ARROGATE REMAINS IN FIRST, NTRA TOP THOROUGHBRED POLL

By Joan Lawrence, NTRA —-

(receives 29 out of 40 first-place votes)

Saratoga Springs, N.Y. (Monday, August 7, 2017) – The running of The Whitney (G1) at Saratoga this past Saturday for three-years-old and up didn’t sway the minds of the NTRA voter’s with keeping the number one Longines World’s Best Race horse Arrogate on top with no changes in either direction in Week 28 of The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) Top Thoroughbred Poll of all ages which results were released today.

The leading earner in North American racing history and trained by Bob Baffert for owner Juddmonte Farm, Arrogate (29 first-place votes, 384 points) remains in first-place while sitting chilly in his stall on the shore at Del Mar after Gun Runner’s win in the Whitney a “Win & You’re In Breeders’ Cup Classic Division.” Arrogate, the Dubai World Cup winner and Eclipse Award winner remains on target for the Grade 1 $1million TVG Pacific Classic on August 19 at Del Mar Race Course.

Gun Runner (9 first-place votes, 366 points) remains in second position for owners Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC, Three Chimneys Farm and trainer Steve Asmussen. Winning easily by 5 ¼ lengths, the Candy Ride colt is ranked third in the Longines World’s Best Race Horse and took his second straight “Win and You’re In” (Stephen Foster (G1), Churchill Downs, June 17), qualifying event in the Whitney for a shot at the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on November 4 at Del Mar.

Two-time Eclipse Award winner Songbird (2 first-place votes, 288 points) remains in third after her victory in the Delaware Handicap (G1) this past month. Her previous start was the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps “Win and You’re In Breeders’ Cup Distaff Division,” on June 10 at Belmont Park. Songbird, owned by Richard Porter’s Fox Hill Farm and trained by Hall of Famer Jerry Hollendorfer, is being considered for the Personal Ensign on Aug. 26 at Saratoga.

In fourth is the five-year-old mare, Stellar Wind (234 ) followed by Grade 1 Diana winner Lady Eli (192) in fifth for Sheep Pond Partners.

Rounding out the remaining top-ten in descending order are: Mor Spirit (188); Mind Your Biscuits (126); Shaman Ghost (90); Abel Tasman (89) and Lady Aurelia (69).

The NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll concludes November 6 after the running of the Breeders’ Cup.

The full results for the NTRA weekly Thoroughbred poll can be found on the NTRA website at:

https://www.ntra.com/ntra-top-thoroughbred-poll-august-7-2017/

Preview of vote by voters can be viewed at:

https://www.ntra.com/wp-content/uploads/Polls-week28-by_voter-2017.pdf

About the NTRA

The NTRA is a broad-based coalition of more than 100 horse racing interests and thousands of individual stakeholders consisting of horseplayers, racetrack operators, owners, breeders, trainers and affiliated horse racing associations, charged with increasing the popularity, welfare and integrity of Thoroughbred racing through consensus-based leadership, legislative advocacy, safety and integrity initiatives, fan engagement and corporate partner development. The NTRA, Based in Lexington, Ky., owns and manages the NTRA Safety & Integrity Alliance; NTRA.com; the NTRA Top Thoroughbred and NTRA Top 3-Year-Old weekly media polls; the Eclipse Awards; the National Handicapping Championship; NTRA Advantage, a corporate partner sales and sponsorship program; and Horse PAC, a federal political action committee. NTRA press releases appear onNTRA.com, Twitter(@ntra) and (facebook.com/1NTRA).