Tag: Triple Crown

Bourbon Bash will be pointed to the $1-million Rebel Stakes (G2) for 3-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles Feb. 25 at Oaklawn Park, Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas said. The Rebel is Oaklawn's third Kentucky Derby points race.

Bourbon Bash, in his 3-year-old debut, finished second, beaten two lengths by the promising Gun Pilot, in a one-mile, entry-level allowance race Feb. 4 at Oaklawn. Bourbon Bash, who led in the stretch, was making his first start around two turns since finishing 12th behind eventual Eclipse Award winner Forte in the $600,000 Breeders' Futurity Stakes (G1) at 1 1/16 miles Oct. 8 at Keeneland. Gun Pilot has won 2 of 3 career starts for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen.

“That's a very, very good horse that won the race, of Steve's, so we were not that disappointed hooking into him,” Lukas said. “We tried him at the eighth pole. The thing with Bourbon Bash is he's real feminine and he hasn't matured yet. If the next two months to three months, he'll get a little stronger – just physically, he's OK mentally – he's got enough tactical speed that we can put him in a race where he belongs. He doesn't need the seasoning. He needs the strength.”

Other early Rebel probables include Verifying and Giant Mischief for trainer Brad Cox and Red Route One for Asmussen. Cox said he could have additional Rebel starters.

Verifying concluded his 2-year-old campaign with a sixth-place finish behind Forte in the $2 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) at 1 1/16 miles Nov. 4 at Keeneland. Verifying resurfaced in a one-mile entry-level allowance race Jan. 14 at Oaklawn and rolled to a 5 ¼-length victory over Gun Pilot. Verifying ran the distance over a fast track in a meet-best 1:37.23.

Giant Mischief, who will be making his 3-year-old debut in the Rebel, is 2 for 3 overall. The son of Into Mischief ran second in his stakes debut, the =Remington Park Springboard Mile Dec. 17 at Remington Park, after a poor start.

Red Route One closed from far back to finish second behind unbeaten Arabian Knight in the $750,000 Southwest Stakes (G3) at 1 1/16 miles Jan. 28. The Southwest was Oaklawn's second Kentucky Derby points race.

Nominations to the Rebel closed Friday. The Rebel will offer 100 points (50-20-15-10-5, respectively) to the top five eligible finishers toward the Kentucky Derby.

Following Arabian Knight's Southwest victory, his Hall of Fame trainer, Bob Baffert, said: “We'll definitely have something here for the Rebel.”

The Southern California-based Baffert has won the Rebel a record eight times. Cox (four) and Baffert (three) have combined to win seven of Oaklawn's last 10 Kentucky Derby points races. Oaklawn's fourth and final Kentucky Derby points race is the $1.25 million Arkansas Derby (G1) at 1 1/8 miles April 1.

The post Bourbon Bash, Verifying, Giant Mischief Among Early Probables For Rebel appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Gary and Mary West's Kentucky homebred Hit Show announced his presence in the sophomore division with an emphatic 5 1/2-length victory in Saturday's $250,000 Withers (G3), a nine-furlong test for 3-year-olds, at Aqueduct Racetrack.

The Withers, which was rescheduled from February 4 after cold temperatures and high winds forced the cancelation of the card, awarded 20-8-6-4-2 Kentucky Derby (G1) qualifying points to the top-five finishers. Hit Show is now third on the Road to the Kentucky Derby leaderboard.

Trained by two-time Eclipse Award-winner Brad Cox, Hit Show lived up to his 6-5 favoritism and scored the first stakes triumph of his career on the heels of a 3 1/2-length optional claiming score in December at Oaklawn Park. He was scratched from the January 28 Southwest (G3) over the same oval in favor of the Withers.

“I just liked the way the Withers was coming up,” Cox said of the decision. “I thought he fit well with the group. Obviously, he was 6-5, so everybody else thought so, too. It actually worked out well delaying the race a week as we had a little bit of an issue getting [a flight] out of Memphis. We would have made the race last week, but we would have been close on getting there in time.”

Breaking sharply from post 4 under Manny Franco, Hit Show and longshot Prove Right raced prominently behind post-time second choice Arctic Arrogance, who was sent to the front from the inside post by Jose Lezcano to lead the field of seven into the first turn. Prove Right tracked closely in second with Andiamo a Firenze taking up third position as the trio put 3 1/2 lengths between them and Hit Show through an opening quarter-mile in :23.53 over the fast main track.

Prove Right inched closer to the outside of Arctic Arrogance down the backstretch while a patient Franco held inside position aboard Hit Show in fourth. Both Andiamo a Firenze and Hit Show were asked for more through a half-mile in :48.09 as Arctic Arrogance pulled away from a retreating Prove Right. Hit Show had plenty when asked by Franco, but lacked room as Arctic Arrogance hugged the rail in front of him and a stubborn Prove Right hung to his outside through three-quarters in 1:13.43.

Hit Show swung wide as the field exited the turn and displayed an impressive turn of foot, easily overtaking second position from a tiring Andiamo a Firenze and setting his sights on a game Arctic Arrogance, who came under right-handed encouragement from Lezcano at the top of the stretch. Hit Show proved too much for his pacesetting foe and passed by with ease at the eighth-pole, cruising home under confident handling from Franco in a final time of 1:54.71.

Arctic Arrogance, who raced with blinkers for the first time, stayed on strongly to complete the exacta by 6 1/4 lengths over the rallying General Banker with Andiamo a Firenze completing the superfecta by a head over Prove Right. Jungfrau and Ninetyprcentmaddie completed the order of finish.

Franco, who celebrated his third Withers triumph, said he had an ideal trip.

“The horse helped me a lot. He had a clean break,” Franco said. “He broke so sharp out of there and put me in a perfect position. I wanted to be fourth or fifth and I was following the right horse [Arctic Arrogance] and I was so happy with the position. When it was time to move, he was there for me. He responded really well and got the job done.

“He's a little green,” added Franco. “He's learning race by race and I think he'll be OK. I think the more distance the better for him. I put my hands down [in the gallop out] and I didn't pull on him. I just let him gallop out and he kept going around. I had to pull him up to make him stop.”

Hit Show, a gray son of Candy Ride out of the dual graded stakes winner Actress, banked $137,500 for his victory and improved his lifetime record to 3-0-0 rom four starts, adding to his aforementioned optional claiming victory and a debut maiden score in October at Keeneland. He returned $4.60 for a $2 win wager.

Cox said he will consider the Grade 2, $750,000 Wood Memorial on April 8, which awards 100-40-30-20-10 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the top-five finishers, as a potential next target for Hit Show.

“I'm going to talk it over with the Wests and we'll make a decision,” said Cox. “He'll go back to Belmont tonight and chill out there for a while and recover and we'll come up with a game plan for him. It very well could be the Wood Memorial. He obviously likes the racetrack there and we'll see how things go.”

Linda Rice, trainer of Arctic Arrogance, said the son of Frosted may be distance limited as he posted his third consecutive runner-up effort in a Kentucky Derby prep at the Big A, including the Grade 2 Remsen in December and Jerome in January.

“Drawing the one hole, we decided we needed to be aggressive and get position going into the first turn,” said Rice. “He got pressured a little bit by a longshot, but all in all I thought it was a really good effort and the winner today was very good.”

Rice said Arctic Arrogance will likely turn his attention to a cutback next in the one-mile Grade 3, $300,000 Gotham on March 4, which awards 50-20-15-10-5 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the top-fiver finishers.

“I think that we'll just take it race by race, one at a time,” said Rice. “I have felt that he might be more of a miler. After today's effort, if things had gone better, I would have probably skipped the Gotham and gone to the Wood. But Jose and I were just chatting and I think he may be better at a flat mile, so we may go ahead and run in the Gotham.”

The post Road To The Kentucky Derby: Favorite Hit Show Coasts To Convincing Withers Win appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Gary and Mary West's Kentucky homebred Hit Show will visit his fourth track in as many starts when he starts in Saturday's nine-furlong Grade 3, $250,000 Withers, at Aqueduct Racetrack. The Withers, which was rescheduled from Feb. 4 after the card was canceled due to extreme cold and sustained high winds, is a Kentucky Derby qualifier offering 20-8-6-4-2 points to the top-five finishers.

Trained by Brad Cox, the Candy Ride colt was scratched out of the G3 Southwest at Oaklawn Park in favor of this spot. Hit Show breezed consistently at the Arkansas oval, including a bullet five-eighths in 1:00.40 on Jan. 28. He arrived in New York on Thursday, Feb. 2, and worked a half-mile over the Belmont dirt training track on Monday with Manny Franco in the irons, going in company with state-bred maiden winner Looms Boldly.

“He got in on Thursday and then trained Friday morning,” said Dustin Dugas, the New York-based assistant for Cox. “We had to walk Saturday because training was canceled, but he galloped again Sunday and then breezed Monday. It was a light breeze over the training track in 50 and he did it well. He's come out of it in good shape.”

Hit Show graduated on debut sprinting seven furlongs in October at Keeneland, overcoming being bumped at the gate and early traffic trouble before splitting rivals at the top of the lane and surging to the wire a 5 1/4-length winner.

He bobbled after the break of his next outing in November traveling 1 1/16 miles at Churchill Downs and settled for fourth in a race which runner-up Rocket Can exited to win last Saturday's G3 Holy Bull at Gulfstream Park.

Last out, in a one-mile optional-claimer on Dec. 17 at Oaklawn Park, Hit Show settled in fifth position through the opening half-mile before advancing four-wide into the final turn. He poked a head in front at the stretch call and drew off to win by 3 1/2 lengths, garnering a career-best 82 Beyer Speed Figure.

Dugas, who oversees a stable of 10 horses for Cox, said Hit Show has made a good impression.

“He's a very quiet, laidback horse to do things with on the ground, but when he gets on the track, he's all business,” Dugas said. “He's lightly raced, but very professional about things.”

Hit Show will exit post 4 under the dual Withers-winning rider Franco and should have pace to chase with a blinkered Arctic Arrogance stretching back out from the inside post.

“He's pretty pliable. He can run the race however it unfolds,” Dugas said. “It seems like he has a very good brain on him. He's not the biggest horse, but he makes up for it with how smart he is and his try.

“Brad likes them to break and get involved,” Dugas added. “Obviously, don't give them too much to do and don't get in a speed duel, but keep them involved.”

Hit Show is out of the multiple graded-stakes winning Tapit mare Actress, who posted nine-furlong wins in the G2 Black-Eyed Susan at Pimlico Race Course and G3 Comely at the Big A in a terrific 2017 campaign.

Cox will also debut Qatar Racing's Triple Crown-nominated Everso Mischievous [post 9, Franco] in Race 6 on Saturday, a six-furlong maiden special weight for sophomores.

The Kentucky-bred son of Into Mischief is out of the graded-stakes winning Medaglia d'Oro mare Ever So Clever, a graduate on debut and eventual upset winner of the 2017 Grade 3 Fantasy at Oaklawn Park.

Everso Mischievous sold for $600,000 to China Horse Club/Gandharvi Racing at the 2021 Keeneland September Yearling Sale and was then purchased by agent Fergus Galvin for $85,000 at the Keeneland Horses of Racing Age Sale.

Dugas said the colt has impressed since arriving in New York from the Churchill Downs Training Center.

“He got up here about three weeks ago. Brad's son, Blake, had him at the training center and he sent him in with nothing but good reports,” Dugas said. “He was pretty high on him and I can see why. He's a big horse. He's very leggy and the stride comes with it.”

Everso Mischievous has breezed twice over the Belmont dirt training track with Franco aboard, including a half-mile from the gate in 48.75 last Friday.

“He's breezed twice here – from the pole with Manny on and from the gate with Manny – and he's been very professional. He's going into it with a good mindset,” Dugas said. “He broke really sharp here the other day with Manny, so he knows him well and I like that we have an outside post with him. He's been training really well and we really like him. I think he can ultimately go further because of his size, but I don't think three-quarters will be an issue for him.”

Cox leads all trainers with 38 Triple Crown-nominated horses, including Gold Square's Slip Mahoney, a recent maiden winner, who is targeting the Grade 3, $300,000 Gotham on March 4. The one-turn mile offers 50-20-15-10-5 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the top-five finishers.

The Arrogate colt, a $150,000 Keeneland September Yearling Sale purchase, graduated at third asking here on Jan. 21 in a one-mile maiden special weight. With Dylan Davis up, Slip Mahoney led through a half-mile in 47.65 and maintained a narrow lead at the top of the lane over a game Crupi. The two rivals battled the length of the stretch with Slip Mahoney prevailing by a head in a final time of 1:38.96 over the fast main track. The winning effort garnered a career-best 87 Beyer Speed Figure.

“The plan is to run him in the Gotham,” Dugas said. “He's doing really well. He will breeze tomorrow with Dylan and do a maintenance half-mile.”

His maiden win came on the heels of a narrow defeat in a one-mile maiden tilt on Dec. 17 here over a muddy and sealed main track, missing by a neck to Tapit Trice, who exited that effort to defeat winners last Saturday at Gulfstream by eight lengths to earn a 92 Beyer.

Slip Mahoney is out of the multiple graded-stakes winner Got Lucky, who captured the 2015 G1 Spinster at Keeneland.

Cox, a dual Eclipse Award-winner as Outstanding Trainer in 2020-21, captured the 2021 Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets with Essential Quality. The 42-year-old conditioner is on the verge of another significant milestone, entering Friday with 1,991 career wins.

Dugas, who has worked with Cox since 2017, said the barn is excited to be nearing the 2,000 mark.

“It's a huge milestone for Brad as a trainer for being so young,” Dugas said. “He's really risen quickly. He has a lot of nice horses and it's something he's been clear with the team about. The goal has always been to get good horses in the barn and keep them here. We've been very fortunate.”

The post ‘Seems Like He Has A Very Good Brain On Him’: Cox Re-Routes Candy Ride Colt Hit Show To Withers appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post