USA Stakes Races

[Horny Harry]

2002 Travers Stakes
Jim Dandy winner Medaglia d'Oro is the 2-5 morning like favorite for the Travers.
http://www.horse-races.net/graphics/tc02/pkpp5s.jpg
Date: 08/21/02
The Travers Stakes at Saratoga, also known as the Mid-Summer Derby, run at 1 1/4 miles with a purse of $1 million will hold its 133nd running Saturday afternoon August 24th. This year's running has attracted a field of 9 three-year-olds, including Jim Dandy winner Medaglia d'Oro and early Kentucky Derby favorite Repent, who will be making his first start since April.
Medaglia d'Oro is considered the horse to beat in the Travers. He is coming off a second place finish in the Belmont and a win in the Jim Dandy, and hopes to add his first Grade 1 win in the Travers. His trainer Bobby Frankel said: "I don't want any excuses. I expect him to win this race, and if he doesn't I'll be disappointed. The Travers will tell how good he is. Facing older horses is not that far off. He still has to move up a little bit, but not that much."
Repent will be making his first start since finishing second to War Emblem in the Illinois Derby on April 6th. After that race, he had a bone chip removed from his ankle and missed the Triple Crown series. He has been working very well coming into this race and his trainer Ken McPeek hopes to make this comeback start a winning one. "We're by no means forcing the issue here," McPeek said. "He's propelled himself forward. If Medaglia d'Oro cruises up front, he's going to be very tough to beat. I'd like to see someone keep him honest. I know I have a nice horse with a lot of talent. I'm excited about running him a mile and a quarter because he's always acted like he wants to run that distance."
Post time for the Travers Stakes is 5:55 pm and it will be broadcast on ESPN, along with the King's Bishop, from 5:00-6:30pm EDT. Free past performances are available from Equibase and Daily Racing Form. Below is the field for the Travers with post positions and odds. Click on each horse's name for a full background and analysis. All horses carry 126 lbs.
http://www.horse-races.net/graphics/bc01/bcjc11s.jpg
Former Kentucky Derby future book favorite Repent is making his comeback in the Travers.
The Travers Stakes
Purse: $1,000,000 Distance: 1 1/4 miles
PP Horse Trainer Jockey M/L
Odds
1 Shah Jehan Lukas Velazquez 20-1
2 Quest Zito Castellano 12-1
3 Like a Hero Greely Pincay 8-1
4 Repent McPeek Prado 6-1
5 Medaglia d'Oro Frankel Bailey 2-5
6 Gold Dollar Lukas Chavez 20-1
7 Saint Marden Matz Smith 20-1
8 Nothing Flat Zito Santos 15-1
9 Puzzlement Jerkens Samyn 20-1
[ August 26, 2002, 09:56 AM: Message edited by: Horny Harry ]

[Horny Harry]

Hard to oppose Medaglia d'Oro in Travers
By DAVID GRENING
Peb
Medaglia d'Oro will be favored in Saturday's 133rd running of the Travers Stakes at Saratoga.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Million-dollar races are not supposed to be easy. That may explain trainer Bobby Frankel searching for reasons why his 3-year-old Medaglia d'Oro will have a difficult time winning Saturday's Grade 1 Travers at Saratoga.
Medaglia d'Oro, a 13 3/4-length winner of the Jim Dandy 20 days ago, is one of just two graded stakes winners in the Travers field. He was installed as a 3-5 favorite by Daily Racing Form handicapper Mike Sherack, and a 2-5 choice by New York Racing Association linemaker Don LaPlace. In the last 50 years, there have been 21 odds-on favorites in the Travers, 17 of whom have won.
Frankel politely dismisses the competition, which does not include Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner War Emblem, but does include Louisiana Derby winner Repent, who has not raced in 140 days.
"I'm not really worried about anybody," said Frankel, who trains Medaglia d'Oro for Edmund Gann. "If he shows up and he runs his race I think we're in real good shape in the Travers."
Frankel no longer fears that Medaglia d'Oro will bounce, because according to the numbers he relies on, Medaglia d'Oro did not run his best race in the Jim Dandy. The Beyer Speed Figure of 120 that Medaglia d'Oro earned winning the Jim Dandy is a lifetime best.
During the Triple Crown series, in which three races are contested in five weeks, Medaglia d'Oro ran well in the Kentucky Derby (fourth), lousy in the Preakness (eighth), and very well in the Belmont Stakes (second).
If Frankel has a concern heading into the Travers, it's the possibility of a wet track or a drying out track such as the one the Preakness was run over. According to the National Weather Service, there is a 50 percent chance of showers on Saturday.
"I'm hoping it'll be a fast track," Frankel said. "It's the only thing that bothers me."
Management is also hoping Mother Nature cooperates. Travers Day is the showcase of the 36-day meet. An 11-race card - including four graded stakes - begins at 12:30 p.m. A pick four with a guaranteed pool of $1 million will be offered on those stakes. ESPN will televise the Travers and King's Bishop in a 90-minute broadcast beginning at 5 p.m. Eastern.
Medaglia d'Oro will try to become just the fifth 3-year-old to pull off the Jim Dandy-Travers double. Twenty-four previous Jim Dandy winners have run in the Travers.
Medaglia d'Oro holds a tactical edge over his eight rivals. He is the likely pacesetter under Jerry Bailey, though he could stalk should Shah Jehan, Gold Dollar, or Saint Marden attempt to make the lead.
Trainer D. Wayne Lukas, a two-time Travers winner, said Shah Jehan, who breaks from the rail, is "capable of getting the lead if he wants it." But Lukas expects him to lay third or fourth early. Gold Dollar tried to run with Medaglia d'Oro in the Jim Dandy, but could not and finished third, placed second when Quest was disqualified. However, Lukas said Gold Dollar needed the race.
The horses given the best chance to knock off Medaglia d'Oro are Repent and Like a Hero.
Repent, a one-time Kentucky Derby future-book favorite, is making his first start since finishing second in the Illinois Derby on April 6 and having ankle surgery. Despite Repent's layoff, trainer Ken McPeek could not be any more confident in his late-running colt's chances.
"He did run awful well off the layoff in the Risen Star," said McPeek, referring to Repent's winning 3-year-old debut at Fair Grounds off an 86-day layoff. "I really, really wanted to run the horse a mile and a quarter more than anything. We could wait another week and wait for the Pennsylvania Derby, but I think he's every bit as good as any 3-year-old in the nation."
Like a Hero was slammed at the start of the Belmont Stakes, and was never asked to run thereafter by Pat Day, finishing seventh, 17 3/4 lengths behind Sarava. Since then, he has finished second behind Came Home in the Swaps, and third behind War Emblem and Magic Weisner in the Haskell.
Trainer Beau Greely said the Travers has been Like a Hero's goal since the spring, and Greely feels Like a Hero is "eating the track up when he gallops and breezes. I couldn't be asking more of the horse at all."
Laffit Pincay Jr. sees fit to give up a day at Del Mar to ride Like a Hero. Nick Zito will send out Quest and Nothing Flat, who were soundly beaten in the Jim Dandy. Quest finished second, but was disqualified for interference and placed last. Nothing Flat bled through Lasix while finishing seventh, but Zito believes he may bounce back given the recent cool weather.
It was only two years ago that Zito's Albert the Great came within an inch of winning the Travers after running poorly in the Jim Dandy.
Puzzlement and Saint Marden complete the field.

[Horny Harry]

Edmund Gann's Medaglia d'Oro, sent off as the 3-5 favorite, held off a stubborn Repent, who was returning to the races off a 4 1/2 month layoff, to win Saturday's $1 million Travers Stakes over a very sloppy Saratoga Racecourse. This was the first Travers victory for Hall of Fame trainer Bobby Frankel and the third for jockey Jerry Bailey. Tomorrow, it's Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner War Emblem's turn to answer against older for the first time in the $1 million Pacific Classic at Del Mar. Catch the Pacific Classic, and much more, "live" on ESPN at 5:00 p.m. ET.

[Horny Harry]

http://www.ntraracing.com/content/020825_camehome_pclassic_ma.jpg
Came Home silenced all of his skeptics Sunday by proving that the 1 1/4 distance is within his reach by capturing < a href="">$1 million Pacific Classic/a><. The Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner War Emblem -- sent off as the 6-5 favorite finished a tiring sixth. In his first start against older horses, Came Home has now won 9 races from 11 starts with earnings in excess of $1.8 million. And the battle for the 3-year-old championshion is heating up with the Bobby Frankel-trained Medaglia d'Oro's impressive victory in Saturday's $1 million Travers Stakes at Saratoga.
[ August 26, 2002, 09:55 AM: Message edited by: Horny Harry ]

[Horny Harry]

Breeders' Cup Future Bet
Updated: 8/27/02
Street Cry is once again the favorite in the Classic with opening odds of 6-1
http://www.horse-races.net/graphics/sar02/whit7s.jpg
The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) has set the fields for this weekend's Breeders' Cup Future Bet Pool Three. This time the races will be the Breeders' Cup Classic, the Breeders' Cup Distaff, and the Breeders' Cup Sprint. Street Cry is once again the morning line favorite for the Classic, while Azeri is again favored in the Distaff and the field in the Sprint. Pools will be open August 30 - September 2, from 1:00-7:00 p.m. (ET) each day.
Under Breeders' Cup Future Bet rules, each race will offer pari-mutuel groupings of 23 runners plus one field entry consisting of all horses not in the body of 23 for each respective race. All betting, available at outlets nationwide, will be win-only with a minimum wager amount of $2.00. At the conclusion of wagering on August 11, odds for all entries become final. No refunds are made on horses that do not ultimately compete in their designated races. Arlington Park will serve as the processing hub for all wagers.
The complete Breeders' Cup Future Bet schedule for 2002 is:
Thursday, July 4 - Sunday, July 7: Breeders' Cup Classic, Breeders' Cup Distaff and Breeders' Cup Sprint (Pool I) - Final Odds
Friday, August 9 - Sunday, August 11: John Deere Breeders' Cup Turf, Breeders' Cup Mile and Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf - Final Odds
Friday, August 30 - Monday, September 2: Breeders' Cup Classic, Breeders' Cup Distaff and Breeders' Cup Sprint (Pool II)
Friday, September 20 - Friday, September 22: Bessemer Trust Breeders' Cup Juvenile and Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies
Summer Colony is the second favorite behind Azeri for the Distaff with opening odds of 6-1
Daily Racing Form will provide extensive support for the Breeders' Cup Future Bet, including full past performance lines in all editions for all days the Future Bet is offered, plus comprehensive editorial coverage of the Future Bet horses. A special Breeders' Cup Future Bet section is available at DRF website which includes the same past performances that may be found in the print edition, free to download. The special section will also feature regularly updated odds of horses in the Future Bet pools during open pool dates.
FIELDS (http://www.horse-races.net/library/bcfb-pool3.shtml)
[ August 29, 2002, 11:57 AM: Message edited by: Horny Harry ]

[Horny Harry]

Belmont
Imperial Gesture impressive
By DAVID GRENING
ELMONT, N.Y. - Imperial Gesture is making up for lost time at the right time.
A bust in the Kentucky Oaks when she was bumped at the start, and away for most of the summer due to lack of conditioning, Imperial Gesture put together her second straight powerful performance Saturday by rolling to a 2 1/2-length victory in the Grade 1, $250,000 Gazelle Handicap at Belmont Park.
Take Charge Lady, who chased Imperial Gesture around the track, settled for second, six lengths ahead of 7-5 favorite Bella Bellucci.
Imperial Gesture ($8.30), who took the lead coming out of the chute under Jose Santos, covered the nine furlongs in 1:47.12, making it the second-fastest Gazelle since the race was moved to 1 1/8 miles in 1961.
"That was the most impressive performance I've seen this filly run since we've had her," said Tom Albertrani, the New York-based assistant trainer for Godolphin Racing. "He [Santos] was double-handed all the way through the race. When he asked her to go, she just lengthened right out."
The win came only 15 days after Imperial Gesture won a seven-furlong allowance race at Saratoga. That was her first race since the Kentucky Oaks where she was beaten 25 1/2 lengths after getting slammed at the start.
Santos thought Spring Meadow would set the pace in the Gazelle, but was content when Imperial Gesture took him to the front on a speed-favoring track. Imperial Gesture set fractions of 23.19 seconds, 46.73, 1:10.44, and 1:34.66.
"I was sitting pretty on the lead and every eighth of a mile she was increasing by herself. When Prado came to me at the quarter pole I just asked her and she responded and opened up," Santos said.
Albertrani said he did not know where Imperial Gesture would run next.
Aside from acting up in the paddock - something she does frequently - Take Charge Lady's performance off a 105-day layoff was pleasing to trainer Ken McPeek, who said the filly would run next in the Grade 1 Spinster at Keeneland on Oct. 6.
"Good, solid race," he said. "We didn't want it to be her best one. Edgar [Prado] seemed to think that other filly would never beat her again."
The biggest disappointment was Bella Bellucci, who broke awkwardly, rushed up into contention, but offered no late kick.
"She missed the break," trainer Neil Drysdale said. "She moved up in there and used up all of her energy to get into position. Then he gave her a breather, then they kicked and she flattened a bit in the stretch."

[Horny Harry]

These 'B' team players no slouches
By MARCUS HERSH
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - The good-natured California rivalry between Bob Baffert and Eoin Harty goes Midwest when the two trainers send out the top choices Saturday in the Arlington-Washington Futurity, a Grade 3 prep for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile.
Harty was Baffert's assistant before he found work as Godolphin's American 2-year-old guru, and the two trainers often chase the same prizes with expensive young horses. Saturday, three colts from their Midwest satellite operations square off in the $150,000 Futurity, run at a mile on dirt.
From Baffert's Churchill Downs string comes Echeverria, while Harty has two local colts for the race, Sharp Impact and Anasheed.
The Futurity, downgraded from a Grade 2, combines with the Grade 3 Arlington-Washington Lassie on Saturday for Arlington's biggest day of 2-year-old racing.
The two Godolphin colts and Echeverria were among 10 2-year-olds entered in the Futurity. The field also includes Comic Truth, a maiden claimer in Florida but an easy winner of two Louisiana stakes after joining the barn of Cole Norman. Comic Truth makes his first start for trainer Kenny McPeek.
Trainer Steve Asmussen has pointed Worker Man - second in the Middleground at Lone Star - to the Futurity for some time, while trainer Ronny Werner arrived here from New Jersey with Most Feared on Monday. Most Feared easily won the $50,000 Continental Mile at Monmouth in his last start.
But even Baffert's and Harty's "B" teams rate an edge over their opponents. Sharp Impact has won both of his starts, including a convincing score in the Sept. 7 Spectacular Bid, the sprint prep for this race. Sharp Impact has good speed, but assistant trainer Davey Duggan described him as a "push-button colt. You can put him wherever he needs to be."
Anasheed, who may prove better at two turns on turf, has no speed at all and will need a fast pace.
Echeverria ran dismally in his career bow June 29 at Churchill but showed immediate improvement with the addition of blinkers. He won two straight at Ellis Park before finishing second to Private Gold in the Ellis Park Juvenile.
"He's a very intelligent horse, not overly hard on himself," said Baffert's Kentucky assistant, John Good. "He's had six weeks between his last start and this one, and he's feeling pretty good right now."

[Horny Harry]

http://www.drf.com/images/eveningattire_200_092802.jpg
JOCKEY CLUB GOLD CUP
ELMONT, N.Y. - Evening Attire, who first burst on the scene with a 65-1 upset of Street Cry in last year's Discovery Handicap, pulled off another stunner Saturday, rallying from next to last to win the $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup by 2 3/4 lengths at Belmont Park.
Lido Palace finished second, three-quarters of a length ahead of Harlan's Holiday, who nosed out Nothing Flat for third. Abreeze, Milwaukee Brew, 8-5 favorite Repent, and Puzzlement completed the order of finish.
After winning just one of his first eight starts, Evening Attire has now won six of his last nine and pushed his career earnings to $1,208,810. Evening Attire, a 4-year-old gelding, will now try to duplicate the 1991 Breeders' Cup Classic victory of his father, Black Tie Affair, in next month's $4 million Classic at Arlington Park.
"Assuming he comes out of this fine, we've got a month to the Breeders' Cup," trainer Pat Kelly said. "He does well off a month. It'll be a 1 1/4 miles around two turns. The good thing about Arlington is it's similar to Belmont, a big, wide-turned track."
Evening Attire had never won at Belmont before, though he had finished second three times in five starts there. Saturday, he broke a step slowly under Shaun Bridgmohan, and raced well off a moderate pace. Harlan's Holiday was on the lead for an opening quarter of 24.69 seconds, but was soon joined by Abreeze and Repent, who surprisingly contested the pace under Edgar Prado.
At the half-mile pole, as Repent backed up and Lido Palace made his way toward the front-running tandem of Abreeze and Harlan's Holiday, Evening Attire still had only one horse beat.
Approaching the quarter pole, Evening Attire split a tiring Repent and Puzzlement to gain contention, moved to the three path in upper stretch, and swept past Abreeze near the sixteenth pole.
Evening Attire covered the 1 1/4 miles in 1:59.58 over a track labeled good and returned $21 as the fifth choice.
"He didn't break alertly, I had to let him settle for the first part," Bridgmohan said. "When I found some room at the top of the stretch and kicked on him, he just really accelerated."
Lido Palace ran creditably to be second, but no decision was made about the possibility of supplementing him to the Classic for $800,000.
Trainer Todd Pletcher scratched Harlan's Holiday out of Friday night's Pegasus due to a sloppy track, and was pleased with the effort put in by his horse, even if he wasn't thrilled with the trip he got.
"Someone else was also dictating where we had to be," Pletcher said. "I felt in spite of that, he ran a big race. It's the kind of race we'll move forward off of."
Trainer Ken McPeek said Prado told him Repent "had no punch, nothing. He just flattened out in the middle of the turn."