Saratoga Race Course Notes

NYRA RELEASE —-

• Good Magic set to return to Spa on heels of Haskell, eyes G1 Travers
• Good Samaritan wraps up major preparations for G1 Whitney
• Final Whitney decision pending for New York-bred millionaire Diversify
• Haskell runner-up Bravazo marches onward to Travers
• Oscar Performance, Heart to Heart impressive in Oklahoma turf works
• Hard Study looks to ace Thursday’s Birdstone for second straight year

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. –Trainer Chad Brown said Good Magic came out of his three-length win in the Grade 1 Haskell Invitational on Sunday at Monmouth Park in good order and remains on target for a return trip to Saratoga Race Course to compete in the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers on August 25.

Good Magic, the runner-up to eventual Triple Crown winner Justify in the Kentucky Derby on May 5 at Churchill, was coming off a two-month break since running fourth in the Preakness and looked impressive in his return at the 1 1/8-mile Haskell.

Under jockey Jose Ortiz, Good Magic stalked Roaming Union before overtaking the pacesetter at the far turn. The Curlin colt outkicked runner-up Bravazo for his first graded stakes win since capturing the Grade 2 Blue Grass on April 7 at Keeneland and his third stakes win overall when added to his Breeders’ Cup Juvenile victory in November at Del Mar.

“I thought he ran well yesterday and we were really pleased with his performance,” Brown said. “The horse is coming to Saratoga today and hopefully he’ll point to the Travers.”

Should Good Magic run in the Mid-Summer Derby, it’ll mark his first appearance at the Spa since running second in his debut on August 26 last year. The Preakness was the only time the Kentucky-bred, owned by e Five Racing Thoroughbreds and Stonestreet Stables, finished off the board in eight starts.

While Brown could saddle a strong challenger in the Travers, the Mechanicville, New York native also has a viable contender in another Saratoga race worth more than a million, with Backyard Heaven remaining on point for Saturday’s Grade 1, $1.2 million Whitney.

Backyard Heaven won three straight from December to May this year, including a win against allowance company on March 18 at Aqueduct Racetrack that earned him a 108 Beyer Speed Figure. The Aqueduct victory led to a successful stakes debut, where he registered a 4 ½-length score in the Grade 2 Alysheba on May 4 at Churchill. Brown said he is hoping for a return to that effort instead of the sixth-place misfire on a hot day in the Grade 1 Stephen Foster Handicap on June 16 at Churchill.

“He’s lightly raced and has come around so fast. I feel he’s so talented; in the Alysheba, he ran fabulous in that race,” Brown said. “If he redeems himself and comes back to a performance like that, I feel he can be a real contender in this race.”
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Good Samaritan wraps up major preparations for G1 Whitney

On Sunday, WinStar Farm and China Horse Club International’s Good Samaritan put in his final work before next Saturday’s Grade 1, $1.2 million Whitney, breezing four furlongs in 50.42 seconds over Saratoga’s Oklahoma training track.

“I thought he worked well,” said Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott. “He went out good, [he galloped] out seven eighths of a mile in 1:29 and 4 on this track, three quarters in [a minute and] 15 [seconds] and change, and out [five furlongs] 1:02. He was off slow in his first quarter of a mile, but he finished nicely and galloped out strong.”

Last year’s Grade 2 Jim Dandy winner went on to finish fifth in the Grade 1 Travers and then fourth against older horses in the Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont. He closed out his 3-year-old season with a second-place finish in the Grade 1 Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs in November.

His only victory this year came in his seasonal bow with a 2 ¼-length win in the Grade 2 New Orleans Handicap on March 24. Last time out, Good Samaritan finished seventh in the Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap on June 9. The Whitney, a Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” qualifier for the Classic on November 3 at Churchill Downs, will be the seventh Grade 1 start for the 4-year-old Harlan’s Holiday colt.

“I haven’t pulled up the PPs,” Mott said. “If he’s standing, he’s running.”

Multiple graded stakes winner Yoshida worked five furlongs over Oklahoma’s turf course on Monday morning breezing 1:02.04 listed as firm. The work was in tandem with trainer Neil Drysdale’s Grade 3 Intercontinental winner La Sardane.

“He [ trainer Neil Drysdale] wanted some company and he wanted to follow us,” Mott said. “We just agreed to work it out and join up in the stretch and finish kind of together.”

It was the third work since the 4-year-old Japanese-bred colt finished fifth in the Group 1 Queen Anne on June 19at Royal Ascot. Yoshida is pointing to a start in the Grade 1, $500,000 Fourstardave Handicap on August 11.

Additionally, Juddmonte Farm’s homebred Curlin winner Hofburg is under consideration for the Grade 1 Travers on August 25. The chestnut colt by Tapit won last Friday’s Curlin by five lengths after finishing third in the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes on June 9.

“We got a win,” Mott said “He needed a ‘W’. We kind of threw him to the wolves three times in a row there, and he ran well and responded well, so it’s nice to have a win.”

Hofburg debuted at Saratoga last September with a fourth-place finish then broke his maiden in March at Gulfstream. The Kentucky-bred finished three lengths behind Audible in the Grade 1 Florida Derby before placing seventh in the May 5 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.

“I think we’re really in good shape,” said Mott. “Truth be known, I didn’t watch the Haskell. I guess the result was no surprise to anybody. That’s a good horse [Good Magic] so I suppose he’s one of the main ones to beat in the Travers.”

Multiple Grade 1 winner Elate put in her first workout Monday morning since winning the Grade 2 Delaware Handicap on July 14. The 4-year-old Medgalia d’Oro filly covered four furlongs in 50.27 over the Oklahoma dirt.

“She was just galloping,” Mott said. “[The rider] had a handful of horse. We didn’t have her gallop out or anything. It was her first breeze we didn’t want any more than that. [It was] perfect.”
* * *
Final Whitney decision pending for New York-bred millionaire Diversify

Ralph M. Evans and Lauren Evans’ Diversify was in good order on Monday morning, one day after working a bullet five furlongs for a potential start in Saturday’s Grade 1 Whitney, said trainer Rick Violette, Jr.

Violette added that the final decision on the 1 1/8-mile Whitney will be made Tuesday before entries are due as the connections await the results of bloodwork that was taken on Monday, a normal part of the 5-year-old Bellamy Road gelding’s routine.

“He came out of it good and we took blood this morning, so we’ll know more tomorrow,” said Violette. “It’s pretty critical with him, his blood; it goes up and down. With him, we’re pretty much on top of it. His blood can crash as a gelding. That might make my decision easy if it isn’t absolutely wonderful.”

Diversify’s 59.06-second breeze was the fastest of 48 at the distance and his first work following an impressive 6 ½-length victory in the Grade 2 Suburban at 1 ¼ miles on July 7, where he earned a career-best 110 Beyer Speed Figure.

Should Diversify run next weekend, the Whitney could present a much-anticipated match-up of New York-breds with reigning New York-bred Horse of the Year Mind Your Biscuits, second in the Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap last time out for trainer Chad Summers and on target to try two turns for the first time.

“There’s some nice horses, one speed horse [with] Dalmore, and obviously, Chad’s horse is a very good horse and if he gets two turns, he’s very dangerous,” Violette said. “But, you’re not supposed to shy away from a horse that’s doing something they’ve never done before, and we’re pretty good. If we run, we’ll be tough. We’re supposed to be tough.”

Violette reiterated that he can always go back to Plan A with Diversify and wait for the Grade 1, $750,000 Woodward on September 1, also at 1 1/8 miles, if they felt the gelding needed more time after the Suburban.

“It still weighs on you, the big effort four weeks ago,” he added. “It’s a little tight. You try not to overthink it, but you don’t want to be stupid either. If he bounces, you wonder why you did that. [The Woodward] was the original plan and it was the original plan for really valid reasons, so if you detour, you want to make sure you’re right.

“With the way he breezed yesterday especially, [fitness] isn’t an issue,” he continued. “He’s coming off a mile and a quarter, [he’s had] two races in eight weeks. Fitness isn’t an issue, it’s just making sure he’s not running back too quickly.”
* * *
Haskell runner-up Bravazo marches onward to Travers

Calumet Farm’s Grade 1 Haskell runner-up Bravazo will make his next start in the Grade 1 Travers, according to Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas on Monday. The veteran trainer was “very happy” with his colt’s performance Monday morning after a 20-hour day spent traveling to and from Monmouth Park in New Jersey.

“I thought he really ran a good race,” Lukas said. “If we are perfectly frank and honest, and take your heart out of the equation, the better horse won. I think in order to be more competitive, we can’t let that horse [Good Magic] get off the first turn like that.

“We have run against him a couple of times,” he continued. “He comes off that turn and he is more explosive, he gets that first spurt, and he opens up, three, four lengths. We come off the turn and we come running at him. We are not Secretariat. In a perfect world we should have jumped on him at the three-eighths pole, and try to go with him. If we get beat, so be it.”

The Awesome Again colt won the Grade 2 Risen Star at Fair Grounds on February 17 and was eighth in the March 24 Grade 2 Louisiana Derby before placing sixth in the Kentucky Derby. Bravazo closed strong to capture second behind Justify in the Preakness, then finished sixth in the Belmont.

“He is such a solid horse that everyone would like to have,” Lukas said. “He made all the Triple Crown races, all the prep races, and now he is going to make every dance here.”

Lukas also said that Sporting Chance, who failed to finish among the field of five in Saturday’s Grade 2 Jim Dandy after bolting near the quarter pole, will be sent for an physical evaluation and given time off.

By Tiznow, the colt has developed a habit of spooking and shying during the stretch run in past races, including last year’s Grade 1 Hopeful victory. In that race, his stakes debut, he survived an inquiry after swerving in the final sixteenth. He made a similarly sudden outward move in the spring in the Grade 2 Blue Grass, where crossed the wire in third before being disqualified to fourth.

“It’s all mental. It really is,” said Lukas. “What we do is ship him to Lexington, [Kentucky] and have Dr. Bramlage [of Rood & Riddle] go over him top to bottom, and look at him. We can’t find anything physically wrong with him. No matter what the evaluation is, we take him out for two to three months. Kick him out to pasture and let him learn to appreciate us a little more.”
* * *
Oscar Performance, Heart to Heart impressive in Oklahoma turf works

Trainer Brian Lynch saw two of his stable stars return to the worktab Monday morning, with Oscar Performance and Heart to Heart breezing five furlongs in company on the Oklahoma turf track.

Oscar Performance earned the bullet for the group of 26, working 1:00.16. The 4-year-old Kitten’s Joy colt, who returned from a seven-month layoff to win the Grade 3 Poker on June 17 at Belmont Park, is on target for the Grade 1 Arlington Million on August 11 at Arlington Park.

Heart to Heart, who was clocked in 1:00.81, is slated to remain at the Spa and run in the Grade 1, $500,000 Fourstardave Handicap on August 11. He has already registered a pair of Grade 1 wins in his 7-year-old campaign, earning a trip to the winner’s circle in the Grade 1 Gulfstream Park Turf on February 10 and winning by 1 ¾ lengths in the Grade 1 Maker’s 46 Mile on April 13 at Keeneland.

“Both of them looked good, it was serious hit-out and next week I’ll just have easy breezes and coast them into the races,” Lynch said. “Visually, it was impressive. Just how effortlessly they did it [and] how fluid they were in their actions, the riders were very happy.”

The duo arrived at Saratoga on Friday and Lynch said the drier weather after last week’s rain has made for more favorable conditions with the turf.

“I think it was an excellent surface today and gave us a good work,” Lynch said. “It wasn’t too hard or too soft. Oscar’s gallop-out was really encouraging, but Heart to Heart, the way he hit the wire and the way he finished, he looked very good. They both have bullseyes on their back, [but] they’ll have to run hard to beat them.”
* * *
Hard Study looks to ace Thursday’s Birdstone for second straight year

Hard Study will look to repeat as winner in Thursday’s eighth running of the $100,000 Birdstone for 3-year-olds and up at Saratoga Race Course.

Owned by Paul Pompa, Jr., the ultra-consistent Hard Study is 7-3-2 in 13 career starts and has finished on the board in 12 straight since running ninth in his debut in February 2016. The Todd Pletcher trainee will go up against a five-horse field looking repeat his winning effort in last year’s edition when he stalked early before winning the 1 3/4-mile route by 2 ½ lengths over Scuba.

The 5-year-old son of Big Brown returns from a third-place effort in his graded stakes debut, finishing behind War Story and the winner Hoppertunity in the Grade 2 Brooklyn on Belmont Stakes Day, June 9, at Belmont Park. He has two wins, two runner-up finishes and a third-place effort in four starts at distances greater than 1 1/16 miles.

“I think he’s just finding his specialty, which appears to be these longer races,” Pletcher said. “He has the right disposition for it. He’s a great galloper. He doesn’t get too aggressive or pull too hard. He’s the defending champ. We’ll try him again.”

Hall of Famer John Velazquez, who was aboard for last year’s Birdstone win, will have the return call from the rail.

His stablemate, You’re to Blame, is coming off a third-place finish in the State Dinner on July 6 at Belmont. The son of Distorted Humor will be stretching out in distance as he seeks his first stakes win, drawing post 3 with fellow Hall of Famer Javier Castellano.

Carlino will be looking to bounce back from a fifth-place finish in the Brooklyn. The Mark Hennig trainee got caught wide on Belmont’s Big Sandy but will be returning to Saratoga for the first time since running second in an allowance race on July 21 at Saratoga. Jose Lezcano will ride from post 2.

Trainer Ian Wilkes will saddle a pair of entrants looking for their first respective stakes wins with Big Dollar Bill and Archanova, respectively.

Big Dollar Bill, a 4-year-old Midnight Lute gelding, will be looking for his first win since April 19 at Keeneland. Chris Landeros will have his second Saratoga mount of the meet and first since the Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt, exiting from post 5.

Archanova, winner of an optional claimer at Tampa Bay Downs on April 6 before running seventh in an optional claimer on June 23 at Churchill Downs, will break from post 4 in tandem with Manny Franco.