Belmont Park Notes

NYRA PRESS RELEASE —-

Apprentice rider Charlie Marquez to debut at Belmont Park on Friday
Share the Ride speeds into G2 Vosburgh
Getmotherarose looks to have success as the highweight in G3 Noble Damsel
Tuned gets back to work in Saturday allowance
Updated Belmont Park Week 3 stakes probables

ELMONT, N.Y. – The New York Racing Association’s jockey colony is one of the most talented in the world, with a room that claims Hall of Famers, Eclipse Award champions, and American Classic winners. But 17-year-old Charlie Marquez said he won’t be intimidated when he makes his New York debut on Friday, where the apprentice rider will look to build on a successful start to 2020 that has seen him become a regular at Laurel Park in Maryland.

“I’m extremely excited,” Marquez said. “It’s been a dream of mine to ride in New York and ride at Belmont. I’ve had a great mentor in my agent Angel Cordero, who is a legend, especially in New York. Hopefully, we go places and everything goes as planned.

“I don’t fear any jockey,” he added. “Of course, they’re better than me, but I’m just focusing on myself and learning as much as I can. I’m just practicing and working hard to do what I can to become the best.”

Marquez has registered 63 wins in 394 mounts in 2020. Officially starting his career with seven mounts in 2019, Marquez won his first career race on January 9 at Laurel aboard Sierra Leona, who gave him his second win 10 days later over the same track. This year, he has compiled a 63-57-44 record with earnings of more than $1.5 million and has also earned winner’s circle trips at Delaware Park and Penn National.

On Friday, Marquez will make his debut at historic Belmont Park, where he is scheduled for six mounts on the 10-race card. By moving his tack north, he will be competing against the likes of Hall of Famers John Velazquez and Javier Castellano, Eclipse Award-winners Jose and Irad Ortiz, Jr., and Belmont Stakes-winner jockey Manny Franco, who shares the same agent as Marquez in Cordero, Jr.

A three-time Kentucky Derby-winner, Cordero, Jr, who captured 7,057 races, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1988.

Marquez is one of three apprentice riders in New York during the 27-day fall meet, joining Luis Cardenas and Heman Harkie.

Marquez was third in jockey standings for the Laurel’s winter/spring meet and was also third in the summer meet, serving as springboard to a bigger stage.

“Laurel helped me so much and the fellow jockeys and all the people taught me so much about riding,” Marquez said. “Having the opportunity to come up to New York, it’s exciting and I think I’m ready.”

Marquez comes from a family of jockeys. Both his father and grandfather had mounts in the Kentucky Derby, with his grandfather, Carlos Marquez, Sr., running third with Hold Your Peace in 1972 and Law Talk running 19th in 1983. His father, Carlos Marquez, Jr., was ninth aboard Concerto in 1997.

Marquez, Jr. has amassed more than 3,000 career wins. In 1997, he piloted Salt It to a victory in the Black-Eyed Susan at Pimlico Race Course, a race which his father won in 1970 aboard Office Queen. This makes the Marquez pair the only father-son duo to have won the Black-Eyed Susan.

The younger Marquez will look to continue his family’s success and do it with his own style.

“I like to try and come off the pace; I think it’s more fun and gives you more of a rush than sitting a horse on the front end,” Marquez said. “But I think I have patience for being a 17-year-old apprentice. A lot of riders go quick and make their move quick. I like to sit and just wait and see how the horse is traveling and see where they take me.”

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Share the ride speeds into G2 Vosburgh

Share the Ride, trained by Antonio Arriaga for Silvino Ramirez, enters Saturday’s Grade 2, $150,000 Vosburgh from a sparkling performance in the Mr. Prospector at Monmouth Park that garnered a career-best 101 Beyer Speed Figure for the front-running score.

The 5-year-old Candy Ride gelding, bred in Kentucky by Dixiana Farms, set splits of 22.45 and 44.94 under Ferrin Peterson in the six-furlong Mr. Prospector en route to a 3 3/4-length win in a final time of 1:09.18.

Arriaga said he was surprised to see such fast fractions last out.

“We didn’t expect that,” said Arriaga. “He was supposed to go easy to the front, but she sent him all the way and the horse was doing it comfortable.”

Manny Franco will take over on Saturday from post 4 in a six-horse field led by Firenze Fire and the John Terranova-trained duo of Funny Guy and Stan the Man.

Arriaga said he will let the 2020 Belmont Stakes-winning rider dictate the tactics.

“He can come from off the pace too but let’s see what Manny has to say. He’s been riding really good,” said Arriaga.

Share the Ride was claimed for $16,000 on July 5 out of a winning effort in a Monmouth Park sprint. He followed with a good second in an optional-claiming sprint on August 9 at first asking for new connections ahead of two even efforts on the Monmouth turf when fourth in the 5 1/2-furlong Get Serious on August 23 and fifth in the one-mile Grade 3 Red Bank on September 5.

Arriaga said the addition of blinkers for his last two starts is the only major change in equipment for Share the Ride since the claim.

“We put the blinkers on but other than that it took him a month to start eating well when we first claimed him,” said Arriaga. “Some horses when they get older, they get better. Good horses get better if you take care of them the right way, feed them the right way and spoil them and they’re happy.”

After winning the Mr. Prospector on one week’s rest, Share the Ride returns to action in the Vosburgh with two weeks between starts.

“He’s doing good,” said Arriaga. “He gallops and jogs. With these fast horses, I try not to work them too much because they can blow their race in the workout if they go fast.”

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Getmotherarose looks to have success as the highweight in G3 Noble Damsel

Getmotherarose will look to thrive by stretching back out to a mile in Saturday’s Grade 3, $100,000 Noble Damsel for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up. Trained by Tom Bush, the 4-year-old Get Stormy filly won at the same distance in the Grade 3 Honey Fox in February at Gulfstream Park and will now compete on the Belmont Widener turf this weekend.

In her last four starts, Getmotherarose has not finished on the board, including ninth last out in the 5 ½-furlong turf sprint Caress on August 1 at Saratoga. She has registered five works since, including her last two at Belmont, with Bush saying the rest in between should be beneficial.

“She’s done well; she didn’t get the run she wanted on the turf at Saratoga, but she’s had a good space between races and she’s had a couple of very solid works leading up to it,” Bush said.

Getmotherarose will carry the highweight of 126 pounds in the 10-horse field with one main-track only entrant featured. She is the longest shot on the board at 30-1, while Blowout, one of three Chad Brown trainees, is the 3-1 morning-line favorite.

“We’re carrying 126 pounds and we keep being penalized for winning the Grade 3 [Honey Fox] over the winter, but it’s a lot of weight for a little filly,” said Bush.

Getmotherarose did not run in a stakes in her first 12 starts but has faced stakes company in all six of her outings in the 2020 campaign. After running in three consecutive turf sprints, Bush said the extra distance should play to her strengths.

“The way she needs to be ridden is back off the pace and make that one run, and going one mile, I think it’s a lot easier for her to do that,” he said.

Owned by Mary Abeel Sullivan Revocable Trust, Getmotherarose is 5-2-2 in 18 career starts, including three wins in eight starts at Belmont. On Saturday, she will break from the outermost post.

“I don’t think it’s too significant. We want to get over, get her covered up and save ground, so I don’t think it’s a factor,” Bush said. “She’s won a few races over the course, so I can’t see where it’d be an issue.”

Get Smokin, owned by the same group as his stablemate, is training forwardly heading up to the Grade 2, $150,000 Hill Prince going one mile on the Widener turf on Monday, October 12, Bush said.

The 3-year-old Get Stormy gelding ran eighth in the Saratoga Derby Invitational on August 15, marking his second appearance this summer at the Spa after running second to Decorated Invader in the Grade 2 Hall of Fame going 1 1/8 miles on July 18.

Get Smokin has worked twice over the Belmont grass and will have another breeze scheduled for this weekend, his conditioner said.

“He’s going to work back on the grass Sunday,” Bush said. “He’s doing well and got a nice freshening, too, and he seems to have benefitted from that.”

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Tuned gets back to work in Saturday allowance

Trainer Graham Motion said he has been anxious to get Al Shaqab Racing’s regally bred Tuned back to racing action and will finally be able to do so when he sends out the 4-year-old daughter of Toronado in a Saturday allowance optional claiming event going 1 1/16 miles over the Belmont Park inner turf.

Off for nearly a whole year, Tuned has not raced since October 10, where she was a come-from-behind winner of her United States debut going one mile over the lawn at Keeneland. Previously under the care of Jean-Claude Rouget, Tuned broke her maiden at first asking in October 2018 at Deauville in France, three starts prior to her North American debut.

Bred in Great Britain by her owner, Tuned is out of 2012 Champion Turf Mare Zagora, who won that year’s Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf and retired with $2,368,577 in purse earnings.

Tuned has been consistently on the work tab since late June training alongside Motion’s primary division at Fair Hill Training Center in Maryland. She most recently recorded a five-furlong work in 1:02.40 over the all-weather course last Saturday.

“She had a hind end issue that took a while for her to get over, but she’s been ready to go for a while,” Motion said. “She’s a very high strung filly and is tough in the mornings. I’ve been anxious to get her started again. She’s plenty fit.”

Motion has not thought past Saturday’s race, but said that a stakes race could be in order depending on how she handles running off a long layoff.

“Saturday is just all about getting her back to races,” Motion said. “She’s been sitting on go for a while, so we’ll see how she handles this race and then go from there.”

Tuned will be piloted from the inside post by Jose Ortiz in Saturday’s fourth race.

Earle Mack’s Batyah bested her juvenile filly counterparts on Saturday at Belmont when coming from 10 lengths off the pace from the outside post 10 to capture a one mile maiden event by 2 ¼ lengths, garnering a 71 Beyer.

“Last time I worked her, I breezed her with [Grade 1-placed] Alda so we had some pretty good expectations,” Motion said. “I almost didn’t run her because I didn’t really like the post position, but I’m glad that Earle talked me out of it. She handled the race really well. Jose got off her that day and told [assistant trainer] Alice [Chapman] that he couldn’t pull her up and he had to get the outrider. That gives me some encouragement to run her back. I really like her attitude and we’ve been excited to get her to the races.”

Motion said the Grade 2, $150,000 Jessamine on October 7 at Keeneland could be a possible next spot for the daughter of Pioneerof the Nile out of the Medaglia d’Oro mare Lawn Party.

Motion said he is looking forward to a new edition to his stable with Manfred Ostermann’s Laccario, who is scheduled to make his North American debut for German conditioner Andreas Wohler in the Grade 1, $250,000 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic on October 3.

Bred in Germany, the 4-year-old son of Scalo won last year’s Group 1 German Derby at Hamburg and is scheduled to arrive in the United States the week of the Joe Hirsch and will remain under Motion’s care following the race.

“The plan is for him to run in the Joe Hirsch,” Motion said. “He’s relatively lightly raced, but his record is impressive. It’ll be exciting to have a horse like that in the barn.”

Laccario boasts a record of 8-4-2-1.

Alex Campbell, Jr.’s Mean Mary, a hard-fought second to Rushing Fall in the Grade 1 Diana on August 23 at Saratoga, will continue to train up to the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf on November 7 at Keeneland.

“She had quite a bit of races in her over the winter and I just want to get her to the Breeders’ Cup in the best shape possible,” Motion said.

A four-time Breeders’ Cup-winning trainer, Motion would be seeking his second triumph in the Filly and Mare Turf after saddling Shared Account to an upset victory in the 2010 edition.

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Updated Belmont Park Week 3 stakes probables

Thursday, October 1
$100K Joseph A. Gimma (NYB)
Probable: Infringement (Mark Hennig), No Mo’ Spending (Ian Wilkes), Stimulus Check (Gregg Matties)

Friday, October 2
$100K Bertram F. Bongard (NYB)
Probable: Eagle Orb (Rudy Rodriguez), Half Right (Doug O’Neill), Lookin for Trouble (Mike Maker), Thin White Duke (Phil Gleaves), Windy Nations (Maker)
Possible: Son of An Ex (James Ferraro)

Saturday, October 3
Grade 1, $250,000 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic
Probable: Channel Maker (Bill Mott), Cross Border (Mike Maker), Highland Sky (Barclay Tagg), Laccario (Andreas Wohler), Sadler’s Joy (Tom Albertrani)
Possible: Master Piece (Chad Brown)

Grade 2, $150,000 Kelso
Probable: Bon Raison (Jack Sisterson), Code of Honor (Shug McGaughey), Complexity (Chad Brown), Endorsed (Bill Mott), Funny Guy (John Terranova), Mo Don’t No (Anthony Quartarolo)
Possible: Knicks Go (Brad Cox)

Grade 2, $150,000 Pilgrim
Probable: It’s A Gamble (Kelly Breen), Public Sector (Chad Brown), Safe Conduct (Phil Serpe), Shawdyshawdyshawdy (Jorge Abreu), Step Dancer (Barclay Tagg), Tijuana Brass (Mike Maker), Zippy Baby (Dermot Magner)

Grade 2, $150,000 Gallant Bloom
Probable: Royal Charlotte (Chad Brown), Unique Factor (Peter Miller)
Possible: Newly Minted (Linda Rice)

Grade 1, $250,000 Belmont Derby Invitational
Probable: Ajourneytofreedom (Maker), City Man (Christophe Clement), Domestic Spending (Chad Brown), Farmington Road (Todd Pletcher), Gufo (Clement), Moon Over Miami (Mott), No Word (Pletcher), Pixelate (Mike Stidham), Venezuelan Hug (Danny Gargan)

Sunday, October 4
Grade 2, $150,000 Beldame
Probable: Dunbar Road (Chad Brown), Horologist (Bill Mott), Letruska (Fausto Gutierrez), Nonna Madeline (Todd Pletcher), Point of Honor (George Weaver)

Grade 2, $150,000 Miss Grillo
Probable: Golden Voice (Mike Maker), Plum Ali (Christophe Clement)

Grade 3, $150,000 Belmont Turf Sprint Invitational
Probable: Archidust (Steve Asmussen), Backtohisroots (John Terranova), Battle Station (Rob Atras), Chewing Gum (Mott), Pulsate (Robert Ribaudo), Wet Your Whistle (Mike Trombetta)
Possible: Introduced (Jorge Duarte, Jr.)