“I watched a lot of my old tapes of races for the last couple of years, Soaring Free, Sky Conqueror, some of my favourites” – Todd Kabel, Apr. 19 2012
(photo from Terence Dulay)
KABEL ATTEMPTS A COMEBACK
Listed on horses today through Sunday
It’s quite a story – both TODD KABEL and his agent MIKE LANGLAIS have been away from the racing business for several years. The former since he rode Giant’s Tomb in an allowance race in Oct. 2009 for Sam-Son Farms and the latter for about 9 years since he guided Mickey Walls through a spectacular career.
Let’s call them the comeback kids:
http://www.thestar.com/sports/horseracing/article/1164682–todd-kabel-back-in-the-saddle
WANDO STAKES TOMORROW – SOMETHING TO TALK ABOUT
The road to the QUEEN’S PLATE gets a WANDOful start tomorrow at Woodbine with the first 2 turn event for 3yos of the season. The Wando Stakes, named after our last Triple Crown winner, features Kinghaven Farms’, Hat Trick, Fielding, Hutzel et al’s INCREDICAT, the very exciting Discreet Cat colt who had a booming season debut at Gulfstream in a sprint. The colt, a half brother to stakes winner Stormy Lord, is the key to the race as perhaps the lone speed under Luis Contreras. The blinkers are off this bullish colt so we’ll see how he does.
He is bred to be a miler and a bit more so prospects are good for the chestnut who is trained by Ian Black. The race he exits has already produced 2 next-out winner: the 2nd and 7th place finishes came back to win allowance races with 82 and 78 Beyer Figures respectively.
PERFECT TAY is getting attention. This was a shrewd claim by True North Stables and trainer Lorne Richards. Okay, it was an expensive claim at $75,000 but the chestnut won his maiden right off the bat in a grass race at Gulfstream. He had a perfect trip that day but was gritty in his neck score. The colt had some rapid workouts last season when in training with Roger Attfield.
Completing the Wando field is Classic Bryce, Big Creek and the maiden Attendant, the latter of which would be the upset possibility in the field.
(want a fun game? Try the Incredicat game by clicking here:
http://www.incredicat.com/default.aspx)
Tomorrow morning at Woodbine – a must attend – Andy Serling from NYRA, top handicapper and interesting to listen to…sign u for the seminar today! Visit Woodbineentertainment.com
HARVEY, WORTZMAN, ATTFIELD WIN AGAIN
Stormy Rush Rallies Up the Rail to Win the Siena Purse
LEXINGTON, KY (April 18, 2012) – Robert Harvey, Alan Wortzman and George Ledson’s Stormy Rush, making his first start in a year, rallied along the inside rail to take the lead just before the sixteenth pole and then repulsed a late bid from Spinning Move to win the featured $58,000 Siena Purse for 4-year-olds and up by a neck before a crowd of 10,521 at Keeneland on Wednesday.
Trained by Roger Attfield and ridden by Garrett Gomez, Stormy Rush was seventh entering the stretch of the 5½-furlong turf sprint. At midstretch, Gomez split two horses and dived to the rail where he had clear sailing to the wire, completing the distance in 1:02.48.
A 4-year-old Kentucky-bred son of Stormy Atlantic out of the Wild Rush mare Willow Rush, Stormy Rush improved his record to 6-3-0-1 and with the $34,800 winner’s check boosted his bankroll to $136,054.
Stormy Rush returned $11.40, $6 and $4.40. Spinning Move, ridden by Julien Leparoux, paid $4.40 and $3.20 with Heir Joe finishing a nose back in third under Robby Albarado and returning $3 to show.
According to Trakus, Spinning Move covered 21 more feet than Stormy Rush that equates to about 2½ lengths of added ground covered.
HILLS WINS TOO…(files from Thoroughbred Daily News)
Yesterday at Keeneland, Ontario bred PLATINUM EXCHANGE (m, 5, Exchange Rate–Platinum
Hope {SP}, by Carr de Naskra) won a 5 1/2 furlong turf allowance in a sharp 1:02 1/5, Bred by Mike Byrne’s Park Stud the filly was a model of consistency during her sophomore season, posting a record of 7-2-2-2, including a Woodbine allowance win over the all-weather and a strong second-place finish in the grassy Alywow S. She could do no better than
13th in that term’s GII Raven Run S. over the Keeneland Polytrack, then disappeared following a
third-place finish in Woodbine’s Jammed Lovely S. in November. Finally back in action after missing all of her
4-year-old season, the 6-1 shot was sent to the front from her inside draw. Under pressure through fractions
of :21.76 and :44.63, she shook clear in the stretch to post a hard fought 1 3/4-length decision. Heavily
favored Caribbean Lady (Speightstown) was second. Sales history: $200,000 yrl ’08 KEESEP; $55,000 RNA
wlng ’07 KEENOV. Lifetime Record: MSP, 8-3-2-2, $170,866.
O-Jim & Susan Hill. B-Michael C Byrne (ON).
COMING UP SUNDAY AT KEENELAND
BEN ALI S.-GIII, $150,000, 4yo/up, 1 1/8mA (AWT)
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 Eye Of The Leopard A.P. Indy Bridgmohan Pierce 118
2 Cease War Chant Mena Stall Jr. 118
3 Rogue Romance K Smarty Jones Leparoux McPeek 118
4 Guys Reward K Grand Reward Lanerie Romans 118
5 Ioya Bigtime Dynaformer Borel Pessin 118
6 Wise Dan Wiseman’s Ferry Velazquez Lopresti 123
7 Big Blue Kitten Kitten’s Joy Castellano Brown 118
IT’S OFFICIAL – VILLENEUVE GETS WIN 1,000
June 17, celebrate at Fort Erie
FORT ERIE – The record-setting jockey who showed the boys that girls can ride thoroughbreds, too, will be honoured by Fort Erie Race Track on, of all days, Father’s Day.
Francine Villeneuve, the winningest female Canadian jockey of all time and first Canadian female to win 1,000 races, is now retired, but she is returning to the track Sunday, June 17, for an autograph session and a meet-and-greet with fans. Mid-June is also when “The Queen of Fort Erie” racing will be inducted into the Fort Erie Sports Wall of Fame.
Who knows, the one-time hot walker at Woodbine may just be back in the saddle for another ride around the historic border oval. Stranger things have happened to Villeneuve, like last Sunday at Calder Race course in Miami Gardens, Fla., where she raced to her 1,000th victory — for the second time in her career.
Villeneuve, 47, rode off into retirement with 1,000 wins, or so she thought. However, the milestone, while recognized by track officials at Fort Erie, wasn’t by Equibase. The North American database for horse racing didn’t count a race she won in Kingston, Jamaica, since the victory took place outside of North America.
http://www.forterietimes.ca/2012/04/18/francine-villeneuve-rides-to-1000th-win—for-second-time
CANADIAN OWNED I’LL HAVE ANOTHER WORKS
J. Paul Reddam owns, Hastings jock Gutierrez rides
I’ll Have Another, who established himself as a top Kentucky Derby contender with a game win over Creative Cause in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby, breezed six furlongs in 1:13 3/5 over the Hollywood Park’s Cushion Track Thursday morning.
“He worked alone and went great,” trainer Doug O’Neill said. “He got stronger as he went. He’s spot on now. He’ll have one more work at Hollywood on the 27th, then leave for Kentucky on the 28th.”
I’ll Have Another opened his three-year-old season with a 43-1 upset in the Grade 2 Robert B. Lewis Stakes on February 4, rolling to a 2 3/4-length decision in his first start since a sixth in the Grade 1 Hopeful Stakes five months earlier. Freshened nine weeks in advance of the April 7 Santa Anita Derby, the chestnut son of Flower Alley rallied from just off the pace to post a nose score over the favored Creative Cause.
Jockey Mario Gutierrez will retain the mount in the Kentucky Derby.
O’Neill was asked for his impression of Bodemeister’s 9 1/2-length victory in the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby last Saturday.
“If he runs a repeat of that race, we’re all in trouble,” the trainer said before adding, “but that’s why they run these races.”
Hey Spud – ROUSING SERMON, from Idaho, IN DERBY
Kentucky Derby next for Parma-raised horse
By BRIAN MURPHY — bmurphy@idahostatesman.com
It didn’t take long for the young chestnut horse to stand out among its peers at Parma’s Tree Top Ranches.
“He was special from the time he was a few months old. He just had an elegant look to him,” said Dan Kiser, horse manager at the ranch. “He was always kind of in charge with the other colts. I knew pretty early.”
Rousing Sermon proved Kiser’s appraisal correct in Southern California races as a 2-year-old. When he earned enough winnings in graded-stakes races this year to qualify for the May 5 Kentucky Derby, it didn’t take long for his owners — Treasure Valley businessman Larry Williams and his wife, Marianne — to decide to make their first Run for the Roses
Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2012/04/19/2080887/kentucky-derby-next-for-parma.html#storylink=cpy
2012 KENTUCKY DERBY – GRADED EARNINGS
through Apr. 15
Horse Sire Trainer Graded Money
1 Hansen Tapit Maker $1,550,000
2 Daddy Long Legs Scat Daddy O’Brien $1,294,030
3 Union Rags Dixie Union Matz $1,170,000
4 Dullahan Even the Score Romans $855,000
5 Creative Cause Giant’s Causeway Harrington $836,000
6 Gemologist Tiznow Pletcher $703,855
7 Sabercat Bluegrass Cat Asmussen $701,429
8 Take Charge Indy A.P. Indy Byrne $698,400
OUT 9 Secret Circle Eddington Baffert $670,000
10 Bodemeister Empire Maker Baffert $660,000
11 Hero of Order* Sharp Humor Dorochenko $615,500
12 I’ll Have Another Flower Alley O’Neill $601,000
13 Daddy Nose Best Scat Daddy Asmussen $545,558
14 Liaison Indian Charlie Baffert $393,000
15 Alpha Bernardini McLaughlin $380,000
16 Prospective Malibu Moon Casse $367,327
17 Trinniberg Teuflesberg Parboo $324,500
18 Done Talking Broken Vow Smith $311,000
19 Went the Day Well Proud Citizen Motion $282,000
20 Rousing Sermon Lucky Pulpit Hollendorfer $270,000
21 Mark Valeski Proud Citizen Jones $260,000
22 El Padrino Pulpit Pletcher $250,000
23 Reveron Songandaprayer Bezara $220,000
24 Isn’t He Clever Smarty Jones H Dominguez $188,000
25 Optimizer English Channel Lukas $184,708
(Canadian-bred) JOYFUL VICTORY OVERLOOKED STANDOUT IN JONES BARN
Joyful Victory’s body of work on the racetrack would stack up well in any stable: an 11-4-2-2 record for earnings of $555,068 and two graded stakes victories.
But then Joyful Victory is not in just any barn … her stablemate is reigning Horse of the Year Havre de Grace, who, like Joyful Victory, is owned by Fox Hill Farms.
“We know that she is not Havre de Grace,” trainer Larry Jones said. “In this barn, expectations get pretty high, but we are not discouraged with her. We have a lot of hope for her.”
Joyful Victory tipped her hand early last year when she won the Honeybee (G3) by 8¾ lengths and the Fantasy (G2) by seven lengths at Oaklawn Park. Off those efforts, the Tapit filly went off as the favorite in the Kentucky Oaks (G1) and finished fourth behind Plum Pretty.
After the Oaks, Joyful Victory finished second in the Mother Goose (G1) at Belmont Park and then fifth in the Coaching Club of America Oaks (G1) at Saratoga in which she came out of the race with a chip in a knee.
“Things did not go her way in the Mother Goose and then she got hurt at Saratoga,” said Jones, who put Joyful Victory back into light training here last fall.
After nearly six months off, Joyful Victory ran second in a turf allowance at Fair Grounds, won the Tiffany Lass on the main track and ran third in the Azeri (G3) at Oaklawn, all under Robby Albarado, who will be in the saddle Friday when she goes postward in the Hilliard Lyons Doubledogdare (G3).
“In her first race back on the turf, the pace was too slow early,” Jones said. “Then she won that little stake and she got a little tired in the Azeri. I shipped up to Oaklawn only once, but I watched a lot of races and it looked like they all needed a race over the track.”
Joyful Victory has had two works over the main track here as she prepares for her racing debut on Polytrack.
“She has never been on the Poly and we are kind of experimenting with her to see what kind of options we have for her the rest of the year,” Jones said. “Robby has been on her a lot and knows her well and it seems like the whole team has been together with her for awhile now.”
On Friday, Ms. Victory (bred by Bill Graham of Caledon, Ontario) is in the Doubledogdare…
HILLARD LYONS DOUBLEDOGDARE S.-GIII, $100,000, 4yo/up, f/m,
1 1/16m (AWT)
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 La Gran Bailadora K Afleet Alex Lanerie Maker 118
2 Kathmanblu K Bluegrass Cat Leparoux McPeek 118
3 Lunar Mist K Malibu Moon Homeister Jr Reed 118
4 Principal Role Empire Maker Prado Mott 118
5 Pachattack K Pulpit Maragh Motion 118
6 My Pal Chrisy Alex’s Pal Panici Lutchman 118
7 Sea Level Drive K Malibu Moon Graham Arnold 118
8 Joyful Victory K Tapit Albarado Jones 118
APRIL OBS 2YO SALE (next week)
British Columbia-bred in April 2yo sale
1123 My Classical Rose……..B F……. Corinthian……………Switch Lanes
ONTARIO BREDS IN APRIL SALE WITH UNDER TACK SHOW TIME (after three gallop shows)
33 …………………….CH F…… Circular Quay…………Waltzing Around (IRE) :11.00
54 …………………….DKB/BR F.. Macho Uno…………….Whiskey and Low :10 2/5
245 OUT …………………….DKB/BR F.. Silent Name (JPN)……..Catalina Cat
274 One Hyde Park…………GR/RO C… Macho Uno…………….Classical Miss 22 3/5
290 OUT Chepstow……………..DKB/BR C.. Harlington……………Collymore Hall
406 …………………….DKB/BR C.. J Be K……………….Essie’s Link :10 4/5
427 …………………….B C……. Philanthropist………..Financingavailable :22 1/5
438 …………………….B F……. Any Given Saturday…….Flawless Diamond :10 3/5
472 OUT…………………….DKB/BR C.. Dixie Union…………..Gentle Jazz
533 OUT Hall’s Village………..B C……. Graeme Hall…………..Highgate Park
599 …………………….B F……. Harlington……………Jungle Storm
636 Chelsea Road………….CH F…… Speightstown………….Lambert Point
641 …………………….CH C…… Songandaprayer………..Launch the Rocket
656 …………………….DKB/BR F.. Bernstein…………….Lillians Choice
660 …………………….GR/RO F… Macho Uno…………….Lip Gloss
668 …………………….B F……. Where’s the Ring………Lonesome Girl
676 Bathsheba Park………..DKB/BR C.. Harlington……………Lucas Street
710 Sufficientevidence…….CH C…… Pleasant Tap………….Matter of Law
801 Rosa Roja…………….DKB/BR F.. Spring At Last………..Numberonetreasure
827 …………………….GR/RO C… Bob and John………….Pandora’s Secret
900 …………………….DKB/BR F.. Tap Day………………Queen of the Realm
933 …………………….DKB/BR C.. Street Boss…………..Reportedly
987 …………………….B C……. Dehere……………….Saving Ground
1012 …………………….B C……. Midnight Lute…………Shebandowana
1093 …………………….DKB/BR F.. Grand Slam……………Street Cat
1105 …………………….CH F…… English Channel……….Summer Lass
1125 Take a Hold…………..DKB/BR C.. Milwaukee Brew………..Take a Look
