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NYRA Teams With Woodbine, Monmouth For Saturday’s Cross Country Pick 5

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) will host a Cross Country Pick 5 that will offer three graded stakes in total, featuring action from historic Saratoga Race Course as well as Monmouth Park and Woodbine Racetrack on Saturday.

Live coverage will be available with Saratoga Live on FOX Sports and MSG Networks. Free Equibase past performances for the Cross Country Pick 5 sequence are now available for download at https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/cross-country-wagers.

Saratoga will start the wager with an exciting juvenile maiden sprint, with a field of 10 contesting at six furlongs on the main track in Race 6 at 3:57 p.m. Eastern. Trainer Chad Brown has a pair of entrants in Highly Motivated and Founder, while Hall of Fame trainers Mark Casse and Steve Asmussen will send out Majestic Street and Happymac, respectively. Trainer Todd Pletcher will see Newbomb depart from the inside post.

Action will shift to Monmouth in Race 9 with a 4:14 p.m. post for the 1 1/2-mile turf route for 3-year-olds and up in an optional claimer. The 10-horse field will see trainer Kelly Breen saddle Epic Bromance, while Decisive Triumph and No Mans Land will be running with blinkers on.

Woodbine will commence the stakes portion of the Cross Country Pick 5 in the third leg with the Grade 3, $125,000 Ontario Colleen for 3-year-old fillies going one mile. Slated as Race 7 at 4:17 p.m., the contest will ironically feature Saratoga Vision. Owned and trained by Alexander Patykewich, the Kentucky-bred won't be running at the Spa, but instead will be looking to break her maiden in her 13th start and is coming off a runner-up effort as an 84-1 longshot in the Grade 3 Selene last month at Woodbine. The field also includes stakes-placed Avie's Samurai and Fly So Pretty, who won last year's Stewart Manor, as well as multiple stakes-winner Two Sixty and multiple graded stakes-placed Walk In Marrakesh.

Saratoga will close the sequence with a pair of Grade 1 contests, starting with the $300,000 Forego presented by America's Best Racing in Race 8 at 5:07 p.m. The seven-furlong contest for older horses on the main track will showcase Whitmore, who won the race's 2018 edition and will now attempt to join Groovy (1986-87) and Quick Call (1988-89) as the only horses to win multiple runnings of the Forego. The 7-year-old enters with a record of 35-14-11-3 and lifetime earnings of over $3.1 million. The Forego will also see Mind Control looking to become a Grade 1-winner at the Spa at ages 2, 3 and 4, while six-time graded stakes-winner Firenze Fire seeks his first Grade 1 triumph since taking the 2017 Champagne during his 2-year-old campaign.

The wager concludes in Saratoga's Race 9 with the Grade 1, $500,000 Sword Dancer for 4-year-olds and up going 1 1/2 miles on the inner turf at 5:43 p.m. A “Win and You're In” qualifier for the Breeders' Cup Turf on November 7 at Keeneland Race Course, the Forego will see trainer Mike Maker send out a trio of contenders in Aquaphobia, Marzo and Cross Border. Also in the race will be Sadler's Joy, who will make his fourth appearance in the Sword Dancer for trainer Tom Albertrani. The 7-year-old Kitten's Joy horse won this event in 2017, finished sixth in 2018 and last year rallied bravely to finish second by a neck to Annals of Time.

The minimum bet for the multi-track, multi-race wager is 50 cents. Wagering on the Cross Country Pick 5 is also available on ADW platforms and at simulcast facilities across the country. Every week will feature a mandatory payout of the net pool.

The Cross Country Pick 5 will continue each Saturday throughout the year. For more information, visit NYRABets.com.

Cross Country Pick 5 – Saturday, August 30:
Leg 1 – Saratoga, Race 6: (3:57 p.m.)
Leg 2 – Monmouth, Race 9: (4:14 p.m.)
Leg 3 – Woodbine, Race 7: G3 Ontario Colleen (4:17 p.m.)
Leg 4 – Saratoga, Race 8: G1 Forego (5:07 p.m.)
Leg 5 – Saratoga, Race 9: G1 Sword Dancer (5:43 p.m.)

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Gretzky The Great, Alda Score In Juvenile Turf Stakes At Woodbine

Two-year-olds Gretzky the Great and Alda shared the spotlight on Sunday as Woodbine hosted the $100,000 Soaring Free Stakes and filly companion Catch a Glimpse.

The 6 1/2-furlong sprints contested on the E.P. Taylor Turf Course at the Toronto, Ontario, racetrack, both ended in exciting finishes. They are local preps for the upcoming Grade 1 Summer and Natalma, a pair of Breeders' Cup Challenge Series “Win And You're In” one-mile turf stakes set for September 20.

Gretzky the Great was all class, just like his legendary namesake, in winning his first stakes assignment with Kazushi Kimura aboard for trainer Mark Casse and owners Gary Barber and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners.

In the Soaring Free, Gretzky the Great settled behind the front-striding Into the Sunrise through fractions of :23.16 and :45.51 before kicking into action down the lane. Gaining with every stride as the wire approached, the talented Casse trainee collared Into the Sunrise for the victory in 1:13.83.

Gretzky the Great paid $6.70 to win. He was sent postward as the 2-1 second choice to Victoria Stakes champion Ready to Repeat, who finished 1 1/4 lengths behind the top pair in third. Gospel Way and Exceed completed the order of finish.

The Ontario-bred youngster was a runner-up to Ready to Repeat in his career debut on July 12 and has now won back-to-back starts. The lion's share of the purse more than doubled his bankroll, which reached six-figures.

“I was so satisfied the last time and today that was the best performance of his life,” said Kimura.

Bred by Anderson Farms, the Nyquist colt is out of the multiple stakes placed Bernardini mare Pearl Turn.

Alda winning the Catch a Glimpse

Woodbine newcomer Alda later defeated 4-5 favorite Dreaming of Drew by a head bob in the Catch a Glimpse for trainer Graham Motion and owner/breeder Wertheimer et Frere.

With Steven Bahen aboard, Alda trailed the field of six fillies early on while Illegal Smile was pressed by Road to Romance on the front through a quarter in :22.20 and half-mile in :44.74. Meanwhile, 4-5 favorite Dreaming of Drew was biding her time in third behind the top pair.

While the rail appeared to open up down the stretch for Dreaming of Drew, she went outside of Illegal Smile to take over command with a sixteenth to go, but Bahen timed his own bid just right with the late-charging Alda, who edged out the favorite by a nose in a photo finish. The final time was 1:14 flat.

Sent postward as the 5-2 second choice following a maiden-breaking victory on July 9 at Belmont Park, Alda returned $7.30 to win. Illegal Smile settled for third 1-1/4 lengths back, while Emmeline, Road to Romance and Purrsuade Me completed the order of finish. Ostracize was a late scratch.

While the finish was too close to call for Bahen, he expected the big stretch run from the promising filly.

“I had talked to [Graham Motion] this morning and I watched her races yesterday,” said Bahen. “She's got a real big kick and we discussed that we should just be off the pack, three or four off would be nice. I ended up being a little further back than I wanted to, and she gave me that run she has.

“It was my first time on her, and she was pretty classy,” added the veteran reinsman.

Bred in Kentucky, the Munnings–Soldata filly now has two wins from three career starts with earnings climbing over the $100,000 mark.

Live Thoroughbred racing continues at Woodbine on Thursday with post time for the first of eight races set for 3:20 p.m. Racing Night Live begins at 6 p.m. on TSN with the two-hour broadcast covering action from Woodbine Racetrack and Woodbine Mohawk Park.

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Munnings ‘Rising Star’ Gets the Bob in Catch a Glimpse

‘TDN Rising Star’ Alda got up in the shadow of the wire to take Sunday’s Catch a Glimpse S. narrowly over a fellow granddaughter of Speightstown in Dreaming of Drew (Speightster). A fast-finishing third against the boys going five grassy furlongs at Belmont June 12, the chestnut broke through convincingly over an extra eighth of a mile there July 9.

Drifting up to 5-2 at the off after vying for favoritism early with big-figure second-out graduate Dreaming of Drew, the Wertheimer homebred dropped out the back early and a snug Steven Bahen hold. She scraped paint while advancing into the stretch, and drafted behind Dreaming of Drew at the head of the lane as that one tried desperately to get off the inside and reel in pacesetter Illegal Smile (Ire) (Camacho {GB}). Alda veered out wide as Dreaming of Drew struck the front, and she kept coming to get in a photo that to the naked eye seemed like it may have gone the other way.

“I had talked to [trainer Graham Motion] this morning and I watched her races yesterday,” said Bahen. “She’s got a real big kick and we discussed that we should just be off the pack, three or four off would be nice. I ended up being a little further back than I wanted to, and she gave me that run she has.”

The winner’s dam is a full to two-turn MGSW Exhi. She produced an Into Mischief colt in 2019 and Tapit colt this season. Further down the page are a number of Canadian champions from the 1970s.

CATCH A GLIMPSE S., C$105,200, Woodbine, 8-23, 2yo, f,
6 1/2fT, 1:14.00, fm.
1–ALDA, 120, f, 2, by Munnings
                1st Dam: Soldata, by Maria’s Mon
                2nd Dam: Soldera, by Polish Numbers
                3rd Dam: La Pepite, by Mr. Prospector
‘TDN Rising Star‘ 1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN. O/B-Wertheimer et
Frere (KY); T-H. Graham Motion; J-Steven Ronald Bahen.
C$60,000. Lifetime Record: 3-2-0-1, $88,413. *1/2 t
Alignement (GB) (Pivotal {GB}), GSW-Fr, SP-Qa, $408,561.
2–Dreaming of Drew, 120, f, 2, Speightster–Dreaming of Liz, by
El Prado Ire). ($95,000 RNA Ylg ’19 FTKJUL). O-Hoolie Racing
Stable, LLC; B-WinStar Farm, LLC (ON); T-Barbara J. Minshall.
C$24,000.
3–Illegal Smile (Ire), 118, f, 2, Camacho (GB)–Fine If (Ire), by
Iffraaj (GB). (€35,000 Ylg ’19 GOFOR). O-Hat Creek Racing;
B-W. Maxwell Ervine (IRE); T-Wesley A. Ward. C$11,000.
Margins: NO, 1 1/4, 7. Odds: 2.65, 0.90, 6.55.
Also Ran: Emmeline, Road to Romance, Purrsuade Me. Scratched: Ostracize.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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Nyquist Gets First Stakes Score at Woodbine

Gretzky the Great earned the first black-type win for his first-crop sire (by Uncle Mo) as he eventually wore down frontrunner Into the Sunrise to prevail in Woodbine’s Soaring Free S. Sunday afternoon. Second to favored Ready to Repeat going five panels over the local lawn July 12, the bay broke through by daylight over a rained-off six furlongs Aug. 2. Away well from the outside five hole, Gretzky the Great skated along out in the clear in second as Into the Sunrise enjoyed a clear lead and Ready to Repeat traveled well held down on the fence in third. The pacesetter posted a :45.51 half and looked to have the race to himself at the top of the stretch, but Gretzky the Great and Kazushi Kimura kept chipping away to seize the lead in the waning moments.

“I was so satisfied the last time and today that was the best performance of his life,” said Kimura.

David Anderson paid $310,000 for the winner’s dam Pearl Turn while she was in foal to Pioneerof the Nile at KEENOV ’16. Pearl Turn produced a Quality Road colt in 2019 and was bred to Uncle Mo for 2021. The Uncle Mo–Bernardini cross is a potent one, having produced Grade I winner Mo Town and Grade II winners Mopotism and Modernist.

SOARING FREE S., C$112,600, Woodbine, 8-23, 2yo, 6 1/2fT, 1:13.83, fm.
1–GRETZKY THE GREAT, 120, c, 2, by Nyquist
                1st Dam: Pearl Turn (MSP, $182,560), by Bernardini
                2nd Dam: Turn Me Loose, by Kris S.
                3rd Dam: Adoradancer, by Danzig Connection
($295,000 RNA Ylg ’19 FTKOCT). 1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN.
O-Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners & Gary Barber; B-Anderson
Farms Ont. Inc. (ON); T-Mark E. Casse; J-Kazushi Kimura.
C$72,000. Lifetime Record: 3-2-1-0, $115,873. *First black-
type winner for freshman sire (by Uncle Mo).
2–Into the Sunrise, 120, c, 2, Into Mischief–Bellini Sunrise, by
Machiavellian. ($325,000 Ylg ’19 KEESEP). O-M Racing Group,
LLC; B-Edward A. Seltzer & Beverly Anderson (KY); T-Wesley A.
Ward. C$20,000.
3–Ready to Repeat, 122, g, 2, More Than Ready–Christine
Daae, by Giant’s Causeway. ($60,000 Ylg ’19 KEESEP). O-Gail
Cox, John Menary, Michael James Ambler & Windways Farm;
B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC (KY); T-Gail Cox.
C$11,000.
Margins: NK, 1 1/4, 4 1/4. Odds: 2.35, 3.25, 1.00.
Also Ran: Gospel Way, Exceed. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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