Top News | Horse Racing Free Tips

Fasig-Tipton’s Midlantic Yearlings Catalogue Released

The catalogue is now available online for the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Fall Yearlings Sale, to be held Oct. 4-5 at the Maryland State Fairgrounds in Timonium. A total of 500 yearlings have been entered. The Monday, Oct. 4, session will offer the first 200 hips and will begin at 1 p.m., while the final 300 hips will be offered Tuesday, Oct. 5, starting at 10 a.m.

“We are very encouraged by the strength of this year's catalogue,” said Paget Bennett, Midlantic director of sales. “Sire power has ticked up once again this year, with a healthy mix of leading national sires as well as regional sires. Several of the nation's current leading first-crop 2-year-old sires are especially well represented, which adds additional interest to the catalogue.”

The online catalogue is available at Fasig-Tipton and will also be available via the equineline sales catalogue app. Print catalogues will be available beginning Sept. 3.

“Midlantic Fall is the top-ranked major North American yearling sale by percentage of 2-year-old winners from horses sold–an impressive statistic that should give buyers extra incentive to shop this sale,” continued Bennett.

Phone bidding and online bidding will also be available.

The post Fasig-Tipton’s Midlantic Yearlings Catalogue Released appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

26-Year-Old Justin Mustari Wins NHC

Justin Mustari, a 26-year-old horseplayer from Des Plaines, Ill., won the 2021 National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) presented by Racetrack Television Network, Caesars Entertainment, and Bally's Las Vegas. Mustari became the youngest winner in 22 editions of the NHC. He competed against a field of 563 entries over the three-day tournament from Aug. 27-29, winning the $725,000 first-place prize and an Eclipse Award as Horseplayer of the Year. He also earns an exemption into next year's NHC finals and a berth to the 2021 Breeders' Cup Betting Challenge worth $10,000.

Mustari's winning final score of $370.80 from 52 mythical $2 Win and Place bets was more than $20 higher than second-place finisher and former winner Jose Arias, who was trying to become the event's first two-time winner. The $200,000 second-place prize pushed Arias's all-time NHC earnings to $956,000, behind only the all-time leader, Michael Beychok, who has earned $1,015,300.

“I've got to buy a house because I still live with my parents,” said Mustari, who works for his father's insulation contracting company. “My dad has been the reason I play this game and he taught me everything I know so I have to give a lot of credit to him.” Frank Mustari, the winner's father, has competed in past editions of the NHC.

The official Top 10, with final bankroll (and prize):

First–Justin Mustari, $370.80, Des Plaines, Ill. ($725,000 + Eclipse Award)

Second--Jose Arias, $347.20, Bell Gardens, Calif. ($200,000)

Third–Chris Goodall, $345.60, Winter Park, Calif. ($150,000)

Fourth–Paul Calia, $339.10, Kansas City, Mo. ($100,000)

Fifth–Sarah Wiener, $297.70, Clearwater, Fla. ($75,000)

Sixth–Brendan Fay, $294.90, Seminole, Fla. ($65,000)

Seventh–Travis Allison, $291.30, Frisco, Texas ($56,000)

Eighth–Jason Phillips, $289.10, Sutherland, Va. ($54,000)

Ninth–Paul Yaffee, $279.30, Evanston, Ill. ($52,000)

Tenth–Jeff VanDrie, $273.30, Carefree, Ariz. ($50,000)

The full NHC and Consolation Tournament standings and prizes can be accessed at ntra.com.

The 2021 NHC was the culmination of 256 qualifying contests held online and at racetracks and OTBs in 2020. From those contests, there were 35,730 entries played. The event was postponed from its usual winter dates due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was held for the second consecutive year at the Bally's Event Center. The next NHC will be held Jan. 28-30, 2022, again at Bally's Las Vegas.

The post 26-Year-Old Justin Mustari Wins NHC appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Medina Spirit Returns a Winner in Shared Belief

Zedan Racing Stable's Medina Spirit (Protonico), whose GI Kentucky Derby title still remains in limbo due to a betamethasone positive, returned to the winner's circle with a wire-to-wire victory in the Shared Belief S. at Del Mar Sunday. The dark bay colt, sent off the 4-5 favorite, went quickly to the lead and was tracked by second choice Rock Your World (Candy Ride {Arg}) through a quarter in :22.52 and a half in :46.92. The two favorites were swarmed by longshots nearing the stretch as GI Santa Anita Derby winner Rock Your World drifted out slightly in upper stretch and Team Merchants (Nyquist) and Stilleto Boy (Shackleford) exchanged bumps, but Medina Spirit ran straight and true and powered home a one-length winner over the resurgent Rock Your World. Following an inquiry into the infractions in upper stretch, the stewards determined Team Merchants, who finished fourth, was responsible for the interference with third-place finisher Stilleto Boy and allowed the order of finish to stand.

“It's a relief. A Shared Belief relief,” winning trainer Bob Baffert admitted.

Winning rider John Velazquez said, “It went the way we wanted it. Once I made the lead into the first turn, I felt better. He was moving well. When he got on the backside, his ears went up and he was really cruising. When a horse would come to him, he'd pick it up on his own. When we got to the quarter pole, I said, 'Let's go; time to pick it up.' And he was right into it. He finished strong and the gallop-out was strong, too. He can build off this race.”

Medina Spirit, who was supplemented to the Shared Belief last week, was making his first start since finishing third in the May 15 GI Preakness S. Just a week after he upset the May 1 Kentucky Derby with a wire-to-wire victory at 12-1, trainer Bob Baffert announced the colt had tested positive for the regulated anti-inflammatory betamethasone. His victory remains a question mark as connections argue the positive was the result of a skin ointment.

“I did not have any intention of running him in this race until a couple weeks ago,” Baffert said. “I started thinking about it, figuring it couldn't come up that tough. Then [son] Bode said, 'You know Rock Your World's running there?' For what this horse has gone through, he's such a game horse and I wanted to run him here and see if he likes Del Mar. I've never had a Derby winner come back and win here so that's a first. He looks good and John said he feels better than ever. There's still some good racing for him out there. We're waiting for the process to happen.”

Prior to his Derby, Medina Spirit was second behind Life is Good (Into Mischief) in the Jan. 2 GIII Sham S. and won the Jan. 30 GIII Robert B. Lewis S. He was second again to then-stablemate Life Is Good in the Mar. 6 GII San Felipe S. and entered the Derby off a runner-up effort behind Rock Your World in the Apr. 3 GI Santa Anita Derby.

Sunday, Del Mar

SHARED BELIEF S., $100,500, Del Mar, 8-29, 3yo, 1m, 1:37.29, ft.
1–MEDINA SPIRIT, 124, c, 3, by Protonico
                1st Dam: Mongolian Changa, by Brilliant Speed
                2nd Dam: Bridled, by Unbridled
                3rd Dam: Holy Niner, by Holy Bull
($1,000 Ylg '19 OBSWIN; $35,000 2yo '20 OBSOPN). O-Zedan
Racing Stables, Inc.; B-Gail Rice (FL); T-Bob Baffert; J-John R.
Velazquez. $60,000. Lifetime Record: 8-4-3-1, $2,345,200.
2–Rock Your World, 124, c, 3, Candy Ride (Arg)–Charm the
Maker, by Empire Maker. ($650,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-Hronis
Racing LLC & Talla Racing LLC; B-Ron & Deborah McAnally (KY);
T-John W. Sadler. $20,000.
3–Stilleto Boy, 124, g, 3, Shackleford–Rosie's Ransom, by
Marquetry. ($420,000 3yo '21 FTKHRA). O-Steve Moger;
B-John & Iveta Kerber (KY); T-Ed Moger, Jr. $12,000.
Margins: 1 1/4, 2 1/4, 1. Odds: 0.90, 1.60, 22.50.
Also Ran: The Great One, Team Merchants, Willy the Cobbler.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

The post Medina Spirit Returns a Winner in Shared Belief appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Spinster Likely Next for Letruska

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – Though he quickly conceded that things could change, trainer Fausto Gutierrez said Sunday that GI Personal Ensign winner Letruska (Super Saver) is headed to the GI Breeders' Distaff, not the GI Breeders' Cup Classic.

“I think it will be with the mares. I think this is the correct decision,” he said. “I think there is a group where she is the leader. Anyway, this can change in any moment. You never know.”

The Personal Ensign was Letruska's fourth-straight graded stakes victory, three of them Grade Is, and earned her a “Win and You're In” berth in the Distaff. Gutierrez said she needs to be supplemented to the Breeders' Cup.

Letruska led from gate to wire and completed the nine-furlong Personal Ensign in 1:49.15 and edged Bonny South (Munnings) by a half-length. Royal Flag (Candy Ride) was another head back in third

“She's a good horse. She runs fast,” Gutierrez said. “Yesterday was one of the most complete races she has had. For the track. For the competition. To fight with the frontrunners to the half-mile in :46 was very fast. The other ones go back and the three horses that are last come again. You check yesterday and all of the stakes were decided by a nose, a neck, just Gamine won by a length and a half. It tells you how competitive the races are at this level.”

Bred and raced by the Mexican billionaire German Larrea Mota-Velasco, who operates as St. George Stable, the 5-year-old mare further strengthened her position as the top older female in the country with her fifth victory in six starts this season. It was her 16th career victory in 21 races in Mexico and the U.S.

Gutierrez said that the 5-year-old mare came out the race well.

“She likes to run and she likes to come back and three days after that she wants to go again,” he said.

Letruska will be shipped to Monmouth Park Monday. She will stay there for about a month, Gutierrez said, then move to Keeneland for the GI Juddmonte Spinster S. Oct. 10.

The post Spinster Likely Next for Letruska appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post