Belmont Park Notes 9.16.16
by NYRA Press Office
- McLaughlin likely to have two in G1 JCGC, Tamarkuz takes aim at G2 Kelso
- On Leave ready to roll in G2 Sands Point
- Oscar Performance readies for stakes debut in G3 Pilgrim
- Gyarmati gearing up with Super Saturday entrants
Essafinaat's Mubtaahij is back training at Belmont as the Grade 1
Woodward runner-up prepares for his next start in the Grade 1, $1 million
Jockey Club Gold Cup Invitational on October 8 in the second of two "Super
Saturdays" as part of the Belmont Fall Meet, trainer Kiaran McLaughlin
said Friday.
McLaughlin noted that Watershed, third in the Grade 3 Philip H. Iselin
on August 27 at Monmouth Park, is also under heavy consideration for the Gold
Cup, which carries an automatic entry to the Breeders' Cup Classic to the
winner.
"It's a step up for him, he was third at Monmouth but we think he's that
type so we're going to try him," he said.
Tamarkuz is being pointed towards the Grade 2, $350,000 Kelso Handicap.
The Grade 1 Priority One Jets Forego runner-up will again have the services of
Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith, who piloted the Shadwell Stables' 6-year-old to
his best finish in a graded stakes start when he finished 2 ¼-lengths ahead of
third-place Stallwalkin' Dude last out.
At one mile on the main track, the Kelso represents a chance for Tamarkuz to
register his first victory in the United States. He finished fourth in the 2015
edition of the Kelso.
"A mile is his best distance, so we're happy Mike Smith is coming in to
ride," McLaughlin said. "He ran super in the Forego and we think he's
going to be tough in this one."
Staring her summer with an allowance victory at Saratoga before finishing third
in the Grade 2 Ballston Spa, 4-year-old Sentiero Italia will next point
to the Grade 1 $500,000 Flower Bowl, reported McLaughlin.
The 4-year-old Medaglia d'Oro filly breezed four furlongs over the Tapeta
footing at Greentree Training Center in Saratoga Friday morning, covering the
distance in 48.60 seconds.
"She came out of the Ballston Spa well and she ran a big race," said
McLaughlin. "Turning for home in the late stretch she hooked up with Lady
Eli and held her own before Mark [Hennig's] filly [Strike Charmer] passed us
but it was an encouraging effort. We'll look for her to move forward off of it;
hopefully she'll perform well."
Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap and Whitney hero Frosted is unlikely to
have a race this fall and instead run fresh in the Breeders' Cup on November
4-5, McLaughlin said.
Possessing all-fees-paid berths into both the Breeders' Cup Mile and the
Breeders' Cup Classic, the Tapit colt would have a nine-week break following
his third-place finish in the Grade 1 Woodward on September 3 before the
year-end championships at Santa Anita.
"I just got back from Kentucky and I spoke to [Godolphin Racing's] John
Ferguson and Jimmy Bell and Frosted will most likely wait until the Breeders'
Cup but it's not completely confirmed," he said. "And whether it's
the Mile or the Classic, we still haven't decided."
* * *
On Leave
is primed and ready to carry the family torch into the winner's circle on
Saturday as she vies for victory in her graded stakes debut in the Grade 2,
$500,000 Sands Point at 1 1/8 miles on the inner turf at Belmont Park.
A homebred filly by Stuart Janney III, the 3-year-old filly by War Front is out
of Meghan's Joy, who, to date, has already produced four graded stakes winners
including 2015 Grade 2 Bernard Baruch winner and 2016 Grade 1 Manhattan
runner-up Ironicus.
On Leave is undefeated in three starts this year for Hall of Fame trainer Shug
McGaughey, first posting a two-length maiden-breaking win in June and returning
with a victory against optional claimers the following month.
The gray filly delivered as the 9-5 favorite in her stakes debut in the
Riskaverse at Saratoga, where, despite encountering early trouble, she went on
to draw clear by 2 ½ lengths under Jose Ortiz on August 25.
"She overcame a bad start and had some problems going into the first turn
but Jose said when he got clear at the three-eighths pole, he knew he was
sitting on a winner," said McGaughey of the Riskaverse. "She's done
well off of that race. When I ran her, I didn't know if I was going to run her
back yet but she came out of it good and she's trained good.
"Everything with her has been a progression and tomorrow's another
progression, so we'll see what she does there," he added. "We're
going to go a little further, which shouldn't be a problem, but we'll learn a
little more about her."
Meanwhile, her big brother, the 5-year-old Ironicus, continues to gear
up for a return to the races following his runner-up finish to turf star
Flintshire in Manhattan on June 11, recording his first local work last Sunday,
a half-mile move on the main track in 48.25 seconds.
"He's doing great," said McGaughey. "Since I've started working
him back, he's been really, really good. He worked last weekend really well and
he'll work again this weekend. We'll point him at the Shadwell Mile [on October
8] at Keeneland and hopefully we'll make it."
* * *
Oscar Performance is expected to make his stakes debut in the Grade 3, $200,000
Pilgrim for 2-year-olds on October 1, trainer Brian Lynch said on Friday
morning. The Amerman Racing homebred broke his maiden August 20 at Saratoga
Race Course, winning by 10 ¼ lengths over 1 1/16 miles on the inner turf.
The Kitten's Joy bay colt will look to find success at the same distance in the
Pilgrim in his Belmont Park debut. Oscar Performance went four furlongs in
51.66 seconds on turf Sunday in his first breeze at Belmont and is expected to
work again this weekend.
"We just gave him an easy work and let him stretch his legs here,"
Lynch said. "We're looking forward to the next works where we'll just
tighten the screws. He seems like he's matured and it's always exciting when
you have young talent in the barn taking you forward."
Bureau de Change is on point for the Grade 3, $200,000 Noble Damsel on
September 24. The 5-year-old bay mare will be making her sixth straight graded
stakes start in seeking her first stakes victory.
"She's a hard-knocking filly, so we're going to give her a try,"
Lynch said. "I feel like she's a Grade 3-type of filly and on a good day,
you can win one with her."
A fellow Amerman Racing homebred, Bureau de Change breezed five furlongs in
1:02.55 on Belmont's main track on Wednesday. Her best stakes performance was a
third-place showing in the Grade 3 Eatontown on June 25 at Monmouth Park before
finishing fourth last out in the Grade 3 WinStar Matchmaker on July 31.
"She's
in good order and we're excited about it," Lynch said.
* * *
Earning her first stakes win in just her third career start in the P.G. Johnson
stakes on September 1 at Saratoga, trainer Leah Gyarmati reported that juvenile
filly Coasted will next point to the Grade 3, $200,000 Miss Grillo on
October 2.
Gyarmati has been impressed with the Tizway filly's continued development for
Treadway Racing Stable.
"She's doing great and came out of that race good," said Gyarmati.
"She's training away like she did before so we're excited to see how she
comes back and runs again against graded stakes competition."
Wonder Gal, who returned off a nearly seven-month layoff to win an
allowance race on September 2 will once again try graded stakes competition in
the Grade 2, $300,000 Gallant Bloom on October 1, Gyarmati said.
A 4-year-old New York-bred daughter of Tiz Wonderful, Wonder Gal has notched
two stakes victories against state-breds but has come up winless against graded
company, where she boasts two seconds and four thirds from nine starts.
"She ran huge in her last race," said Gyarmati. "That was really
the race I wanted to come back in and it worked out well. Obviously, she's held
her own against New York-breds. Due to a series of issues and tough trips she
hasn't maintained that top level in graded stakes company and she's run against
some great fillies, so we'll give a try one more time and see how it
goes."
Lastly, Gyarmati reported that 3-year-old Adventist, who was briefly on
the Kentucky Derby trail earlier this year and finished seventh in the Grade 2
West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Racetrack in August, is on pace to resume
training after recovering from a lung infection the Any Given Saturday colt
contracted over the summer.
"We're not sure what we're going to do with him yet, but he's doing
okay," added Gyarmati. "He caught a little virus at the tail end of
Saratoga and we're just getting back to starting training him again."