Saratoga: Grade 1’s Test, Saratoga Derby Previews

By Brian Bohl —-

Acorn trifecta back for return engagement in G1 Longines Test

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The top-three finishers from June’s Grade 1 Acorn at Belmont Park – featuring winner Search Results, runner-up Obligatory and Make Mischief – will again comprise a talented field in a prestigious stake for 3-year-old fillies in Saturday’s Grade 1, $500,000 Longies Test at seven furlongs at Saratoga Race Course.

The 96th edition of the Longines Test, slated as Race 8 on the 12-race docket, is one of five stakes on a loaded card, headlined by the Grade 1, $1 million Whitney for 4-year-olds and up that is a “Win and You’re In” qualifier to the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Also on tap will be the Grade 1, $1 million Saratoga Derby as the middle jewel of the Turf Triple series for 3-year-olds, as well as the Grade 2, $250,000 Glens Falls for older fillies and mares on the turf and the $120,000 Fasig-Tipton Lure for older horses on the Mellon turf course.

Klaravich Stables’ Search Results, who posted a half-length win in the Acorn going a one-turn mile on Belmont Stakes Day June 5, has won four of her five career starts for four-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer Chad Brown. The daughter of Flatter did not race as a juvenile but started her sophomore year with three straight wins, building on a debut victory in January at Gulfstream Park with a pair of stake wins at Aqueduct Racetrack in the one-mile Busher Invitational in March and the 1 1/8-mile Grade 3 Gazelle in April.

That victory at the Big A spring-boarded Search Results’ appearance in the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks on April 30, where she was forwardly placed and challenged Malathaat in the stretch before settling for second, just a neck off the winner. Five weeks later, Search Results fended off Obligatory and Make Mischief’s late charge to win the Acorn, earning an identical 95 Beyer Speed Figure she achieved in the Kentucky Oaks.

Irad Ortiz, Jr., aboard for the Gazelle and Kentucky Oaks, will return to ride Search Results, drawing post 7.

Brown will also send out Three Chimneys Farm’s Always Carina, who won her first two starts before running second to fellow Test participant Zaajel in the Grade 2 Mother Goose going 1 1/16 miles on June 26 at Belmont. The lightly raced daughter of Malibu Moon will make her Saratoga debut, drawing post 5. Flavien Prat has the call.

Gary Barber’s Make Mischief won her debut in June 2020 at Belmont before posting a pair of runner-up efforts in graded stakes at the Spa, finishing behind Dayoutoftheoffice in the Grade 3 Schuylerville and the Grade 2 Adirondack.

Trainer Mark Casse, who will be inducted into the Hall of Fame across the street from Saratoga Race Course on Friday, sent Make Mischief to Chris Englehart to start her 3-year-old year, which included a victory by a neck over Brattle House in the one-mile Maddie May in February at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Returning to Casse for the spring, Make Mischief has been a contender when facing top-flight divisional competition again, running third in the Grade 2 Eight Belles in April at Churchill Downs at the Test distance before running third in the Grade 1 Acorn. The Into Mischief filly ran a competitive fourth in the Grade 2 Mother Goose last out and will return to Saratoga with Tyler Gaffalione set to ride from post 6.

“When we broke her, I told Gary I thought she was a pretty good filly,” Casse said. “I think she just needed a little more ground and a little bit of time to grow up. Her races this year have been good. I kept her with Chris Englehart over the winter since we didn’t have any horses in New York at that time. He ran her right away and she won and he did a great job with her.”

Make Mischief, bred in New York by Avanti Stable, is the field’s most experienced entrant with 12 starts, compiling a 4-3-2 record with earnings of $365,750.

Her stablemate, Live Oak Plantation’s Souper Sensational, notched her first graded stakes win last out, displaying a strong closing kick to draw away for a 3 1/4-length score in the Grade 3 Victory Ride going 6 1/2 furlongs on July 10 at Belmont.

Casse campaigned the daughter of Curlin in a series of Kentucky Oaks preps at Fair Grounds to start 2021, and she responded with a runner-up performance in the Silverbulletday. After an off-the-board effort in the Grade 2 Rachel Alexandra in February, Souper Sensational returned to the same track to earn third in the Grade 2 Fair Grounds Oaks also going 1 1/16 mile in March.

Souper Sensational returned to sprinting in April, finishing fourth in the Eight Belles, and last out earned a career-best 95 Beyer for her Victory Ride win over a Big Sandy track rated good.

Casse said Charlotte Weber, owner of Live Oak Plantation, helped select the $725,000 purchase at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select Yearling Sale.

“She is by Curlin out of an Indian Charlie mare, but if you look at her she’s more a sprinter type,” Casse said. “She [Weber] helped pick this one out. We bought her here in Saratoga. She’s a really good horsewoman herself, she knows what she’s looking at. We go around at the sale and she usually picks out one or two and that’s how we got her.”

Ricardo Santana, Jr. will ride Souper Sensational for the first time, drawing post 2.

Juddmonte’s Obligatory also was a filly who benefitted from cutting back in distance, going from a fourth-place finish in the Fair Grounds Oaks to a one-length win in the Eight Belles in her first stakes sprint for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott.

After earning a 94 Beyer for her second to Search Results in the Acorn, the fellow Curlin filly will compete at Saratoga for the first time, drawing post 4 in tandem with Jose Ortiz, who won this race in back-to-back years aboard American Gal and Separationofpowers from 2017-18.

Shadwell Stable’s Zaajel garnered a 96 number for her 1 1/4-length Mother Goose win for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher. Zaajel made her turf debut in the Grade 2 Edgewood the race prior, finishing seventh in April over the Churchill grass, before Pletcher moved her back to dirt and running her around one turn.

“That made some of the difference,” Pletcher said. “The race before that was an experiment on the turf that didn’t pan out. The time before that in Louisiana she misbehaved in the gate, got off to a poor start and got a little rank in the first turn. I think she’ll handle two turns down the road but we wanted to keep her and Malathaat separated for the time being, so backing up to seven-eighths makes the most sense.”

Joel Rosario, aboard for the Mother Goose score, will ride again from post 3.

Rounding out the field is Illumination, an eight-length winner to break her maiden at fifth asking last out in June at Santa Anita Park for Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert [post 1, fellow Hall of Famer John Velazquez]; and Bella Sofia, who ran second in the Jersey Girl on June 6 for trainer Rudy Rodriguez [post 8, Luis Saez].

Saratoga Live will present daily television coverage of the 40-day summer meet on FOX Sports. For the complete Saratoga Live broadcast schedule, and additional programming information, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule.

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Saratoga Race Course, and the best way to bet every race of the meet. Available to horseplayers nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.
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Keith McCalmont —-

Bolshoi Ballet Turf Triple pursuit in G1 Saratoga Derby Invitational

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Mrs. John Magnier, Michael B. Tabor, Derrick Smith and Westerberg’s Bolshoi Ballet will look to capture the second leg of NYRA’s Turf Triple series for sophomores in Saturday’s Grade 1, $1 million Saratoga Derby Invitational at Saratoga Race Course.

The 1 3/16-mile Mellon turf test is one of three Grade 1 events on Saturday’s 12-race card, led by the $1 million Whitney at nine-furlongs on the main track for older males and the $500,000 Longines Test for sophomore fillies at seven furlongs on the main track. The lucrative card is bolstered by the Grade 2, $250,000 Glens Falls at 12 furlongs on the inner turf for older fillies and mares and the $120,000 Fasig-Tipton Lure for older horses at 1 1/16-miles on the Mellon turf course.

Bolshoi Ballet, by the late Galileo and trained by Aidan O’Brien, was a visually-appealing winner of the 10-furlong Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational on July 10, capturing the first leg of NYRA’s Turf Triple series by 1 1/4-lengths over good turf under jockey Ryan Moore’s confident handling.

T.J. Comerford, traveling assistant for O’Brien, said the team is expecting another top performance.

“It’s a good opportunity for him,’ Comerford said. “He’s doing well and came back here in good order. Aidan and the team are very happy with him at the moment. If he runs to his last race, he should be right there again.”

A victory on Saturday could set Bolshoi Ballet up to become the first horse to capture all three legs of the Turf Triple series that was inaugurated in 2019. The series concludes September 18 at Belmont with the 12-furlong $1 million Jockey Club Derby Invitational, which offers a “Win and You’re In” berth to the Breeders’ Cup Turf.

Following a juvenile campaign which included a four-length maiden triumph over yielding turf on October 16 at Leopardstown, Bolshoi Ballet launched his sophomore season with decisive wins in the Ballysax on April 11 and the Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial on May 9, both Group 3 events at 1 1/4 miles at Leopardstown.

Bolshoi Ballet entered the Belmont Derby from a disappointing seventh as the beaten favorite in the Group 1 Epsom Derby on June 5, emerging with a cut to his right hind leg.

Bolshoi Ballet, who will exit from post 6 under Moore, who will look to provide O’Brien with his first Saratoga winner in his eighth attempt.

Moore, a three-time champion jockey in his native Great Britain, seeks his first win at Saratoga in his third attempt following a runner-up effort with Mendelssohn in the 2018 Grade 1 Travers and a sixth with Idaho in the 2017 Grade 1 Sword Dancer.

Alpha Racing’s Cadillac, an Irish-bred son of Lope de Vega, cruised to victory in the one-mile Group 2 Champions Juvenile in September at Leopardstown for trainer Jessica Harrington.

Out of the Dansili mare Seas of Wells, Cadillac followed with a fifth-place effort in the seven-furlong Group 1 Dewhurst in October at Newmarket ahead of a closing fourth in the one-mile Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf in November at Keeneland.

Cadillac made a winning seasonal debut last out with a nose score over Dawn Patrol in the 10-furlong Group 3 ARM Holding International on June 26 at the Curragh.

Shane Foley retains the mount from post 4.

Fern Circle Stables and Three Chimneys Farm’s King Fury was pointed to last weekend’s Grade 2 Jim Dandy before changing course towards a turf debut after his barn was placed under a precautionary quarantine – which was lifted on Sunday – due to a positive case of Equine Herpesvirus-1 in that barn.

Trained by Kenny McPeek, the Curlin chestnut captured the 1 1/16-mile Street Sense in October at Churchill Downs and made the grade in the 1 1/16-mile Grade 3 Lexington in April at Keeneland.

Following a closing second to Masqueparade [who subsequently ran third in the Jim Dandy] last out on June 26 in the nine-furlong Grade 3 Ohio Derby at Thistledown, King Fury has breezed three times at Saratoga, including a five-eighths effort in 1:01.25 Sunday on the Oklahoma training turf.

McPeek said Saturday’s test could serve as a prep for the Grade1, $1.25 million Runhappy Travers at 10 furlongs on the Saratoga main track on August 28, a double last accomplished by Catholic Boy in 2018.

“We’re really using this race as a prep for the Travers, which is something that Catholic Boy pulled off. So that will be interesting,” McPeek said. “I think he’ll handle the grass just fine. He’s a lovely horse. So hopefully, it’s one step and a big one for him.”

McPeek, who will also saddle filly Swiss Skydiver in the Whitney, noted his previous success with versatile runners, including multiple graded stakes winner Frac Daddy who was an allowance winner on turf and the 2017 Kentucky Oaks runner-up Daddys Lil Darling, who captured that year’s Grade 1 American Oaks on the Santa Anita turf.

“A good horse will run on just about anything given the chance,” McPeek said. “There’s some throwback horses over the years I’ve had that were like that. I spent a lot of time around Einstein, and he ran on anything, Frac Daddy was another one who ran on about anything. Dr. Fager ran on both surfaces back in the day. Daddys Lil Darling ran on dirt and turf, it didn’t matter. I could run Swiss Skydiver on the grass and it wouldn’t bother her.”

Ortiz will pilot King Fury from the outermost post 11.

Trainer Charlie Appleby will saddle Godolphin’s Secret Protector, a Kentucky-bred son of War Front, as he looks to build on his great success in Grade 1 NYRA turf events this year, following one-two finishes with fillies Althiqa and Summer Romance in both the Longines Just a Game in June at Belmont and the Diana last month at Saratoga.

An $800,000 purchase at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale, Secret Protector was a dominant winner of the 1 3/16-mile Meydan Trophy in February ahead of back-to-back runner-up efforts to well-regarded Mohaafeth in 10-furlong events, including the Newmarket in May and the Group 3 Hampton Court last out on June 17 at Ascot.

Chris Connett, traveling assistant for Appleby, said the distance should suit Secret Protector.

“Trip wise it looks really made for him,” Connett said. “His run at Ascot was very good. I know he didn’t win but from where he was in the run to how he finished was quite striking. It’s going to be a tough race with Aidan’s horse and a few of the others but Charlie is fairly confident if he runs the race he run at Ascot, he will take a bit of beating.”

Connect said Secret Protector would prefer good-to-firm footing.

“He’s fairly versatile. He wouldn’t really want it like a road but on the quicker side of things is fine,” said Connett.

Hall of Famer Mike Smith rides from post 7.

Calumet Farm’s Cellist, trained by Rusty Arnold, has hit the board in 4-of-5 starts. The Big Blue Kitten bay, out of the English Channel mare Cello, captured the nine-furlong Audubon in May over good Churchill Downs turf.

A prominent Cellist made the lead at the stretch call of the Belmont Derby under regular pilot Julien Leparoux but had to settle for third after being passed late by Bolshoi Ballet and runner-up Tokyo Gold.

Leparoux retains the mount from post 8.

Natalie J. Baffert and Debbie Lanni’s Du Jour garnered an 89 Beyer Speed Figure in winning the 1 1/16-mile Grade 2 American Turf in May at Churchill Downs. Last out, Du Jour endured a wide trip in the Belmont Derby but stayed on for fourth.

Du Jour will emerge from post 2 under Joel Rosario.

Trainer Mark Casse, who will be inducted to the Hall of Fame on Friday, will saddle John Oxley’s late-running Palazzi. The Pioneerof the Nile colt finished sixth after exiting the inside post under Tyler Gaffalione in the Belmont Derby.

“He needs luck and pace. Two things he didn’t have in his last start,” Casse said. “It was very frustrating because he was down on the inside with nowhere to go.”

Palazzi was a nose winner of the Texas Turf Mile in January at Sam Houston and two starts later closed to finish second in the 1 1/16-mile Grade 3 Transylvania in April over good Keeneland turf.

He entered the Belmont Derby from a closing second to Cellist in the Audubon.
Gaffalione will guide Palazzi from post 3.

Edge Racing’s Yes This Time has won 6-of-8 career starts, including stakes scores in his last two outings in the 1 1/16-mile English Channel in May over good Gulfstream Park turf and the Grade 3 Kent in July at Delaware traveling nine furlongs over soft going.

Trained by Kelly Breen, the Not This Time chestnut is out of the Smart Strike mare Smart Jilly, who is a full-sister to multiple graded-stakes winning millionaire Strike a Deal.

Yes This Time will leave from post 5 under Luis Saez.

Teme Valley’s State of Rest, an Irish-bred son of Starspangledbanner trained by Joseph O’Brien, finished third in the seven-furlong Group 2 Champagne in September at Doncaster but failed to fire next out in the one-mile Group 1 Vertem Futurity Trophy in October on the same course.

Last out, State of Rest finished a close third in the one-mile Celebration, a half-length back of the victorious Fourhometwo and just a nose in arrears of runner-up Khartoum over good going on June 26 at the Curragh.

Hall of Famer John Velazquez will pilot State of Rest from post 9.

Madaket Stables, Michael Dubb, Morris Bailey, Wonder Stables and Michael Caruso’s Soldier Rising, a British-bred son of Frankel, will make his graded-stakes debut for trainer Christophe Clement.

Soldier Rising has made all four career starts in France for his former conditioner Andre Fabre, including an allowance score traveling 12-furlongs over soft going in April at Chantilly. Last out, the bay gelding finished second in the listed Prix de l’Avre traveling 12-furlongs over soft ground at Longchamp.

Irad Ortiz, Jr. will guide Soldier Rising from the inside post.

Wachtel Stable, Gary Barber, Nicolas Drion and Mathilde Powell’s Flashiest has won 3-of-4 starts, including a first stakes score last out in the one-mile Oceanside at one-mile on firm Del Mar turf.

Trained by Leonard Powell, the Mizzen Mast gelding graduated at first asking in April in a maiden claimer at Turf Paradise and followed by besting winners in a one-mile optional-claimer in May at Santa Anita.

Jose Lezcano will guide Flashiest from post 10.

The Saratoga Derby is slated at Race 9 on Saturday’s 12-race card. First post is 12:35 p.m. Eastern. Saratoga Live will present daily television coverage of the summer meet on FOX Sports. For the complete Saratoga Live broadcast schedule, and additional programming information, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule.

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Saratoga Race Course, and the best way to bet every race of the summer meet. Available to horseplayers nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.
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Contact: Keith McCalmont