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Donegal Momentum now in turf stakes company for $135K Gio Ponti

by Christian Abdo

Donegal Racing’s Donegal Momentum made a successful surface change last-out and will now step up for a grass stakes attempt in Thursday’s $135,000 Gio Ponti, a one-mile inner turf test for sophomores, at Belmont at the Big A.

Trained by Tom Morley, the Uncle Mo dark bay posted an eye-catching 8 1/4-length graduation when sprinting six furlongs on the main track in his May 16 debut here, earning a 92 Beyer Speed Figure for the performance.

Donegal Momentum [post 9, Javier Castellano] raced on dirt in his next two outings, finishing a half-length second in a local one-turn mile allowance versus elders on June 27 ahead of a distant fourth in the 6 1/2-furlong Grade 2 Amsterdam on July 26 at Saratoga Race Course.

Trying the turf for the first time in his most recent start, Donegal Momentum rallied from 3 1/2 lengths back in fourth position to win an optional-claimer by a nose over Green Light on August 24 at the Spa.

“I thought it was excellent, to be honest. He sat off a slow pace against some good horses, and was good enough to quicken up smartly. Then he got his back end knocked out from under him twice in the lane, but was still good enough to get up and win,” Morley said. “I’m hoping for a clean trip and we’ll find out if he is this caliber on grass.”

Morley said that the overflow field will be a good test of Donegal Momentum’s talent.

“It is going to be a very contentious race,” said Morley. “He is obviously a colt with a lot of ability and we are very much looking forward to Thursday.

“The Amsterdam was a very fast race and he was stuck down inside,” Morley continued. “It was probably not where you wanted to be that day. He’s run two very good races on dirt and one on turf. He is a colt with a lot of ability and we are hoping for a good trip to find out how good he is.”

Out of the stakes-placed Malibu Moon mare Moon Dash, Donegal Momentum was a $375,000 purchase at the 2022 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

Chiefswood Stables' Ontario-homebred Piper's Factor [post 3, Jose Lezcano] sports a 10-3-2-0 record that includes a close runner-up effort in the Grade 3 Grey in November at Woodbine.

Trained by Katerina Vassilieva, Piper’s Factor finished fifth in the 1 1/16-mile Grade 3 Marine in June and a prominent fourth two starts back in the nine-furlong Plate Trial on July 20 while on the King’s Plate trail at his Woodbine base.

Last out, Vassilieva opted to try Piper’s Factor on turf for the first time in the one-mile Listed Toronto Cup on August 31, contested over yielding footing, while facing the Travis Kelce part-owned Swift Delivery.

Piper’s Factor, with Sofia Vives up, tracked from fourth position through the opening half-mile before advancing three wide to take command at the head of the lane. He stayed on strong to the wire despite not switching leads and drifting to the rail to score by 1 3/4-lengths over Swift Delivery in a final time of 1:36.09. The winning effort registered a career-best 88 Beyer.

"This horse won the stakes last time, upsetting all the Swifties. Sorry about that," said Vassilieva, with a laugh. "All the talk the week prior to the race was Taylor Swift's boyfriend's horse is running and Woodbine was hyping it up - as they should - for the press, and my horse goes and pulls the upset. I'm still a big Taylor Swift fan, so I hope they don't hate me."

Vassilieva noted that Piper’s Factor may have been distracted in the stretch run while making the lead over the E. P. Taylor Turf Course, which is located outside the main Tapeta track and closest to the grandstand.

"I find when a horse is running on that turf course, especially for the first time, they can be looking at the grandstand and the crowd," Vassilieva said. "I think that's what it was with him and that's probably why he didn't switch leads, but it didn't seem to matter - he finished strongly regardless, even on the wrong lead, and it was a good enough effort to win it.

"He's a good horse and he always tries, but it was his first time on turf so there were a lot of questions about how it would play out," Vassilieva added. "It was also Sofia's first time riding him - she's been aboard in the mornings, but had never been on him for a race. The turf was a little bit soft that day and he handled everything perfectly - grass is maybe where he's wanted to be all along."

Vassilieva picked up her lone win in New York when Jose Lezcano guided Humorus Dilemma to victory in a May 2014 optional-claimer at Belmont Park. The duo will reunite Thursday when Lezcano guides Piper's Factor from post 3.

"It was my one and only start at Belmont and Jose Lezcano rode for me that day. It's been a long time, so I'm excited to have a chance to go back to New York," Vassilieva said.

Piper’s Factor worked back five-eighths in 1:01.20 Thursday over the Woodbine Tapeta.

"He's come out of that race in really good order,” Vassilieva said. “He had a nice work going five eighths on the Tapeta here yesterday. He did that well in-hand and very happily. He's kept his fitness and his condition since the last race and I'm really happy with him going into this next race."

Piper’s Factor is out of the multiple stakes-placed Niigon mare Pipers Future, who is a half-sister to stakes winner Pipers Thunder.

Winning Move Stable’s Yo Daddy [post 8, Irad Ortiz, Jr.] enters from a second in the 1 1/16-mile Grade 3 Saranac on August 30 at Saratoga. Trained by Linda Rice, the Yoshida bay was in fourth position at the stretch call and altered course inside the final eighth due to the injury of The Big Torpedo and subsequent fall of returning foe Take Me To Church.

Previously, Yo Daddy earned a pair of 90 Beyers for two starter allowance wins on the Spa main track after a duo of seconds on turf, including a rally from 11th-of-12 after being rank early to finish a neck back of Victors Valiant going nine furlongs during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at Saratoga.

“He ran credibly,” Rice said of the Saranac. “I think that his race during the Belmont festival at Saratoga was a very troubled trip but a great effort on the grass. Frankly, I think he might be better at one mile and an eighth, but you have to play the cards you are dealt.”

Yo Daddy was claimed for $50,000 out of a winning effort in April on the Keeneland main track. He is out of the winning Tale of the Cat mare Elle Stormin’.

Hall of Famer Bill Mott will saddle Besilu Stables’ graded stakes-placed homebred Royal Majesty [post 10, Junior Alvarado], who gets class relief after fourths at the Grade 1 level traveling 1 3/16 miles, including in the local Belmont Derby in July and Saratoga Derby Invitational in August.

Prior to the top-level tries, the Frankel bay was a 1 1/4-length third in the nine-furlong Grade 2 Pennine Ridge in May here. His lone other stakes attempt was a closing fifth in the one-mile Listed Colonel Liam in March at Gulfstream Park.

Gary Barber’s graded stakes-placed In a Jam [post 5, Dylan Davis] enters from a fourth in the one-mile Gun Runner on September 8 at Kentucky Downs. Trained by Hall of Famer Mark Casse, the Preservationist gray earned an 85 Beyer in the rallying 2 1/4-length defeat to Brilliant Berti.

In a Jam was third at the same distance in the Grade 2 Secretariat on August 11 at Colonial Downs. In a Jam is the most experienced of the field, boasting a record of 15-3-3-4 with $330,441 in earnings, including a win in the off-the-turf Not Surprising on June 8 at Gulfstream Park.

Gold Square, Joseph Hardoon, and trainer Jose D'Angelo’s stakes-winner Full Nelson [post 7, Manny Franco] had a four-race win streak broken when off-the-board in the 1 1/16-mile Grade 3 Transylvania on April 5 at Keeneland. The Lord Nelson bay exited to run second to next-out Grade 1-winner Carson’s Run in the Tale of the Cat going the same distance on June 23 at Monmouth Park.

Rounding out the field are two-time winner Ruddy Buddy [post 1, Mario Fuentes] for trainer Robert Werneth; three-time victor Take Me To Church [post 2, John Velazquez] for dual Eclipse Award-winner Brad Cox; Grade 3-placed The Process [post 4, Jorge Ruiz] for trainer Cherie DeVaux; and stakes-placed Palm Tree [post 6, Frankie Dettori] for conditioner Brendan Walsh.

Vesting, Mission North, and Main Beach are listed as also-eligible. Silver Satin is entered for the main track-only.

The Gio Ponti is slated as Race 7 on Thursday’s eight-race card. First post is 12:40 p.m. Eastern.

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