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Post by racinggal on May 31, 2013 19:25:17 GMT -5
I'm so happy she's back. She is one of my favorites! Champ Royal Delta Confirmed for Fleur de Lis By Claire Novak Champion Royal Delta will seek a title defense in the June 15 Fleur de Lis Handicap (gr. II) at Churchill Downs, her connections confirmed May 31. She is expected to be joined in her trip to the Louisville oval by sales-topping stablemate Mr. Besilu, who targets a one-mile maiden special weight for his highly-anticipated debut. Royal Delta follows the same pattern she took in 2012 for Besilu Stables and Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott, exiting an off-the-board finish in the Dubai World Cup (UAE-I) to enter the 1 1/8-mile dirt event for older fillies and mares. Last year, Royal Delta won the Fleur de Lis by eight lengths while cruising the final furlong under wraps by Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith. "She's doing well," Besilu Stables bloodstock manager Fabricio Buffolo said of the two-time winner of the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic (gr. I) who has earned $3.7 million. "Her last work was very, very good, and she's ready to start back here." The 5-year-old daughter of Empire Maker turned in a bullet move May 27, going five furlongs in :59.01 at Belmont Park. She returned to the tab May 13 with an easy four furlongs in :49.34, and had one other move between the two, a May 19 four-furlong breeze in :52.03. Worth $175,000 this year, the Fleur de Lis is expected to attract Apple Blossom Handicap (gr. I) winner On Fire Baby, who finished a head behind Authenticity in the May 4 La Troienne (gr. II) at Churchill. Also possible is Becky Winemiller's grade III Wine Princess, daughter of 2004 Horse of the Year Ghostzapper and 2002 Horse of the Year and three-time champion Azeri, according to Churchill stakes coordinator Alison DeLuca. Nominations close June 1 for the race, which accompanies the $750,000 Stephen Foster (gr. I). A one-mile maiden special weight on the undercard is expected to feature Mr. Besilu, a 4-year-old son of A.P. Indy out of Balance, the grade I-winning half sister to Horse of the Year Zenyatta. In 2010, Mr. Besilu was the most expensive Thoroughbred sold at public auction in North America when Benjamin Leon bought him for $4.2 million from the Mill Ridge consignment at the Keeneland September yearling sale. A soft tissue injury delayed his training, but the big colt has progressed well since arriving at Belmont from Mott's winter base of Payson Park at the end of April. Mr. Besilu worked a quick half-mile in :47.65 at Belmont May 27, sixth-fastest of 89 at the distance. His previous move was five furlongs from the gate in 1:01.92. "He stayed at the farm for a long time and had quite a bit of work there," Buffolo said. "When he went to Bill he was in good shape, but of course he needed more work at the track. He's a very big horse. He's doing well but he'll need the race—I'm sure he'll benefit a lot experience-wise, and to get out there and have competition will sharpen him up." Read more on BloodHorse.com: www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/a....s#ixzz2Uv3izL6i |
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Jon
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Post by Jon on Jun 11, 2013 22:11:32 GMT -5
On Fire Baby out of Fleur de Lis By Marty McGee LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The top would-be challenger to Eclipse champion Royal Delta in the Grade 2 Fleur de Lis Handicap was withdrawn from consideration Tuesday morning when trainer Gary “Red Dog” Hartlage reported that On Fire Baby had been transported to a Lexington equine clinic the previous night after spiking a high fever in her stall at Churchill Downs. “We’re thinking and hoping it’s only a virus,” Hartlage said. The trainer said the filly developed “what we thought was a little case of colic” early Monday, “and we treated her, and she was fine. But then she didn’t go to her feed tub” Monday night. Hartlage said On Fire Baby was transported to the Hagyard Equine Medical Institute for observation and treatment. The normal body temperature for a Thoroughbred is roughly 100 degrees, and hers was about 104, Hartlage said. “We’ll just have to see what the doctors say,” he said. “Obviously, it’s bad timing, but these things happen a lot, unfortunately. Hopefully, she’ll be over it real soon.” On Fire Baby, bred and owned by Anita Cauley, won the Grade 1 Apple Blossom at Oaklawn Park in April and has earned $720,308. The gray 4-year-old filly was expected to be second choice to heavily favored Royal Delta in the $175,000 Fleur de Lis, the top supporting feature on the Stephen Foster Handicap card Saturday night at Churchill. Entries were to be drawn Wednesday for the Saturday card, and the defection left just two others, Wine Princess and Funny Proposition, as definite opponents for Royal Delta. Churchill’s racing secretary, Ben Huffman, said Tuesday he was confident his staff would find another starter or two to allow the race to fill. Royal Delta, the 2012 older female champion, will be ridden by Mike Smith in the 1 1/8-mile Fleur de Lis. A 5-year-old mare trained by Bill Mott, she will be making her first start since finishing 10th in the March 30 Dubai World Cup. Last year, Royal Delta won the Fleur de Lis by eight lengths when she returned from a ninth-place finish in the World Cup. Royal Delta arrived here Sunday following a charter flight from New York. Also making the trip was her Mott stablemate, Ron the Greek, who last year dealt the eventual Horse of the Year, Wise Dan, his only defeat of 2012, getting up in the final jumps of the Grade 1 Stephen Foster to prevail by a head. Mott arrived in Louisville not long after his stable stars and will be here through the weekend. “He doesn’t like to get too far away from those good ones,” joked his local assistant, Kenny McCarthy. A field of six for the Foster was holding firm Tuesday, those being Successful Dan, Fort Larned, Ron the Greek, Take Charge Indy, Golden Ticket, and Pool Play. First post Saturday night is 6 p.m. Eastern, with the features likely to run in the 10 o’clock hour. The last of 11 races will go at 11:10. Two Grade 3 races for 3-year-olds, the Matt Winn and Regret, also will be on the program. DRF Brisnet PP's www.equibase.com/premium/eqbHorsemenAreaDownloadAction.cfm?sn=SNPP-CD-20130615-516171 |
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Post by Evelyn on Jun 14, 2013 8:08:54 GMT -5
Hard to look beyond Royal Delta in Fleur de Lis
By Byron King
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Horse races can be complicated affairs, whereby handicappers can envision a number of scenarios unfolding that could lead different outcomes.
But Saturday’s night’s Grade 2, $175,000 Fleur de Lis Handicap on the Stephen Foster undercard isn’t one of those races. Champion mare Royal Delta, winner of the past two Breeders’ Cup Ladies’ Classics, towers over four rivals, and anything other than a runaway victory is improbable.
Royal Delta is easily the most accomplished mare in the short field, as well as the fastest. She is trained by a Hall of Famer in Bill Mott, who notes she is training well for her first start since a 10th-place finish in the Dubai World Cup. And she is perfectly drawn on the far outside, leaving her well positioned to stay clear of traffic.
Even as the highweight at 125 pounds, spotting the field 10 to 11 pounds apiece under handicap conditions, if Royal Delta runs her race, she wins at 1-5 odds.
Mott said Thursday he attributes Royal Delta’s poor performance in Dubai to a deep track she disliked, and is pleased with how she is coming up to the race.
“She is working for me as well as she ever had,” he said.
She’s also proven over the Churchill Downs strip, having won the Ladies’ Classic when the race was run here in 2011, and last year’s Fleur de Lis, which like this year, came following a trip to Dubai.
Regular rider Mike Smith returns in the irons on Royal Delta, a 5-year-old daughter of Empire Maker owned by Besilu Stables.
Wine Princess seems the most likely candidate to complete the exacta beneath Royal Delta, or register an upset if by some chance Royal Delta returns off her game. Last year’s Grade 3 Monmouth Oaks winner, Wine Princess is Churchill-based and 3 for 3 locally – a record that includes a seven-length score in a third-level allowance April 27.
“She gets a lot out of her training, so we’ve spaced her works out,” said trainer Steve Margolis. “She’s not one you have to put on the fence every six or seven days.”
Leading jockey Shaun Bridgmohan rides.
Completing the five-horse field are Funny Proposition, a second-level allowance winner at Churchill on May 17; Doubledogdare winner Ice Cream Silence, seventh in the Arlington Matron on May 25; and veteran She’s All In, who hasn’t raced since finishing sixth of seven in the Apple Blossom at Oaklawn on April 12.
DRF
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Post by shooter29 on Jun 14, 2013 11:44:50 GMT -5
Royal Delta is one of my favorites as well RG. Glad to have her back home after another unnecessary debacle in Dubai. Don't know what they were thinking going back there after last year but w/e I guess. That being said, she's a lock in this one and should win bymany. It would take an act of God for her to get beat aagainst this bunch. She's the Queen Bee of American Racing and should remain that way.
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Jon
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Post by Jon on Jun 14, 2013 12:50:10 GMT -5
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Post by racinggal on Jun 15, 2013 20:33:42 GMT -5
She was second but I didn't think she looked good at all. I know this is her first race since Dubai. I just don't understand why they repeated that trip! She'll come back winning! Funny Proposition Takes Down Royal Delta By Frank Angst John Oxley's Funny Proposition upset reigning champion older female Royal Delta while securing the first stakes win of her career in the $186,375 Fleur de Lis Handicap (gr. II) June 15 at Churchill Downs. Already established as a filly who loves running at the Louisville oval, Funny Proposition took things to another level in improving to 4-for-4 on the Churchill main track as she enjoyed a clear lead at every call and had plenty left to hold off Royal Delta's stretch run. A daughter of Medaglia d'Oro , John Oxley's Funny Proposition registered a five-length win with Royal Delta, sent off at 1-5 in her efforts to win the Fleur de Lis a second straight year, finishing second. "We had a plan and it came together the way we thought it would," said Norman Casse, assistant to winning trainer Mark Casse. "We thought we would take it to (Royal Delta) right away and she was coming off a layoff." In her first start since an off-the-board finish in the Dubai World Cup (UAE-I), Besilu Stables' Royal Delta raced four- to three-wide through the first turn. Spotting Funny Proposition eight pounds, the 5-year-old Empire Maker mare made a move in the turn and challenged mid-stretch, but Funny Proposition found another gear near the eighth pole to draw off to the easy win. "She seemed a little bit more pensive in the paddock than normal," Hall of Fame horseman Bill Mott said of Royal Delta. "Maybe it's just a matter of getting back into action. We'll see." With Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I)-winning jockey Joel Rosario in the irons, Funny Proposition breezed through a quarter-mile in :23.30 and a half-mile in :46.83. Entered off a three-length victory in a May 17 allowance-optional claiming race beneath the Twin Spires, Funny Proposition easily handled the step up in class, completing the 1 1/8-mile event for fillies and mares in 1:50.22 on a fast track. "She's a good horse and she's a filly that will take you the whole way," Rosario said. "Turning for home, I felt like I had a little bit left and she was able to go on." The winner returned $13.40 and $4.20 while Royal Delta paid $2.10. There was no show wagering because of the short field. Rounding out the field were She's All In, Ice Cream Silence, and Wine Princess. Bred in Kentucky by Russell Reineman Stables, Funny Proposition is the first stakes winner out of the stakes-winning Distorted Humor mare Humorous Miss. Funny Proposition has won four of nine starts with two thirds and has earned $230,295. Read more on BloodHorse.com: www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/78918/funny-proposition-takes-down-royal-delta#ixzz2WL49H2SK |
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Jon
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Post by Jon on Jun 16, 2013 0:36:58 GMT -5
She really didn't look good.
Royal Delta well-beaten second in Fleur de Lis
By Marty McGee
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Joel Rosario won the Kentucky Derby on a 5-1 shot, and it wasn’t a surprise at all, even in a 19-horse field. Orb was the favorite at that price.
But when Rosario coasted home first Saturday night on a 5-1 shot named Funny Proposition among just five fillies and mares in the Grade 2, $186,375 Fleur de Lis Handicap, there were huge gasps of astonishment from the Downs After Dark crowd at Churchill Downs.
That’s because Royal Delta, the defending Eclipse champion in the division, finished a distant second to Funny Proposition, a wire-to-wire winner of the 1 1/8-mile Fleur de Lis. Royal Delta was the 1-5 choice and never mounted a serious challenge to Funny Proposition when finishing five lengths behind in second.
“She just didn’t have it,” said Mike Smith, the rider of Royal Delta. “It was the first race back, I guess.”
Royal Delta, spotting the winner eight pounds when carrying high weight of 125 pounds, was making her first start since finishing 10th in the March 30 Dubai World Cup. Last year, on precisely the same schedule, she won the Fleur de Lis by eight lengths.
Instead, it was Funny Proposition, a 4-year-old filly with nary a stakes win from eight prior starts, who was dominant. Gunned to the lead from her rail slot, she held an open lead throughout, finishing in 1:50.22 over a fast track. She returned $13.40 as third choice.
Funny Proposition, a Kentucky-bred by Medaglia d’Oro, is owned by John Oxley and trained by Mark Casse, neither of whom was on hand.
“My dad’s in Canada and Mr. Oxley is vacationing in France,” said Norm Casse, assistant to his father.
The younger Casse said making the lead was his entire race strategy.
“Every time I’ve ever seen her make the lead, she’s never been passed,” said Casse. As he watched the race unfold, “for the most part, I thought she had it all the way around.”
She’s All In was up for third, three-quarters of a length behind Royal Delta and just a nose before Ice Cream Silence. Wine Princess, the 7-2 second choice, brought up the rear.
The $2 exacta (1-5) paid $26.80 and the $2 trifecta (1-5-4) returned $129.60.
There was no show wagering. From a place pool of more than $286,000, almost $250,000 was bet on Royal Delta, who returned $2.10 to place.
The Fleur de Lis was the first of four straight graded stakes on Stephen Foster night.
DRF
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Jon
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Post by Jon on Jun 16, 2013 0:38:21 GMT -5
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Post by shooter29 on Jun 16, 2013 0:54:47 GMT -5
Very disappointing effort for Royal Delta. Think the Dubai fiasco may have taken it's toll this time around. Perhaps she needed the race and hopefully she'll improve off of this showing in Delaware.
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Post by mackdaddy on Jun 16, 2013 3:19:47 GMT -5
She looks very sore
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Post by Evelyn on Jun 16, 2013 21:18:37 GMT -5
She looked terrible going to the gate., She looked terrible during the race. Despite Smith running her all over the track, she just ran a bad race - for her. For others 2nd iusn't bad LOL From The Louisville Courier: Royal Delta appeared to get a bit hot going to the gate. Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith had her in a stalking position in third on the outside. On the far turn, she went to make her move, but Rosario had Funny Proposition in full flight. “It was her first race back,” Smith said. “She shipped to Dubai and came back. I know it worked last year, but sometimes it just takes a little longer. That certainly wasn’t her A-race. She’ll come back and run big.” Full Article: blogs.courier-journal.com/racing/2013/06/15/churchill-downs-funny-proposition-stuns-champion-royal-delta-in-fleur-de-lis/ |
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Post by Challedon on Jun 16, 2013 21:55:04 GMT -5
“I suppose the Delaware Handicap (GI on July 20) might be next for Royal Delta.†...Bill Mott
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