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Wicked Halo a ‘bigger, faster 4-year-old’ heading into G2 Bed o’ Roses

by NYRA Press Office

• Wicked Halo a ‘bigger, faster 4-year-old’ heading into G2 Bed o’ Roses
• Midnight Stroll could travel for next engagement; G1 placed New York-bred You’re My Girl nears return
• Be Your Best eyeing G1 Belmont Oaks Invitational
• Sweetlou’sgotaces targets G3 Lake George off allowance victory
• Belmont Park updates post times
• Sunday marks TRF Day at Belmont Park
• Belmont Park Week 8 stakes probables

Winchell Thoroughbreds’ Wicked Halo will square off once more with the reigning Champion Female Sprinter Goodnight Olive in Saturday’s Grade 2, $200,000 Bed o’ Roses at Belmont Park.

The seven-furlong sprint for older fillies and mares drew a strong field with a cumulative nine graded stakes victories across five contenders, including Wicked Halo, who enters from a one-length defeat to Matareya in the Grade 1 Derby City Distaff on May 6 at Churchill Downs for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen. Goodnight Olive finished a troubled third in the same race after being boxed in down the lane by Wicked Halo.

The stacked field includes dual graded stakes winner Caramel Swirl, graded stakes-winner Dr B and graded stakes-placed Beguine.

“Two of the top older sprinting fillies are in a five-horse field, so forty percent of the field is top shelf,” said Winchell Thoroughbreds' racing manager David Fiske.

Wicked Halo, a 4-year-old Gun Runner grey, boasts a record of 13-7-1-4 and $1,181,200 in earnings. A winner of the Grade 2 Adirondack at Saratoga Race Course during her juvenile season, she captured the Spa’s Grade 2 Prioress on September 2 and Grade 2 Raven Run at Keeneland on October 22 before finishing third to Goodnight Olive in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint on November 5 at Keeneland.

Wicked Halo spent the past couple of years racing in the shadow of her Eclipse Award-winning stablemate Echo Zulu, who also is by Gun Runner and bears the colors of Winchell Thoroughbreds. Echo Zulu was unbeaten at two, which included a 5 1/4-length win in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies at Del Mar, and captured the Grade 3 Dogwood as a sophomore en route to a runner-up effort behind Goodnight Olive in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint, finishing one length ahead of Wicked Halo. 

Fiske believes Wicked Halo’s career could see an even higher jump forward this season, which already includes a stakes triumph over Matareya in the March 31 Matron at Oaklawn Park. 

“Wicked Halo seems to be a bigger, faster 4-year-old. I think figure wise and everything else, she’s right there with the top,” Fiske said. “Matareya, Wicked Halo and Goodnight Olive finished pretty close together on Derby Day. That’s a pretty good yardstick. Between Matareya, Goodnight Olive, Echo Zulu and Wicked Halo – I think one of those four is getting the [Eclipse Award] trophy this year.”

Echo Zulu and Wicked Halo are just two stars amongst the first crop of 2017 Horse of the Year and now leading North American stallion Gun Runner, who also was campaigned by Winchell Thoroughbreds and Asmussen. 

“The early prognostication on Gun Runner is that they’ll get better later, which surprised everyone when Echo Zulu, Wicked Halo and [Grade 1 winner] Gunite came out in the first crop,” Fiske said. “But two things can be true at the same time. They can be good 2-year-olds while also improve and be good older horses. Using the metrics and figures that we have, it’s clear that Wicked Halo has upped her game.” 

Fiske said he would ideally like to keep Echo Zulu, who captured the Grade 3 Winning Colors on May 29 at Churchill Downs, and Wicked Halo separate for the time being. 

“We’ll do that as long as we can, but hopefully we don’t have to do that [square off] until the Breeders’ Cup,” Fiske said. “Hopefully, they’re still sound and racing by November. I’d certainly like to keep them apart but there aren’t too many opportunities for Grade 1 older filly sprinters.”

Wicked Halo, a Kentucky homebred, is out of the Tapit mare Just Wicked who, like Wicked Halo, also captured the Adirondack at Saratoga. 

Fiske said Disarm, who captured Sunday’s Grade 3 Matt Winn at Ellis Park, is a likely candidate for either the Grade 1 Haskell on July 22 at Monmouth Park or the Grade 2, $500,000 Jim Dandy on July 29 at Saratoga. The Gun Runner chestnut was a closing fourth in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby in May at Churchill Downs.

“Good horses are pretty easy to manage. You just have to figure out where you want them to go and then work backwards from there,” Fiske noted. “It seems like coming up, the Haskell or the Jim Dandy would be the most logical spots. We’ll see how he trains between now and then.”

Regardless of where or when the aforementioned horses run, Fiske said they will ship up to Saratoga at the beginning of July to join Asmussen’s string stabled on the Oklahoma Training Track. 

Fiske said the highly regarded Extra Anejo would accompany his stable stars at the Spa, following a 6 1/4-length allowance conquest going one mile on June 10 at Ellis Park. 

“He’ll show up in a stake somewhere,” Fiske said. “He’s going to Saratoga with the rest of the string. He came out of his race great and he and Disarm are both exciting prospects.”

Fiske added that American Classic participant Red Route One will get a light breather following a respective fourth and eighth in the Grade 1 Preakness and Grade 1 Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets. 

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Midnight Stroll could travel for next engagement; G1 placed New York-bred You’re My Girl nears return

Graded stakes victress Midnight Stroll got back in the win column on Thursday, running down stakes-winner Good Sam in deep stretch to capture a seven-furlong main track allowance event at Belmont Park.

Midnight Stroll captured last year’s Grade 3 Delaware Oaks at Delaware Park for trainer John Terranova before rounding out the trifecta in the Grade 3 Charles Town Oaks and Grade 2 Raven Run to close out her sophomore season. Unplaced in her first two starts as a 4-year-old, both at graded stakes level, the daughter of Not This Time made amends when taking a drop in class and earned a 79 Beyer Speed Figure for her 1 1/2-length victory under Hall of Famer Javier Castellano. 

“She looked like she was travelling comfortably. Javier rode a smart race with her and let her do her thing. She has a lot of class and I’m happy to have her back in form,” Terranova said. 

Midnight Stroll’s score was one of four on the card for owner Randy Hill of R.A. Hill Stable, who co-owns Midnight Stroll with Gatsas Stables and Steven Schoenfeld. He also won with George Weaver-trained trio of Astonesthrowaway [Race 1], Provision [Race 3] and Outlaw Kid [Race 7]. 

Midnight Stroll, now a two-time winner at both one turn and two turns, is well-suited for the seven furlong distance, according to Terranova. 

“It’s hard to pinpoint where she wants to be. A middle distance is probably her kind of game, but we’ll see how she does going forward,” Terranova said. “She cooled out really well this morning from yesterday’s race. She’s really happy with herself. We’ll just see what the summer brings us and take it from there.” 

Terranova said Midnight Stroll may travel out of state for her next start, as she did last year for the Delaware Oaks.

“She may have to take her show on the road somewhere, so we’ll look around and keep our options open,” Terranova said. “She has no problem shipping or doing any of that. We’re just all really happy to have her back in winning form. Going into the summer, it looks like she’s in great shape.”

Terranova added that You’re My Girl, who was a hard-fought second to Chocolate Gelato in the Grade 1 Frizette in October at Belmont at the Big A, is nearing a return to action. The daughter of Overanalyze, bred in New York by James G. Doyle, was last seen finishing fifth in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies on November 4 at Keeneland. 

“We’ll look at something pretty soon with her,” Terranova said. “If everything keeps going well, we could see her right before the meet ends before we head up north, or at the beginning of the meet at Saratoga.”

Owned by Gatsas Stables, R.A. Hill Stable and Hidden Brook Farm, You’re My Girl has breezed three times over the Belmont Park main track, most recently going five-eighths in 1:02.66 on Monday. 

“We had her ready for the Beaumont in April at Keeneland and she ended up getting sick,” Terranova said. “It took us awhile to get her all the way right and now she’s doing great. She breezed five eighths the other day and we’ll keep motoring on.” 

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Be Your Best eyeing G1 Belmont Oaks Invitational

Michael J. Ryan’s Irish homebred Be Your Best was awarded an automatic invitation to the Grade 1, $500,000 Fasig-Tipton Belmont Oaks Invitational for her game runner-up finish in the Grade 2 Wonder Again on June 11 at Belmont Park. 

Trainer Horacio De Paz said it is likely the talented daughter of Muhaarar will take advantage of that opportunity and be pointed to the 10-furlong test for sophomore fillies on July 18 at Belmont. 

The Belmont Oaks Invitational is the opening leg in the Fasig-Tipton Fillies Turf Triple, a series of three important graded turf stakes for 3-year-old fillies. Following the Belmont Oaks, the series continues with the Grade 3, $400,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Oaks Invitational at 1 3/16-miles on August 4 at Saratoga Race Course; and the 11-furlong Grade 3 Fasig-Tipton Jockey Club Oaks Invitational to be held during the Belmont at the Big A fall meet.

Ridden from post 6 in the nine-furlong Wonder Again by Manny Franco, Be Your Best stalked in fifth-of-7 through the first three points of call before going four-wide in the turn and running down rivals into the stretch. She made a strong run down the lane and made up ground with every stride, but came up a neck shy of the victorious Prerequisite in a final time of 1:47.20, awarding her a career-best 85 Beyer Speed Figure. 

“It was a very, very big effort,” said De Paz. “She looks good and went to the track yesterday. We’re thinking about the Belmont Oaks. It’s a little quick back, but we’ll see how she does. She will probably like going further, so it all depends on how she does in the next two weeks.” 

The bay filly first flashed her talents on debut last summer at Saratoga Race Course, graduating by 3 1/4 lengths in a 1 1/16-mile turf maiden en route to a successful stakes debut in the P.G. Johnson over the same course and distance. She earned graded black type with a third-place finish in the Grade 2 Miss Grillo at Belmont at the Big A and wrapped up her season with an off-the-board effort in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf. 

The Wonder Again was her second start off a five-month respite that ended with a seventh-place finish in the Grade 2 Appalachian at Keeneland to kick off her campaign. 

“The Wonder Again was very rewarding to see,” said De Paz. “She didn’t run very much in the Breeders’ Cup and had some traffic trouble in the stretch. Coming back at Keeneland, we knew she was going to need that race to get her prepared for Belmont. We always thought highly of her and it’s good to see her return back to her 2-year-old form.”

Be Your Best is out of the Medaglia d’Oro mare Kamakura, a full-sister to graded stakes-placed Bay of Plenty and a half-sister to multiple graded stakes-placed Fortify. Her third dam is multiple graded/group-winner Flagbird, who was produced from Reine de Course mare Up the Flagpole. 

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Sweetlou’sgotaces targets G3 Lake George off allowance victory

Stakes-winner Sweetlou’sgotaces will look to take another shot at graded black type this summer for trainer Ray Handal in the Grade 3, $175,000 Lake George, a one-mile turf test for sophomores fillies on July 21 at Saratoga Race Course. 

Owned by Gary Barber, Wachtel Stable and Twin Sports Racing, the daughter of Constitution was a determined winner of a one-mile first-level allowance facing older company on June 11 at Belmont Park. There, she added blinkers for the first time and pounced from 3 1/4 lengths off the pace under Dylan Davis to collar pace-presser Cadencia in the final strides and land the neck victory in a final time of 1:34.32. 

The effort garnered an 85 Beyer Speed Figure, equaling her career-high she earned for a nose defeat in her third lifetime outing. 

“She came back good and jogged yesterday,” said Handal. “Her numbers have jumped back up to how she was running last year. Running out of her own stall is huge because she’s a horse that mentally can really wear herself out. I think it’s a huge advantage to be able to ship up to Saratoga and get her acclimated and school her.” 

Sweetlou’sgotaces graduated in style in the one-mile Tepin in November at Aqueduct Racetrack. She followed with off-the-board efforts in a pair of graded events at Gulfstream Park to start her sophomore campaign before returning north in April to post a runner-up finish in a first-level optional claimer at the Big A. 

“She showed us a lot of promise early on and I don’t think she really enjoyed her winter in Florida, but she’s really enjoying herself now in New York,” Handal said. 

Sweetlou’sgotaces provided Handal with his first of two wins in the June 11 card at Belmont. He enjoyed a sharp state-bred optional claiming victory three races later with Daddy Knows, who he co-owns with Adelphi Racing Club, Cutair Racing and Dark Horse Racing Stable. The 7-year-old New York-bred son of Scat Daddy scored a head victory to notch his second consecutive win on the heels of a similar effort one month earlier. 

“I’m not sure what we’re going to do with him,” Handal said. “I don’t think Saratoga is a good track for him with the [tighter] turns, so we might wheel him back in two weeks here. It’s up for debate. He owes us nothing and I wish all of them were like him.” 

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Belmont Park updates post times

Twilight racing, which featured a 3:05 p.m. first post, has concluded for the Belmont Park spring/summer meet following the June 15 program. 

Post time for the remainder of the meet, including the Thursday, June 22 card, which was originally scheduled for twilight racing, will be 1:05 p.m. with the exception of Closing Day on Sunday, July 9, which will have a first post of 12:30 p.m. 

As previously announced, there is no live racing on June 29 and July 6 due to the July 4 holiday.

For more information, please visit https://www.nyra.com/belmont/calendar/.

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Sunday marks TRF Day at Belmont Park

The Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation [TRF] will be onsite at Belmont Park on Sunday as part of their 40th anniversary celebrations.

In addition to a booth in the backyard to celebrate their "Cheers to 40 Years" campaign, the card's sixth race - a one-mile maiden claimer for 3-year-olds and up - will be named in support of the TRF.

The TRF, which is accredited by the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, is a nonprofit [501c3] charitable organization entirely supported by private donations from individuals, organizations and foundations. The TRF is a national foundation with headquarters in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Founded in 1983, the TRF, which is the oldest and largest thoroughbred rescue in the U.S., provides the promise of a lifetime of sanctuary to each horse in their herd, including rescued and retired racehorses who are unable to pursue secondary athletic careers.

For more information, please visit: https://www.trfinc.org/event/june-18-trf-day-at-belmont/.

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Belmont Park Week 8 stakes probables

Saturday, June 24

$150K Wild Applause 

Probable: Breath Away (Christophe Clement), Can’t Stop (Jena Antonucci), Free Look (Chad Brown), Im Just Kiddin (John Kimmel), Liguria (Brown), Quarrel (Robert Ribaudo)

Possible: Stephanie’s Charm (Jose Jimenez)

Sunday, June 25

$125K Dancin Renee (NYB)

Probable: Betsy Blue (Adam Rice), Captainsdaughter (Russell Cash), Grannys Connection (Tom Morley), Kant Hurry Love (David Duggan), Rossa Veloce (Rob Atras), Sterling Silver (Tom Albertrani) 

Possible: Kisses for Emily (Louis Linder, Jr.)