Tag: Top News

No More Time Breezes for Potential Start in Kentucky Derby

Morplay Racing's No More Time (Not This Time), winner of the GIII Sam F. Davis S. and narrow runner-up in the GIII Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby, breezed a half-mile in :48.60 (8/52) Saturday morning at Palm Meadows Training Center in preparation for a planned start in the GI Kentucky Derby.

“He worked by himself. He went good and also had a strong gallop-out,” trainer Jose D'Angelo said. “Everything's good. We're hoping to get into the Kentucky Derby.”

Prior to Saturday's three major prep races at Santa Anita, Keeneland, and Aqueduct, No More Time, who has collected 45 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby, was sitting 15th in the standings that will determine the 20-horse field for the first leg of the Triple Crown at Churchill Downs.

“We're not just going to just run a horse there. We have a horse with a chance to win the race,” D'Angelo said.

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Sierra Leone Stamps His Authority On The Blue Grass

He wasn't the most cooperative at the stalls and he left himself plenty to do over a Keeneland main track that was playing kind to speed over the course of the afternoon, but 'TDN Rising Star' Sierra Leone (c, 3, Gun Runner–Heavenly Love, by Malibu Moon) saved his best for last and cemented his status as one of the top couple of contenders for the GI Kentucky Derby with a fast-finishing victory in the 100th running of the GI Toyota Blue Grass S. Saturday afternoon.

The victory, on the back of an equally decisive score in the GII Risen Star S. at the Fair Grounds Feb. 17, sets up a titanic clash of 'TDN Rising Stars' in the $5-million GI Kentucky Derby in a month's time with Eclipse champion 2-year-old Fierceness (City of Light), a far handier sort possessed of a high cruising speed that can be difficult to reel in.

Sierra Leone was to be the last to load in gate 10, but he proved a bit difficult to handle, delaying the start of the Blue Grass by about three minutes. A bit easy in the market, having touched 6-5 before leaving the gates at odds just north of 8-5, the $2.3-million topper from the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale was perhaps a half-step slow to begin, but slid down to race one off the inside and last but one into the first turn as stablemate Top Conor (Twirling Candy)–himself a $1-million OBS March breezer–cut out sharp fractions of :23.15 and :46.48 while tracked intently by recent GIII Gotham S. runner-up Just a Touch (Justify). Unhurried and patiently handled at the tail by Tyler Gaffalione, Sierra Leone raced well out into the track while taking plenty of dirt down the backstretch and still had a double-digit gap to bridge as the Blue Grass field entered the final half-mile.

Wisely angled back down towards the inside for a two-path run around the far turn, Sierra Leone began pick off rivals and was steered outside of Be You (Curlin) and about five deep into the lane. Just a Touch hit the front in upper stretch as inexperience caught up with Top Conor, but the lead was short-lived, as Sierra Leone gathered him up with relative ease while lugging in a bit entering the final sixteenth of a mile and strode clear. Epic Ride (Blame), a latest runner-up in the John Battaglia S. Mar. 2 and trying the dirt for the first time in his five-race career, was a very good third, while Dornoch (Good Magic) failed to capitalize on a box-seat trip and was an even fourth, 6 1/2 lengths behind Sierra Leone, who he had famously beaten a nose in last year's GII Remsen S.

“He didn't break the sharpest, but it actually gave me time to get over and save some ground into the first turn,” said Gaffalione. “He took the dirt just fine. Down the backside he got into a great rhythm. From the five-eighths pole on, he was moving like a winner. I was able to save some ground into the second turn, pop him out, and he just has so much talent.”

Added trainer Chad Brown, winning a third Blue Grass: “We're just trying to maintain pretty much the way he's been his whole life, a special horse. I don't know if they ever fully figure it out, but he's only had a handful of starts. But there's such good chemistry with Tyler and Sierra Leone his last two starts. You can see he wants to lean in a little bit, but it's never too bad. He's still polishing off his experience and his skills, and I just think a mile-and-a-quarter won't be a problem going forward. We're looking forward to it.”

Trainer Danny Gargan is far from willing to give up on Dornoch, the full-brother to last year's Derby winner Mage.

“He went really well. He got in there behind,” the trainer said. “It's his first time really getting a lot of dirt like that, he resented it a little bit early, [jockey] Luis [Saez] said. He said he kind of ran away from the horses. Next time, we'll break him out of [the starting gate on the lead] and keep his face clean, and he'll run better next time.

Accorded 'Rising Star' status after overcoming an eventful journey to graduate over Aqueduct's one-turn mile at first asking on Breeders' Cup Saturday, Nov. 4, Sierra Leone looked all but home after a heroic rally in the Remsen, only to have Dornoch come back on him at the post. Opting for the long Fair Grounds stretch for his sophomore debut in the Risen Star, he was as many as 10 off the inside in upper stretch and powered home to best Track Phantom (Quality Road) and next-out GII Louisiana Derby winner Catching Freedom (Constitution) by a half-length with blinkers on for the first time.

Pedigree Notes:

Sierra Leone is the eighth elite-level winner for his leading fourth-crop sire and is the only winner from his dam, who carried the silks of breeder Debby Oxley to victory in this track's GI Darley Alcibiades S. in 2017.

Heavenly Love is a daughter of Darling My Darling, a $300,000 Keeneland September purchase by John Oxley in 1998 who won the Doubledogdare S. and Raven Run S. in Lexington while also placing in the GI Frizette S. and GI Matron S. Darling My Darling is also the dam of 2016 GII Santa Ynez S. winner Forever Darling (Congrats), whose son Forever Young (Jpn) (Real Steel {Jpn}) is the top 3-year-old dirt horse in Japan and followed up on a narrow victory in the G3 Saudi Derby Feb. 24 with success in the Mar. 30 G2 UAE Derby for trainer Yoshito Yahagi, stamping his own ticket to Louisville. Sierra Leone's Grade I-winning third dam also produced Japanese Horse of the Year Zenno Rob Roy (Jpn) (Sunday Silence).

Heavenly Love foaled a colt by Nyquist in 2022 and produced a full-sister to Sierra Leone Feb. 11.

Saturday, Keeneland
TOYOTA BLUE GRASS S.-GI, $995,782, Keeneland, 4-6, 3yo, 1 1/8m, 1:50.08, ft.
1–SIERRA LEONE, 123, c, 3, by Gun Runner
1st Dam: Heavenly Love (GISW, $346,200), by Malibu Moon
2nd Dam: Darling My Darling, by Deputy Minister
3rd Dam: Roamin Rachel, by Mining
1ST GRADE I WIN. ($2,300,000 Ylg '22 FTSAUG). 'TDN Rising Star'. O-Peter M. Brant, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Westerberg and Brook T. Smith; B-Debby M. Oxley (KY); T-Chad C. Brown; J-Tyler Gaffalione. $581,250. Lifetime Record: 4-3-1-0, $918,000. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus* Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Just a Touch, 123, c, 3, Justify–Touching Beauty, by Tapit. 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($170,000 RNA Ylg '22 KEESEP; $125,000 Ylg '22 FTKOCT; $300,000 2yo '23 OBSAPR). O-Qatar Racing, LLC, Resolute Racing and Marc Detampel; B-Don Alberto Corporation (KY); T-Brad H. Cox. $187,500.
3–Epic Ride, 123, c, 3, Blame–Pick a Time, by Gio Ponti. 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE, 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($160,000 Ylg '22 KEESEP). O-Welch Racing LLC; B-Fred W. Hertrich (KY); T-John Ennis. $93,750.
Margins: 1HF, 3 3/4, 1 1/4. Odds: 1.66, 3.31, 51.37.
Also Ran: Dornoch, Mugatu, Top Conor, Seize the Grey, Be You, Lat Long, Good Money. Scratched: Encino.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

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Nothing Like Dettori, Who Wins Santa Anita Oaks on Nothing Like You in Six-Win Streak

In an event billed almost as a match race between California star fillies Kinza (Carpe Diem), a MGSW and 'TDN Rising Star' for Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, and Kopion (Omaha Beach), a GSW for Hall of Famer Richard Mandella, it was Baffert's other entrant, Nothing Like You (f, 3, Malibu Moon–Miss Derek, by Brother Derek) who upended the GII Santa Anita Oaks in Arcadia and reported home an eased-up 7 1/2-length victress. Kinza was second, giving Baffert the exacta but suffering her first career loss, and last-out maiden winner Corposo (Vino Rosso) was third, while Kopion weakened to fourth.

Kentucky Oaks points were on the line in the Santa Anita Oaks and were offered on a scale of 100-50-25-15-10; however, both Nothing Like You and Kinza are ineligible to earn points as Baffert's horses continue to be prohibited from racing at Churchill Downs.

Winning jockey Frankie Dettori captured his fifth consecutive race of the day in the Santa Anita Oaks, which was carded as the sixth race Saturday. After finishing sixth in Race 1, Dettori gave a master class by winning Races 2-6, but he didn't stop there, taking Race 7 after the Oaks to make it six in a row. He didn't have a mount in Race 8 and finished third in Race 9, the GIII Monrovia S., and second in Race 10, the GI Santa Anita Derby. While six consecutive wins might be a career highlight for most riders, it's just another day in the iconic career of Dettori, who has been a household name since his “Magnificent Seven” in 1996, when he won all seven races on the Ascot card, including the GI Queen Elizabeth II S.

Dettori and Nothing Like You broke from the rail in the Santa Anita Oaks, immediately settling into a comfortable rhythm while a joint third as Kinza tallied early fractions of :23.42 and :46.88 up front with Kopion glued to her flank. Shuffled back to fourth at the top of the stretch, Dettori continued to bide his time until room opened on the rail and he shot through with Nothing Like You in the blink of an eye. Dettori stayed busy on the bay until the last sixteenth, when it was clear the pair would be uncatchable. They covered the 1 1 1/6 miles in 1:43.21.

“I was fully loaded at the quarter pole,” said Dettori. “I just needed a little bit of room and she took off. What can you say about Baffert? He's a genius. We have a good working relationship. He trains them and I ride them.”

Baffert added, “Without the horse, the jockey doesn't matter, but Dettori kept this filly as clean as possible… Unfortunately, when you use Dettori, you can't blame it on the jockey. He's just a phenom. He is world class and has brought his talent to every stage. He's just that good, but you have to give him the horse. And he had the horse to do it.”

Dettori first rode Nothing Like You in the Feb. 10 GIII Las Virgenes S., a race in which she was fourth behind Kinza and Kopion. Dettori specifically said the filly did not appreciate the kickback that day and he took care of keep her out of it Saturday. She had previously won three in a row, including the Desi Arnaz S. at Del Mar in November and the GII Starlet S. at Los Alamitos in December.

Pedigree Notes:

The bedrock of the modern Spendthrift goes down to Malibu Moon, who died in 2021 of an apparent heart attack at age 24. Nothing Like You is one of 55 graded winners and 138 black-type winners for the son of A.P. Indy, but only the third for 2006 GI Santa Anita Derby winner Brother Derek as a broodmare sire. The latter was last reported to be standing in Saudi Arabia.

It's a pretty safe bet to surmise not too many Hastings Racecourse runners find their foals winning graded stakes at Santa Anita, but Nothing Like You's dam, Miss Derek, was a three-time stakes winner at Hastings in Canada. Wolverton Mountain Farm, co-breeder of the Oaks winner, picked her up for $30,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Winter Mixed Sale in 2015. She produced Aqueduct's 2018 Tepin S. winner South of France (Quality Road) as her first foal, while Nothing Like You is her most recent produce. John Rogitz, part of Nothing Like You's ownership group, picked up the Oaks winner for $190,000 at the 2023 OBS April sale after she worked a furlong in :10.

 

Saturday, Santa Anita
SANTA ANITA OAKS-GII, $300,000, Santa Anita, 4-6, 3yo, f, 1 1/16m, 1:43.21, ft.
1–NOTHING LIKE YOU, 124, f, 3, by Malibu Moon
                1st Dam: Miss Derek (MSW-Can, SP-USA, $159,610),
                                by Brother Derek
                2nd Dam: Quick Text, by Tiznow
                3rd Dam: Super Seniorita, by El Baba
($67,000 Wlg '21 KEENOV; $20,000 Ylg '22 KEESEP; $190,000
2yo '23 OBSAPR). O-Georgia Antley Hunt, Jeff Giglio and John
Rogitz; B-Notch Hill Farm, Wolverton Mountain Farm &
Spendthrift Stallions, LLC (KY); T-Bob Baffert; J-Lanfranco
Dettori. $180,000. Lifetime Record: 8-4-1-0, $423,160.
*1/2 to South of France (Quality Road), SW, $156,005. Werk
Nick Rating: B. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Kinza, 124, f, 3, Carpe Diem–Secret Wonder, by Quality Road.
'TDN Rising Star'. ($17,000 Wlg '21 FTNMIX; $30,000 Ylg '22
OBSOCT; $350,000 2yo '23 EASMAY). O-Michael Lund
Petersen; B-JD Business Ventures LLC, Brushy Hill Stable &
Carpe Diem Syndicate (NY); T-Bob Baffert. $60,000.
3–Corposo, 124, f, 3, Vino Rosso–Manki, by Arch. 1ST BLACK
TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. O-Madaket Stables LLC and
Slam Dunk Racing; B-Nick Cosato (KY); T-Peter Eurton.
$36,000.
Margins: 7HF, HF, 8. Odds: 7.20, 0.50, 12.30.
Also Ran: Kopion, Ifuaintfirsturlast.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

The post Nothing Like Dettori, Who Wins Santa Anita Oaks on Nothing Like You in Six-Win Streak appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Alva Starr Gains Revenge On Vahva In Madison

Dale Ladner's Alva Starr (Lord Nelson) was run down by Vahva (Gun Runner) in the shadow of the winning post and dropped a narrow decision in the GII Lexus Raven Run S. during last year's fall meeting at Keeneland. But the speedy bay–favored by about $9,000 when all was said and done in the GI Resolute Racing Madison S.–managed to reverse form by a similar margin Saturday, even as she was forced to show a new dimension.

In the vanguard early, Alva Starr was eased back into a wide fourth to sit just off the pace into the turn as Red Carpet Ready (Oscar Performance) sped through from her inside draw to duel with Hot And Sultry (Speightster) through an opening quarter in :21.98. Consigned to a four-deep run around the turn, a stark contrast to normal front-running ways, Alva Star nevertheless rolled up outside, easily claimed Red Carpet Ready at the three-sixteenths pole and set sail for the wire. Still clear into the final furlong, Alva Starr was able to hold sway as Vahva was taking ground off of her with every stride.

Winning jockey Tyler Gaffalione admitted that the race did not unfold precisely as planned.

“No, [coming from off the pace wasn't the plan], but there was a lot of speed up there and I didn't want to get into a four-way battle,” he said. “She relaxed for me and when I called on her, she responded for me. I peeked over at the screen at about the eighth pole and I saw somebody [Vahva] was to my outside, but my filly was still running at that point and I was fairly confident we were going to be able to get the job done.”

Runner-up in allowance company in her first two starts at three at Oaklawn and Churchill, Alva Starr dominated older females in the July 8 Dashing Beauty S. at Delaware Park, then bossed her peers by 8 3/4 lengths in the GII Prioress S. at Saratoga Sept. 2. Beaten a half-length at 9-10 in the Raven Run, Alva Starr resumed with a smooth 3 1/2-length tally in a muddy renewal of the Feb. 3 American Beauty S. in Hot Springs.

Pedigree Notes:

Dale Ladner paid $30,000 for a first-crop filly from the first crop of Into Mischief at the 2011 Breeders' Sales Company of Louisiana's September Yearling Sale, and Sittin At the Bar would go on to win 11 of 19 starts–nine in stakes company–and over $700,000 while under the care of Brett Brinkman.

Sittin At the Bar has been even more successful in her second career, as each of her four sons and daughters to make the races are black-type winners, including Alva Starr's half-sister Cilla, who won the 2021 Prioress S.

Sittin At the Bar is also the dam of the 2-year-old filly Walkinaftermidnite, a yearling Gun Runner filly and was most recently bred to Cyberknife.

Saturday, Keeneland
RESOLUTE RACING MADISON S.-GI, $591,050, Keeneland, 4-6, 4yo/up, f/m, 7f, 1:23.36, ft.
1–ALVA STARR, 123, f, 4, by Lord Nelson
                1st Dam: Sittin At the Bar (MSW & GSP, $705,896), by Into Mischief
                2nd Dam: Fast Laner, by Mutakddim
                3rd Dam: Lois Laner, by Cutlass Reality
1ST GRADE I WIN. O-P. Dale Ladner; B-Brett A. Brinkman & P. Dale Ladner (KY); T-Brett A. Brinkman; J-Tyler Gaffalione. $358,050. Lifetime Record: 8-5-3-0, $778,450. *1/2 to Cilla (California Chrome), GSW & GISP, $509,000; 1/2 to Jack the Umpire (Bodemeister), SW, $193,435; 1/2 to Club Car (Malibu Moon), SW & MGSP, $677,265. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus* Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Vahva, 123, f, 4, by Gun Runner
                1st Dam: Holiday Soiree (SW & GISP, $405,642), by Harlan's Holiday
                2nd Dam: Try to Remember, by Include
                3rd Dam: Casanova Striker, by Smart Strike
1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($280,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP). O-Belladonna Racing, LLC, Edward J. Hudson, Jr., West Point Thoroughbreds, LBD Stable LLC, Nice Guys Stables, Manganaro Bloodstock, Runnels Racing, Hornstock, Steve and Twin Brook Stables; B-Woodford Thoroughbreds, LLC (KY); T-Cherie DeVaux. $115,500.
3–Red Carpet Ready, 123, f, 4, by Oscar Performance
                1st Dam: Wild Silk, by Street Sense
                2nd Dam: Spun Silk, by A.P. Indy
                3rd Dam: Spunoutacontrol, by Wild Again
1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($180,000 Ylg '21 FTSAUG; $100,000 RNA 2yo '22 OBSAPR). O-Ashbrook Farm and Upland Flats Racing; B-Lynn B. Schiff (KY); T-George R. Arnold, II. $57,750.
Margins: HF, 4HF, 1. Odds: 2.16, 2.38, 4.88.
Also Ran: Sterling Silver, Maryquitecontrary, Hot and Sultry, Big Pond, Icicles.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

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