tom albertrani | Horse Racing Free Tips

Friesan Fire Sophomore Commands $400K at Wanamaker’s July

Fiya (Friesan Fire), a progressive 3-year-old gelding who posted a 98 Beyer and 9 Ragozin last time out, was purchased by Robert Masiello for $400,000 at the Wanamaker’s July online sale.

“I’m very happy to be able to sign the ticket for Fiya,” said Masiello. “He’s been really impressive this year and his last race certainly hinted that he might have some star quality. I was a bit nervous about participating in an online auction, but the experience was very seamless and intuitive. I’m really looking forward to getting Fiya into Tom Albertrani’s program and hopefully we can have some fun.”

Fiya was bred and owned by Ann Merryman and trained by her son, Michael Merryman, with Thursday’s sale marking a massive success for the mother and son duo.

“I loved the transparency of putting Fiya for sale for everyone to see,” Ann Merryman said about participating in the online auction. “This enabled me to get market value for a horse without taking it out of training and shipping it to a sale. The team at Wanamaker’s was exceptional and I really believe they are moving the industry in a great direction with their platform; the monthly sales will enable so many more owners to capitalize throughout the year.”

Wanamaker’s second-ever auction was rounded out by the sales of Gymnastic (Pioneerof the Nile) for $25,000, Pupetta (Giant’s Causeway) for $5,000, and Mixology (Old Fashioned) for $4,000.

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Fiya Commands $400,000 To Lead Wanamaker’s July Sale

As bidding progressed in the Wanamaker's July Sale, it was Fiya who sparked a heated bidding war.

The tremendously impressive 3-year-old who posted a 98 Beyer Speed Figure and 9 Ragozin last out was purchased by Robert Masiello for $400,000.

An excited Masiello stated, “I'm very happy to be able to sign the ticket for Fiya. He's been really impressive this year and his last race certainly hinted that he might have some star quality. I was a bit nervous about participating in an online auction, but the experience was very seamless and intuitive. I'm really looking forward to getting Fiya into Tom Albertrani's program and hopefully we can have some fun.”

Fiya was bred and owned by Ann Merryman who employed her son, Michael Merryman with the training effort, marking a massive success for the mother and son duo. When asked about the decision to sell in an online auction,

Ann Merryman said, “I loved the transparency of putting Fiya for sale for everyone to see. This enabled me to get market value for a horse without taking it out of training and shipping it to a sale. The team at Wanamaker's was exceptional and I really believe they are moving the industry in a great direction with their platform; the monthly sales will enable so many more owners to capitalize throughout the year.”

Wanamaker's second-ever auction was rounded out by the sales of Gymnastic for $25,000, Pupetta for $5,000, and Mixology for $4,000.

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Channel Maker, Sadler’s Joy Attempt To Turn Around Losing Streaks In Bowling Green Stakes

Grade 1-winning veterans Channel Maker and Sadler's Joy, who together have combined to earn more than $4.7 million in purses during their lengthy careers, will attempt to put the brakes on frustrating losing streaks Saturday in the Grade 2, $250,000 Bowling Green on the inner turf at Saratoga Race Course.

The 1 3/8-mile Bowling Green is part of a Whitney Day program featuring three Grade 1 events led by the historic Whitney at 1 1/8 miles with an automatic berth to the Breeders' Cup Classic on November 7 at Keeneland on the line. The card is bolstered by the Grade 1, $500,000 Personal Ensign presented by NYRA Bets, a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the Breeders' Cup Distaff in November; and the Grade 1, $300,000 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial presented by Runhappy for 3-year-olds sprinting seven furlongs.

Also on the stakes-laden card is the $200,000 Caress, a 5 ½-furlong turf sprint for older fillies and mares. The entire program will be broadcast on Saratoga Live beginning at 1 p.m. Eastern on FOX Sports and MSG Networks.

Gary Barber, Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, Wachtel Stable and R.A. Hill Stable's Channel Maker has gone winless in nine starts since his neck victory in the Grade 1 Man o' War in May 2019 at Belmont Park, also contested at the Bowling Green distance.

Channel Maker, a gelded 6-year-old son of turf champion English Channel, has been beaten less a length or less three times during his current drought including last year's Bowling Green, where he came up three-quarters of a length shy of defending his 2018 dead-heat victory. Most recently, the Bill Mott trainee finished fourth by a length after pressing the pace into the stretch of the 1 ¼-mile Manhattan on July 4 at Belmont.

“He's an interesting horse. He's been working out well. He ran a really tough race last time. I thought he put in a tremendous effort and was right there at the end,” co-owner Dean Reeves said. “He's just the kind of horse that we'll get a lot of racing out of. He's been fairly consistent, if he gets the right trip. He's kind of a difficult horse to handle. He gets a little bit rank and a little bit wanting to go, but he's been consistent, he's a dual Grade 1 winner and we've got a lot to look forward to.”

Overall, Channel Maker sports a record of 5-5-3 with nearly $2.2 million in purse earnings from 33 starts. Reeves bought into the chestnut following his triumph in the Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic in 2018.

“He just keeps kind of rocking along and then every now and then he gets a big race. We hope maybe it'll be Saturday in the Bowling Green,” Reeves said. “I don't think there's a lot of speed in it. I suspect we'll be close to the front, and he likes Saratoga. He likes this track and Belmont quite a bit, so I think we've got a good shot.”

Manny Franco, up in the Manhattan, returns to ride from post 5.

Woodslane Farm homebred Sadler's Joy earned his lone career Grade 1 victory in the 2018 Sword Dancer at Saratoga and was second by a neck in last year's edition. The 7-year-old gelding capped his 2019 campaign by winning the Grade 3 Red Smith last November at Aqueduct, but has gone winless in four tries this year.

Trained by Tom Albertrani, Sadler's Joy has run third in his last three races, each by diminishing margins. He was beaten 4 ¾ lengths in the Grade 2 Mac Diarmida at Gulfstream Park in February, two lengths in the June 4 Tiller at Belmont – both at 1 3/8 miles – and three-quarters in the Manhattan.

“He came out of the Manhattan doing really well. He's been training very well and hopefully we just get a good trip,” Albertrani said. “The horse always seems to run his race. He's been narrowly beaten in several races, but he shows up. Just hopefully we get him back into the winner's circle one of these times.”

Albertrani is hoping his regular rider, Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano, will be able to carve out a good trip from post 6 for the late-running Sadler's Joy, who has finished in the top three in 21 of 30 lifetime starts, seven of them wins, with more than $2.5 million in purses earned.

“He's just such a tricky horse to ride, with his style. He always loses a lot of ground on the turns and I think that's the reason he's lost some of these turf races. He just seems to go to the wire after losing a lot of ground and he's always right there. That's just the way it is,” Albertrani said.

“Nobody knows him better than Javier. He's ridden him enough times where he's gotten to really know him,” he added. “You have to time everything just right with him. He ran huge the last race he won back at Aqueduct. It was a little bit of a class break for him but he was able to make that big, wide move and draw away. He always has to get a good trip.”

Todd Pletcher, who trained Channel Cat to victory in last year's Bowling Green, will make his title defense with Team Valor International's Pillar Mountain. Bred in Ireland, the 5-year-old son of Kodiac has raced once in 2020, closing to be sixth by 3 ¼ lengths in a 1 1/8-mile optional claiming allowance on June 20 at Belmont.

Pillar Mountain won a similar spot going 1 3/8 miles last summer at Saratoga, earning him a shot in the Sword Dancer, where he finished sixth. In his only other stakes attempts, both last fall, he was seventh behind Grade 1 winner Zulu Alpha in the Grade 3 Kentucky Turf Cup at Keeneland and third in the 1 ½-mile Point Of Entry at Belmont.

“The last race was a little short of his best so I thought it was an acceptable comeback race and he should appreciate the added distance,” Pletcher said. “He's a stayer, so we look forward to getting back to a distance that suits him. He seems to be in good form and he likes the track, so we'll see if he can step it up.”

Hall of Famer John Velazquez rides Pillar Mountain from post 7.

Trainer Mike Maker entered the Three Diamonds Farm-owned pair of Cross Border and Marzo.

Cross Border, who won the Lubash against fellow New York-breds on July 22 at the Spa, is a perfect 4-0 at Saratoga, turning the triple last summer. He won a conditioned starter by three lengths last July, then took a pair of New York-bred allowance events 18 days apart in August.

Cross Border set the pace in the Manhattan two starts back before being passed late and wound up fifth, beaten a length, and was nailed at the wire in similar fashion in the Grade 3 W.L. McKnight in January at Gulfstream.

The 4-year-old Marzo won the Grade 3 Sycamore in October 2019 at Keeneland in his second start since being claimed by Maker for $62,500, and has not raced since his seventh-place finish in the Grade 2 Mervin Muniz Memorial in March at Fair Grounds.

Jose Ortiz retains the mount on Cross Border from post 2, while older brother Irad Ortiz Jr. rides Marzo from post 1.

Completing the field are Ten Strike Racing's Dot Matrix [post 4, Joel Rosario], winner of the Grade 3 John B. Connally in January at Sam Houston, and Joyce B. Young's Highland Sky [post 3, Junior Alvarado], who captured an off-the-turf edition of the John's Call last summer at Saratoga.

The Bowling Green is slated as Race 11 on Saturday's 12-race card, which offers a first post of 1:10 p.m. Eastern. Saratoga Live will present daily television coverage of the 40-day summer meet on FOX Sports and MSG Networks. For the complete Saratoga Live broadcast schedule, and additional programming information, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule.

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Third Time’s The Charm? Sadler’s Joy Returns In Saturday’s Manhattan

Sadler's Joy has twice finished in the money in the Grade 1 $400,000 Manhattan and will look to earn a trip to the winner's circle in the race's 119th edition on Saturday at Belmont Park.

Woodslane Farm's Sadler's Joy, a seven-time winner with a career bankroll in excess of $2.5 million, is part of an eight-horse field of 4-year-olds and up competing in the 1 ¼-mile contest on the inner turf in the Manhattan, which is part of a packed 11-race Independence Day card featuring five graded stakes on Runhappy Met Mile Day.

Highlighting the day is the Grade 1 Runhappy Met Mile, open to 3-year-olds and up, offering a berth in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile. Also featured is the Grade 2, $200,000 Suburban, a 10-furlong test for 4-year-olds and upward; the Grade 3, $150,000 Poker, a one-mile turf test for older horses; and the Grade 3, $100,000 Victory Ride, a 6 1/2-furlong sprint for sophomore fillies.

Slated as Race 10 at 6:20 p.m. Eastern, the Manhattan will feature live on America's Day at the Races, produced by NYRA in partnership with FOX Sports, and airing live on Fox Sports and MSG+. First post is 1:15 p.m.

Sadler's Joy has come tantalizing close to a Manhattan win for trainer Tom Albertrani, finishing a neck behind Spring Quality as part of a blanket finish in 2018. The year prior, the son of Kitten's Joy ran third, 1 ½-lengths back to winner Ascend.

“I like the way he's coming into this race and he's run well in this race twice before, so with him, it's all about getting the right trip and hopefully he's up to it this year,” Albertrani said. “We feel pretty confident he should do pretty well.”

Sadler's Joy ended his 2019 year with a two-length win in the Grade 3 Red Smith in November at Aqueduct Racetrack and started his 7-year-old campaign against top-tier competition, running sixth in the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Turf in January at Gulfstream Park. Staying in the Sunshine State, he ran third in the Grade 2 Mac Diarmida at 1 3/8 miles in February at the same track.

Off a three-month layoff, Sadler's Joy returned to New York to run third in the 1 3/8-mile Tiller on June 4 at Belmont. He earned a 96 Beyer Speed Figure, marking 25 consecutive races he earned a number in excess of 90 dating to his sophomore year in 2016.

“I think the Tiller was a good race for him being off a few months leading up to it,” Albertrani said. “I thought he ran well in there and came back sharper after the race. I think going forward, this one coming up, could be setting up quite nice for him.”

Sadler's Joy has already banked more than $2.5 million in career earnings as he enters his 30th start. He has won at least one graded stakes his previous three years, starting with the 2017 Grade 2 Pan American at Gulfstream, the 2018 Grade 2 Mac Diarmida and last year's Red Smith.

“He's always right there. We've had a couple of troubled trips in the past, but he's a tough horse on the day and hopefully everything works out this weekend,” Albertrani said. “We always felt he'd rather have firm turf, but he has run well of softer ground. We might get some rain, but I don't think it will make much of a difference.”

Hall of Famer and two-time Manhattan winner Javier Castellano, aboard for Sadler's Joy's last four starts, will have the return call from post 4.

Two-time Grade 1-winner Channel Maker will return to the site of his most recent win, when he bested Arklow by a neck to win the Grade 1 Man o'War in May 2019. After earning a personal-best 105 Beyer Speed Figure for that effort, Hall of Fame conditioner Bill Mott ran him back in last year's Manhattan, where he ran a competitive fourth in a race that saw Chad Brown train the trifecta in Bricks and Mortar, Robert Bruce and Raging Bull.

Channel Maker has finished off the board in his last four races, starting with the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Turf in November at Santa Anita, and is looking to bounce back off an eighth-place Tiller finish. The 6-year-old son of English Channel, who counts the 2018 Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at Belmont among a career highlight, has finished second in three career Grade 1 contests, including the 2017 Hollywood Derby, the 2018 Sword Dancer at Saratoga Race Course, and last year's Joe Hirsch Turf Classic.

Manny Franco will be in the irons from post 6.

Brown has won the Manhattan four of the last six runnings and entered a troika of contenders for his bid to repeat after Bricks and Mortar's triumph last year. In the Manhattan, the first-and-second place finishers of the Grade 2 Fort Marcy on June 4 at Belmont will be sent out again, with winner Instilled Regard and the French-bred Devamani separated by just a neck.

OXO Equine's Instilled Regard is a graded stakes winner on dirt and turf, parlaying a successful run on the 2018 Triple Crown trail into a successful career on grass. As a sophomore, the son of Arch won the Grade 3 Lecomte before running fourth in that year's Kentucky Derby.

Brown moved Instilled Regard to turf in late 2018, resulting in a third-place finish in his debut on the surface in the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby. Since then, the now 5-year-old has won twice on the turf, including the Grade 2 Ft. Lauderdale in December.

Irad Ortiz, Jr. will guide Instilled Regard from post 1.

Devamani has run second in each of his two starts since Brown took over training responsibilities, finishing a nose behind Admiralty Pier in the Grade 3 Tampa Bay in February before running back in the Fort Marcy, where he registered a 102 Beyer.

Arriving in North America in 2018, Devamani made 12 starts before stepping up to stakes company. He will go for his first stakes win with Joel Rosario set to ride from post 5.

After a seven-month layoff, the Brown-trained Rockemperor has run twice since March, earning blacktype by finishing third in the Grade 3 Muniz Memorial Classic at Fair Grounds. He crossed the wire second in the Grade 2 Charles Whittingham in May at Santa Anita but was disqualified and placed third for causing interference last out.

Hall of Famer John Velazquez, a 2013 Manhattan winner aboard Point of Entry, will go for a second victory in the race, drawing post 2.

Terry Hamilton's Spooky Channel will take the step up in class and run in his first Grade 1, following a win against optional claimers in which he earned a personal-best 99 Beyer for the 1 1/16-mile route on May 23 at Churchill Downs.

Trainer Brian Lynch ran Spooky Channel in five straight graded stakes before that, saddling him to a victory in the 1 ½-mile Grade 3 W.L. McKnight to start his 5-year-old year in January at Gulfstream.

Spooky Channel was shipped from his base in Churchill to Belmont on Wednesday, where Lynch said he will stay in Jimmy Jerkens' barn heading into the race.

“I was happy with the way he won that open allowance and I just felt we were prepared to roll the dice a little bit and see how he fits with this spot here in a Grade 1,” Lynch said. “The mile and three-eights is pretty appealing. He's a big, hearty-type of horse. He takes it all in. He's on a plane this afternoon and hopefully he settles in.”

Spooky Channel, 8-2-0 in 15 starts, will have the services of jockey Julien Leparoux from post 8.

“I thought it was a good field of horses he beat in the McKnight and even the open allowance was a good test for him with a good field of horses,” Lynch said. “He deserves a shot, and there's 400,000 reasons why he deserves a shot.”

Ten Strike Racing's Dot Matrix, who edged Sadler's Joy by a nose for second in the Tiller last month, will rematch his old rival. The Brad Cox trainee started his 7-year-old year with a win the 1 ½-mile Grade 3 John B. Connally Turf Cup in January at Sam Houston, marking his first appearance since running third in the Red Smith, 1 ½ lengths back to Sadler's Joy.

Dot Matrix is 1-1-1 in three career starts at longer than 1 1/8 miles. The Freud gelding is a veteran on the Belmont turf, compiling a 3-3-2 record in 14 starts.
Florent Geroux, aboard for the Connally Turf Cup win, will make the trek to ride again, breaking from post 7.

Cross Border, owned by Three Diamonds Farm and trained by Mike Maker, will be looking for his first career stakes win. A son of English Channel, he was part of what Lynch said was a competitive McKnight field at Gulfstream, running second, just a neck behind Spooky Channel.

Jose Ortiz will pilot Cross Border, breaking from post 3.

America's Day at the Races will offer live coverage of Belmont Park stakes action from 1 – 5 p.m. and from 6 – 7 p.m. on FS1. NBC will provide live coverage of the Runhappy Met Mile from 5 – 6 p.m. Free Equibase-provided past performances are available for races that are part of the America's Day at the Races broadcast and can be accessed at https://www.nyra.com/belmont/racing/tv-schedule.

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