Belmont Park Notes 6.24.17
by NYRA Press Office
Multiple Grade 1 winner Mind Your Biscuits emerged from Friday's bullet breeze in good shape as he nears his stateside return in the Grade 2, $350,000 Belmont Sprint Championship during the Stars & Stripes Festival on July 8, trainer Chad Summers reported Saturday morning.
A three-length winner of the Group 1 Dubai Golden Shaheen at Meydan Racecourse
last time out on March 25, Mind Your Biscuits covered five furlongs on the
Belmont Park main track in 58.19 seconds under regular jockey Joel Rosario, the
fastest of 10 at the distance. NYRA clockers caught the 4-year-old New
York-bred through a quarter-mile in 22 seconds and a half in 45 2/5.
"[It was] a little bit faster than we were looking for, but he did it the
right way," said Summers. "It was about as easy a 58 as there'll ever
be. He galloped out 1:11. It was a good, fine dress rehearsal for what's going
to come July 8. He's in the best form of his life. He came out of Dubai great.
The time off was good for him. He's raring to go.
"When they work that fast you always have to be a little bit
cautious," he added. "I came back to the barn about 9:45 last night
just to make sure that the feed tub was empty and it was, and he walked good
this morning. We're very excited about where we're at."
The breeze was the fourth for Mind Your Biscuits since settling into Summer's
Belmont base in early May following a brief freshening at Taylor Made Farm in
Kentucky. During his sophomore campaign last year, the chestnut son of Posse
hit the board in eight of his nine starts, including victories in the Grade 2
Amsterdam at Saratoga Race Course and Grade 1 Malibu at Santa Anita Park, as
well as a second-place finish in the Breeders' Cup Sprint.
"The biggest thing with him lately is his maturity," Summer said.
"When he was a 2-year-old, he was very playful. Well, he still is, but he
was a handful at 2, 3, until maybe after the Malibu, then he kind of settled
down a little bit. Since he's turned 4, he's been so much more professional.
He's been much easier on himself and on me, thankfully. Before, he used to beat
me up pretty good.
"At the end of the day, we just think he's a remarkable horse," he
added. "He's taken us to remarkable places and we're just excited that the
ride continues. We're looking forward to getting him back to start the second
half of the year."
* * *
Trainer Chad Brown's contingent in the Grade 1, $1 million Belmont Oaks at 1 ¼
miles on the inner turf could feature a blend of American stakes winners and
international horses looking to make a splash in their North American debuts.
Brown said he is planning on saddling four entries for the 39th running of the
Belmont Oaks, which is one of five graded stakes - and the first of two Grade
1s - on the Stars & Stripes Racing Festival card.
E Five Racing Thoroughbreds' New Money Honey, who won the Grade 3 Wonder
Again last out on June 8 at Belmont, will be seeking her second Grade 1 win
after capturing the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf last November in Santa
Anita to cap her 2-year-old campaign. Fifty Five, who ran two lengths
behind her stablemate in a runner-up effort in the Wonder Again, also has a
graded stakes win on her ledger with the Grade 3 Florida Oaks on March 11.
Brown said New Money Honey and Fifty Five are both scheduled to work on Sunday
at Belmont, weather permitting.
Uni, an English-bred stakes winner who went 2-2-1 in her first six
starts in France, will be making her first start since winning at 1 1/8 miles
on May 11 at Maisons-laffitte. The daughter of More Than Ready will be making
her first start at the Belmont Oaks distance.
"I've been impressed; she's come in and trained well and every week she
seems to be improving," Brown said. "The layoff concerns me going a
mile-and-a-quarter. It'll come down to pace and trip, so she'll have to
overcome that. But what I've seen in the mornings, I've been impressed."
Sistercharlie is also slated to make her first start in the United
States in the Belmont Oaks after a runner-up finish in the Group 1 Prix de
Diane, also referred to as the French Oaks. Bred in Ireland, Sistercharlie has
won three times in her five-race career, including a Group 3 win in the Prix
Penelope. Brown said she will likely arrive at Belmont next week.
Multiple graded stakes winner Practical Joke has been training well and
should enter the Grade 3, $400,000 Dwyer on July 8 in good order, Brown said.
The race will be the first for the 3-year-old colt since his fifth-place finish
in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby.
"We're excited to get him back running in the Dwyer," he added.
"Cutting back to a one-turn mile after a freshening seems like the logical
thing to do."
Following the Dwyer, Brown said Practical Joke could be a possibility for
either the Grade 1 Haskell at Monmouth Park or the Grade 2, $600,000 Jim Dandy
on July 29 at Saratoga Race Course.
Ticonderoga is slated to run in the Grade 1, $1.2 million Belmont Derby,
Brown said. Making his first Grade 1 start since a fourth-place showing in the
Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf, Ticonderoga will look to win at 1 ¼ miles on the
inner turf.
"He was unlucky in his last race with the trip he got but he finished well
and he's been training very well since," Brown said about his third-place
finish in the Grade 3 Pennine Ridge on July 3.
Ticonderoga, who won at 1 1/16 miles on the turf in the Grade 3 Palm Beach on
March 4 at Gulfstream Park, broke his maiden on September 10 at Belmont.
* * *
Handicappers have until July 6th to sign up for the Stars & Stripes
Challenge handicapping tournament, which will take place on Saturday, July 8.
There is a $500 buy-in for the contest, with $300 going towards live money
wagers and $200 going to the prize pool, which includes a guaranteed first
place prize of $5,000. Additional prizes include a seat in the 2018 Belmont
Stakes Challenge and two seats to the DRF/NTRA National Handicapping
Championship held in Las Vegas.
Players must wager on at least five races at Belmont Park and a minimum of five
races at Monmouth. Win, Place, Show, Exacta, Quinella, and Trifecta wagering is
allowed in the contest.
For full rules and sign up, please visit NYRA.com/challenge.
* * *
Place your bets, grab a drink and get creative! Tickets are now available for
an equine-themed "Paint & Sip" on Friday, July 7 at Belmont Park.
Held from 5:30 to 7 p.m., the Paint & Sip event will accompany the day's
Party at the Park twilight racing program, with a first post time of 3:05.
Tickets are $60 per person, which includes art supplies, two drink tickets, and
an array of crudités.