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With the Kentucky Derby now just two weeks away, and all the major prep races over, this week we will be focusing our attention on the older horse division as our highlighted race of the week will be the $1 million Charles Town Classic at the “bull ring” Charles Town Racetrack in West Virginia.
The three turn, nine furlongs contest drew a field of 10 with one AE.
Elsewhere, we will head to beautiful Keeneland Race Course in Kentucky for a look at the Dixiana Elkhorn Stakes, a marathon turf race for four year olds and up, fillies and mares.
We will also be looking at the Federico Tesio Stakes for three year olds, a traditional prep race for the Preakness Stakes, at Laurel Park.
We end this week at Santa Anita for a glance at the Kona Gold Stakes, a 6 ½ furlong dash for four year old and up sprinters.
Saturday, April 20, 2019
Keeneland Race Course
Race: 9 (5:30 PM EST Post)
Dixiana Elkhorn Stakes
Zulu Alpha has won five of his last eight dating back to last August including back to back Grade: 2’s at Gulfstream in January and March. This six year old gelding is in career form right now and, with rain being forecasted in Kentucky on Saturday, he can handle “give” in the ground……………………….The late running Bigger Picture looms a threat in just about any turf race you put him in. Although he somewhat disappointed last time out, if he runs back to either of his two previous races, he will be tough to beat in this spot. That said, although he is an 11 time winner on the turf, it must be noted he is just 2 for his last 11 overall and 0 for 3 on the Keeneland turf course…………………Soglio is a five year old by Scat Daddy that is as consistent as the day is long as he’s hit the board in 10 of his last 13 starts. Albeit, he has only won three of those last 13 races, note he was charging hard, late, behind Zulu Alpha two races back and when the dust settled, he missed by just a half a length….figures bang up here……………Honorable Mentions: You know this is a tough race when I have to put Red Knight, who is six for nine on the turf in his career, this far down. How often, in a 1 ½ mile race, can you say a horse is cutting back in distance? Well, this son of Pure Prize is as he is coming off a two mile win in the H. Allen Jerkens at Gulfstream last time out…………..Tiz a Slam won a couple of Stakes races north of the border last summer, then showed speed and tired late vs. Canadian Grade: 1 runners in the fall. Five year old by Tiznow should improve off his 2019 debut in February and I won’t be shocked if he outruns this rating…………………….Even though his rider and trainer (both winning at 4%) are ice cold right now, your long shot horse is clearly Vettori Kin. This good looking six year old showed little in his 2019 debut but improved greatly his second time out. If he improves again in this spot, and I suspect he might with this being his third start off the layoff, he could be a menace at what should be some long odds.
Charles Town Racetrack
Race: 11 (5:37 PM EST Post)
Charles Town Classic
Diamond King could not have looked any better in beating mid-level optionals at Gulfstream in his 2019 debut, his prep race for this. This son of Quality Road blew that race to smithereens with a :24.1 internal fraction when taking command leaving the half mile pole (in :46.2), opened up on the field at the six furlong marker (1:10.3) and cruised home a 3+ length winner. No published works since is a bit of a concern but the fact that Castellano sees fit to take the leg up and his 5 for 11 lifetime mark are a good trade off……………………..Unbridled Juan always fires his best shot as his impressive 25 on the board finishes in 29 career races would indicate. I am expecting more of the same in this spot……………………….Runnin’toluvya owns this oval. This obscurely bred speedster sports a record of 11 wins and 2 seconds in 14 tries over it, including being 2 for 2 at this rare, three turn distance. His prep race for this should set him up well for a good effort here and the last time he went nine furlongs on this “bull ring” track, he ran the last furlong in :13 seconds flat. If he repeats that race here, he could be a menace……………………Honorable Mentions: Mongolian Groom could be ready to ambush this field. This $12,000 son of Hightail seems to be very quietly improving. After he beat an allowance field two back, he surprised a lot of people when finishing third at 53-1 in the Santa Anita Handicap behind the streaking Gift Box and the talented McKinzie. He meets no such rivals here………………………With this being his third start off a layoff and firing a bullet half mile last week, Nanoosh is another who is setup to run very well in this spot. No surprise if he is “hanging and banging” in deep stretch of this race……………………………..Couple of other side notes in this race: Rally Cry hails from the powerhouse PletcheJohnny V. tag team. This son of Uncle Mo will only be making his third start in the last 18 months but it must be noted he has chased the likes of Gun Runner, Diversify and Yoshida in the past and didn’t do all THAT badly……..I have no idea what to do with War Story as his inconsistencies can make you nuts………………I’m not a big fan of Imperative either but this is his favorite surface……..Something Awesome has been something awful so far this year but does have the back class to run well.
Laurel Race Course
Race: 10 (5:42 PM EST Post)
Federico Tesio Stakes
This race might be the one of easiest ones we’ll see all year. It’s so easy, I almost passed on doing it but I didn’t because I want to make sure you folks know about Alwaysmining, who is 6 for 7 at Laurel and 0 for 4 everywhere else. I know this son of Stay Thirsty looks like the logical “Horse for the Course” angle play, but I believe it goes further than that. This colt seems to have turned the corner in his career back in October and since, has rattled off five straight wins, including three by lopsided margins and four in Stakes races. With rain being projected on Saturday in Maryland, there is no worries about him handling an off track as he’s done it twice before. There is no such thing as a sure thing, but this gelding looks about as close as you can get to one…….next stop for him? Preakness Stakes……………As for the rest of this field, play “Pin the tail on the Donkey”. That said, I’ll take Majid for the place spot as, although taking a serious class hike, he has improved through all four career starts. Further improvement expected here………………..I’ll take Bozzini for the “show dough”. This ‘Miah trainee will also be taking a big step up in class but has run very well in both starts on this oval. …………….Honorable Mentions: If the rains stay away, take a look at Trifor Gold as well. This bay gelding also seems to be improving and has run well in two of three fast track starts but not well at all on either off track tries.
Santa Anita Park
Race: 5 (6PM EST Post)
Kona Gold Stakes
Dr. Dorr might be better known as Game Winner’s workmate in the mornings more than anything else. That said, this talented six year old chased a runaway winner in his last which was also his 2019 debut. Last year, in his last several races, he chased the likes of Accelerate (twice) Catalina Cruiser and Diversify……he meets no such rivals here, sports an impressive 9-5-2-0 record on this surface and is 2 for 2 at this distance… ……………………..Although Kanthaka hasn’t won a horse race of any kind in almost a full calendar year, he still figures close in this race. This $140,000 son of Jimmy Creed finished right behind Dr. Dorr last time out and valiantly chased two time Champion Sprinter Roy H in his prior. Clearly looks next best in this spot…………………………..The well named All Out Blitz ran very well two back while finishing a close up fifth in the Razorback Handicap, then came with a brazen, five wide run on the turn to win a Stakes race at Sunland Park at this distance in his last. Looks best of the rest in this short field of five.
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By: Gerard Apadula
Director of Equine Operations and Development
Knights of the Round Stable Thoroughbred Racing Team
[[email protected]](mailto:[email protected])
2019- Record: 24-78 = 31%
2018- Record: 107-261= 41%
2017- Record: 92-235 = 39%
2016- Record: 91-229 = 40%
2015- Record: 67-180 = 37%
2014- Record: 29-73 = 40%
2013- Record: 20-59= 34%
2012 -Record: 24-73= 33%
2011 –Record: N/A
2010- Record: 24-74= 33%
Little Bets N’ Pieces
***** Catholic Boy, a Grade: 1 winner on the turf and dirt last year, is targeting the $250,000 Dixie Stakes on the Preakness Day undercard May 18 at Pimlico for his 4 year old debut, said majority owner Robert LaPenta.
Catholic Boy, who won the Travers Stakes and the Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes, won three of six starts last year and has career earnings of $1,842,000.
The ridgling by More Than Ready has been training at Bridlewood Farm in Florida and worked four furlongs in :50 1/5 last Saturday.
"Jonathan sent me some videos of Catholic Boy working, and he looks phenomenal," said LaPenta. "The Dixie will be the comeback race if all goes well."
LaPenta also mentioned Coal Front, who won the March 30 Godolphin Mile, has returned to the United States and will get a few weeks rest at WinStar Farm near Versailles, KY before returning to training and then the races, with the June 8 Met Mile at Belmont Park as his main goal .
"Todd likes to give his horses some time to decompress after racing in Dubai, and Coal Front just got back to the United States (April 9). He'll get some time at WinStar, and the Met Mile is on our calendar," LaPenta said.
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***\* Champion Female Sprinter La Verdad foaled a Curlin filly at Darley in Lexington Apr. 5.
The 11 time Stakes, who earner of over $1.5 million on the racetrack, produced last year’s top priced filly at Keeneland November Sales. Her weanling by Tapit brought $800,000 from Mandy Pope’s Whisper Hill Farm and Three Chimneys.
Owner Sheila Rosenblum said, “We are extremely pleased with the foal and the care she is receiving at Darley. Several prominent horsemen have told me that she is a standout. La Verdad holds a special place in my heart. I am looking to provide every opportunity to have her become as influential a producer as she was a racemare, having bred her to Medaglia d’Oro, Tapit, and Curlin.”
The 9-year-old mare is currently booked to be bred back to Into Mischief.
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**** Maximus Mischief, the winner of last year's Grade: 2 Remsen Stakes, has been retired from racing due to a soft tissue injury.
Trained by Butch Reid, the absolutely gorgeous, $340,000 Fasig-Tipton purchase will be “shopped around” stud farms in Kentucky in search of his new home.
“It’s a real shame,” said Chuck Zacney, whose Cash is King Stables owns the horse in partnership with Glenn Bennett’s LC Racing. “We had high hopes for this horse. It’s a tough sport, a tough game.”
“Quite frankly, it’s a tendon tear,” Zacney said. “We went to vets and looked at it and they said he would need a minimum of six to nine months off. Then there would be training after that. We had already been getting calls from farms in Kentucky, so we had to make a choice between retiring him and trying to get him back racing. It was very unlikely that he would come back to his old status; it was highly unlikely he’d be as good. They said he’d be maybe 80 to 90% of what he was and it would not have been fair to do that to the horse.”
“We had raised the possibility that he might race again,” Zacney said. “Now that that is off the table, we’re hearing again from farms in Kentucky and looking forward to finding him a nice home there and him having a great breeding career there.”
Maximus Mischief is currently at Eisaman Equine in Ocala, FL.