
1–AMERICANREVOLUTION, 124, c, 3, by Constitution
                1st Dam: Polly Freeze, by Super Saver
                2nd Dam: Elusive Gold, by Strike the Gold
                3rd Dam: Save My Soul, by I'ma Hell Raiser
($275,000 Ylg '19 SARAUG). O-CHC Inc. and WinStar Farm LLC;
B-Fred W. Hertrich III & John D. Fielding (NY); T-Todd A.
Pletcher; J-Luis Saez. $137,500. Lifetime Record: 4-3-0-0,
$271,535.
2–Bobby Bo, 118, c, 3, Speightster–Auspicious, by Indian
Charlie. ($110,000 Ylg '19 SARAUG; $1,100,000 RNA 2yo '20
OBSAPR). O-Little Red Feather Racing; B-Danzel Brendemuehl
Classic Mares (NY); T-Bob Baffert. $50,000.
3–It's a Gamble, 124, c, 3, English Channel–Yes It's Pink, by Yes
It's True. O-Mr. Amore Stable; B-Ron Lombardi (NY); T-Kelly J.
Breen. $30,000.
Margins: 5, 11HF, HF. Odds: 0.70, 2.65, 24.00.
Also Ran: Our Man Mike, Anejo, Joey Loose Lips, It's Gravy, Bingo John. Scratched: Purple Hearted.

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