Top News | Horse Racing Free Tips

Four Share Furlong Bullet Thursday in Timonium

TIMONIUM, MD – Four juveniles shared the co-fastest furlong time of the week during the third and final session of the under-tack show for next week's Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale at the Maryland State Fairgrounds Thursday.

A colt by Midnight Storm (hip 477) was the first to record the :10 flat bullet time Thursday when working early in the day's first set for consignor James Layden.

“I was really pleased with that,” Layden said of the work. “He's been doing good all year and I just wanted him to show up today when it counted.”

The dark bay colt is out of Freedom Come (Lit de Justice) and is a half-brother to graded stakes winner Harlem Rocker (Macho Uno). Layden purchased the youngster for $8,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton October sale.

“He just looked the part to me,” Layden said of his impressions of the colt last fall. “He was a good solid colt and I just liked the way he looked.”

In addition to his bullet work, hip 477's prospects in the sales ring next week should also be bolstered by the popularity of his first-crop sire. Midnight Storm, winner of the 2016 GI Shoemaker Mile S., stands at Taylor Made Farm for $7,500. The stallion was represented at last month's OBS April sale by a trio of six-figure juveniles, led by a colt who sold for $550,000.

“I am right happy with it,” Layden said with a smile when asked about the stallion's popularity in the sales ring this spring. “I didn't think he would be as hot as he actually is. I didn't think they would be quite this precocious.”

Torie and Jimbo Gladwell's Top Line Sales sent a filly by Palace (hip 515) out to share the :10 flat bullet Thursday morning. Out of Honky Tonk Angel (Bluegrass Cat), the bay is a half-sister to stakes-placed Tapiz Dream (Tapizar).

“It's hard to say we were expecting :10 flat, but we were,” admitted Jimbo Gladwell. “She had worked really good at the farm, exceptional, and she prepped good here last week. We knew she was the fastest one we brought up here and it was just a matter of if she'd do everything right. This track is a little tough to gauge sometimes and it doesn't take much of a hiccup to knock a tick or two off, so we were just hoping she would do everything right and she did.”

The filly was purchased by the Grade I Investments of Gladwell's sister and brother-in-law Nellie and Chetley Breeden for $8,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton February sale.

“They have been doing some pinhooking and partnerships and Nellie helps my dad break and train his horses,” Gladwell said. “[Picking the filly out] was her and my brother-in-law and my dad, so all credit goes to them. They've trained her and got her ready all year. We've literally had her for two weeks up here. We will take most of the credit, but they've done most of the work for sure.”

Top Line Sales, which had its first seven-figure sale when bloodstock agent Gary Young purchased future Grade I winner Princess Noor (Not This Time) for $1.35 million at last year's OBS April sale, decided to skip the 2020 Timonium sale, but the Gladwells are happy to be back in Maryland.

“We had a small group coming up here last year and we were going to come, but we had a few horses chip and need surgery and just a few little things go wrong,” Gladwell said. “It just felt like everything was telling us to stay home, so we did. But it's great to be back. We hated missing it. It was a heck of a sale last year and the breeze show looks like it was well-attended up there in the bleachers this week. Fasig-Tipton does a great job of getting people here and they are going to put on a top-class sale here next week.”

Ciaran Dunne's Wavertree Stables had its second bullet work of the week when a colt by Nyquist (hip 524) worked the furlong in :10 flat Thursday. The chestnut is out of In It For the Gold (Speightstown), a daughter of multiple Grade I placed All Due Respect (Value Plus). Bred by Fifth Avenue Bloodstock, the juvenile was a $67,000 Keeneland January short yearling and was purchased by BRD Racing for $60,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

Wavertree topped the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale in March when selling a colt by GI Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist for $2.6 million to Coolmore.

Hip 394, the final horse in Thursday's second set, was the last of the three-session under-tack show to complete his furlong in :10 flat. Consigned by Joe Deegan's Shamrock Stables, the bay colt by Maclean's Music is out of multiple stakes winner Coco Belle (Storm Boot). He was purchased privately after RNA'ing for $14,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

“I bought him in September with Ted Campion,” Deegan, a trainer and former jockey, said. “He did really well over the winter. He toed out a little bit when he was a yearling, but he straightened up when he grew, his shoulders came out. He's a very athletic horse.”

Of the colt's work Thursday, Deegan added, “I expected him to work well, but you never know until they do it. He had prepped really nice and he's always done it very easy. This is the most we've ever asked him to do. Up to this, we've just done small bits and small bits to have him just come here needing and wanting to do it. He was happy doing it and he galloped out strong.”

Deegan came to the Midlantic sale with a pair of juveniles, both of whom worked on the under-tack show's final day. After hip 394's work, the Irishman had to wait again until the session's sixth session for his colt by Cupid (hip 441) to work in :10 3/5.

Asked if the waiting was indeed the hardest part, Deegan said, “It is, but you've got to wait your turn. I'd like to have it over with.”

A colt by Empire Maker (hip 550) turned in the fastest quarter-mile drill of Thursday's session, covering the distance in :21 4/5 for de Meric Sales. The juvenile is out of Lady Pewitt (Orientate) and is a half-brother to champion 2-year-old filly Jaywalk (Cross Traffic) and to multiple stakes winner Danzatrice (Dunkirk). Bred by Gainesway, he was purchased by Danny Pate for $40,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton October sale. His full-sister sold for $2 million at the 2019 Keeneland September sale.

During the three-day under-tack show, 11 juveniles shared the :10 flat bullet furlong time and a pair of youngsters shared the bullet quarter-mile time of :21 2/5.

The Midlantic sale will be held next Monday and Tuesday with bidding commencing each day at 11 a.m.

The post Four Share Furlong Bullet Thursday in Timonium appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Alleged Dopers Want Recusal Based On Judge’s Past As Racehorse Breeder

One day ahead of a key status conference that could finally establish the trial schedule in the alleged nationwide racehorse doping conspiracy case, lawyers for the 14 defendants filed a “motion to recuse” letter asking United States District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil to remove herself from overseeing the case because she once bred Thoroughbred racehorses in New York, an industry connection the defendants believe will prevent them from getting a fair and impartial trial.

“Our understanding is that Your Honor bred racehorses for a number of years,” the May 13 letter stated. “For 15 years, you were also a member of New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. [NYTB]. Based on our review of racing databases, we have identified at least four instances in which one of your horses competed directly against horses trained by defendants Jason Servis or Jorge Navarro….

“Here, given the Court's connection to the horse racing industry–specifically as a breeder of racehorses for many years–coupled with its relationships with owners, breeders and other industry representatives, we believe an objective observer might reasonably question the Court's impartiality.”

TDN has independently verified that Vyskocil, in an undated 90-page questionnaire for judicial nominees posted online by the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, previously disclosed that she was a member of the NYTB between 2000 and 2015.

Thursday's legal filing in U.S. District Court (Southern District of New York) gave four specific examples of race results that the defendants believe constitute a conflict of interest.

“In Race 9 at Aqueduct on Jan. 14, 2006, Jason Servis's horse (Bettor to Receive) raced against your horse (Here's Ya Souvenir). Yours finished 5th, and Mr. Servis's finished 8th.

“In Race 5 at Aqueduct on Jan. 14, 2007, Mr. Servis's horse (Watchtheatlantic) raced against your horse (Here's Ya Souvenir). Mr. Servis's finished in 5th, and yours finished in 10th.

“In Race 10 at Tampa Bay Downs on Jan. 27, [2009], Mr. Navarro's horse (Manolo Manolo) raced against your horse (Here's Ya Souvenir). Yours finished 2nd, and Mr. Navarro's finished in 10th.

“In Race 2 at Monmouth Park on July 3, 2009, Mr. Servis's horse (Placid Waters) raced against your horse (Last Boat Home). Mr. Servis's placed 3rd, and your horse finished in 10th.”

According to Equibase, both Here's Ya Souvenir and Last Boat Home were bred in partnership by Barry Ostrager and Mary Kay Vyskocil. But she was not listed as an owner for either of them in the charts that were referenced.

Instead, the motion is alleging that Vyskocil's role as a breeder means she could be a victim of the alleged crimes based on a breeder's eligibility to receive bonus awards under some circumstances.

“To the extent Your Honor had a financial interest in the outcome of horse races that the Government contends may have been diluted by competing horses allegedly under the

influence of performance enhancing drugs, you would fall into the category of putative victims alleged in the Superseding Indictment,” the document stated.

The defendants also stated that “In the past, and at a time Your Honor was a member, the NYTB advocated for proposals that would impose stricter regulations in respect of Clenbuterol in the horse racing industry, a drug at the core of certain allegations in the indictment.”

The document continued: “On a call with defense counsel last night [May 12], the government agreed that, if the Court is a putative victim, recusal would be appropriate. There are several ways in which the Court's history as a horse breeder may make it a putative victim–if not now, then in the future.

“First, during recent conversations with the government, it reiterated that it continues to actively investigate this case and that it may supersede the indictment to add charges or defendants or to expand the timeframe of the conspiracy.

“Second, given the government's ongoing investigation, in calculating loss for sentencing purposes, the government may argue relevant conduct dating back to the period when horses bred by Your Honor raced against horses trained by Jason Servis or Jorge Navarro. In that case, Your Honor would be called upon to rule on the relevance to loss of races in which the Court may have had a financial interest.

“Third, the government said [Wednesday] night that it may seek to introduce pre-2016 evidence of positive drug tests against defendant Jorge Navarro…as direct proof of the conspiracy….”

“In sum, Your Honor has numerous overlapping relationships with the racehorse industry…. Standing alone, or in combination, these facts would cause a reasonably objective observer to question the Court's impartiality.”

A judge facing a recusal motion can ask another judge to rule on it, and a recusal would mean an alternate judge gets assigned. Motions to recuse that are deemed to be delaying tactics are expressly forbidden, but not unheard of.

The federal case against the alleged network of racehorse dopers is the result of a March 2020 spate of arrests in relation to a purported years-long conspiracy to manufacture, mislabel, rebrand, distribute and administer performance-enhancing drugs to Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds across America and in international races.

The recusal motion, made by Navarro's attorney, was joined by counsel for defendants Servis, Alexander Chan, Rick Dane Jr., Seth Fishman, Jordan Fishman, Erica Garcia, Lisa Giannelli, Michael Kegley, Jr., Rebecca Linke, Christopher Oakes, Kristian Rhein, Michael Tannuzzo and Marcos Zulueta.

The post Alleged Dopers Want Recusal Based On Judge’s Past As Racehorse Breeder appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Runhappy Filly Romps at Belmont

HAPPY SOUL (f, 2, Runhappy–Cowgirl Lucky, by Stephen Got Even) was hammered down to 2-5 favoritism for a barn known for its prowess with early season juveniles and ran to the money with a dominant performance. Away alertly, the bay took command and never looked back, blitzing through splits of :22.16 and :45.46. She crossed the line a good 10 lengths clear of 8-5 shot Lemieux (Nyquist) in a field scratched down to five. In her prior start, the $50,000 KEESEP buy finished second in a sloppy event at Keeneland Apr. 14. Lifetime Record: 2-1-1-0.

O-Gayla Rankin; B-Harris Training Center LLC (KY); T-Wesley Ward.

The post Runhappy Filly Romps at Belmont appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Lukas Argues Drug Threshold Levels

Bob Baffert has been placed the squarely in the cross hairs over Medina Spirit (Protonico)'s Betamethasone positive following last week's GI Kentucky Derby and amid the chorus of criticism, admonishment and outright verbal assault, a fellow Hall of Famer took up the mantle of defense for his beleaguered colleague.

“Unfortunately, it is the story of this Preakness,” said D. Wayne Lukas, who has won the second jewel of the Triple Crown six times. “Racing doesn't deserve to get the black eye for something this minor. Now, if there is an all-out performance- enhancing drug, that's obviously different. But that just wasn't the case in this instance.”

Lukas, who created his own stir earlier this week with a statement made in defense of Baffert when he suggested a test at this level should be thrown out, underscored what he felt was the central idea lost in the dissemination of his comment making its way through social media.

“The thresholds are so low now that [trainers] are all fair game,” he explained. “I'm here looking at my horses and think I could be next. It could be any one of them in the Preakness or any of these races the way the thresholds are set.”

In regards to the ensuing media nightmare ignited by this week's revelation, Lukas argues that many outside of the industry might not fully understand the facts in a case like the latest to take the nation by storm.

“The average fan following the news doesn't really get the scale of a picogram,” he said. “They think it's a blatant violation and that the horse had something in his system that enhanced his performance. And we can't explain that to everyone, so racing overall gets a black eye.”

He continued, “Testing is so sophisticated and sensitive nowadays that even a negligible level could fail. The drug thresholds have just gotten lower and lower and I really think we've legislated ourselves into a hole here. I really think we've painted ourselves into a corner with what I believe to be, in many cases, unrealistic levels.”

“Trainers have become so conscious of what we're giving to our horses,” he said. “I know that certain eye ointments have substances that would cause a violation. You have to be very careful what's on the label these days. Even then, with everything we feed them and everything we put on them now you are scrutinized pretty intensely.”

A trainer for over five decades, Lukas said he takes a basic approach in his own operation, while trying to navigate the razor-edge balance between maintaining optimal health in his animals while steering clear of a much-dreaded raceday positive.

“Part of the issue is that the withdrawal times we are given are often very limited,” he said. They're not always accurate or don't take into account all the factors. They tell us the withdrawal time is four days and somebody still gets a positive test even though they withdrew at six days. So, what I do is I just double it. If they tell us there is a four-day withdrawal, I automatically double it, so that's eight days on our books. You have to go beyond what they tell you because there are a lot of inaccuracies in that regard. There have been a lot of positives of late where trainers followed the guidelines they were given and still got a positive.”

And as the sport continues to regain its footing after its latest assault, Lukas offered a pragmatic approach to maintaining the health of sport.

“I hope the Horse Racing Integrity Act takes a realistic approach and sets the thresholds at a reasonable level and in a uniform way, so we're not failing for topical dressings and eye ointments, as in the case this week. Bob is under the gun right now, but it could have been any one of us.”

The post Lukas Argues Drug Threshold Levels appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post