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Anglophile in search of more staying prosperity in G3 Jockey Club Derby

by NYRA Press Office

• Anglophile in search of more staying prosperity in G3 Jockey Club Derby
• Stidham sends out Central Avenue, Panama Red for weekend stakes at Belmont at the Big A
• Venti Valentine bound for $250K Empire Distaff
• Belmont at the Big A week 5 stakes probables

Hunter A. Rankin’s Anglophile appears to have turned a corner since stretching out in distance for trainer Brian Lynch and will look to continue his positive run of form in Saturday’s Grade 3, $500,000 Jockey Club Derby Invitational for sophomores going 1 3/8 miles over the inner turf at Belmont at the Big A.

Anglophile enters from a victory over Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational winner Far Bridge in the Grade 3 Dueling Grounds Derby on September 3 at Kentucky Downs. The English Channel chestnut rated in fourth early on in the 1 5/16-mile event and launched an inside rally in the stretch drive, fending off Far Bridge’s late charge to win by a half-length. He earned a career-high 95 Beyer Speed Figure for the performance.

Anglophile will again have his work cut out for him when facing graded stakes winner and Grade 1-placed millionaire Webslinger, stakes-winner Dataman and unbeaten European invader Measured Time for Godolphin.

“It looks like a pretty competitive field, so we’ll see how he goes,” Lynch said. “He loved the marathon distance last time at Kentucky Downs, that’s for sure. He’s definitely on the improve. He’s by English Channel and you always hope that they get better as they get older. He seems to be going in that direction. There’s plenty of grass and distance in the pedigree.

“Far Bridge is a Grade 1 winner, so that competition was good,” continued Lynch. “He closed into a very slow pace, which is never easy to do. He overcame a few things that day. I’ve been watching him develop and he has a pleasant stride. Now that we’ve worked out what sort of distances he can get over, hopefully there’s a future for him.”

Anglophile was a tough-luck third beaten a neck in the Dueling Grounds Derby Preview on August 5 at Ellis Park, making a move in between horses nearing the far turn before waiting for racing room approaching the quarter pole and having to check. This effort came after a first-level allowance win going 10 furlongs on July 16 at Ellis Park

“If he had a little bit better luck in that race, he wins that,” Lynch said of the Dueling Grounds Derby Preview. “He got in some trouble and got blocked and stopped when he needed to get out and still ran very well.”

Lynch said the addition of jockey Declan Cannon has made as much of a difference as the added ground. Cannon, who has the mount on Saturday, was aboard Anglophile for his last trio of starts and also piloted the Lynch-trained Hot Beach to victory in the Ellis Park Debutante on August 13.

“Declan has been a great help to us this summer and has worked a lot of horses for us,” Lynch said. “We’ve given him the option to hop on a few that he likes and he certainly has gotten along well with Anglophile. They’ve become a strong combination.”

Anglophile, bred in Kentucky by Upson Downs Farm and Louie W. Wright, is out of the Kitten’s Joy mare Trustmore Lovemore and is a half-brother to dual graded stakes winner Daring Dancer. His fifth dam is Terlingua, who produced the highly influential stallion Storm Cat.

Lynch also reported that Amerman Racing’s Louisiana-bred Tumbarumba could make the journey to the Empire State for the nine-furlong $150,000 Discovery on November 3 at Aqueduct Racetrack. The Oscar Performance sophomore gelding captured the Ellis Park Derby in August before earning graded black type when third in the Grade 3 Oklahoma Derby on September 24 at Remington Park.

“He could come up there for that race, but right now we’re just feeling things out,” Lynch said.

Bred by Coteau Grove Farm, Tumbarumba is out of the Street Sense mare Naive Enough, whose Grade 1-placed full-sister Light the City produced fellow Grade 1-placed Illumination.  

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Stidham sends out Central Avenue, Panama Red for weekend stakes at Belmont at the Big A

Trainer Michael Stidham will be represented in two stakes this weekend at Belmont at the Big A as Godolphin’s Kentucky homebred Central Avenue takes on the Grade 1, $400,000 Frizette on Saturday, while Lael Stables’ Panama Red enters the rescheduled Grade 3, $150,000 Noble Damsel on Sunday.

Central Avenue, who vies for a “Win and You’re In” berth into the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies on November 3 at Santa Anita Park, enters from a closing half-length debut victory in a seven-furlong maiden special weight on August 31 at Colonial Downs. There, she rallied from last-of-9 under Antonio Gallardo and was fifth at the top of the lane, but gained with every stride down the stretch to collar Perfectly Wicked just before the wire and complete the course in 1:24.77. Perfectly Wicked exited that race to win next out on September 29.

“She started going seven-eighths and we thought that might be a little short for her, but she got up anyways,” Stidham said. “She always looked in the mornings like she would come running late and she would [run like that]. The mile is going to be even more helpful for her style.” 

The daughter of Street Sense is out of the multiple graded stakes-placed A.P. Indy mare Centring, a half-sister to graded stakes-winner Penwith and Grade 1-placed Tranquil Manner, as well as Collective, the dam of dual graded stakes-winner Shared Sense. Additionally, Central Avenue’s second dam is two-time Grade 1-winner Composure.

“She’s doing very well. She’s bred to go as far as they write races,” said Stidham. “We’re delighted to get her going even further.”

Stidham added Central Avenue has been breezing well at Delaware Park since her victory, including her recent effort on Sunday when covering five furlongs in 1:02.40.

Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano has been tasked with the ride from post 4 in the Frizette, which is slated as Race 5 on Saturday’s 11-race card. First post is 12:05 p.m. Eastern.

Panama Red makes her first start since March when taking on five rivals in the Noble Damsel, a one-mile inner turf test for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up. The daughter of Showcasing makes her debut for Stidham after making her first two stateside outings going 1 1/16 miles at Tampa Bay Downs for conditioner Arnaud Delacour with a fourth in the Grade 3 Endeavor in February and a win in a second-level optional claimer in March.

The Irish-bred chestnut was a stakes-winner in her native land, taking the Ingabelle in September 2021 at Leopardstown over good footing.

With rain forecasted for Saturday likely leading to a turf course with moisture on Sunday, Stidham said the 5-year-old should relish a less-than-firm course after showing proficiency over moist conditions in a third-out graduation over soft Tipperary turf in August 2021 and a game runner-up effort beaten 1 1/4 lengths in the Vincent O’Brien Ruby last August over yielding Killarney green.

“She ran well over in Ireland and then Arnaud had her. After we got her, she needed some time and this race has come up a good spot for her,” said Stidham. “The mile for her is probably her best distance. A little bit of a softer turf and a mile should really be exactly what she wants to do.” 

Kendrick Carmouche will ride from post 3 on Sunday with the Noble Damsel slated as Race 7 on the nine-race card. First post is 12:35 p.m. Eastern.

Stidham also provided an update on Godolphin’s multiple graded stakes-winning Kentucky homebred Proxy, who was last seen finishing second a nose behind Bright Future in the Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup on September 2 at Saratoga Race Course. The 5-year-old son of Tapit has since worked twice at Fair Hill, most recently covering a bullet five furlongs in 1:00.40 on September 28.

Stidham said Proxy has moved to Keeneland to make his final preparations for a trip to the 10-furlong Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Classic on November 4 at Santa Anita, where he returns to the site of his game runner-up effort going the Classic distance in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap in March.

“His breezes have been great and here’s here with us at Keeneland,” said Stidham. “He’ll stay here for a bit and then head out to Santa Anita. That was a tough beat in the Jockey Club, but he ran great and a mile and a quarter is really what he wants to do. He’s already run once at Santa Anita and ran well when second in the Santa Anita Handicap. We are excited to go out there and be in there with a horse who we think has a really good chance.”

Proxy, who notched his first Grade 1 score in the Clark last November at Churchill Downs, boasts a record of 19-6-7-2 and earnings of $2,224,970. He is out of the multiple graded stakes-winning Include mare Panty Raid and is a half-brother to graded stakes-winner Micheline.

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Venti Valentine bound for $250K Empire Distaff

Following a fifth career stakes conquest in Monday’s Jack Betta Be Rite at Finger Lakes, NY Final Furlong Racing Stable and Parkland Thoroughbreds’ New York-bred Venti Valentine will now shift her focus to the $250,000 Empire Distaff going nine furlongs on October 29 at Belmont at the Big A.

Venti Valentine, a 4-year-old chestnut Firing Line filly, was a much-the-best winner of the 1 1/16-mile stakes when powering home a 7 3/4-length winner under jockey Dylan Davis. The triumph came following a redeeming score in the Johnstone Mile Handicap on August 9 at Saratoga Race Course, which was her third start of the year after two distant efforts.

Her last out triumph provided the talented Venti Valentine with at least one stakes triumph at all four racetracks in the Empire State. She additionally captured the Maid of the Mist in October 2021 at Belmont Park as well as Aqueduct’s open company Busher Invitational last March and state-bred Bay Ridge in December. She also earned graded black type when a close second in last April’s Grade 3 Gazelle at the Big A.

“The race we’re aiming for is at the end of October and I didn’t want to just sit on her for two and a half months,” Abreu said. “So, I told the owners about the stake at Finger Lakes. Even if we finished second, I wanted to have another race in her. She really did well up there, which she was supposed to.”

Bred in New York by NY Final Furlong Racing Stable and Maspeth Stable, Venti Valentine is a half-sister to four-time stakes-winning New York-bred Espresso Shot who captured stakes at ages two, three, four and five. Both are out of the Medaglia d’Oro mare Glory Gold. Venti Valentine has banked $647,600 through a lifetime record of 14-6-2-2.

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Belmont at the Big A week 5 stakes probables

Saturday, October 14

G2 Sands Point

Probable: Alpha Bella (Todd Pletcher), Be Your Best (Horacio De Paz), Eternal Hope (Charlie Appleby), Highland Grace (Barclay Tagg), Leave No Trace (Phil Serpe), Neecie Marie (Butch Reid, Jr.), Quarrel (Robert Ribaudo), Root Cause (Chad Brown), Soviet Excess (Pletcher), Stephanie’s Charm (Jose Jimenez), Thirty Thou Kelvin (John Terranova)

Possible: Mission of Joy (Graham Motion), Silver Skillet (Christophe Clement)

$125K Floral Park

Probable: Bubble Rock (Brad Cox), Can’t Buy Love (Michael Trombetta), Opening Buzz (Jeff Engler), Salvaje (Dimitrios Synnefias), Shoshanah (Kyle Horlacher)

Sunday, October 15

G3 Knickerbocker

Probable: Commandeer (James Toner), Highestdistinction (Lindsay Schultz), Kingmax (Jorge Delgado), Master Piece (Rick Dutrow, Jr.), Rockemperor (Brown), Siege of Boston (Toner), St Anthony (Neil Drysdale)

Possible: Fort Washington (Shug McGaughey), Wow Whata Summer (James Lawrence, II)

$125K Glen Cove

Probable: American Apple (Daniel Leitch), Danse Macabre (Kelsey Danner), Lady Beth (Brown), My Sweet Affair (George Weaver), Personal Pursuit (Mark Casse), Ticker Tape Home (Casse), Weekend Rags (Jorge Abreu)