UPI Horse Racing Roundup – January 12, 2015
January 12th, 2015By ROBERT KIECKHEFER
UPI Racing Writer
Some budding stars burst on the horizon in weekend racing from Florida to California while tracks in the Northeast and mid-South struggled with nasty weather.
Hoppertunity and Lea on the dirt, Mshawish on the turf and Parranda among the turf distaffers all showed promise of exciting campaigns during the coming year.
Calculator and Control Stake were the winners among the 3-year-olds.
On the international front, the Dubai World Cup Carnival is under way. The Hong Kong Jockey Club celebrated its 130th anniversary in fitting fashion. And Ireland is on the board in the British All-Weather Championship preliminaries.
And away we go.
The older horses
Lea, making his first start since winning the Grade I Donn Handicap 11 months ago, rallied from last of five to capture Saturday’s $150,000, Grade III Hal’s Hope Stakes at Gulfstream Park by 1/2 length over Confrontation. Confrontation had taken the lead in the lane, failed to hold off the winner and salvaged second by only a nose over Prayer for Relief. Valid and Golden Lad completed the order of finish. Slim Shadey was a late scratch. Lea, a 6-year-old son of First Samurai out of the Galileo mare Greenery, ran 1 mile on a fast track in 1:35.46. Joel Rosario had the mount for trainer Bill Mott. Lea, bred and owned by Claiborne Farm and Adele Dilschneider, also won this race last year en route to the Donn victory.
“On this track, I think it was an exceptional race,” Mott said. “Usually the speed horses turn for home and they get loose from you. But he obviously is a good horse. I thought he was pretty fit. But he’d still been off a year. There’s nothing like having a race.” About the next race, Mott added, “We’ll see. It’s always a concern, but I guess there’s a month back to the Donn and we’ll just have to see.”
On the turf
Mshawish gave jockey Javier Castellano all he could handle Saturday’s $200,000, Grade II Fort Lauderdale Handicap at Gulfstream Park, fighting restraint and then drifting out to mid-track in the stretch before surging late to win by a neck over the late-running Grand Tito. Fredericksburg was third at long odds and Za Approval finished fourth. Mshawish, a 5-year-old son of Medaglia d’Oro, ran 1 1/16 miles on firm turf in 1:41.14.
“This is a horse that is a little difficult to ride,” Castellano said. “You need to cover him up and unfortunately today he was a little more in the clear.”
Added winning trainer Todd Pletcher, “I don’t think many horses could have won with that kind of trip.”
Mshawish now has three wins from five U.S. starts since shipping over from France. Under his former management, he also raced in England, Dubai and Hong Kong, winning the Group 2 Zabeel Mile last year at Meydan and getting home fourth against a quality field in the Group 1 St. James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot as a 3-year-old. Pletcher said he will try the $300,000, Grade I Gulfstream Park Turf Handicap on Feb. 7 and hope for a better trip.
Fillies and mares
Parranda posted a string of impressive runs last year without winning much, then finished sixth in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf, weakening in the final furlong. But in her first start as a 6-year-old the English Channel mare looked ready for more, taking Saturday’s $150,000, Grade III Marshua’s River Stakes at Gulfstream Park by 3 lengths over Skylander Girl after tracking that rival’s early pace. Why Katherine rallied from well back to fall just a nose short of second. Parranda, with John Velazquez up for trainer Christophe Clement, ran 1 1/16 miles on firm turf in 1:42.53. Parranda, out of the Rahy mare Dynamic Feature, was purchased by the China Racing Club for $800,000 at the Keeneland November sale and turned over to Clement with an eye to the planned China Equine Cultural Festival at Kranji in Singapore in February.
“It’s the best preparation she could have had,” Clement said of the Singapore trip. “She did not have too tough a race. I just hope she comes out of it in good shape.”
On the main track, Warren’s Veneda saved all the ground through Sunday’s $75,000 Paseana Stakes at Santa Anita, moved to the lead along the rail a furlong out and drew off to win by 5 1/2 lengths over Taste Like Candy. Valiant Emilia gave futile chase early and held on for third. Warren’s Veneda, a 5-year-old Affirmative mare, ran 1 1/16 miles on a fast track in 1:42.97 with Tyler Baze at the controls.
Turf sprints
Bold Thunder stormed to an easy victory over 11 rivals in Saturday’s $100,000 Turf Dash at Tampa Bay Downs, leading from the early jumps and coasting late to score by 3 1/4 lengths. Green Mask was best of the rest, 1 length ahead of Stormofthecentury. Bold Thunder, a 5-year-old son of Bold n’ Flashy, flashed 5 furlongs in course-record time of 54.63 seconds under Daniel Centeno. It was his first victory in nearly a year although he did finish second in the Laurel Dash last September — a race in which Ben’s Cat was third. “They said he was very fast, but he surprised me with his speed,” Centeno said. “We didn’t break perfectly, but as soon as he was ready he just took off and we were clear. Because I hadn’t been on him before, I thought I had better just let him roll and not try to take a hold on him — just let him do his thing. He sure did that.”
Good Deed made the pace in Saturday’s $60,000 Pan Zaretta Stakes for fillies and mares at Fair Grounds, then eased away in the lane to win by 2 lengths, ridden out. Seeking Ms Shelley was along for second with Stoupinator well back in third. Good Deed, a 6-year-old Broken Vow mare, ran about 5 1/2 furlongs on firm going in 1:02.88 with Brian Hernandez Jr. up. Trainer Steve Margolis said Good Deed is ticketed for the $75,000 Ladies Turf Sprint at Gulfstream Park next month, then Keeneland and Churchill Downs in the spring.
Dubai
(By RICHARD GROSS)
In the 2015 Dubai World Cup Carnival Aloha! meet, Surfer shot over the new dirt surface and hung hooves past the finish line to snare first on the board in the featured 1,600-meters, Group 2 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 1 Thursday at Meydan. It got a bit gnarly in the stretch as the eventual winner was challenged by France’s Frankyfourfingers, but the 6-year-old gelded son of Distorted Humor, trained by Satish Seemar, had the last laugh, prevailing by 2 1/4 lengths to take home the winner’s share of the $250,000 purse and the praise of jockey Richard Mullen.
“This horse just loves the dirt,” said Mullen. “He ran some great races here on the old all-weather (Tapeta) surface but this is really his game.” Future plans include a possible longer trip, the same 1,600-meters in the Burj Nahaar on Super Saturday and the Godolphin Mile on World Cup night.
Frankyfourfingers and jockey Mickael Barzalona hung on for second, 1 1/4 lengths ahead of Haatheq. Highly rated favorite Outstrip finished 11th in the 15-horse field.
Opening night of the Carnival also saw True Story run truer to his 2014 Epsom Derby-prospect form with a 3 1/4-lengths storybook ending over Mushreq in the 1,800-meters Singspiel Stakes over the Meydan grass, with Ireland’s Pilote out of the luck by 1/2 length in third. True Story, a Saeed bin Suroor-trained, Darley-bred 4-year-old son of Manduro, gained a third win in nine starts to go along with two places and two shows.
“He’s a little bit of a boy, really,” said jockey James Doyle of his newly gelded charge. “He was well fancied in the Derby and didn’t quite stay (finishing seventh). But he won nicely tonight and I’m sure there’s more to come.”
The Singspiel added a second win on opening night for Godolphin trainer bin Suroor, who also saddled I’m Back to victory on dirt over Henry Clay in the 1,900-meters Prima Luna with Le Bernardin 2 1/2 lengths back in third.
In other opening night races, Hototo bested Fityaan by 1 1/4 lengths, with Caspian Prince a nose back in the 1,000-meters Master Collection turf. Faulkner wrote a 3/4-length ending over Tamarkuz in the 1,400-meters dirt Saint Imier with Shaishee a short head back. Safety Check checked off a 2 3/4-lengths turf win over Another Party in the closing 1,400-meter Conquest Classic with Music Theory 1 1/4 lengths back.
This year’s Dubai World Cup Carnival opened with the traditional purebred Arabian contest. Bigg N Rich, not to be confused with the country vocalists, should enjoy the good life after taking home the winner’s check in the 1,600-meters dirt Al Maktoum Challenge Round 1 for Arabians sponsored by Longines Dolce Vita, besting Raaziq by 1 1/2 lengths with last year’s winner of this race, Af Lafeh, a neck back.
After seeing his charges shut out of the winner’s circle in Thursday’s initial Carnival night, South African trainer Mike de Kock, the Carnival’s second most successful trainer after bin Suroor since 2004 with 130 wins, injected a note of controversy into the usually smooth proceedings at Meydan, announcing he is unlikely to enter any of his string of 44 accepted horses into another dirt race this Carnival season. De Kock expressed concern on his website blog that the new Meydan dirt track, which replaced the former Tapeta surface, is biased toward speedy frontrunners.
“After tonight we can be certain that there is a track bias so now we know exactly where we stand,” de Kock was quoted as saying. “You can draw lines through all the poor sand runs. Unless there are absolutely no other options we won’t have another entry on dirt this season.”
The 2015 Dubai World Cup Carnival runs for 11 meetings leading up to Super Saturday, March 7, and culminating in the 20th annual Dubai World Cup night, Saturday March 28, which will offer $29 million in purses over eight Thoroughbred contests, the world’s richest day in horse racing.
Meanwhile, back in the States:
Kentucky Derby trail
The punters had Saturday’s $100,000, Grade III Sham Stakes figured out, making Calculator the odds-on favorite, then watching as the In Summation colt romped home first by 4 1/4 lengths, covering 1 mile on the fast Santa Anita main track in 1:34.88. Rock Shandy beat the other six and Pioneerof the West faded into the sunset, finishing a distant third. Calculator’s victory added up. He had run second in both the Grade I Del Mar Futurity and the Grade I Frontrunner, beaten each time by American Pharoah.. Peter Miller trains the winner, plus Rock Shandy and St. Joe Bay, who finished fourth.
“I thought we could run one, two three for a minute,” the conditioner said. “The water gets deeper from here on out so we’re going to have to step up our game and move forward from this one.”
He said he would not rule out running Calculator back in the $150,000, Grade II Robert B. Lewis on Feb. 7 but the Grade I Santa Anita Derby on April 4 is the local goal.
The bettors also had things under control in Saturday’s $75,000 Big Drama Stakes at Delta Downs. The odds-on favorite, Control Stake, went right to the fore under Gerard Melancon, opened a daylight lead in the lane and was home first by 2 lengths. Fusaichi Flame was second, a head better than Lucky Stranger. Control Stake, a Florida-bred colt by Discreetly Mine, ran 7 furlongs on a fast track in 1:27.32. He now has three wins, a second and two third from six starts. The second-place showing, however, came while fading late in the 1-mile Jean Lafitte Stakes back in October.
With his win, Calculator moved into a tie for second place on the Kentucky Derby points leaderboard used by Churchill Downs to determine the field for the Run for the Roses. El Kabeir continues to lead in the points standing with 21. Calculator and Carpe Diem have 14 each and Breeders’ Cup winner Texas Red has 12.
Once more across the waves:
Hong Kong
The Hong Kong Club celebrated a milestone with Saturday’s 130th Anniversary Cup at Sha Tin and Key Witness provided a timely victory marking a high point of that long run. With jockey Douglas Whyte wearing the colors made famous by the legendary Silent Witness, Key Witness drew off late to win by 1 1/2 lengths in 1:09.52. The black and green colors of winning owner Archie da Silva also graced Silent Witness during his 17-race unbeaten streak — a feat high on the list of 130 years of racing memories in Hong Kong. Trainer Tony Cruz, a graduate of the first class of the HKJC Apprentice Jockeys School, handled Silent Witness and also saddles Key Witness.
“This is like a blessing for me,” Cruz said. “It’s like it was meant to be that the horse won this race today. It’s just great to see the Silent Witness colors winning the race that celebrates 130 years of the Jockey Club.”
More than 74,000 racing fans turned out in Hong Kong for the event.
England
Captain Joy gained a first-ever place for an Irish runner in the finals of the All-Weather Championships with a victory Saturday over the Lingfield Park Polytrack. The 6-year-old, trained at the Curragh, got to the front inside the half-mile marker and drew off to win by 1 1/4 lengths under Pat Smullen. Alfred Hutchinson finished second. Captain Joy got home in 1:35.04.
“I am thrilled,” said winning trainer Tracey Collins. “Our aim was to come over and get qualified for Good Friday (the finals).â€
French-based Dastarhon finished third and may get another chance to qualify.
Dynaformer, the long-time star stallion at Three Chimneys Farm near Midway, Ky., provided Sunday’s Fast-Track Qualifier, Tempus Temporis, a 3-year-old Godolphin runner trained by John Gosden. With Robert Havlin up, Tempus Temporis took down the qualifier at Chelmsford City Racecourse, formerly known as Great Leighs. Early leader Anonymous John held on for second as the winner finished in 1:40.56, 5 lengths out front. Godolphin, lacking an all-weather surface at its Meydan base in Dubai, now has won five of the 12 Fast-Track qualifying races run to date for the Good Friday finals.
