Tag: Todd Pletcher

Bolt d’Oro Colt Battles Back to Take WAYI Pilgrim

Major Dude gave his freshman sire a second graded winner on the grass and trainer Todd Pletcher a record fifth GII Pilgrim S. trophy Sunday as he stamped his ticket to the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf next month. A debut winner at Monmouth June 18, the $550,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga yearling could only manage sixth in the Spa's GIII Sanford S. July 16 and was third behind romping stablemate Lost Ark (Violence) when stretched to a mile for Monmouth's Aug. 27 Sapling S. He had posted a couple of breezes over the Belmont turf in preparation for this first foray on the lawn, but was dismissed at 10-1 while looking to help Pletcher defend his Pilgrim title (Annapolis {War Front} won it last year).

Away well, Major Dude was reined by hot-handed Irad Ortiz, Jr. into the first turn to sit in a joint third behind a pace that seemed hot enough visually over the soft going (:24.10, :49.73, 1:15.84). He mounted an outside move to take over at the head of the lane, but was immediately tackled by odds-on Chad Brown pupil I'm Very Busy. That one seemed to have all the momentum, but Major Dude had the heart and edged away in the shadow of the wire to prevail by daylight. New York-bred longshot Lachaise was rolling late, but ran out of ground and settled for third.

“First of all, at the half-mile, I think I can go by those horses whenever I want to,” said Ortiz. “I feel like my horse switched off on the backside and saved a lot of energy for the end and I took some time.

“It was a longshot, the other horse [Movisitor], so coming back, I took my time and when I asked him to go by [Trevor] McCarthy's horse, I didn't go by that easy, so I had to start working a little earlier than I thought. But finally going to the quarter-pole, he made the lead, I asked him and he responded really well and moved forward. Then the other horse was beside me and when he felt that, he fought back.”

Ortiz won two graded stakes Saturday, including the GI Woodward S. aboard Pletcher-trained Life Is Good (Into Mischief); and he was completing a graded double for himself and Pletcher in the Pilgrim after booting home Chocolate Gelato (Practical Joke) in the GI Frizette S.

“He's a colt that we've really liked from the very beginning,” Pletcher said of Major Dude. “He was one of the first to come in [this year]. He was training well on the dirt and we gave him a couple opportunities and we just kind of got the feeling that we weren't getting everything that we thought we had. So, I saw a couple of Bolt d'Oros were running well on the turf and said, 'Let's work him on the turf.' Then it was like, 'OK, that's what we were hoping to see.' I'm not surprised he stepped up today. He's always been a very professional, straightforward colt. I'm happy he found what he was looking for.”

Pletcher confirmed that the Nov. 4 Juvenile Turf would be next.

Sunday, Belmont at the Big A
PILGRIM S.-GII, $200,000, Belmont at the Big A, 10-2, 2yo, 1 1/16mT, 1:46.60, yl.
1–MAJOR DUDE, 120, c, 2, by Bolt d'Oro
                1st Dam: Mary Rita (SP), by Distorted Humor
                2nd Dam: Possibility, by A.P. Indy
                3rd Dam: Personal Ensign, by Private Account
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($550,000
Ylg '21 FTSAUG). O-Spendthrift Farm LLC; B-Clearsky Farms
(KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher; J-Irad Ortiz, Jr. $110,000. Lifetime
Record: 4-2-0-1, $165,250. Werk Nick Rating: A+++.
*Triple Plus* Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–I'm Very Busy, 120, c, 2, Cloud Computing–Two Kisses, by
Kissin Kris. 'TDN Rising Star'. 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED
BLACK TYPE. ($50,000 Ylg '21 EASOCT; $135,000 2yo '22
OBSMAR). O-Team Hanley, Richard Schermerhorn & Paul
Braverman; B-Glenn E. Brok LLC (PA); T-Chad C. Brown.
$40,000.
3–Lachaise, 120, r, 2, Oscar Performance–Elusive Rumour, by
Elusive Quality. 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE.
($180,000 RNA Ylg '21 SARAUG). O/B-Lawrence Goichman
(NY); T-Jorge R. Abreu. $24,000.
Margins: 1, 1HF, 2 3/4. Odds: 10.20, 0.75, 14.00.
Also Ran: Noble Huntsman, Ramblin' Wreck, Dataman, Battle of Normandy, Movisitor, Bramble Blaze, Fly Right, Torigo. Scratched: Vacation Dance.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs.

Pedigree Notes:

Major Dude becomes the fourth stakes winner for his highly regarded freshman sire, and the second to make the grade following in the hoofsteps of Boppy O, who exited a 10th-place run in the Sanford to upend Saratoga's GIII With Anticipation S. Aug. 31 in this same division. Both Bolt d'Oro and the runner-up's sire Cloud Computing stand at Spendthrift Farm.

This is the 54th graded winner worldwide out of a mare by top broodmare sire Distorted Humor, who also sired the dam of aforementioned Life Is Good. Standouts bred on the Medaglia d'Oro–Distorted Humor cross include Hong Kong Horse of the the Year Golden Sixty (Aus) and domestic MGISWs Elate and New Money Honey.

Major Dude's third dam is the great Personal Ensign. His dam, fourth behind Untapable (Tapit) in the 2014 GII Fair Grounds Oaks, was acquired by the Cleary family's Clearsky Farms for $230,000 at KEENOV '16. Her subsequent two foals, by Into Mischief, fetched $850,000 and $1,025,000, respectively. The  BSW/Crow Colts Group, Spendthrift Farm and Gandharvi bought Mary Rita's yearling colt by Audible for $150,000 recently at Keeneland September. The dam was unsuccessfully bred to Authentic after that, and visited Charlatan this past season.

 

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Practical Joke Filly Prevails in Frizette

Repole Stable's CHOCOLATE GELATO (f, 2, Practical Joke–Special Treat, by Candy Ride {Arg}) put in a strong turn run and wore down game pacesetter You're My Girl (Overanalyze) to prevail in Sunday's GI Frizette S. at Belmont at the Big A. The 8-5 favorite settled for third at 55-100 in her Saratoga opening day unveiling July 14, but returned a month later to atone and romp by 8 1/2 lengths, good for a 92 Beyer Speed Figure. She stopped the clock in 1:38.57 in the slop Sunday. Sales history: $165,000 ylg '21 FTKJUL; $475,000 2yo '22 FTFMAR. O-Repole Stable; B-Vincent Colbert (KY). T-Todd A. Pletcher.

 

Sunday, Belmont at The Big A
FRIZETTE S.-GI, $400,000, Belmont The Big A, 10-2, 2yo, f, 1m, 1:38.57, sy.
1–CHOCOLATE GELATO, 120, f, 2, by Practical Joke
                1st Dam: Special Treat, by Candy Ride (Arg)
                2nd Dam: Snooze, by Forestry
                3rd Dam: Daydreaming, by A.P. Indy
   1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN, 1ST GRADE I
   WIN. ($165,000 Ylg '21 FTKJUL; $475,000 2yo '22 FTFMAR).
O-Repole Stable; B-Vincent Colbert (KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher;
J-Irad Ortiz, Jr.. $220,000. Lifetime Record: 3-2-0-1, $290,350.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
   Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click for eNicks & 5-cross pedigree.
2–You're My Girl, 120, f, 2, by Overanalyze
                1st Dam: Peace Queen, by Indian Charlie
                2nd Dam: Issaqueena, by Mr. Prospector
                3rd Dam: Ziggy's Act, by Danzig
   1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE, 1ST G1 BLACK
   TYPE. ($130,000 2yo '22 OBSOPN). O-Gatsas Stables, R. A. Hill
Stable and Hidden Brook Farm; B-James G Doyle (NY); T-John
Terranova, II. $80,000.
3–Leave No Trace, 120, f, 2, by Outwork
                1st Dam: Tanquerray, by Good Journey
                2nd Dam: Kitty Galore, by Mountain Cat
                3rd Dam: Patriot Star, by Torsion
($8,000 Ylg '21 FTKFEB; $40,000 Ylg '21 EASOCT). O-WellSpring
Stables; B-Red Cloak Farm, LLC (KY); T-Philip M. Serpe.
$48,000.
Margins: 1, 2 3/4, 3HF. Odds: 1.65, 3.90, 7.90.
Also Ran: American Rockette, Vedareo, The Great Maybe. Scratched: Raging Sea. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs

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Into Mischief’s Life Is Good Wires Woodward

'TDN Rising Star' Life Is Good (Into Mischief), backed like he couldn't lose the GI Woodward S. at Belmont at the Big A, was briefly challenged by longshot Law Professor (Constitution) before ultimately shutting the door on that foe and splashing home a 1 1/4-length winner Saturday. The winner's stablemate Keepmeinmind (Laoban) was third in the four-horse affair.

Perfect in three prior Stateside starts this season, with a lone blemish a fourth in the G1 Dubai World Cup in March, the China Horse Club and WinStar Farm representative was a rare 1-9 on the morning line and garnered $364,099 of the $409,486 wagered to win on the nine-furlong event.

Away on top and quickly in command, Life Is Good was kept well off the inside by Irad Ortiz, Jr. as he doled out splits of :24.40, :48.60 and 1:13.07 over the sloppy track. Ortiz peeked back heading for home to find Law Professor in hot pursuit, and he stepped on the gas and got out the whip for the stretch drive. Law Professor–a winner of the rained-off GII Santa Anita Mathis Mile S. last December and most recently the restricted Tapit S. at Kentucky Downs Sept. 1 in his first start for Rob Atras–continued to keep Life Is Good honest to midstretch, but the chalk called on his class and eventually edged away while kept to task by Ortiz.

“He's quick out of there. There was not too much speed in the race and the first part of the race, there was a lot of water–we got a lot of rain,” Ortiz said. “I wanted to get off the rail and was able to do it. He broke fast, and he stayed there [on the lead] the whole time.

“The track didn't help too much–it's not that fast. He relaxed and I didn't have use him [too much]. He just was quiet, he was relaxed and we waited and he gave me everything he had from the quarter pole to the wire. If I asked him a little earlier, he could go faster and keep going.”

With his only other defeat a neck second to formidable champion Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) in last year's GI H. Allen Jerkens Memorial S., Life Is Good concluded his sophomore season with a romp in the GI Big Ass Fans Dirt Mile S. at Del Mar in November and picked right up where he left off when handling Horse of the Year Knicks Go (Paynter) in that one's swan song in the GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational S. in January. He faded to fourth behind Country Grammer (Tonalist) after setting the pace in the 10-furlong Dubai World Cup, but bounced back in Belmont's seven-furlong John A. Nerud S. July 2 before stretching back out to 1 1/8 miles to handle an accomplished bunch in Saratoga's GI Whitney S. Aug. 6.

“You could tell going into the first turn he had his ears straight up and was really relaxed,” trainer Todd Pletcher said. “That was good, but it also maybe plays against his strength a little bit to be that turned off. Part of his brilliance is being able to go fast and keep going. It was the logical tactics for today, but I don't think it's his preferred running style. His real weapon is his high-cruising speed and the ability to keep going.

“I was confident that he would respond when asked, but it was his first time over a sealed off track, and this track has not been playing real fast since the meet began. Any time you're a prohibitive favorite like that, you're concerned about those things.

“This was one of those, where there was only one satisfactory outcome and that's to win. We wanted to make sure we did that, while also keeping in mind that we have a biggergoal in five weeks, so we tried to balance that out the best we could.”

Focus will now shift to Keeneland, where Life Is Good could take on unbeaten divisional leader Flightline (Tapit) in the Nov. 5 GI Breeders' Cup Classic–surely the route fans are rooting for–or defend his title in the Dirt Mile.

“The plan is to probably ship on Monday afternoon to Keeneland,” Pletcher noted.

It was an exacta of rooting interests for WinStar Farm, which also stands the runner-up's sire.

“Constitutions, you never take them lightly and Law Professor ran the race of his life,” said WinStar's Elliott Walden. “It was a great race by him. Constitutions love the mud, so I figured he'd give him a good run. He drew away from him comfortably. We wanted to win, but we didn't want to put on a show. It's on to the next one.”

Saturday, Belmont The Big A
WOODWARD S.-GI, $465,000, Belmont The Big A, 10-1, 3yo/up, 1 1/8m, 1:49.57, sy.
1–LIFE IS GOOD, 126, c, 4, by Into Mischief
                1st Dam: Beach Walk, by Distorted Humor
                2nd Dam: Bonnie Blue Flag, by Mineshaft
                3rd Dam: Tap Your Feet, by Dixieland Band
'TDN Rising Star'. ($525,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-CHC Inc. &
WinStar Farm LLC; B-Gary & Mary West Stables Inc. (KY);
T-Todd A. Pletcher; J-Irad Ortiz, Jr. $275,000. Lifetime Record:
11-9-1-0, $4,361,700. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the
free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Law Professor, 122, g, 4, Constitution–Haunted Heroine, by
Ghostzapper. 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. O-Twin Creeks Racing
Stables, LLC; B-Twin Creeks Farm (KY); T-Rob Atras. $100,000.
3–Keepmeinmind, 122, c, 4, Laoban–Inclination, by
Victory Gallop. O-Cypress Creek Equine, Arnold Bennewith &
Spendthrift Farm LLC; B-Southern Equine Stables, LLC (KY);
T-Todd A. Pletcher. $60,000.
Margins: 1 1/4, 10 1/4, 8 1/4. Odds: 0.05, 26.75, 13.70.
Also Ran: Informative. Scratched: Thomas Shelby.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs.

Pedigree Notes:

The second foal to race out of Beach Walk, a $435,000 KEESEP yearling who went 0-for-5 in her career, Life Is Good is one of 115 stakes victors, 54 graded stakes winners and 11 Grade I conquerors for Into Mischief. His second dam Bonnie Blue Flag was runner-up in the 2010 GI Test S. and is a half-sister to MGISW Diamondrella (GB) (Rock of Gibraltar {Ire}). Beach Walk has an unraced juvenile filly named Living Good (Blame), a yearling colt by Candy Ride (Arg) and a full-brother to Life Is Good foaled Mar. 31. She returned to Into Mischief for 2023.

 

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Let The Breeders’ Cup Countdown Begin

There are but five weeks remaining between now and the Breeders' Cup at Keeneland Nov. 4 and 5, and many of horse racing's biggest names will take in their final prep races over the course of the next couple of weekends. Better than 40 graded stakes, the majority of which have championship weekend implications, are set to take place from sea to shining sea, including 21 'Win and You're In' events offering the winners an all-expenses paid trip to the Bluegrass.

Santa Anita stages one of the four Breeders' Cup Challenge races on tap for Saturday, the GI Awesome Again S., a race used by future champion Accelerate (Lookin At Lucky) as a springboard to GI Breeders' Cup Classic success back in 2018. Bob Baffert fields half of the eight starters as he looks for an eight renewal and third in succession. The charge is led by Country Grammer (Tonalist), whose two most important victories to date have come over 10 furlongs–the GI Gold Cup at Santa Anita and G1 Dubai World Cup–but he has proven effective enough going this mile-and-an-eighth trip, with a record of 2-2-0 from four starts. The 5-year-old, a millionaire 11 times over courtesy of two big performances in the desert this winter, looks to bounce back from runner-up efforts behind the re-opposing Royal Ship (Brz) (Midshipman) in the GII San Diego H. July 30 and when finishing in area code 213 behind 'TDN Rising Star' Flightline (Tapit) in the GI TVG Pacific Classic Sept. 3.

Meanwhile, on the Eastern seaboard–which was expecting the arrival of the remnants of Hurricane Ian late Friday–'Rising Star' Life Is Good (Into Mischief) revs up for his Breeders' Cup engagement as the overwhelming favorite in a field of five for the GI Woodward S.

Fourth to Country Grammer after failing to see out the 'stiff' 10 furlongs of the G1 Dubai World Cup, the 4-year-old has been nothing but brilliant since, with big-figure victories in the GII John A. Nerud S.–speaking of the Breeders' Cup–and last time in the GI Whitney S. at Saratoga.

“He's an extremely talented horse,” said trainer Todd Pletcher, whose previous Woodward winners include Lawyer Ron, Quality Road and GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile victor Liam's Map. “We just always hope that everything goes according to plan. It doesn't ever surprise me, but it is just remarkable how consistent he's been every single day he's out there. Every breeze is impressive and that's just what we've come to expect of him.”

The third of the Classic preps takes place at Churchill Downs, where the most competitive of the three fields heads postward in the GII Lukas Classic S. Favored at 8-5 on the morning line is the hard-knocking Hot Rod Charlie (Oxbow), but he'll be made to work for it by last year's Woodward winner and recent GII Charles Town Classic repeater Art Collector (Bernardini), GI Met Mile and Whitney runner-up Happy Saver (Super Saver) and Rich Strike (Keen Ice), who would become the first GI Kentucky Derby winner to succeed beneath the Twin Spires since Silver Charm took the 1998 GII Clark H. a year after being draped with the roses.

The Lukas Classic has been added to NBC's coverage of Saturday's preps.

 

 

 

Dirt Mile Berth Up for Grabs In Ack Ack…

Godolphin's Speaker's Corner (Street Sense) has the rail and is the even-money favorite for the one-mile GIII Ack Ack S. at Churchill Downs, with a trip to the GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile awaiting the winner.

For the first four months of this year, the homebred looked like he might develop into one of the top horses in training, as he capped a three-race winning skein with a good-looking 4 1/2-length tally in the GI Carter H. at Aqueduct in April, good for a 114 Beyer. It's been anything but plain sailing since. Best-backed against Flightline in the GI Hill 'n' Dale Met Mile June 11, he faded to third after setting the early pace and also had the misfortune of running into Life Is Good in the Nerud, finishing a distant runner-up. With Cody's Wish (Curlin) representing Godolphin in the GI Forego S. at Saratoga the same afternoon, Speaker's Corner was shipped to Del Mar for the Aug. 27 GII Pat O'Brien S. and never looked likely, dropping away to be fourth behind the impressive Laurel River (Into Mischief).

Juddmonte's Fulsome (Into Mischief), winner of this year's GIII Oaklawn Mile going a two-turn configuration and victorious in this track's GIII Matt Winn S. last year, and the class-dropping Untreated (Nyquist)–perfect in three tries going a mile, albeit against softer–could make life difficult on the rail-drawn favorite.

Juveniles Share The Spotlight at BAQ…

The Belmont at the Big A meet plays host to the afternoon's other 'Win and You're In' tests–the GI Champagne S. for 2-year-old males going the one-turn mile and the GII Miss Grillo S. for juvenile grass fillies.

Despite his relative inexperience, Verifying (Justify) will take plenty of beating while stepping into stakes company for the first time. A $775,000 Keeneland September purchase, the May-foaled half-brother to champion Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute) ran to 3-4 favoritism in the Travers Day opener at Saratoga, scoring by a widening 1 3/4 lengths, and looks to have trained on since the debut.

Trainer Brad Cox has yet to saddle a Champagne winner and believes his charge will be prominent in the run Saturday.

“I want to be up close, but he doesn't necessarily have to be on the lead,” Cox said. “He has enough natural speed going a mile that he's going to be in the mix. He's a good-looking horse. Based on pedigree and how he looks, I think he'll like more ground.”

A pair of 'TDN Rising Stars' figure to make their presence known as well. Gulfport (Uncle Mo), whose sire won the 2010 Champagne en route to a GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile victory and an Eclipse Award, romped by better than a dozen lengths in the  July 4 Bashford Manor S. and has since finished runner-up in the GII Saratoga Special S. and GI Hopeful S. New York-bred Andiamo a Firenze (Speightstown), a homebred half-brother to 2017 Champagne hero Firenze Fire (Poseidon's Warrior), was fractionally disappointing when third in the GIII Sanford S. upstate July 16, but bounced back with a smooth success in the state-bred restricted Funny Cide S. Aug 26 over the same sloppy underfoot conditions he's likely to encounter Saturday.

'Rising Star' Be Your Best (Ire) (Muhaarar {GB}) looks to remain perfect in three starts in the Miss Grillo, a race likely to test the field's collective ability to handle a fair bit of cut in the ground depending on what mood Ian is in.

“She fits great in this spot,” trainer Horacio De Paz said. “She's won twice and going long, so the distance shouldn't be a problem. Hopefully the weather stays together and we don't get a lot of rain, but even if we did get some rain, she's a horse that likes turf with a little give as well. Everything is very positive for her. She overcomes things.”

The field of six also includes Free Look (Tapit), a late-on-the-scene third to Be Your Best on July 31 debut ahead of a much-the-best score Sept. 4. Alluring Angel (GB) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) won on Saratoga sprint debut for the always-dangerous Jorge Abreu barn Aug. 4 and stretches out off a stinging nose defeat in the Sept. 13 Untapable S. at Kentucky Downs.

'Kingdom' Comes Back in SA Sprint Championship…

In 2019, Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella brought Omaha Beach (War Front) back off an April layoff and a missed chance in the GI Kentucky Derby to score impressively in the Santa Anita Sprint Championship S., then a Grade I. The conditioner looks for lightning to strike twice Saturday when the very talented Forbidden Kingdom (American Pharoah) makes his much-anticipated return to action.

A $300,000 purchase out of the 2020 Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase, the chestnut son of the gifted Just Louise (Five Star Day) wired this track's GII San Vicente S. Jan. 29 and proved he could handle two-turns with a blowout win in the GII San Felipe S. Mar. 5. But it all came undone in the GI Santa Anita Derby Apr. 9, as he dropped away to finished tailed off in last behind 'Rising Star' Taiba (Gun Runner) and hasn't been seen since.

“Richard is a such a great caretaker and he's given him plenty of time and let him get back to the horse that we know he is,” Spendthrift's Ned Toffey told TDN's Steve Sherack recently for his APB series. “We know he's fast. We know he's talented. It's just been a frustrating year.”

Forbidden Kingdom faces a field that includes C Z Rocket (City Zip), winner of this race in 2020 and third in defense of his title last year; and the progressive Kid Corleone (Shackleford), who tries graded company for the first time.

 

 

 

Elsewhere On Saturday…

The final two legs of the Florida Stallion Stakes–the In Reality S. and My Dear Girl S. are set for Gulfstream Park; a five-stakes program at Laurel Park includes the Selima S. and Laurel Futurity for the 2-year-olds; and Tyler's Tribe (Sharp Azteca) tries to make it five-for-five ahead of a possible Breeders' Cup appearance in the Iowa Cradle S. at Prairie Meadows.

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