Belmont Friday: G2 Gold Cup, Grade 3 Bed O’ Roses, Tremont Stakes Previews

NYRA RELEASE —-

Arklow seeks third graded stakes win in G2 Belmont Gold Cup

ELMONT, N.Y. – Donegal Racing, Joseph Bulger and Peter Coneway’s two-time graded stakes winner Arklow has capably run long distances in his past starts, but will stretch out even further when he competes in the two-mile Grade 2, $400,000 Belmont Gold Cup Invitational over the Widener turf course Friday afternoon at Belmont Park.

Trained by Brad Cox, the 5-year-old bay son of Arch recorded a career best 105 Beyer Speed Figure last time out in the Grade 1 Man o’ War, finishing only a neck behind Channel Maker.

As a 3-year-old, he won the Grade 2 American Turf at Churchill Downs in his second start over turf and the next year defeated multiple graded stakes winner Bigger Picture by a half-length in the Grade 3 Kentucky Turf Cup at Kentucky Downs. Two starts back, he rounded out the superfecta, finishing fourth behind world champion Enable in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Turf at Churchill Downs.

“On paper, we think he’s as good as the best there is in the country, but the mile and quarter is a little shorter than he would like so we decided to give the Belmont Gold Cup a whirl,” said Donegal Racing’s Jerry Crawford. “There’s a little fear of the unknown in going this long but he’s showing signs of being able to get the two miles and we know that he likes the turf at Belmont. The time off did him well and it sets up well if we decide to keep him in training throughout the year and early next year. We are incredibly grateful to NYRA for their great hospitality and racing that they will have this weekend.”

Arklow will emerge from post 6 under regular rider Florent Geroux.

Canessar will seek redemption in the Belmont Gold Cup after finishing second beaten a length to Her Royal Highness’ Call To Mind in last year’s edition of the two mile turf marathon.

The Guy Pariente-owned gray or roan son of Kendargent will attempt to earn his first victory since his North American debut in the 2017 Laurel Turf Cup. Since then, he has raced exclusively against graded stakes company which include runner up efforts in the Belmont Gold Cup and the Grade 3 Stars and Stripes at Arlington last July. Last out, Canessar was sixth beaten 2 ¾ lengths in the Grade 2 Elkhorn at Keeneland behind Bigger Picture.

Trained by Arnaud Delacour, Canessar will break from post 9 under Joel Rosario.
Hall of Famer Bill Mott will saddle Trinity Farm’s Red Knight, who is a stakes winner over the two-mile distance when he took the H. Allen Jerkens on the Gulfstream Park turf. The New York-homebred son of Pure Prize was a close second last time out in the Grade 2 Elkhorn at Keeneland, which was contested over yielding ground.

“He’s doing very well,” Mott said. “He had a couple of very good works and he’s in good order for the Gold Cup.”

Red Knight will emerge from post 4 and will be piloted by Jose Ortiz.

European-based runners have won the past two editions of the Belmont Gold Cup, and a trio of European invaders have been sent for this year’s running, including Raa Atoll, who enters the race fresh off a victory in the Group 2 Comer Group International 48th Oleander-Rennen at Hoppegarten in Germany going two miles. Trained and owned by Luke Comer, the British-bred son of Sea the Stars made his first start for Comer last out after being purchased and transferred from former trainer John Gosden.

Jozef Bojko will ship to ride Raa Atoll, who will break from post 8.

Breaking from the rail for Hugo Palmer is Mootasadir, who looks to make amends after finishing sixth in the Group 2 Yorkshire Cup at Goodwood. Owned by Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa al Maktoum, the son of Dansili has won six of his nine career starts, including the Group 3 Diamond at Dundalk.

Mootasadir will be ridden by Ben Curtis from the inside post.

OTI Racing’s Amade is a two-time winner over the two-mile distance.
Trained by Alessandro Botti, the Irish-bred son of Casamento’s two-mile triumphs both came over the all-weather surface, and as the lukewarm favorite. He went even further four starts back over the synthetic surface at Deauville, winning a 2 1/8-mile allowance race by three lengths.

Jockey Flavien Prat will guide Amade from post 3.

Completing the field are Noble Thought [post 2, Kendrick Carmouche], Highland Sky [post 5, Manny Franco] and Hunter O’Riley [post 7, Junior Alvarado].

Carded as one of five stakes events on the second day of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, the Belmont Gold Cup will go off as Race 10 with a post time of 5:48 p.m.

Chalon leads strong group in G3 Bed O’ Roses Invitational

ELMONT, N..Y. – A salty field of seven older fillies and mares has assembled for the Grade 3, $250,000 Bed O’ Roses Invitational on Friday at Belmont Park, led by Lael Stables’ Chalon.

The Bed O’ Roses, run at seven furlongs on the main track, is part of a sensational 11-race Friday program that also features the Grade 2, $600,000 New York; Grade 2, $400,000 Belmont Gold Cup Invitational; Grade 2, $250,000 True North and the $150,000 Tremont on the second day of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival.

Since transferring to the barn of trainer Arnaud Delacour for her 2018 campaign, Chalon has been a model of consistency In six starts under Delacour, all against stakes competition, the 5-year-old mare bred by J. K. and Linda Griggs has never finished outside the exacta and has picked up wins in a trio of listed stakes, including last out in the Skipat on May 17 at Pimlico in her 2019 debut.

Striving to break through at the graded stakes level, she nearly upset the field in last year’s Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint at odds of 14-1. After tracking a hot pace, the daughter of Dialed In opened up a daylight lead in the stretch but was run down late by Shamrock Rose. The race was just the latest in a series of close calls for Chalon dating back to the 2017 Grade 2 TCA at Keeneland, which kicked off a string of five runner-up finishes in a row at the graded level.

Chalon will break from post 3 with Hall of Famer Javier Castellano aboard.

Another contender who has come close to victory in a graded stakes and looking to break through is John Kimmel-trainee Pacific Gale. Bred by Bally Breeders, the Flat Out filly won the Sorority as a juvenile but her development stagnated a bit in 2018 as it took her a few tries to clear the N2X level as a sophomore while her Beyer Speed Figures hovered in the 70’s.

Over the winter, the Tobey Morton-owned filly showed improvement, starting with a third-place finish in the Grade 3 Sugar Swirl in December at Gulfstream Park. She continued her upward trajectory to start her 4-year-old campaign, posting a runner-up effort in the Grade 3 Fasig-Tipton Hurricane Bertie and also adding a trio of runner-up finishes at the graded level, including an encounter with Come Dancing in the Grade 3 Distaff Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack and most recently a tough-luck second in the Grade 3 Vagrancy Handicap on May 11 at Belmont.

“She came out of her last race in good order and had a couple nice, easy breezes just to maintain fitness,” Kimmel said. “If she had gotten clear a little bit sooner in the Vagrancy she could have won. It was a very fast track that day and she put in a good effort.

“She was a little disappointing last year because she was training just as well as she is now but didn’t seem to be improving,” Kimmel added. “The transition from 3 to 4 has worked wonders for her. She’s certainly been on the upswing and her form is holding. Each race is getting better and better. I consider her one of the better fillies around.”

With Joe Bravo named to ride, Pacific Gale will depart from post 4.

Multiple Grade 1-winner Separationofpowers will go out for trainer Chad Brown and Klaravich Stables. The lightly raced filly has only made eight starts since debuting in July 2017 but has made the most of them, winning the Grade 1 Spinaway at Saratoga Race Course as a juvenile and then taking the Grade 1 Test nearly a year later over the same track. Sent off as the 6-5 favorite in her 4-year-old debut in the Vagrancy, the Candy Ride filly pressed a moderate early pace and faded to finish third, 2 ¼ lengths behind Pacific Gale.

Bred by Northwest Farms, Separationofpowers will break from outermost post 7 with regular rider Jose Ortiz in the irons.

Dawn the Destroyer, a Stonestreet Stables homebred trained by Kiaran McLaughlin, will look to bounce back after a few disappointing efforts against Grade 3 company. The Speightstown mare turned heads with an emphatic 4 ¼-length score off a seven-month layoff on November 29 at Aqueduct, then for an encore took the Interborough on January 25 at the Big A. Like Pacific Gale and Separationofpowers, she exits the Vagrancy, in which she finished fourth.

“She was excellent at Aqueduct over the winter,” said McLaughlin. “In her last two she ran into Come Dancing, who was a monster that day, and she may have run on a speed biased track last time. We’re hopeful she gets back to her best form, but we’ll see. It’s a tough spot.”

Dawn the Destroyer will enlist the services of Hall of Fame rider John Velazquez and the pair will break from post 5.

Going out for potent New York connections trainer Jason Servis and owners Michael Dubb, Monomoy Stables, The Elkstone Group and Bethlehem Stables, Mybigitalianfriend will try stakes company for the first time after a second-place finish against an optional claiming field on March 28 at Gulfstream. She will again enlist the services of Irad Ortiz, Jr. and the pair will leave from stall 2.

Saguaro Row and Spring in the Wind round out the field. The former, trained by Michael Stidham for Newtown Anner Stud, is 2-for-2 this year and coming off an optional claiming score at Belmont, while the latter exits a sixth-place finish in the Grade 1 Humana Distaff for trainer Anthony Quartarolo and Ron Paolucci Racing.

Carded as Race 5, the Bed O’ Roses has an approximate post time of 2:58 p.m. Eastern. First post time is set for 12:50 p.m.

Ward enters talented duo for Tremont

ELMONT, N.Y. – A talented field of eight juveniles is set to compete in the 122nd running of the $150,000 Tremont at 5 ½ furlongs on Friday at Belmont Park.

The Tremont is part of the second day of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, which begins June 6 and concludes with the 151st running of the Grade 1, $1.5 million Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets on Saturday.

In addition to the Tremont, Friday’s 11-race card will also include the Grade 3, $250,000 Bed o’ Roses for older fillies and mares at seven furlongs, the Grade 2, $250,000 True North for 4-year-olds and upward at 6 ½ furlongs, the Grade 2, $600,000 New York for older fillies and mares going 1 ¼ miles on the inner turf and the Grade 2, $400,000 Belmont Gold Cup Invitational for 4-year-olds and upward going two miles on the Widener turf course.

Conditioner Wesley Ward, long respected for his ability with juveniles, entered a formidable pair with Richard Ravin’s Maven and Dixie Mo for owner and breeder Mrs. Fitriani Hay.

A son of 2015 Triple Crown-winner American Pharoah and out of multiple stakes winning dam Richies Party Girl, Maven won his debut on April 19 by a half-length at Aqueduct Racetrack. Sent off as the 2-5 post-time favorite, Maven earned a field-high 84 Beyer Speed Figure.

“He’s continuing to do great,” said Ward. “He really flattered himself in his debut and we think he’s continued to move forward from that race. He seems to have mostly taken after his dam, so he looks like he’s going to be a sprinter.”

Dixie Mo, a daughter of multiple graded stakes winner and champion Uncle Mo, made her debut on May 10 at Indiana Grand Race Course, drawing off for a four-length win.

Ward said he looks for the filly to improve off that start.

“She’s doing really good,” said Ward. “I thought her race at Indiana Grand was really a major turning point for her. She didn’t come back with a major speed figure in that race, but since then her works have been very impressive. We think her debut really put the light bulb on and she’s ready to take next step up to stakes competition.”

With Dylan Davis aboard, Maven will leave from post 2; Dixie Mo will depart from post 6 with Irad Ortiz, Jr. in the irons.

Rookie Salsa, for Designated Hitters Racing, ships in from Maryland for trainer Jeremiah O’Dwyer.

Purchased for $15,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Yearling Sale, the son of Two Step Salsa won his debut by three-quarters of a length on April 19 at Laurel Park and followed with a 1 ½-length win in the Kentucky Juvenile at 27-1 odds on May 1 at Churchill Downs.

“He’s coming along very good,” said Dwyer. “He’s shown improvement with each start and has continued to move forward in the mornings. I was a little surprised he was so high of a price at Churchill, maybe the bettors didn’t have much faith in us against some bigger named trainers, but he proved himself. When I purchased him as a yearling, he looked to act mature, so we had no qualms about shipping him and he’s proven himself on the road so far.”

Drawing post 8, Rookie Salsa will be ridden by Angel Suarez.

Trainer Doug O’Neill entered recent maiden winner Fore Left for owner Reddam Racing. The son of Twirling Candy, purchased for $97,000 as a yearling at the Keeneland September Sale, won his debut on May 19 at Santa Anita Park by neck, netting a 67 Beyer Speed Figure.

Fore Left will leave from post 4 with Mario Gutierrez in the irons.

Also entered is Memorable for Hall of Fame conditioner Steve Asmussen and owner KEM Stables (Ricardo Santana, Jr., post 7); Theitalianamerican for trainer Gary Contessa (Post 1, Joel Rosario); and trainer Phil Gleaves with a pair in Ferale (post 5, Luis Saez) and Now Is (John Velazquez, post 3).