Breeders’ Cup 36 had extra scrutiny and extra safety protocols while being hosted at Santa Anita, the tracks 10th time hosting the extravaganza. This was a first day of the Breeders’ Cup 2019 like no other, but at the same time the racing was exciting and some race results made sense, others, not so much.
The main Santa Anita surface would be kinder to horses who have raced or trained over it as it is quite slow and deep.
STORM THE COURT’S wild win in the Juvenile (blinkers on) was earned in a solid time of 1:44.93 over 1 1/16 miles but earlier, the fillies went the distance in 1:47.07, a race won by British Idiom. The pace was much faster in the Juvenile Fillies but it is a tiring surface.
From a Canadian standpoint, two things stood out on the day: Rose and Shine, the Ontario bred Muskoka Stakes and Princess Elizabeth Stakes winner from 2011 for Jim Sabiston, co-bred by Jay Cochlin, is the dam of BRITISH IDIOM, the Juvenile Fillies winner and Vancouver’s PETER REDEKOP’S colt ANNEAU D’OR missed by a head when 2nd in the Juvenile.
ANNEAU D’OR (Golden Ring) was making just his second career star in the Juvenile after his impressive debut win on the grass at Golden Gate in September with a 72 Beyer Speed Figure. The son of Medaglia D’Oro from the mare Walk Close by Tapit was bought by Redekop for $480,000 as a 2-year-old in training at the April Ocala sale this spring.
Capsules of the winners:
FOUR WHEEL DRIVE – Juvenile Turf Sprint, 3 to 2 favourite won the 5 furlong sprint, son of American Pharoah, owned by Breeze Easy (races horses at Woodbine), trained by Wesley Ward. 55.66
STRUCTOR – bay $850,000 Palace Malice colt, first Cup starter for Minnesota owners Jeff Drown and Don Rachel. Now 3 for 3 for trainer Chad Brown; 1:35.11
BRITISH IDIOM – Juvenile Fillies, 1 1/16 miles, Daughter of Flashback (Tapit from the Canadian/Ontario bred mare Rose and Shine who was bred by Jay Cochli, Jim Sabiston, daughter of Mr Sekiguchi) who won the Princess Elizabeth for Jim Sabiston; $40,000 yearling purchase, latest success for Liz Crow and BSW Bloostock that also bought this group Monomoy Girl
“It’s a lot easier [to buy a horse] if you are just given a blank cheque book,” said co-owner Steve Grant. “We don’t give Liz a blank cheque book. We really tightened the reins and she has to work really hard to find quality fillies, and it isn’t her first one, for a price we are willing to spend.”
SHARING – Impeccably bred filly Sharing, by Speightstown – from Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf winner Shared Account, won the Juvenile Fillies Turf under Manny Franco for Graham Motion who trains for Eclipse Thoroughbreds and partners. She was a $350,000 yearling and she is 3 for 4 in her career.
FOUR WHEEL DRIVE, from the first crop of the great American Pharoah, won the Juvenile Turf and is 3 for 3 in his career – CINDY PIERSON DULAY PHOTO – HORSE-RACES.NET
STORM THE COURT led all the way in the topsy turvy Juvenile, adding blinkers for the race after he lost his rider in a smash up in his previous start. The colt is by former Ontario sire COURT VISION (Gulch), who stood at Park Stud for Spendthrift and was the leading freshman sire in Canada in 2015. He went to Kentucky for a season (2016) and now stands in Louisiana for $3,500.
The colt is co-owned by the Exline – Border team and trained by Peter Eurton. The group also won a Breeders’ Cup race with another huge longshot, Champagne Room, a few years ago.
STORM THE COURT, bred in Kentucky by Stepping Stone Farm, cost just $5,000 as a short yearling, bought by Bryan Rice (brother to trainer Linda Rice). Rice then sold the colt in April at the OBS 2-year-old sale this year for $60,000 to Justin Border and partners through agent Marrette Farrell.
Dennis’ Moment lost all chance at the start when he stumbled and fell to his knees out of the gate. After spotting the field several lengths, jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr., put him back into contention, but he fell back off in the far turn before finishing under wraps.
“Out of the gate, I said to myself, ‘Oh, man,'” said Ortiz, Jr. “You don’t see too many horses like that stumble that badly out of the gate and come back to win the race. I asked him to run early, he gave it to me and put a good effort into the turn, but then at the 1/4 pole, he slowed down.”
Storm the Court’s win improved his record to 4-2-0-1, with his lone off-the-board finish coming in the Del Mar Futurity (G1) after losing Prat in an early collision with Eight Rings. The 2-year-old son of Court Vision – who won the 2011 TVG Breeders’ Cup Mile at 64/1 odds – has now earned $1,172,951 for Exline-Border Racing, David Bernsen, Susanna Wilson, and Dan Hudock.
“It’s just so special to do this,” Eurton said. “I still felt a little uneasy about what happened, so we decided to put the blinkers on him on Flavien’s recommendation. It just seemed like it got him a little more focused and he probably would have been able to do it without them – but it did help out a lot.”
**The Juvenile Turf race was easily the messiest race for horses from Europe. Star racer Arizona’s slow start and traffic woes with the slow pace bottled up the stretch runner. Decorated Invader made a huge, wide move around the turn and finished well, but front runner GRACEFUL KITTEN, who was staying on well, hit the rail after veering in from a right handed whip by Hector Berrios.
HIT THE ROAD came out and caused interference and was disqualified from 14th and placed last.
More from Races:
