Fountain of Youth

Todd Pletcher, is the best trainer for making his horses look better than they are.  Discreet Dancer, was undefeated until yesterday, but he has never faced any real competition.  Uncle Mo, who seemed to be Pletcher's pride and joy, was destroyed when he faced the toughest field in all of his career in the Breeder's Cup Classic.  Everyone wanted to see the showdown between Algorithms and Union Rags, but Algorithms had a right front splint injury in his leg which caused him to be scratched.  He will only be out of traning for a few days... does not seem like a bad injury to me, I think it was an excuse to dodge Union Rags. Union Rag's comback was great.  He destoryed the field, and when he was galloping out he looked like he could run around one more time.  According to his facebook, Julien did not even use the crop on Rags, he just ran on his own.  He looked great.  Rags will start again in the Florida Derby at the end of March.  Congratulations to him and his connections!

and Pletcher, get your horses together!

Hansen

His next start will be in the Gotham Stakes!

Royal Delta is making a Royal Mistake going to Dubai

Since Royal Delta won the Ladie's Classic, I think people are making her out to be a horse that she is not.  She was sold for $8.5 Million at the Keeneland Fall Sale, which may have proven to be a mistake on Saturday.  Awesome Maria destoried the field.  Yes, it was both of their first races back since a lay-off, but are you kidding me?  Do you really think Royal Delta has a chance to win against the world's best horses in Dubai?  I do not think she has a fighting chance.  Let's look at the bigger picture just with American horses:  Royal Delta faced Havre de Grade in the Beldame, which showed that Royal Delta was no competition for Havre de Grace.  HdG's connections realized that the filly and mare group running in the Ladie's Classic was no competition for her, so that is why they opted for the Classic against the males.  HdG came in a respectable 4th place, but still she was no match for Game on Dude, who came in 2nd, and possibly will be running against Royal Delta in Dubai.  Royal Delta had a great campaign in 2011, but her comptition was never too stiff.  Bill Mott said, that she came in second in the Beldame and then she came back to win the Breeder's Cup, so if she comes in second in the Sabin, she'll come back to win the Dubai World Cup.  No filly has ever won the Dubai World Cup, and Royal Delta sure isn't going to be the first to win.  I think its going to be a huge mistake to ship her over there.  Although, if she hits the board, I will eat my own words.

Awesome Maria easily wins Sabin!

Johnny Valezquez easily guided Awesome Maria to victory by 4 3/4 lengths in Saturday's Grade 3 Sabin at Gulf Stream Park.  AM who has been off since last June, took the field by storm.  She beat Royal Delta, the defending 3-year-old Ladies Champ, followed by Groupie Doll, Canadian Mistress, and Ghostly Darkness.  All of AM's recorded workouts in the past few months have been great, so it is no surprise that she demolished this field.  No news yet on what race she will be heading to next.

Algorithms Scratched!

According to reports, he has a popped skin.  He was scratched this morning and will be out of training for the next few days.  10 Minutes to post in the Fountain of Youth...


GO UNION RAGS!!

FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH WEEKEND

UNION RAGS VERSUS ALGORITHMS

HdG

She may now be staying at Fair Grounds and running there in the New Orleans Ladies....owner Rick Porter also may have the race bump up to $150,000 to equal the same purse as the Azeri.  Talk about some pull.  Joyful Victory also owned by Porter and trained by Larry Jones is going to be running in whatever race HdG is not...

HdG

Monday, reigning Horse of the Year worked five furlongs in :59 4/5.  Then she galloped out six furlongs in 1:14 3/5.  She ranked 1/63.  Her debut will either be in the $100,000 New Orleans Ladies Stakes at Fair Grounds, or the $150,000 Azeri Stakes (Grade 3) at Oaklawn Park.  Both races are on March 17th.

Royal Academy Passes Away

Royal Academy, winner of the 1990 Breeder's Cup Mile has died yesterday of old age, at age 25.  He was by Nijinsky and out of Crimson Saint.  Royal Academy is also the grandsire to champion Black Caviar (who is currently 19-0)  In his seven starts Royal Academy was 4-2-0, with earnings of $725,167.  He spent the last 5 years of his life at Coolmore Australia.

Animal Kingdom

This Saturday, Animal Kingdom will return to the tuft in the third race at Gulfstream Park.  This optional claimer/allowance race is going to be Animal Kingdoms only prep race before shipping to Dubai for the $10 Million World Cup.  This will be the Kentucky Derby winner's first race since he fractured his hock after his start in the Belmont Stakes in June. In the field of five, Animal Kingdom will most likely demolish the competition.

Photo Credit: Barbara Livingston, via drf.com

in other record breaking news.....

Mike Smith is also only 10 wins away from 5000!!

CONGRATULATIONS TODD PLETCHER

I'm aware I'm a little late on this post, but congratulations to Todd Pletcher on his 3000th win!! Last Saturday at Gulfstream Park, Spring Hill Farm won the third race on the card!

What in the world happened in the Donn

Hymm Book.... really?  I did not see that one coming, especially since this was not a turf race.  What happened to Shack?  He usually goes right to the lead, was he purposely not on the lead?  I think he probably needed a prep race before running in Grade 1 company again.  Dale Romans apparently has no excuse for why the favorite ended up finishing in 7th place.  But even though Shack went off as the favorite, both Flat Out and Ruler on Ice ran poorly.  Hymm Book beat Mission Impazible in a photo finish.  Mission Impazible would of won, had he not drifted so far out coming down the stretch.  They were folled by, Redeemed, Where's Sterling, Flat Out, Trickmeister, Shackleford, Ruler on Ice, Sangaree, Al Khali, and Soaring Empire.

Lets talk some Royal Delta....

I love nothing more, than when fillies kick ass.  And in todays racing, I think the fillies are doing a much better job than the colts.  Due to my slow work day yesterday, I re-watched the replay of the Ladies Classic, and Royal Delta for lack of better terms kicked ass.  She was relaxed for basically the first mile, but stayed no more than two or three lengths of the lead, and then boom down the stretch, when she was challenged by It's Tricky and Plum Pretty, Royal D threw herself into overdrive and easily won.  On February 2nd, she trained at Payson Park Training Center, and breezed four furlongs in 48:20 on a fast rack, ranking 1/12, then on February 9th, she worked six furlongs in 1:16:30. (news from her facebook page).  Since Ben Leon's Besilu Stables purched Royal Delta for a whopping $8.5 million back on November 8th, I'm sure her team wants to make this investment worth while.  Royal D is returning to the races on February 25th, in the Grade 3 Sabin at Gulfstream Park.  If all goes well, then she will ship over to Dubai  for the World Cup on March 31st.

...heating up part 2

Union Rags was without a jockey for about 30 seconds when Javier Castellano chose to ride Algorithms in the Fountain of Youth Stakes, and as long as this colt still wins, will ride him for the rest of the Triple Crown season.  Giving up Union Rags, maybe the best or worst decision Javier will have made (I can't wait to see).  Every jockey agent in the country was working overtime to secure their jock at the new rider for Union Rags.... and dun dun dun dun... the winner is JULIEN LEPAROUX.  Julien is an animal.  He is extremely aggressive and I think this is going to be a winning combination.  Yesterday, Julien worked Rags five furlongs in 1:03:08 and then galloped out six furlongs in 1:15:40

Both these horses look good... whomever wins this is going to be the favorite going into the Derby

Derby Season in heating up....

Well over the weekend (I was apparently to lazy to write) Javier Castellano had made the decision to stick with team Pletcher and ride Algorithms in the Fountain of Youth Stakes.  According to the horse's facebook page, on Monday, February 13th, he "breezed half a mile in :49 1/5, going easily in :24 4/5 and galloping out five furlongs in 1:02 1/5"  Todd Pletcher seems to be happy with the work.  The FOY is February 25th.... only nine days away.

Donn Handicap

$500,000 Donn Handicap 4 & Up, 1 1/8 Miles (Dirt)

1. Where's Sterling - J Lezcano, N Canani
2. Mission Impazible - J Castellano,  T  Pletcher
3. Ruler On Ice-R Napravnik, K  Breen
4. Redeemed - E Prado,  R  Dutrow Jr.
5. Soaring Empire - J Leparoux,  C  Gambolati
6. Al Khali - A Garcia,  W  Mott
7. Flat Out - A  Solis, C Dickey
8. Trickmeister - R  Dominguez,  R  Dutrow Jr.
9. Shackleford - J Castanon,  D  Romans
10. Hymn Book- J Velazquez, C McGaughey III
11. Sangaree- R Maragh, K McLaughlin

What in the world is going to happen this Saturday in the Grade 1 Donn Handicap?  I don't even know where to begin.  I think Trickmeister has great chances, and he is undefeated.  He will definitely be out there with the early speed.  Shackleford I think will give him a  run with the early speed, but he has not proven anything since his win in the Preakness.  Also, Dale Romans brought Shack down to the dirt mile for the Breeder's Cup.  Shack did win at 1 3/16th miles, but we will see if his speed can hole on for that extra 1/16th of a mile that he will push too.  Ruler on Ice is our other Classic winner who is making an appearance.  He has followed almost the same campaign at Shack, and is also win-less.  Although he did come in third in the Classic.  I would not be surprised if Ruler on Ice hit the board, I will be surprised if he wins though.  Although, hes trading Garrett Gomez in for Rosie Napravnik (who seems to do well when riding Kelly Breen's horses).  I think this girl is a smart rider, she has more thought and strategy than any other jock in this race.  Sangaree and Hymn Book are two horses that I wouldn't rule out.  Mission Impazible and Flat Out are two horses that I just don't know when it comes to. 

We will just have to see what the morning line odds are.... and really just wait until Saturday and see what happens.

It's a tough life for Javier Castellano

As of February 6, 2012, Javier has close to $1.4 Million in purse earnings and after the amazing year that he had in 2011, I believe that 2012 is only going to be better for the 5'1" jockey.  Life is apparently oh so difficult for him, starting with the Fountain of Youth Stakes.  Who should he ride, derby favorite, and running up in the Breeder's Cup Juvinelle, Union Rags or Algorithms, who is undefeated and is coming off a win in the Holy Bull Stakes, where the pair crushed 2-year-old Champion Hansen.  Union Rags or Algorithms?  Todd Pletcher, or Michael Matz? Bernardini's son or Dixie Union's son?

TOUGH CHOICE!

Personally, I would go with Union Rags, since I think he is the better horse, and he does have better chances to win the Derby.  Although, everytime Michael Matz has a promising horse, all we hear is, what if this  is another Barbaro in the making...  (Also, like with Larry Jones..... is this another Eight Belles).  The down side of going with Union Rags, is that it could make Todd Pletcher angry.  Javier is one of Todd's "go-to" riders, and frankly in today's world of horse racing, Todd Pletcher is on the top of the list of trainer's that you do not want to piss off.  Pletcher's Derby short list includes: Algorithms, Discreet Dancer, El Padrino, and Gemologist- Castellano is the regular rider on all four mounts.

What I think is actually going to happen, Javier will take the mount of Algorithms.  Javier was the regular rider on his sire, Bernardini, and Stay Thirsty (a Bernardini colt) he knows the family traits well.  I think over the years he probably has more trust in confidence in Pletcher as opposed to Matz, whom he does not work for nearly as much.  Each horse has two more works before the race, and one of each work will go to Javier.  He is supposed to make his decision on Saturday. 

February 25th, we will see how smart Javier is...


picture source: google images

Alpha takes the Withers

Alpha, who is quickly becoming one of my favorite three year olds won the Withers on Saturday at Aqueduct.  How Do I win, owned by Repole Stables led the pack until the 3/4 point, where Alpha swept to the front to win the Withers Stakes by three lengths.  In watching the replay, this horse has so much left in him going down the stretch.  Ramon Dominguez rode Alpha perfectly, he had him break easy, then he was just sitting in the pack between third and fourth, and then when it was time to run, he asked and the colt responded perfectly.  Alpha, who now has $180,000 of graded stakes earnings, is nearly guarenteed a spot the first weekend in May.  Bernardini colts prove to get better with age, and experience and that is exactly what Alpha is doing.  He ran second to Union Rags as a two year old, and I am sure this colt would love a rematch.  The next race for Alpha will either be the $400,000 Gotham Stakes, March 3rd, or he will ship to Florida to train for two months until the $1,000,000 Wood Memorial in April. Either way, this colt may be small, but he sure can move quick.

Game on Dude

Game on Dude easily came to victory in the San Antonio (G2), which was the seventh race on the card at Santa Anita on Sunday.  GoD was taken back to last early as the field all broke well, then he quickly raced up to the front of the pack before the first 1/4 mile (23:09)  by the 3/4 mile (1:09:12) GoD was ahead by three lengths.  Down the strech there was litterally a second where I though Uh Oh Bango, ridden by Mike Smith was going to catch up to the gelding, but there really was just no catching him.  GoD finished 5 1/4 lengths in front of Uh Oh Bango who was 12 1/4 lengths ahead of Victory Pete.  Skuptshot and El Gato Malo followed.  In a post race interview, jockey, Chantal Sutherland, said she still had plenty of horse left, and although he broke slow, he listened and responded well to everything she asked him to do.  The reporter asked owner Joe Torre and trainer Bob Baffert if the next race will be the Big Cap on March 3rd or the Dubai World Cup on March 31st, both men where very quiet with there answers leaving everyone wondering what is next for GoD.  Due, to Dude's perfect record at Santa Anita, I think all of his connections are happy with year end goals of the Breeder's Cup Classic, considering last year, they all had the taste of victory in their mouths.

Boundary Euthanized

Boundary, who was the sire of legendary Big Brown (2008 Kentucky Derby & Preakness winner) was euthanized Saturday, February 4th, 2012 at the age of 22.  Boundary stood at Claiborne Farm, in KY until 2005 when he was pensioned.  The stallion won six out of eight starts and had career earnings of $217,777.

image source: google

Bob Lewis proves dissapointment for Liaison

Liaison, the winner of the Grade 1 $1,000,000 CashCall Futurity was the heavy favorite today in the Bob D. Lewis Stakes had a case of just plain bad luck.  As the field roared down the stretch, Groovin’ Solo moved into Liaison’s lane, causing the horse to clip heals and jockey Rafael Bejarano was thrown from the horse.  Luckily, Bejarano was quickly able to get out of the way of the horses coming through and was unharmed by the fall. 

Longshot, I’ll Have Another, who went out at 43-1 ended up winning by 2 ¾ lengths.   Empire way, a full sibling to Royal Delta ended up in second, and Groovin’ Solo was third.  After the injury, the stewards disqualified Groovin’ Solo, and Rousing Sermon was promoted up to third place.   I’ll Have Another, won his debut start at Hollywood Park last summer, and then finished second to Creative Cause at Del Mar.  He was shipped to Saratoga, but did not perform well on the sloppy track.  His performance yesterday was remarkable.

It’s the beginning on February, and the trail to the Triple Crown is only going to heat up.  I can’t wait for what going to happen in the weeks to come.

source: www.espn.go.com

GAME ON DUDE......

Picture Source: Google Images

When it comes to Game on Dude, I have mixed emotions about this gelding.  Frankly, I just thought he was an over-rated, under-preformed horse that got all his attention, from his model jockey, Chantal Southerland.  Well, in the BC Classic, last November, this horse proved me wrong.  He broke perfectly and had a nearly wire to wire win, until Drosselmeyer came out of literally nowhere to win by a length and a half.  During the race though, GoD tired everyone out to come to challenge him, including Uncle Mo (who was out of horse by the second turn).   He has his debut in the 2012 season in the Grade 2, $200,000 San Antonio Stakes.  This horse will most likely run again in the Santa Anita Handicap, which is on March 3^rd, where GoD will be the defending champion for the Grade 1 Stakes.  There are also talks that GoD will be sent to Dubai, for the $10 Million World Cup, on March 31^st, although Bob Baffert has some reservations about the synthetic track that the race is run on at Meyden Racecourse.  I would not be surprised if we see big things for this horse this year.