Jon
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Post by Jon on Jan 23, 2014 23:03:57 GMT -5
Note: This is RTTKD Challenge race!
Gulfstream Park - Saturday, January 25, 2014 Race 10 - 5:03 PM $1 Daily Double / $1 Exacta / $.50 Trifecta / $.10 Superfecta STAKES Holy Bull S. (Grade II)
Purse $400,000. For Three Year Olds. ($15,000 bonus for FTBOA Registered Florida-Bred by an FTBOA Registered Florida Sire). Free nomination, $4,000 to pass the entry box and $2,000 additional to start, with $400,000 Guaranteed. All fees shall be paid prior to the startof the race. The owner of the winner to receive $240,000, $80,000 to second, $40,000 to third, $20,000 to fourth, $12,000 to fifth and $8,000 to sixth. Weight: 122 Lbs. Non-winners of a grade I or II stakes allowed, 2 Lbs.; of a sweepstakes at a mile orover, 4 Lbs.; of two races other than maiden or claiming at a mile or over, 6 Lbs. Horses finishing first, second or third in the Holy Bull will automatically be nominated to the Florida Derby. Trophy to the winning owner. Closed Saturday, January 11, 20014 with 44 Nominations. One And One Sixteenth Miles. P# PP Horse Virtual Stable A/S Med Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1 Coup de Grace (KY) 3/C L J R Velazquez 116 C C Brown 4/1 2 2 Financial Mogul (KY) 3/C L J L Ortiz 116 R A Violette, Jr. 10/1 3 3 Best Plan Yet (FL) 3/C L E J Zayas 120 S I Gold 20/1 4 4 Almost Famous (KY) 3/C L C H Borel 116 P B Byrne 8/1 5 5 Our Caravan (KY) 3/C L C J Lanerie 116 M Dilger 15/1 6 6 Mr Speaker (KY) 3/C J Lezcano 120 C R McGaughey III 5/1 7 7 Cairo Prince (KY) 3/C L L Saez 122 K P McLaughlin 3/1 8 8 Wicked Strong (KY) 3/C L J Castellano 116 J A Jerkens 8/1 9 9 Conquest Titan (KY) 3/C L S Bridgmohan 116 M E Casse 12/1 10 10 Big Bazinga (KY) 3/G L J Bravo 116 K Vassilieva 20/1 11 11 Intense Holiday (KY) 3/C L J Rosario 116 T A Pletcher 6/1
Owners: 1 - Fox Hill Farms, Inc.; 2 - Klaravich Stables, Inc. and William H. Lawrence; 3 - Jacks or Better Farm, Inc.; 4 - Charles and Maribeth Sandford LLC; 5 - Anstu Stables, Inc.; 6 - Phipps Stable; 7 - Namcook Stables, Braverman, Paul, Clarke, Harvey A. and Robertson III, W. Craig; 8 - Centennial Farms; 9 - Conquest Stables, LLC; 10 - Derby Dreamers Racing Stable; 11 - Starlight Racing
Breeders: 1 - AGS Thoroughbreds Ltd.; 2 - Atlas Farm et al; 3 - Jacks or Better Farm Inc.; 4 - Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC; 5 - Hare Forest Farm, LTD.; 6 - Phipps Stable; 7 - Richard L. Elam & Katherine H. Elam; 8 - William F. Lynn; 9 - Michael Edward Connelly; 10 - Sheltowee Farm, Alfonso Mazzetti, Dr.Robert J Hunt & Rodney Winkle; 11 - Machmer Hall & Haymarket Farm
Equibase
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Jon
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Post by Jon on Jan 23, 2014 23:04:18 GMT -5
Wildcat Red bypasses Holy Bull entry box due to illness Brisnet
A minor illness has kept Wildcat Red, runner-up in the Gulfstream Park Derby on New Year's Day, from making his next scheduled start in the Grade 2, $400,000 Holy Bull on Saturday at Gulfstream Park.
Trainer Jose Garoffalo said the D'wildcat colt was treated after showing some mucous in his throat on Monday morning, the day entries were taken for the Holy Bull.
"We decided not to enter because the horse got sick," Garoffalo explained. "He's got a little cold. He wasn't a hundred percent good for the race, so we decided to skip the race.
"He's in good shape. It's just a routine cold, so we're treating him and he'll be better for the next time."
Garoffalo said Wildcat Red did not have a fever and that he could train the horse up to the Grade 2, $400,000 Fountain of Youth going the same 1 1/16-mile distance as the Holy Bull on February 22 at Gulfstream. The Fountain of Youth could turn provide a sense of deja vu as Gulfstream Park Derby winner General a Rod is also targeting the contest.
"He just wasn't reacting like he usually does. He wasn't too happy (Monday) morning," Garoffalo said. "Maybe it was the change of weather or something related to that, I don't know. We hopefully have many races ahead for him."
Garoffalo also mentioned the Grade 2, $200,000 Hutcheson sprinting seven furlongs at Gulfstream on February 1 as a possible start. Wildcat Red thus far has two wins and two seconds from four career starts.
"We have to evaluate the horse in the next couple of weeks," Garoffalo said. "He's OK. We didn't want to take the chance, so we just do what's best for the horse."
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Jon
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Post by Jon on Jan 23, 2014 23:05:07 GMT -5
Intense Holiday will try to overcome disadvantageous post in Holy Bull Brisnet
Intense Holiday will have the rest of the field inside him when he breaks from post 11 in Saturday's Grade 2, $400,000 Holy Bull at Gulfstream Park -- the same scenario his sire, Harlan's Holiday, faced 11 years ago in the Donn Handicap.
His connections are hoping for a similar result, as well. Hustled from the gate by Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez, Harlan's Holiday was able to secure good early position before drawing away in the stretch to win the 2003 Donn by 2 1/2 lengths.
"We were at the draw that year and everybody had a heart attack when he pulled the 11-hole," said Jack Wolf, who owned Harlan's Holiday and is co-founder and managing partner of Starlight Racing, which campaigns Intense Holiday. "Good horses can find a way to win from any post."
The 1 1/16-mile Holy Bull will mark the three-year-old debut for Intense Holiday, who had a maiden win from five starts as a juvenile. Before leaving New York for South Florida, he was fifth in the Champagne at Belmont Park and fourth in both the Nashua and Remsen at Aqueduct.
"We sort of took a stab in the Champagne because there sort of wasn't any other place to go. I thought he ran a credible race there," Wolf said. "Not using it as an excuse, he hasn't had the best of trips. This race has got some pretty fancy horses in there. It's one good horse after another."
This year's Holy Bull field is the largest since Barbaro beat 11 challengers in 2006. There have been as many as 11 four times in its first 27 runnings, the best finish from post 11 being Choctaw Ridge's fourth in 1992.
"We've been pointing for this race ever since his last race in New York. He's trained forwardly and seems to be maturing at the right time," Starlight co-founder and managing partner Don Lucarelli said. "I just wish, naturally, that we had a better post but you have to play the hand you're dealt. Hopefully this will make him get more involved early and see from that standpoint what he can do."
Despite his post, Intense Holiday is fourth in the program at odds of 6-1; Nashua winner and Remsen runner-up Cairo Prince is favored at 3-1. Other familiar horses Intense Holiday will face are Financial Mogul, second in the Nashua, and Wicked Strong, third in the Remsen.
"We're hopeful he can catch a trip and show us what he really is capable of," Lucarelli remarked. "Whatever happens, happens, but I do think that he will be a good horse. He can handle the distance. It's going to all be how much pace is in front of him and where he sits off the first turn; that's what's going to dictate everything. It's all about the trip, but the horse is doing well."
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Jon
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Post by Jon on Jan 24, 2014 0:35:23 GMT -5
'Prince' leads Holy Bull cast By Claire Novak ESPN
The last time racing fans saw Grade 2 winner Cairo Prince, he was ding-donging down the stretch with highly regarded Honor Code in a thrilling edition of the Nov. 30 Remsen Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack. The Kiaran McLaughlin trainee lost that 1 1/8-mile test by a brutal nose in the final jump, but comes back Jan. 25 in the $400,000 Miller Lite Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park minus his Shug McGaughey-trained foe to contend with -- plus a lesson learned by rider Luis Saez.
McLaughlin attributed the tough Remsen loss to a six-pound weight advantage in Honor Code's favor and a rider error by Saez, who nevertheless retained the mount.
"He knows he made a mistake, but everyone makes mistakes," said McLaughlin, who was critical of Saez for falling into the trap of an extremely slow early pace and allowing Honor Code to rally inside of him. "He knows the horse and he knows not to make the same mistakes."
Breaking from Post 7 under high weight of 122 pounds, this Pioneerof the Nile colt heads a stout field of 11 sophomore contenders in his first start since the Remsen for the 1 1/16-mile Holy Bull that drew the likes of undefeated Coup de Grace, Pat Byrne trainee Almost Famous, and another runner from the McGaughey barn, Phipps Stable homebred Mr Speaker.
The Holy Bull kicks off the 3-year-old series in South Florida and is an important steppingstone to the $1 million Besilu Stables Florida Derby at Gulfstream on March 29. It is worth 10 points to the winner on the road to the Kentucky Derby, with a 4-2-1 value assigned to the three runners that follow. "When you get on the Derby trail, they're all going to be tough. I think we have a really nice horse, and I wouldn't trade places with anybody," McLaughlin said.
Cairo Prince, who romped to victory in the Nov. 3 Nashua off a powerful October maiden win at Belmont Park, suffered his first loss in three starts in the Remsen after taking the lead in the stretch only to lose the tightest of photo finishes. He races for Namcook Stables, Paul Braverman, Harvey A. Clarke, and Craig W. Robertson III. While the highweight has already gone a route of ground, Gulfstream's middle-distance test will be the first chance for many young runners to stretch out. That's the case with Fox Hill Farm's Coup de Grace, who broke his maiden in November at Aqueduct for trainer Chad Brown and came back Dec. 15 to take a one-mile allowance at Gulfstream gate-to-wire by a length.
"He's unproven around two turns, and it's a real test for him," Brown said of the Tapit runner who will be ridden from the rail by Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez while carrying 116 pounds. "I think it's that time of year to try him around two turns and then we can figure out how to campaign him the rest of the year." Mr Speaker also comes off a one-mile winning effort, that on the turf in the Dania Beach Stakes on Dec. 21. After watching the Pulpit colt cavort by 2 3/4 lengths in his stakes debut, McGaughey couldn't resist the temptation to try him on the main track.
"He's trained good on the dirt. I thought somewhere along the line I was going to give him this kind of opportunity," McGaughey said. "I didn't know it was going to be now but this is something I did have on my mind to give him the opportunity."
Any trainer with a talented 3-year-old colt would have done exactly the same thing, but McGaughey, who saddled Besilu Stables Florida Derby and Kentucky Derby winner Orb last year, has solid reasons to suspect Mr Speaker can handle the footing.
"Pulpit never ran on turf and his dam never ran on turf," McGaughey said. "He's always trained good on it." Being a son of Pulpit, who won the 1997 Fountain of Youth on Gulfstream's main track and out of the graded stakes-placed Unbridled mare Salute (a daughter of undefeated champion Personal Ensign), Mr Speaker would seem suited to dirt at the highest level.
"I think he's equipped to make the jump. It's a matter whether he'll make the jump from turf to dirt. He's already done it on the turf. He went from a maiden to a Grade 3, we'll just have to see if he does it on the dirt," said McGaughey, who awarded the return mount aboard Mr Speaker to Jose Lezcano. The duo departs Post 6 with 120 pounds. One already proven at dirt and a distance is Chuck and Maribeth Sandford's Almost Famous, who comes into the Holy Bull off a six-length romp going 1 1/16 miles at Churchill Downs in his first try around two turns. Previously, he had won his debut in September but finished a distant fourth in the Street Sense Stakes, his Oct. 27 return. "His first race was spectacular, then in his second race, he kind of went to sleep on me," said Byrne, who saddled Take Charge Indy to victory for the same connections in the 2012 Florida Derby. "I kind of babied him. It was my fault. He'd been off for seven weeks. He kind of just went around in place. He just didn't run. It was nothing to do with talent. I wheeled him back in 14 days, put blinkers on him and he galloped."
Jockey Calvin Borel, who guided Take Charge Indy in the Florida Derby, will be aboard Almost Famous from the 4 hole with a 116-pound assignment. The son of Unbridled's Song was the morning-line favorite for the Nov. 30 Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill, but was scratched due to a stone bruise.
James Jerkens, who saddled Quality Road for victories in the 2009 Fountain of Youth and Florida Derby, is scheduled to saddle Centennial Farms' Remsen third-place finisher Wicked Strong for the Holy Bull. The son of Hard Spun finished just a half-length behind Honor Code and Cairo Prince in the Remsen.
Conquest Titan, who won the Swynford Stakes at Woodbine for Conquest Stables, rebounded from a 13th-place finish in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Santa Anita Park with an allowance victory at Churchill to conclude his 2-year-old campaign for trainer Mark Casse.
Starlight Racing's Todd Pletcher-trained Intense Holiday, who finished fourth in the Remsen, completes the field along with Financial Mogul, Florida Stallion In Reality and Foolish Pleasure Stakes winner Best Plan Yet, Our Caravan, and Big Bazinga.
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Jon
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Post by Jon on Jan 24, 2014 0:35:41 GMT -5
'Prince' leads Holy Bull cast By Claire Novak ESPN
The last time racing fans saw Grade 2 winner Cairo Prince, he was ding-donging down the stretch with highly regarded Honor Code in a thrilling edition of the Nov. 30 Remsen Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack. The Kiaran McLaughlin trainee lost that 1 1/8-mile test by a brutal nose in the final jump, but comes back Jan. 25 in the $400,000 Miller Lite Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park minus his Shug McGaughey-trained foe to contend with -- plus a lesson learned by rider Luis Saez.
McLaughlin attributed the tough Remsen loss to a six-pound weight advantage in Honor Code's favor and a rider error by Saez, who nevertheless retained the mount.
"He knows he made a mistake, but everyone makes mistakes," said McLaughlin, who was critical of Saez for falling into the trap of an extremely slow early pace and allowing Honor Code to rally inside of him. "He knows the horse and he knows not to make the same mistakes."
Breaking from Post 7 under high weight of 122 pounds, this Pioneerof the Nile colt heads a stout field of 11 sophomore contenders in his first start since the Remsen for the 1 1/16-mile Holy Bull that drew the likes of undefeated Coup de Grace, Pat Byrne trainee Almost Famous, and another runner from the McGaughey barn, Phipps Stable homebred Mr Speaker.
The Holy Bull kicks off the 3-year-old series in South Florida and is an important steppingstone to the $1 million Besilu Stables Florida Derby at Gulfstream on March 29. It is worth 10 points to the winner on the road to the Kentucky Derby, with a 4-2-1 value assigned to the three runners that follow. "When you get on the Derby trail, they're all going to be tough. I think we have a really nice horse, and I wouldn't trade places with anybody," McLaughlin said.
Cairo Prince, who romped to victory in the Nov. 3 Nashua off a powerful October maiden win at Belmont Park, suffered his first loss in three starts in the Remsen after taking the lead in the stretch only to lose the tightest of photo finishes. He races for Namcook Stables, Paul Braverman, Harvey A. Clarke, and Craig W. Robertson III. While the highweight has already gone a route of ground, Gulfstream's middle-distance test will be the first chance for many young runners to stretch out. That's the case with Fox Hill Farm's Coup de Grace, who broke his maiden in November at Aqueduct for trainer Chad Brown and came back Dec. 15 to take a one-mile allowance at Gulfstream gate-to-wire by a length.
"He's unproven around two turns, and it's a real test for him," Brown said of the Tapit runner who will be ridden from the rail by Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez while carrying 116 pounds. "I think it's that time of year to try him around two turns and then we can figure out how to campaign him the rest of the year." Mr Speaker also comes off a one-mile winning effort, that on the turf in the Dania Beach Stakes on Dec. 21. After watching the Pulpit colt cavort by 2 3/4 lengths in his stakes debut, McGaughey couldn't resist the temptation to try him on the main track.
"He's trained good on the dirt. I thought somewhere along the line I was going to give him this kind of opportunity," McGaughey said. "I didn't know it was going to be now but this is something I did have on my mind to give him the opportunity."
Any trainer with a talented 3-year-old colt would have done exactly the same thing, but McGaughey, who saddled Besilu Stables Florida Derby and Kentucky Derby winner Orb last year, has solid reasons to suspect Mr Speaker can handle the footing.
"Pulpit never ran on turf and his dam never ran on turf," McGaughey said. "He's always trained good on it." Being a son of Pulpit, who won the 1997 Fountain of Youth on Gulfstream's main track and out of the graded stakes-placed Unbridled mare Salute (a daughter of undefeated champion Personal Ensign), Mr Speaker would seem suited to dirt at the highest level.
"I think he's equipped to make the jump. It's a matter whether he'll make the jump from turf to dirt. He's already done it on the turf. He went from a maiden to a Grade 3, we'll just have to see if he does it on the dirt," said McGaughey, who awarded the return mount aboard Mr Speaker to Jose Lezcano. The duo departs Post 6 with 120 pounds. One already proven at dirt and a distance is Chuck and Maribeth Sandford's Almost Famous, who comes into the Holy Bull off a six-length romp going 1 1/16 miles at Churchill Downs in his first try around two turns. Previously, he had won his debut in September but finished a distant fourth in the Street Sense Stakes, his Oct. 27 return. "His first race was spectacular, then in his second race, he kind of went to sleep on me," said Byrne, who saddled Take Charge Indy to victory for the same connections in the 2012 Florida Derby. "I kind of babied him. It was my fault. He'd been off for seven weeks. He kind of just went around in place. He just didn't run. It was nothing to do with talent. I wheeled him back in 14 days, put blinkers on him and he galloped."
Jockey Calvin Borel, who guided Take Charge Indy in the Florida Derby, will be aboard Almost Famous from the 4 hole with a 116-pound assignment. The son of Unbridled's Song was the morning-line favorite for the Nov. 30 Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill, but was scratched due to a stone bruise.
James Jerkens, who saddled Quality Road for victories in the 2009 Fountain of Youth and Florida Derby, is scheduled to saddle Centennial Farms' Remsen third-place finisher Wicked Strong for the Holy Bull. The son of Hard Spun finished just a half-length behind Honor Code and Cairo Prince in the Remsen.
Conquest Titan, who won the Swynford Stakes at Woodbine for Conquest Stables, rebounded from a 13th-place finish in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Santa Anita Park with an allowance victory at Churchill to conclude his 2-year-old campaign for trainer Mark Casse.
Starlight Racing's Todd Pletcher-trained Intense Holiday, who finished fourth in the Remsen, completes the field along with Financial Mogul, Florida Stallion In Reality and Foolish Pleasure Stakes winner Best Plan Yet, Our Caravan, and Big Bazinga.
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Post by mackdaddy on Jan 24, 2014 8:27:40 GMT -5
It says a lot when johnny v gets to ride coup de grace instead of castellano. Cordero put him on a nice one that's for sure.
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Jon
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Post by Jon on Jan 24, 2014 21:00:34 GMT -5
Mack - Join the Challenge!
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