Common Defense Delivers ‘Unbelievable’ First for Norevale

Common Defense (Karakontie {Jpn}), the first foal born at Sarah and Leo Dooley's Norevale Farm, provided the couple with an emotional trip to the winner's circle when he broke free of the pack late and powered home a maiden winner at Oaklawn Park last Saturday.

“We have a four-month old daughter and I woke her up from her nap with all of the screaming,” admitted Sarah Dooley. “We were so excited. He was the first foal born on the farm, we bred him, it was our first year foaling, we broke him, and we still own a good piece of him. He was in our silks on a Saturday at Oaklawn and he went off as the favorite. It was all surreal. And then he wins. It was unbelievable.”

The Dooleys began leasing the 110-acre farm on Hume Bedford Pike near Paris on Sept. 1 of 2020. Five months later, they partnered with Sarah's father, Tony Holmes, and brother Michael to purchase the mare Allusion (Street Cry {Ire}), carrying the Karakontie colt, for $25,000 at the 2021 Keeneland January sale.

Out of Alchemist (A.P. Indy), the now 13-year-old mare is a full-sister to multiple Grade I placed And Why Not, who produced multiple graded winner Fearless (Ghostzapper) and multiple graded placed Just Whistle (Pioneerof the Nile). Allusion is also a half-sister to graded winner Far From Over (Blame).

Common Defense's third dam is Grade I winner Aldiza (Storm Cat).

“It's a very good family,” Leo Dooley said of the mare's appeal in 2021. “There is a lot of page. I guess we kind of hoped that somewhere along the line, she would throw a good runner and hopefully this is him.”

Common Defense didn't attract a lot of interest when offered at the 2021 Keeneland November sale and was led out unsold at $9,000.

“He had some X-ray issues that pinhookers and the bigger buyers probably wouldn't have been very appreciative of,” Leo Dooley said of the buy-back. “But it was never, ever going to hurt him as a racehorse.”

Despite their faith in the youngster, the couple admitted they weren't terribly keen on keeping him to race.

“I can honestly say I didn't want to go the racing route,” Leo Dooley said. “We were dragged along, but we are pretty happy about it now.”

Sarah Dooley added, “We have to give all the credit to my dad for that. That was all dad. He wanted to race him. And here we are. We are happy he dragged us along for that ride now.”

Common Defense showed promise in his first racetrack appearance, finishing second in a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight at Oaklawn Dec. 17. That effort earned the colt an additional partner when David Bernsen joined the ownership line.

“[Trainer] Kenny [McPeek] put him in touch with us,” Sarah Dooley said of Bernsen. “He thought we would all be a good fit. And so far, so good.”

Sent off the 8-5 favorite making his second start Saturday, Common Defense bobbled at the break, was jostled into the first turn and mired in traffic on the far turn, but once clear in the stretch produced a powerful late kick to draw away to a 3 1/2-length victory (video).

“We were hopeful,” Leo Dooley said of expectations heading into the colt's second start. “We were definitely hopeful because he ran such a good race first time out. We were really hoping he would improve off of that and he did.”

As for where Common Defense might start next, Leo Dooley said, “It's up to Kenny to decide. We trust whatever Kenny wants to do. We are along for the ride.”

Allusion is still a part of the Norevale broodmare band. The mare's Not This Time colt RNA'd for $260,000 as a weanling at the Keeneland November sale two months ago. The Dooleys have high expectations for the colt, who they plan to offer at the Keeneland September sale later this year.

“We are really excited about him,” Leo Dooley said of the short yearling. “He is one of the standouts on the farm.”

Sarah Dooley added, “When we send foals to a foal sale, we are always happy to protect them if we like them enough. We primarily sell yearlings, but if we like the foal, if he's a really good individual, we will go to a foal sale and we are always happy to protect them and bring them home if we need to.”

Allusion is currently in foal to Epicenter.

The Norevale broodmare band currently numbers some 20 head and the operation has expanded beyond its original base.

“We still have that main farm and we lease another place across the street as well,” Sarah Dooley said. “And now we also lease my parents old farm right around the corner on Russell Cave.”

Asked if their success Saturday at Oaklawn makes them want to get more involved in the racing side of the business, Leo Dooley said with a laugh, “Yes. It makes getting up in this cold weather and going to the farm a lot easier. But we are probably never going to get this lucky again for a while.”

For her part, Sarah Dooley said, “There are so many things that were special about it. He was the first foal born on our farm, we are owners/breeders, we are in partnership with my family, he was in our silks. People always say it's the dream. It's why we started this farm, to breed winners, breed good horses, and you read about people saying it and you hear people saying it and it's nice to finally say that ourselves.

“Hopefully he can go on and be a nice horse, but even just the win, in our colors, it's a step in the right direction for sure and we are just going to keep trying to build on that. I don't know if we are going to be in the racehorse game now, but we are happy to take it when it comes.”

The post Common Defense Delivers ‘Unbelievable’ First for Norevale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Concept Headlines Field Of Nine For Clever Trevor At Remington

The nation's leading trainer, Steve Asmussen, has entered two of the six 2-year-olds he nominated for the $100,000 Clever Trevor Stakes to be run at Remington Park in Oklahoma City, Okla., on Friday, Oct. 29, including morning-line favorite Concept.

Concept, a 2-year-old Gun Runner colt out of the Cindago mare Majestic Jewel, broke his maiden while winning the Kip Deville at Remington Park on Sept. 26 at six furlongs. He will be asked to go an extra furlong for the Clever Trevor at seven furlongs and has favored status at 5-2 odds.

Concept had previously finished third in a maiden race at Lone Star Park on July 2 in Grand Prairie, Texas, and fifth in the Prairie Gold Juvenile Stakes at Prairie Meadows in Altoona, Iowa, on Aug. 14. He is owned by Tony Holmes and Winchell Thoroughbreds (Ron Winchell) of Las Vegas. The Gun Runner colt took them wire to wire in the Kip Deville at 9-5 odds.

Gun Runner is the top sire in the country for 2-year-old runners this year. Asmussen campaigned Gun Runner, the 2017 Horse of the Year and Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Classic winner. The Clever Trevor Stakes is a prep race for the $400,000 Springboard Mile on closing night, Dec. 17.

At the top of the heap of the national trainer standings, Asmussen's horses have earned in excess of $25 million this year. His $25,847,214 is tops in the country.

Asmussen's other entry in the Clever Trevor is a maiden winner, Hern, 10-1 on the morning line. He is another 2-year-old Gun Runner colt, out of a Distorted Humor mare, Sweet Opportunity. He has raced only three times, breaking his maiden at Remington Park on Sept. 8.

Feel the Fear and El Pando were made co-second morning-line favorites for the Clever Trevor, one coming off a stakes win in Iowa and the other an extremely impressive maiden win in his career debut. Both horses were set at 3-1 odds in the morning line.

Feel the Fear is 2-for-2 lifetime out of trainer Austin Gustafson's barn for owner Forge Ahead Stables (Kevin Kuta) of Ashland, Neb. Ramon Vazquez will be the third jockey to get aboard and try to extend that streak to three wins. Lane Luzzi rode him to a maiden win at Lone Star Park and then Kevin Roman got in the irons for the colt's win in the $100,000 Prairie Gold Juvenile Stakes at Prairie Meadows in Altoona, Iowa. Feel the Fear is a son of Honor Code, out of the Kitten's Joy mare Fresh Feline. He was bred in Kentucky by Lazy F Ranch. Feel the Fear is the top money-earner in the field with $79,140 in his bankroll.

El Pando won at first asking in a maiden race at Remington Park by 8-3/4 lengths with three-time defending champion jockey David Cabrera up, and is trained by rookie trainer Jaylan Clary. She has been impressive in her first official year of training with 12 starters and seven of them running in the money. This colt by Outwork, from the Speightstown mare Queen Negwer, covered five furlongs in a swift :57.74 in the maiden victory on Sept. 15. He is owned by the trainer, Clary of Brock, Texas, and was bred in Kentucky by Mike Abraham.

Chrome Baby (6-1), a Kentucky-bred by 2014 Kentucky Derby winner California Chrome, showed major improvement in his second start, winning by 5-1/4 lengths in open maiden company. He is lightly raced with only two starts against Remington Park maidens for owners Levings Racing (Brian Levings) of Edmond, Okla. He was bred in Kentucky by Taylor Brothers Properties and George Saufley, et. al. He not only was sired by a Kentucky Derby winner but Chrome Baby's dam (mom), Star Super, is by Super Saver, who won the run for the roses in 2010.

[Story Continues Below]

Here's the field from the rail out with post, horse, jockey, trainer, and odds.

Malibu Thunder, Obed Sanchez, Terry Eoff, 20-1
Feel the Fear, Ramon Vazquez, Austin Gustafson, 3-1
Revenir, Danny Sorenson, Danny Pish, 20-1
El Pando, David Cabrera, Jaylan Clary, 3-1
Hern, Leandro Goncalves, Steve Asmussen, 10-1
Kentucky Bourbon, Jose Alvarez, Dallas Keen, 15-1
Chrome Baby, Richard Eramia, Bret Calhoun, 6-1
Speightsville, Carlos Montalvo, C.R. Trout, 8-1
Concept, Stewart Elliott, Steve Asmussen, 5-2

Remington Park racing continues, Saturday, Oct. 23 at 7:07 pm Central.

The post Concept Headlines Field Of Nine For Clever Trevor At Remington appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Veronique a Timely Purchase for Holmes

Tony Holmes has enjoyed sales success with mares he has purchased in partnership with employees of his Marula Park Stud in the past, but next week the native New Zealander and a 22-year veteran of the farm may have success on the next level when they send Veronique (Mizzen Mast) (hip 244D) through the ring during Monday’s first session of the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale. Holmes purchased the mare, in foal to Mastery, privately after she RNA’d for $22,000 at last year’s Keeneland November sale. It was 10 months later that her son Nashville (Speightstown) made a smashing debut at Saratoga (video), earning the ‘TDN Rising Star’ designation. When the 3-year-old colt romped home by an effortless looking 9 3/4 lengths in a Keeneland allowance (video) Oct. 10, Holmes and his partner decided to supplement the mare to the November sale.

“There is a really nice man who has worked for us for 22 years and I was looking for a mare for us to own together,” Holmes explained of Veronique’s purchase last fall. “I financed the mare and that was the whole objective. He’s been the backbone of our operation and he’s a really nice guy. The plan was to sell babies out of this mare for an income. But things have swung around in our favor, so you’ve got to take them when they do that.”

While Nashville hadn’t made it to the races yet, the colt had made a good impression in the sales ring where he sold for $460,000 to WinStar Farm and China Horse Club at the 2018 Keeneland September sale.

“Obviously, her babies had sold well and I knew that, at that time, Nashville was having a spell,” Holmes said of the mare’s appeal. “I had heard that he had ability and I knew he was at WinStar and having a spell there. I knew there was still hope.”

Nashville was pre-entered in both the GI Breeders’ Cup Sprint and GI Breeders’ Cup Big Ass Dirt Mile, but it was announced Monday he would instead target Saturday’s Perryville S. on the championship undercard.

Holmes said Nashville’s impressive victories, and more importantly his potential successes, will likely take his dam’s popularity to the next level in the sales ring.

“I think it’s huge,” he said of Nashville’s promise. “I’ve had mares before and sometimes they win a nice race, but with him, it’s just the way he’s done it. And then Elliott Walden said he’s one of the fastest horses WinStar Farm has ever had. I’ve been in the position before, but not with a horse with this much talent.”

Veronique’s page received another update last week when her 2-year-old Market Cap (Candy Ride {Arg}) graduated by seven lengths at Laurel Park Oct. 30 (video).

The 9-year-old Veronique will sell Monday in foal to GI Pacific Classic winner Collected (City Zip).

“He was a horse who had won nearly $3 million, he was a good-looking horse that [Bob] Baffert trained,” Holmes said of the choice of matings. “I thought he was attractive at that price with his looks and his race record.”

Veronique’s weanling filly (hip 885) by Mastery will sell during Wednesday’s third session of the auction.

“She’s beautiful,” Holmes said of the weanling. “The man that works for us–he obviously owns half of her too–and we have four weanlings in the sale, but she gets the most grooming. Put it that way.”

The unraced Veronique is out of Styler (Holy Bull), a full-sister to GI Kentucky Derby winner Giacomo, and she is a half-sister to stakes winner Almond Roca (Speightstown) and graded placed Calistoga (Speightstown). She will be consigned to the November sale by Paramount Sales.

Holmes purchased Crystal Shard (Mr. Prospector) for $23,000 at the 2010 Keeneland November sale, also on behalf of a partnership of his farm workers. Her yearling colt at that time would go on to be GI Wood Memorial S. winner Gemologist. The mare was sold privately at a hefty profit.

Asked what another success would mean for his longtime employee, Holmes laughed and said, “I hope he shows up the next day.”

He continued, “There was another time there we bought a mare together and it was the dam of Gemologist. So he’s been on a bit of a home run, but after he sold that mare, the next night he was out there working overtime. But it could be a real life changer for him. They are nice people. So, hopefully. Could be.”

The Keeneland November sale opens with a single Book 1 sessions beginning at noon Monday. The auction continues through Nov. 18 with sessions beginning daily at 10 a.m.

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