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NY Final Furlong Racing Stable in familiar territory with G3 Gazelle favorite Venti Valentine

by NYRA Press Office

• NY Final Furlong Racing Stable in familiar territory with G3 Gazelle favorite Venti Valentine
• Speaker’s Corner faces his biggest challenge yet in G1 Carter Handicap presented by NYRA Bets
• Ferraro sends out Easy to Bless and Sanctuary City in Saturday stakes
• Doctor Jeff likely to scratch from G3 Bay Shore, point to allowance
• Wood Memorial Day coverage to air on FS2, NBC
• Aqueduct Racetrack Week 3 stakes probables

NY Final Furlong Racing Stable and Parkland Thoroughbreds are feeling a sense of déjà vu as Venti Valentine attempts to validate herself amongst a strong 3-year-old filly division in Saturday’s Grade 3, $250,000 Gazelle at Aqueduct Racetrack. Venti Valentine is listed as the 7-5 morning-line favorite in the nine-furlong Gazelle which offers 100-40-20-10 Kentucky Oaks qualifying points to the top-four finishers.

Venti Valentine, by Firing Line, enters from a seven-length score in the Busher Invitational, earning a career-best 92 Beyer Speed Figure for the one-turn mile on March 5 at the Big A for trainer Jorge Abreu. 

The ownership group was in a similar situation three years ago when Venti Valentine’s half-sister Espresso Shot, by Mission Impazible, captured the 2019 Busher and was made the post-time favorite for that year’s Gazelle, finishing fifth. 

Dan Zanatta, co-founder of NY Final Furlong Racing Stable, expressed no concern with Venti Valentine’s distance capabilities, noting her strong runner-up effort in the nine-furlong Grade 2 Demoiselle at the Big A in December, which was her only defeat in four lifetime starts. 

“I think it’s even more exciting. People feel that Venti Valentine has more runway, is a higher class filly, and she’s done more so far in her career,” Zanatta said. “Going into the Gazelle with Espresso Shot a few years ago, the two turns was a question mark. With Venti Valentine, she’s already proven around two turns and she ran a good race almost winning the Demoiselle back in December. She likes the trip and she likes the course. That’s not a concern.”

Venti Valentine is currently eighth on the Kentucky Oaks leaderboard with 54 points. Prior to her strong pair of open company starts on the Oaks trail, Venti Valentine bested her New York-bred counterparts twice at Belmont Park. After a late closing debut win in September, she brought winning form to a sloppy and sealed edition of the Maid of the Mist one month later. 

Both the Busher and Gazelle were penciled in for Venti Valentine following her Demoiselle effort. She was sent to Palm Meadows Training Center in South Florida after the Demoiselle and resumed training at the beginning of the year before shipping back up to New York in late February. 

Zanatta said the filly was not completely cranked for the astonishing Busher effort.

“We always thought we had her 80-85 percent fit for that race,” Zanatta said. “She was coming off a layoff and we had her down in Florida. We trained her purposefully going into the Busher, but we didn’t think she was fully cranked up. We liked the position we were in going in and we thought she would improve from two-to-three the right way, but we didn’t think she would demolish the field the way that she did.”

While Venti Valentine is almost guaranteed a spot in the starting gate for the Kentucky Oaks, Zanatta said they had considered skipping the Gazelle and training up to the “lilies for the fillies.” 

“We thought we had enough points but she’s doing so well right now that she has to run,” Zanatta said. “It’s been five weeks and she’s really fresh so we’re in a good position. She’s in perfect form, her coat is great, she acts like she has a lot of energy so we’re in a great spot going into Saturday.”

Zanatta said Venti Valentine, who will break from post 5 under Manny Franco in the eight-horse Gazelle field, should have pace to chase Saturday.  

“We have a great post, we’re perfectly spotted and on paper, it looks like it sets up well for us with some speed to the inside,” Zanatta said. “Sometimes, the Gazelle can be a paceless race, but hopefully that’s not the case on Saturday.”

Zanatta said most of the NY Final Furlong Racing Stable syndicate partners involved with Espresso Shot are back aboard with Venti Valentine.

“It’s pretty much the same partners except for two people,” Zanatta said. “Hopefully this isn’t a question mark and it’s just the next step in the process. Everyone’s flights, hotels and tickets are booked for Kentucky. We hope she continues to progress, makes a good showing on Saturday and it’s on to Churchill.” 

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Speaker’s Corner faces his biggest challenge yet in G1 Carter Handicap presented by NYRA Bets

Godolphin’s Speaker’s Corner has kicked off his 4-year-old campaign the right way with two graded stakes victories at Gulfstream Park. But he’ll have his work cut out for him when contesting a salty group of older horses in Saturday’s seven-furlong Grade 1, $300,000 Carter Handicap presented by NYRA Bets at Aqueduct Racetrack. 

Trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, Speaker’s Corner enters off a pair of wins going a one-turn mile. Following a gate-to-wire triumph in the Grade 3 Fred W. Hooper on January 29, the bay son of Street Sense displayed frontrunning tactics once more in the Grade 2 Gulfstream Park Mile on March 5. In both starts, he defeated Fearless, who came back to win the Grade 3 Ghostzapper at the South Florida oval by six lengths. 

Speaker’s Corner, who will exit the outermost post 8 under Junior Alvarado, will have to pass a rigorous test in the Carter, where all but one of the entrants will arrive off a victory. The field includes last out stakes winners Green Light Go, Mind Control, Bank On Shea and Drafted, as well as First Captain and Reinvestment Risk whose recent coups came at allowance level. 

“They don’t give Grade 1s away,” said Godolphin bloodstock director Michael Banahan. “It’ll be a challenge. He’s dropping back in distance, and he has the widest draw in the field. But we’re happy with him. He’s in great shape and he had a great work down at Payson Park last week. We’re excited to have him there and looking forward to seeing if he can step up to the Grade 1 level.”

The Carter will be a second start at Grade 1 level for Speaker’s Corner. A sharp triumph in his sophomore debut in August at Saratoga Race Course prompted his connections to try the Grade 1 Pennsylvania Derby, where he finished a distant sixth in his two-turn debut. He cut back to one turn for a 1 1/16-mile second-level optional claimer at Belmont, winning by 6 3/4 lengths and registering a career-best 109 Beyer Speed Figure – one of five triple digit numbers recorded by the talented colt. 

His following effort in the two-turn Discovery at Aqueduct, where he finished a pacesetting second, encouraged his connections to stick to one-turn races for his 4-year-old campaign.

Banahan said it’s possible Speaker’s Corner could be in close stalking range, as he was in his maiden victory in October 2020 and his triumph against winners at Saratoga the following August. 

“When you drop back in distance, maybe things will be a little different than what he had to do his last couple of races,” Banahan said. “He could drop back in behind a few horses. Junior has confidence in the horse, he’s ridden him more times than anyone else. We’ll just have to see what happens and where the speed comes from. He should be fine, but Junior will have to play the break.”

Godolphin also will be represented by Mott-trained Nostalgic in the Grade 3, $300,000 Gazelle, the final local qualifier for the Kentucky Oaks. 

The daughter of Medaglia d’Oro finished fourth in the Grade 2 Demoiselle in December at Aqueduct after a 7 3/4-length maiden victory at Belmont, where she registered a 48 Beyer. 

Banahan said he was not discouraged by the effort.

“We were perplexed by that number, but I’m more visual than number driven,” Banahan said. “When we ran her back in the Demoiselle, she ran OK and finished up OK, but she was a little too far out of it. She maybe needed to be a little closer to the pace that day.”

Nostalgic breezed once over the turf while wintering at Payson Park in Florida, subsequently finishing ninth in the Grade 3 Sweetest Chant on February 5 over the Gulfstream Park green. She found the winner’s circle next out when beating winners over the Gulfstream main track by 6 3/4 lengths. 

“She worked well on the grass but was disappointing in the Sweetest Chant. She showed us she didn’t like the turf, even if she worked well over it,” Banahan said. “I do think she likes the distance and we like our spot in here.”

Nostalgic will be ridden by Jose Ortiz, the pilot in both of her wins, from post 3. 

On Sunday, Godolphin has entered Frost Point for her stakes debut in the $100,000 Top Flight Invitational. 

The 4-year-old daughter of Frosted, out of Grade 1-winner Balletto, defeated winners at Laurel Park in her 2022 debut before finishing second in an allowance optional claimer at Aqueduct in February for Mott. 

“Balletto was a nice filly. She’s produced a nice horse in Villanesca who was Grade 1-placed,” Banahan said. “This filly has continued to improve in her races and we’re looking forward to stretching her out. We’re hoping she can get a stakes placing, that’s our first goal with her for the year.” 

Manny Franco will pilot Frost Point for the first time from post 3 in the six-horse field. 

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Ferraro sends out Easy to Bless and Sanctuary City in Saturday stakes

Veteran conditioner Jimmy Ferraro will be represented by a pair of stakes contenders on Saturday's lucrative Wood Memorial card in Easy to Bless in the Grade 3, $150,000 Distaff Handicap and Sanctuary City in the $100,000 Danger's Hour.

Amsterdam Two Stables' Easy to Bless will step up to graded company for the first time in the Distaff Handicap, a seven-furlong test for older fillies and mares. She enters from an impressive 9 3/4-length score in the Xtra Heat, a 6 1/2-furlong sprint on the March 26 New York Claiming Championship card.

"She performed even better than I expected. I know there wasn't too much quality wise in the race, but she really was 100 percent on her game," Ferraro said. 

The 4-year-old Flat Out dark bay, who has made her last five starts at the Big A, was a seven-length winner of an optional-claiming sprint on February 4 over sloppy and sealed going and followed on February 24 with a fifth-place effort. Her last two victories have garnered matching 90 Beyers.

"She's won two of her last three. I'm not sure what happened in the race in-between, maybe she had an off day," Ferraro said. "She's maturing. She just turned four and we're hoping she's getting better."

Ferraro said the decision to claim Easy to Bless for $40,000 out of a runner-up effort in July at Saratoga was an easier task than winning the shake.

"She likes to win. Any horse that can win eight out of 17 races is a good one. She's a runner," Ferraro said. "Everyone was out there shopping and we ended up winning a 16-way shake for her. The whole race office was filled up with claiming trainers and potential owners."

Ferraro said Easy to Bless, who exits the inside post under returning rider Jacqueline Davis, could be on the lead Saturday.

"The way Jackie was describing her is she don't like to fight with her. Now it's a little farther, so she might be up closer than we anticipate," Ferraro said. "Maybe we'll fall on the lead by default if nobody else wants it. She's training excellent."

Ferraro said he is hopeful Easy to Bless can hold her own in a contentious field of six that includes the 4-year-old debuts of Grade 1-winner Search Results and Grade 2-winner Zaajel, as well as the in-form older mare Glass Ceiling.

"There's a couple in there that were nice 3-year-olds and now they have to transfer their form as a 4-year-old. That's the unknown factor going with older horses," Ferraro said. 

Edward J. Messina and William J. Butler's multiple stakes placed New York-homebred Sanctuary City will make his 5-year-old debut in the Danger's Hour, a one-mile inner turf test for older horses.

The Temple City bay won the first two starts of a productive 2021 campaign in which he posted a record of 8-2-1-2 for purse earnings of $179,245. He kicked off his 4-year-old season with a rallying 1 3/4-length score in a six-furlong state-bred optional-claimer in April 2021 and followed one month later with a half-length score in an open one-mile optional-claimer.

Ferraro noted Sanctuary City, who graduated at third asking in his sophomore debut in July 2020 at Belmont, has a penchant for firing fresh.

"Two years in a row he won first time out off a layoff. This is probably the toughest spot he's tried to accomplish that in. He broke his maiden off a layoff and won first time out last year off a layoff," Ferraro said. "He's been training steady, nothing spectacular. I don't think he's a fan of the training track, it's kind of heavy for him."

Ferraro said Sanctuary City has matured and carrying good flesh for his seasonal debut.

"Physically, you can see he's filled out more. His neck is stronger. That's one of the benefits of not gelding him, he has that natural testosterone," Ferraro said.

Sanctuary City has won at distances ranging from six furlongs to 1 1/16-miles and concluded last year's campaign with a seventh-place finish - defeated four lengths - in the 11-furlong Grade 3 Red Smith on November 20 at the Big A, just two weeks after a runner-up effort in the 1 1/16-mile Mohawk against fellow state-breds at Belmont.

"It seems like he can handle any distance. He's won at three-quarters, he's won going long. The Temple Citys can run all day," Ferraro said. "Last time we ran him, towards the end of the turf season, we tried to squeeze one more race into him. He maybe ran back quick but it still wasn't a bad outing even though he didn’t hit the board."

Ruben Silvera retains the mount from the outermost post 8 in a field led by the graded-stakes winning New York-bred Rinaldi and multiple graded stakes placed Value Proposition.

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Doctor Jeff likely to scratch from G3 Bay Shore, point to allowance

Michael Dubb and Michael Caruso’s Doctor Jeff, who is entered in Saturday’s Grade 3, $200,000 Bay Shore for sophomores sprinting seven furlongs at Aqueduct Racetrack, will likely scratch in favor of an allowance race next week over the Big A outer turf.

“The owners wanted to nominate and enter him, and yesterday they were between yes and no,” said trainer Rudy Rodriguez. “The race came up pretty tough, so we are looking to enter him in an allowance on Friday.” 

Doctor Jeff has been away from the races since a professional three-length win over the Aqueduct inner turf in the six-furlong Atlantic Beach in November, leading at every point of call and finishing in hand under jockey Jose Lezcano to earn his first stakes victory in four lifetime starts. 

The son of Street Boss was a debut winner sprinting six furlongs on the dirt at Belmont Park where he recovered from a bump at the break and coasted home 2 1/4 lengths the best. He made the step up to graded company for his first start against winners in the Grade 2 Saratoga Special, finishing fifth behind High Oak and subsequent Grade 1 winner Gunite. 

The 3-year-old chestnut made his first start over the grass in the Grade 2 Pilgrim over the Belmont inner turf, stretching out to 1 1/16 miles and never firing to finish last of four in the start prior to his Atlantic Beach victory. 

Doctor Jeff returned to Rodriguez’s barn in February and has posted a series of works over the Belmont dirt training track, most recently breezing a half-mile in 49.81 seconds on April 3. 

“He’s been doing very good and training good,” Rodriguez said. “We do think he’s a grass horse, but there weren’t a lot of options going three-quarters on the grass for 3-year-olds so that’s why we entered [in the Bay Shore].” 

Out of the stakes-placed Wild Rush mare Wild Bea, Doctor Jeff is a half-brother to multiple stakes winner Flattering Bea and Grade 2-placed Queen of Beas. 

Rodriguez said Grade 1 Longines Test winner Bella Sofia continues to train well since returning in March from a winter vacation. She was last seen finishing fourth in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint at Del Mar in November. 

“She seems very comfortable and so we’ll take it day by day,” Rodriguez said. “It’s easy to map it out, but I try to let the horse tell me. It’s good to plan, but sometimes things change. We’ll try to get her going again in a race in May at Belmont.”  

Wood Memorial Day coverage to air on FS2, NBC

America's Day at the Races, the acclaimed national telecast produced by the New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) in partnership with FOX Sports, will present extensive coverage of Wood Memorial Day on Saturday from Aqueduct Racetrack. 

Presented by America’s Best Racing, Claiborne Farm and Runhappy, America’s Day at the Races will air 5.5 hours of national television coverage of Aqueduct’s signature day on FS2 beginning at 1 p.m. Eastern. The broadcast will include five stakes headlined by the Grade 1, $300,000 Carter Handicap presented by NYRA Bets. Post time for the Carter Handicap is approximately 5:20 p.m.

The 97th running of the Grade 2, $750,000 Wood Memorial presented by Resorts World Casino will air on NBC as part of a live broadcast beginning at 4:30 p.m. Eastern. Post time for the Wood Memorial is approximately 4:45 p.m.

Broadcast schedule for America's Day at the Races (all times Eastern): 

Saturday, April 9

Network: FS2

Schedule: 1-4:30 p.m. & 5-7 p.m.

The Wood Memorial: 4:45 p.m. on NBC

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Aqueduct Racetrack, and the best way to bet every race of the spring meet. Available to horse players nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.

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Aqueduct Racetrack Week 3 stakes probables

Saturday, April 16, 2022

$100K Plenty of Grace

Probables: Alms (Michael Stidham), Flower Point (Shug McGaughey), Giacosa (H. James Bond), Plum Ali (Christophe Clement), Runaway Rumour (Jorge Abreu), Technical Analysis (Chad Brown)