NYRA Photo

Stakes-winner Perform turns in final work for G1 Preakness

by NYRA Press Office

• Stakes-winner Perform turns in final work for G1 Preakness
• G1 Manhattan or G2 Belmont Gold Cup are options for evergreen Red Knight
• Candy Man Rocket notches sweet score in G3 Runhappy
• Arcangelo garners 97 BSF for thrilling G3 Peter Pan coup
• Drew’s Gold registers career-best 98BSF in Gold Fever score
• Ward getting in a Saratoga state of mind with several runners

Woodford Racing, Lanes End Farm, Phipps Stable, Ken Langone and Edward J. Hudson, Jr.’s stakes-winner Perform posted his final breeze in preparation for the Grade 1, $1.5 million Preakness Stakes when covering a half-mile in 48.09 seconds over the Belmont Park main track on Sunday.

Trained by Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey, Perform worked just after the renovation break under partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid 60s, completing his exercise to the outside of his maiden workmate Weyhill Road.

McGaughey said the work was just what he hoped to see ahead of the colt’s graded stakes debut.

“I was very pleased with the way he worked and they did exactly what I wanted,” said McGaughey. “I said to let them go in 25 and change [for the first quarter-mile] and let them finish up, and that’s what they did. They galloped out good and I thought they were going along very easy.”

Perform steps up to the graded ranks off a determined victory in the nine-furlong Federico Tesio on April 15 at Laurel Park. Ridden by Feargal Lynch, who will return to ride in the Preakness, Perform stumbled at the break and rallied from as far as 10 lengths off the pace to roll home late and nail Ninetyprcentmaddie at the wire by a head in a final time of 1:52.18. The effort was awarded a career-best 85 Beyer Speed Figure.

“I think he grew up in that race,” said McGaughey. “I’m very pleased with the way he’s doing and I’m excited about going down there to see what happens.”

The son of Good Magic began his career sprinting last year and debuted in a 5 1/2-furlong maiden on July 3 at Belmont where he posted a prominent runner-up effort to next-out stakes-winner Lost Ark. He made three of his next four outings at seven furlongs before graduating at sixth asking in a one-mile and 40-yard maiden at Tampa Bay Downs when making his first start around two turns.

McGaughey said maturity and getting around two turns has made the difference for the improving Perform.

“As a 2-year-old, he didn’t really train that way,” said McGaughey. “I thought he was a sprinter and I ran him on 4th of July weekend where he ran second. I was a little bit disappointed in his races after that. But I think the sprint races helped get him to the long races.”

McGaughey said the extra half-furlong will benefit Perform, who was supplemented to the Preakness for a fee of $150,000.

"I don’t think it will hurt him," McGaughey said.

McGaughey recently celebrated graded success with Courtlandt Farms' General Jim, who earned a 100 Beyer for an impressive win under regular pilot Luis Saez in the Grade 2 Pat Day Mile on May 6 at Churchill Downs. The son of Into Mischief is now a perfect 2-for-2 since adding blinkers, including his first graded triumph with an off-the-pace trip in the Grade 3 Swale on February 4 at Gulfstream Park.

“He came back good and he’s back up here at Belmont,” said McGaughey. “I couldn’t be any more pleased with the way he’s been running. I think the blinkers really helped, and in the Swale, I told Saez to sort of take him back and let him finish, and I think that helps him, too. He’s kind of learning to run by horses instead of hanging on horses. He’s going to learn, and when he does, it’s going to be fun.”

McGaughey said he will now point General Jim to the Grade 1, $400,000 Woody Stephens presented by Mohegan Sun sprinting seven furlongs over Big Sandy on June 10.

The June 10 Belmont Stakes Day Card could also see the McGaughey-trained Dreams of Tomorrow contest the Grade 3, $200,000 Poker at one-mile on the turf after posting a tidy two-length victory in a third-level allowance Thursday at Belmont. The 6-year-old Speightstown bay made his second start of the year a winning one after pouncing from just off the pace under Manny Franco. The performance garnered a 94 Beyer.

“He came back great,” said McGaughey. “He went back to the track today and galloped a mile. I think everything is good with him. His talent has always been there, it just needs to come together. Watching him the other day, maybe a mile to a mile and a sixteenth is really what he wants to do. Manny rode him great and in the right position.”

McGaughey added that Grade 3 La Prevoyante-winner Personal Best is spending time at Fair Hill in light training and will target a return this summer at Saratoga Race Course with the Grade 2, $250,000 Glens Falls on August 3 as a potential landing spot. The daughter of Tapit was last seen finishing third in the Grade 3 Bewitch on April 28 at Keeneland.

***

G1 Manhattan or G2 Belmont Gold Cup are options for evergreen Red Knight

At 9-years-young, seasoned veteran Red Knight earned his first Grade 1 victory in Saturday’s $600,000 Man o’ War at Belmont Park, and trainer Mike Maker said the Pure Prize gelding could be back for more high caliber action during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival with the Grade 1, $750,000 Resorts World Casino Manhattan at 1 1/4 miles on June 10 and the Grade 2, $250,000 Belmont Gold Cup at 2 miles on June 9 under consideration.

“We’ll let the horse decide,” Maker said. “He came out of the race well and ate up last night. If I had to enter today, he’d be a go. He’s doing really well.”

Owned and bred in New York by Tom Egan’s Trinity Farm, Red Knight became only the third 9-year-old horse to win a Grade 1 flate race on the NYRA circuit according to stats provided by Equibase. In doing so, he joined the great John Henry who captured the 1984 Turf Classic at Belmont for Hall of Famer Ron McAnally and John’s Call, who won the 2000 Sword Dancer and 2000 Turf

Classic. Additionally, Red Knight’s Man o’ War triumph marked the 14th straight year that a New York-bred horse has won a Grade 1 event.

Previously conditioned by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, Red Knight has now won four times since Maker took over training duties last summer. After emerging from an 11-month layoff to capture his Maker debut in July’s Colonial Cup at Colonial Downs, he parlayed his winning form to Kentucky Downs for the Grade 2 Kentucky Turf Cup before a pair of unplaced efforts at Keeneland in the Grade 3 Sycamore and Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Turf to close out the year.

He returned to action with vigor, coming from last-of-11 to win his 2023 debut in the Grade 3 William L. McKnight on January 28 at Gulfstream Park. He entered the Man o’ War off a narrow runner-up finish in the Grade 2 Elkhorn on April 22 at Keeneland, missing a head to fellow Man o’ War contestant Verstappen, who finished seventh.

Red Knight was also possible for next Saturday’s Grade 3 Louisville at Churchill Downs, but Maker opted for another try at Grade 1 success.

“You don’t get too many opportunities at a Grade 1, so we chose to run in the Man o’ War and we’re glad that we did,” Maker said. “He’s always run well fresh and he came out of his race at Keeneland in very good shape.”

The well-traveled Red Knight has found the winners’ circle over seven different racetracks, but has garnered the most success at Belmont where he has won five times.

“We’ve been to Colonial Downs with Red, to Kentucky Downs, Keeneland, Gulfstream Park, back to Keeneland. But here, Belmont Park, seems like home to me. And I know Red has raced here 10 times himself so it’s like home to him also,” said Egan on Saturday.

Red Knight endured a lengthy hiatus after finishing sixth in August 2021 in the John’s Call at Saratoga. The chestnut spent extended time with Chad Stewart in Ocala, Florida, before returning victorious in July.

“At the beginning of September [2021], he was laid up with Chad and he said, ‘Tom I don’t know, I think horse could be done,’” Egan recalled. “So, we turned him out for 90 days and we put him back in training to see if there was anything there. Chad, after a week, said, ‘He’s not doing it, Tom,’ so we tried one more week and he said, ‘Tom, he wants to be a racehorse.’”

Egan got in touch with Maker to see if he would take up training duties for Red Knight, who had bested the conditioner’s Grade 1-winning turf stayer Zulu Alpha on more than one occasion.

“I had observed that he does very, very well with older grass horses. He’s made all the difference in the world with this horse, so I’m very appreciative of him,” Egan said.

Egan said he let Maker make the call on Red Knight’s next outing.

“The Manhattan is obviously a great race,” Egan said. “The thing about having a 9-year-old is - does he need to go to a farm for 2-3 weeks just to clear his head?”

Red Knight is out of the Skip Away mare Isabel Away and has amassed $1,717,763 in earnings through a 34-12-9-1 record.

***

Candy Man Rocket notches sweet score in G3 Runhappy

Frank Fletcher Racing Operations’ Candy Man Rocket let his temper flare in April when last-of-10 in the Grade 3 Count Fleet Handicap at Oaklawn Park, but the 5-year-old Candy Ride horse was much sweeter Saturday en route to a 1 1/2-length score in the Grade 3, $175,000 Runhappy at Belmont Park.

Trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott and piloted by Junior Alvarado, Candy Man Rocket entered the Count Fleet off a pair of wins in Florida led by a two-length score in the Gulfstream Park Sprint on February 25. But the six-time winner acted up ahead of the Count Fleet and never factored.

On Saturday, Candy Man Rocket was better behaved and enjoyed a pace battle between race favorite Beren and Twisted Ride that set up a comfortable stalking score from third position in the six-furlong test for older horses.

“He got a little hot in the paddock, but he settled down once he got on the track and warmed up,” Mott said. “He wanted to be a little bit of a jerk to saddle, but outside of that he was fine.

“He had a nice stalking trip yesterday,” Mott added. “He was able to park outside of them and it worked out well for him. As long as we put him in the right races, he fits in well.”

Mott said he will nominate Candy Man Rocket to the 6 1/2-furlong Grade 2, $250,000 True North on June 10 here.

Wachtel Stable, Gary Barber, R. A. Hill Stable and Reeves Thoroughbred Racing’s multiple Grade 1-winning multimillionaire Channel Maker finished a pacesetting sixth in Saturday’s Grade 1 Man o’ War, finishing less than two lengths back of the victorious fellow 9-year-old Red Knight and two heads and two noses away from second.

“He got beat ‘this far’ for second,” said Mott on Sunday holding his hands a hair apart. “He ran well. I have to give him a lot of credit. He didn’t get an easy lead, but he battled on pretty well.”

The English Channel gelding was pressed by Strong Tide through splits of 23.54 seconds, 49.18 and 1:15.06 over the firm course and stayed on strong down the lane as Red Knight and runner-up Soldier Rising rolled from the back of the pack. Red Knight crossed the wire a 1 1/2-length winner in a final time of 2:13.74.

Bred in Ontario by Tall Oaks Farm, Channel Maker boasts a record of 52-9-6-5 for purse earnings in excess of $3.7 million. He collected a Sovereign Award as Canada’s Champion 3-Year-Old Colt in 2017 and an Eclipse Award as the 2020 Champion Turf Male.

The 2019 Grade 1 Man o' War winner also posted graded scores in the Grade 2 Bowling Green [2018], Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Invitational [2018, 2020], Grade 1 Sword Dancer [2020], and Grade 2 Elkhorn [2022].

He entered the Man o’ War from a pair of off-the-board efforts in the Grade 3 William L. McKnight in January at Gulfstream and the Grade 2 Elkhorn in April at Keeneland.

“We’ll run him a couple more times and that will probably be it. We’re not going to try to overdo it,” Mott said.

One logical next spot for Channel Maker would be the Grade 2, $250,000 Bowling Green on July 30 at Saratoga Race Course – a race the chestnut has competed in on four occasions.

Mott shared his admiration for Channel Maker’s longevity.

 “He’s very sound and he loves training,” Mott said. “You see other horses in other disciplines and they only get good at nine…like some of your show jumpers and cross-country horses that are older. He’s a horse that’s hung around a long time.”

Frank Fletcher Racing Operations’ Rocket Can, winner of the Grade 3 Holy Bull in February at Gulfstream, finished ninth in last Saturday’s Grade 1 Kentucky Derby. The Into Mischief colt was as close as fifth at the third point of call before fading and finishing 11 lengths back of the victorious Mage.

“I liked his spot. I liked where he was,” Mott said of the Derby effort. “We’ll probably back off of him now for a bit.”

Mott could have a pair of starters for the Grade 1, $1 million Hill ‘n’ Dale Metropolitan Handicap on June 10 at Belmont Park with Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner Cody’s Wish already confirmed and Elite Power, last year’s Champion Male Sprinter, listed as possible.

The veteran conditioner has won nearly every major race in New York, but the prestigious Met Mile has eluded him thus far. Mott said it’s possible he could run both horses in the one-turn mile for 3-year-olds and up.

“They could. We’ll see. Or I could run Elite Power in the True North,” Mott said.

Godolphin’s Kentucky homebred Cody’s Wish was a facile winner of the Grade 1 Churchill Downs last out on the Kentucky Derby undercard, while Juddmonte’s Elite Power was last seen taking the Group 3 Riyadh Dirt Sprint in February in Saudi Arabia.

George Krikorian’s multiple Grade 1-winner War Like Goddess commenced her 6-year-old campaign in fine fashion, capturing the 12-furlong Grade 3 Bewitch over good going on April 28 at Keeneland.

The English Channel mare, piloted by Joel Rosario from post 4-of-5, tracked from third in the early running before taking command and drawing off a 1 1/2-length victory. War Like Goddess has previously been hampered by slow paces and traffic trouble, but she was not to be denied in her seasonal debut as a well-backed winner.

“She was parked outside instead of stuffed down in. They didn’t get a chance to lock her in,” Mott said.

Mott said War Like Goddess should appreciate a turnback in distance next out in the 10-furlong Grade 1, $600,000 New York on June 9 here as part of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival.

“The field should spread out a little more from some of her mile and a half races,” Mott said.

***

Arcangelo garners 97 BSF for thrilling G3 Peter Pan coup

There were a few tense moments for Blue Rose Farm’s Arcangelo down the stretch of Saturday’s Grade 3 Peter Pan as he battled furiously with Bishops Bay and briefly lost the lead to the post-time favorite one sixteenth from the finish.

But the Jena Antonucci-trained Arcangelo dug in strongly under urging from Hall of Famer Javier Castellano to claim the nine-furlong test for sophomores by a head, providing Antonucci with her second career graded victory. Arcangelo was awarded a 97 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort. Bishops Bay finished second with Henry Q a distant third.

Antonucci said Arcangelo was happy and sound the morning after making his graded stakes debut a winning one.

“He was eating to the bottom of his feed tub and everything is wonderful,” said Antonucci. “I’m just grateful for the horse and his effort, and for the owner. It’s nice to watch a horse go out there and lay it down the line. It’s cool.”

Arcangelo entered the Peter Pan from a strong third-out graduation on March 18 at Gulfstream Park where he stalked and pounced to a 3 1/2-length victory under Castellano. Out of the unraced Tapit mare Modeling, Arcangelo’s second dam is the three-time winning mare Teeming, a half-sister to Belmont Stakes-winners Jazil and Rags to Riches. He sold for $35,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale. 

Antonucci said Arcangelo has flourished when allowed to dictate his own pace in training.

“We finished the breaking and training process with him and he was very much a handful early on – a very immature kid,” said Antonucci. “But we stayed out of his way to let him put himself together and it’s all up to him.”

The Peter Pan is the traditional local prep for the Grade 1, $1.5 million Belmont Stakes on June 10, a race that Arcangelo’s pedigree suggests would suit him. However, Antonucci said she will take her time and let the horse decide what the next move will be.

“The Belmont is part of the conversation, but we don’t have a decision on anything,” said Antonucci. “Distance has never been an issue and that’s why we haven’t rushed with him. He’s probably a better 4-year-old than a 3-year-old. We just want it to come together how it needs to. If he’s got two feet in the air and two on the ground a few weeks from now and it looks like he’s saying, ‘put me back in, coach,’ then we’ll do that. If he says to wait a minute, then we will.”

Arcangelo now boasts a 4-2-1-0 record with total purse earnings of $167,400. He returned $7.50 for a $2 win ticket.

***

Drew’s Gold registers career-best 98BSF in Gold Fever score

Drew’s Gold, trained and co-owned by James Chapman with Stuart Tsujimoto, returned from a three-month layoff with a vengeance to post a 4 3/4-length score in Friday’s $150,000 Gold Fever, a six-furlong sprint for sophomores at Belmont Park.

The dark bay Violence colt, who is now undefeated in four starts, tracked outside of Andiamo a Firenze through a quarter-mile in 22.15 seconds before taking over through a half-mile in 45.06 and powering away to win under Jose Gomez in a final time of 1:09.36 over the fast main track.

“He had to need the race after 90 days off, but he’s just a really good horse,” Chapman said. “I wanted to see something like that, but he wasn’t dead tight. They always run back second the best.”

That second start back off the layoff will come in the seven-furlong Grade 1, $400,000 Woody Stephens presented by Mohegan Sun as part of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival on June 10.

“He’ll be ready,” Chapman said. “He came out of the race super. I always undertrain. I’ll walk horses for a week after they run, but he’s got to go back. I’ll jog him myself tomorrow.”

Chapman, a former multiple stakes-winning jockey, said Drew’s Gold demonstrates a veteran demeanor for a lightly-raced horse, noting a recent gate-schooling session just two days before the Gold Fever.

“There were other horses standing in there and I’ve rode races and usually their hearts move different, but he just goes in there and cocks his hind-leg up like he’s standing in the sun,” Chapman said. “He never gets nervous about anything. Even the gate crew commented that he’s so chill. That makes a good horse if they can do that because they’re not wasting their energy.”

 Drew’s Gold is out of the multiple stakes-winning Vindication mare Frolic’s Revenge, who won races at distances ranging from 4 1/2-furlongs to 1 1/16-miles. The versatile mare won four times each on dirt and turf, and was a promising 2-year-old that finished fourth in the 2011 Grade 1 Darley Alcibiades on synthetic at Keeneland and ninth in that year’s Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies won by My Miss Aurelia over the Churchill Downs main track. She posted an eye-catching 17-length win in the 2012 Regal Gal traveling one-mile at Calder.

Chapman said the strong pedigree could point to Drew’s Gold stretching out.

“His mother was a distance horse. So, who knows,” Chapman said. “He’ll turn off and drop the bridle if you really want him too. He could be dangerous down the road.”

The $25,000 Keeneland September Yearling Sale purchase is a half-brother to turf stakes-winner American Frolic.

Drew’s Gold entered the Gold Fever from a 4 1/4-length win in the six-furlong Jimmy Winkfield on February 11 at Aqueduct but exited that score with a virus and subsequently missed the Grade 3 Bay Shore on April 8 at the Big A.

“He never lost any weight. It was just the temperature and the sickness,” Chapman said.

Drew’s Gold worked frequently with graded-stakes placed Prove Right over the Belmont dirt training track en route to the Gold Fever, besting his stablemate in a five-eighths breeze on April 28 in 1:00.55 and again on May 6 with a half-mile effort in 47.11 that was ranked second best of 95 works at the distance on the day.

Prove Right, who ran sixth in the Bay Shore, was scratched out of the Gold Fever and will instead target the Grade 3 Chick Lang on May 20 at Pimlico Race Course.

“I was using him as a workhorse for this horse [Drew's Gold],” Chapman said. “We let him roll along the last three-eighths yesterday in his gallop in 15s and today was his walk day. He’s plenty fit.”

The Justify sophomore boasts a record of 15-3-2-2, including a good third in the Grade 3 Nashua in November at Aqueduct. He entered the Bay Shore off a 9 1/4-length optional-claiming score on March 31 at Laurel Park.

“If he decides he wants to show up, he can run a big number,” Chapman said. “If he decides he wants to play around or he’s mad at a horse next to him then who knows, he might throw in the towel.”

***

Ward getting in Saratoga state of mind with several runners

The summer meet at Belmont Park may only be two weeks in, but trainer Wesley Ward already has Saratoga Race Course in the back of his mind for several horses in his stable, including juvenile first-out maiden winners Princesa Celina and Whatchatalkinabout, as well as sophomore stakes-winner No Nay Hudson.

Three Chimneys Farm’s Princesa Celina, a Quality Road filly, displayed early brilliance in her May 4 debut over a muddy and sealed Belmont main track. She tracked just off the early foot of pacesetter Leslie’s Loot and was in command by the stretch call, drawing off to a 6 1/2-length score under Jose Ortiz. The effort earned a 61 Beyer Speed Figure.

Ward described the bay filly as a perfect blend of size and precocity and said the Grade 3, $175,000 Schuylerville on Opening Day July 13 at the Spa will be her next objective.

“I’ve always been very high on her from the onset. We’re really thinking big things for her down the line and have been for quite some time,” Ward said. “She’s such a big, beautiful filly. She has a lot of size to her and for her to be this precocious early on with the size that she has, it’s a sign that she could be good.”

Ward credited Ortiz for a well-timed ride.

“You don’t usually see a filly as big as her be as quick as she is,” Ward said. “They went 21 and change and Jose Ortiz did a wonderful job. He was holding her back off the filly that was in front. It was really nice to see her rate off a quick pace like that.”

Bred in Kentucky by Magnolia Bloodstock and Lynch Bages, Princesa Celina is out of the Sky Mesa mare Lastofthsummerwine, who also produced graded-stakes winners Conquest Panthera and the Ward-trained Happy Like a Fool.

On Friday, Ice Wine Stable’s Whatchatalkinabout defeated fellow New York-breds going five furlongs on a fast main track under a tactical trip by Irad Ortiz, Jr. After rating off pacesetters Antonio of Venice and Follow Your Arrow, the son of Dialed In matched strides around the far turn. He appeared a bit green in the stretch as Antonio of Venice battled gamely to his inside, but Whatchatalkinabout proved much the best, winning under a hand ride by one length. The win garnered a 72 Beyer.

Whatchatalkinabout, bred in the Empire State by Newtown Anner Stud, will get some rest following his debut triumph. Ward said the $200,000 Funny Cide presented by Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital on the August 27 Saratoga New York Showcase Day card will be the long term goal.

“He’s a big colt as well, but he’s always had a beautiful mind to him and did everything right,” Ward said. “He’s a very straightforward horse who goes out every morning and bows his neck out around there nice. He’ll work fast or slow, whatever you want on the day. He ran a really nice race where Irad was able to ease him back and rate off the early pace and come with his run. We’ll give him a bit of time as well and probably go to the [Funny Cide].”

Ward purchased Whatchatalkinabout for $82,000 at the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale. He is out of the Super Saver mare Super Savvy, whose dam Don’t Forget Gil was a graded stakes winner on grass. He comes from the same family as Grade 1-winning millionaire Sweet Reason.

Ward could also be Saratoga bound with Andrew Farm and For The People Racing Stable’s No Nay Hudson, who earned his first stakes triumph in Saturday’s 5 1/2-furlong William Walker at Churchill Downs.

The son of No Nay Never could target the Grade 3, $175,000 Quick Call presented by the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation on July 16. Ward captured the 5 1/2-furlong turf test in 2021 with multiple Grade 1-winning turf sprinter Golden Pal. No Nay Hudson finished second in both the Skidmore at Saratoga and Atlantic Beach at Aqueduct last year.

Ward also trained No Nay Hudson’s sire, who won the Group 1 Prix Morny at Deauville in 2013.

“They both like the grass and they’re both fast sprinters. He might not be quite as good as his dad but he was good enough yesterday,” Ward said. 

Ward added that Lael Stables’ dual graded stakes winner Arrest Me Red, fifth last out in the Grade 2 Twin Spires Turf Sprint at Churchill Downs, could target the Grade 1, $400,000 Jaipur on June 10 during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival. Graded stakes-placed Happy Soul, owned by Gayla Rankin, is possible for the Grade 3, $200,000 Intercontinental on June 9.