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G1 winner Maracuja training well into G1 Alabama

by NYRA Press Office

• G1 winner Maracuja training well into G1 Alabama
• Safe Conduct breezes in preparation for $1M Queen's Plate; Irad Ortiz, Jr. to ride in first leg of Canadian Triple Crown
• Ottoman Empire looking to take next step in G2 Saratoga Special presented by Miller Lite
• Working hard pays off for Played Hard as she targets class jump in G1 Alabama
• Soldier Rising pointed towards $1 million Jockey Club Derby Invitational
• Stewart hopeful for upset victory with Will’s Secret in G1 Alabama

Trainer Rob Atras said Beach Haven Thoroughbreds' Grade 1 Coaching Club American Oaks-winner Maracuja is training well into her next engagement - the 10-furlong Grade 1, $600,000 Alabama on August 21 at the Spa.

The Honor Code gray posted a swift half-mile breeze in 47.67 seconds Sunday in company on the main track in her first work back since upsetting Malathaat in the nine-furlong CCA Oaks on July 24.

"She went a little quicker than I thought, visually," Atras said. "She broke off a little quick and was rolling along and galloped out real nice. I never get too concerned about the time, but she did it well within herself. That's all that matters to me."

A $200,000 purchase at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select Yearling Sale, Maracuja graduated at third asking in a 6 1/2-furlong maiden sprint in February at Aqueduct Racetrack and followed with a closing second in the Grade 3 Gazelle in April, finishing 2 3/4-lengths back of Search Results.

Maracuja exited post 2 in a 13-horse field in the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks in April at Churchill Downs and closed up the rail for seventh in a race won by Malathaat by a neck over Search Results.

Last out, in a compact field of four, Maracuja tracked closer to the pace in third under Ricardo Santana, Jr., and battled gamely to the wire to best Malathaat by a head.

"She broke so sharp in the last race and we were hoping for that," Atras said. "We were hoping she could be a little more tactical. That would definitely be an advantage to her going forward.

"I knew you could throw the Oaks out and she was capable of better," Atras added. "I thought if she took a step forward from the Gazelle she could be a contender, if not for the win, then for second. She definitely took a big step forward last time. Right out of the gate, she showed that she was live that day."

The probable field for the Alabama includes Army Wife (Mike Maker), Clairiere (Steve Asmussen), Crazy Beautiful (Kenny McPeek), Malathaat (Todd Pletcher), Played Hard (Phil Bauer) and Will’s Secret (Dallas Stewart).

Atras said Dennis Narlinger's graded stakes placed Sadie Lady, who worked a half-mile in 48.11 Sunday on the main track, is slated to make her next start in the $100,000 Union Avenue, a 6 1/2-furlong main track sprint for New York-bred fillies and mares 3-years-old and up.

"She's doing well," Atras said. "It was a good work and she's on target for that race."

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 Safe Conduct breezes in preparation for $1M Queen's Plate; Irad Ortiz, Jr. to ride in first leg of Canadian Triple Crown

Wellspring Stables Ontario-bred Safe Conduct, with Irad Ortiz, Jr. up, breezed five furlongs solo in 1:01.40 Friday on the Oklahoma training turf in preparation for the $1 million Queen's Plate, first leg of the Canadian Triple Crown.

The historic Queen's Plate, a 10-furlong Tapeta test for Canadian-bred sophomores, is slated for August 22 at Woodbine Racetrack. Ortiz, Jr., winner of the last three Eclipse Awards for Outstanding Jockey, will ship to Woodbine for the mount.

Trainer Phil Serpe said he was pleased with the breeze.

"He looked great. His gallop out was in 1:13 and they got him seven-eighths in 1:25 and a couple," Serpe said. "They caught him his last quarter in 23 and 2. You don't need to do much better than that."

A gate-to-wire maiden winner at second asking traveling 1 1/16-miles on the Saratoga turf last August, Safe Conduct followed with a prominent second in a nine-furlong optional claimer on the Gulfstream Park turf in March to launch his sophomore season.

In May, at odds of 38-1, Safe Conduct bested Public Sector in a 1 1/16-mile optional-claiming event on firm Belmont turf.

Serpe said Safe Conduct's last two starts have come in less than ideal settings, returning on short rest to finish a distant fourth in the off-the-turf Grade 3 Pennine Ridge contested at nine furlongs on May 29 over a sloppy and sealed Belmont main track ahead of an eighth in the Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational over good turf.

His next engagement will see Safe Conduct try Tapeta for the first time.

"There's nothing I can do about whether he likes the surface or not. He didn't like the slop and he didn't like soft turf, so hopefully he's going to like Tapeta," Serpe said. "As far as the mile and a quarter, he's the type of horse that will do that. He's got a great, long stride on him."

Serpe said Safe Conduct will train up to the Queen's Plate and will ship to the Woodbine next Friday.

"He gets a tremendous amount out of his gallops in the morning," Serpe said. "There will be mornings where he's going 14 seconds a clip out there. He loves to train and he's been that way since he was a 2-year-old. He'll ship up a week from today."

Ortiz, Jr. will ride in four stakes on the Queen's Plate card, including recent Grade 3 Caress-winner Caravel, who worked a half-mile in 50.86 Friday for trainer Graham Motion on the Oklahoma dirt training track, in the Grade 1, $350,000 Highlander at six furlongs on the E.P. Taylor Turf Course; and also aboard a pair of Chad Brown trainees in Etoile [Grade 2, $175,000 Dance Smartly] and Nevisian Sunrise [Grade 3, $150,000 Ontario Colleen].

"Irad, along with being a great rider, is a possessed rider," Serpe said. "He loves to win and not just at Saratoga, but at Belmont and in Florida and everywhere else, whether it's on a 20 claimer or a stakes horse."

Serpe will send out Farone Stables homebred King Angelo in Saturday's opening race at the Spa, a 5 1/2-furlong Mellon turf sprint for state-bred maidens 3-years-old and up.

The 4-year-old Lemon Drop Kid chestnut sports a ledger of 5-0-2-2, including a pair of runner-up efforts on dirt to go along with two third-place finishes on turf.

"King Angelo was supposed to run on the dirt a week and a half ago, but he had a little bit of a foot issue," Serpe said. "We don't mean to keep jumping back and forth with him, but if we didn't run him tomorrow that led us into another week to go by. The 5 1/2 should be good for him."

Listed as the 2-1 second choice on the morning-line, King Angelo will exit post 5 under Joel Rosario.

*** 

Ottoman Empire looking to take next step in G2 Saratoga Special presented by Miller Lite

Greg Tramontin’s Ottoman Empire will look to benefit from the experience of his race last month at Saratoga when he returns as part of a 12-horse field of juveniles in tomorrow’s Grade 2, $200,000 Saratoga Special presented by Miller Lite contested at 6 1/2 furlongs on the main track.

The Tom Amoss trainee won his debut in a five-furlong sprint on June 20 at Churchill Downs, rallying from seventh to best next-out winner Texas Red Hot by one length. Stepping up to stakes company next out, the Classic Empire colt ran fourth in the Grade 3 Sanford at six furlongs at the Spa in a race won by Wit.

“He won his first start at Churchill and there’s absolutely no doubt he’s a talented horse,” Amoss said. “In his first start, it was strictly on raw talent. He made a lot of mistakes. He didn’t break well, he didn’t like being crowded, he didn’t go around anybody. But it was a very good race as far as watching a horse that doesn’t have a really good understanding of competition yet but still being able to win a race.”

Amoss said an equipment change could continue to be beneficial to Ottoman Empire, who was a $120,000 purchase at the 2020 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

“Since his first start, we thought we had educated him pretty well entering the last stakes race here. We did add blinkers to him, which isn’t a move I often make this early in a horse’s career,” Amoss said. “I like them to learn through racing, but we’re going to go ahead and run with the blinkers. I just feel he needs a little jump-start in the education process.”

Ottoman Empire drew post 3 with Dylan Davis in the irons. He is listed at 15-1 on the morning line.

“His understanding of competition and what he needs to do to win is still not where it needs to be, but you tend to get a little bit of a better understanding through racing, so we’re back in tomorrow and we feel good about it,” Amoss said.

Joel Politi’s Li’l Tootsie will make a surface change after going 3-1-0 in first seven career starts on dirt when she competes in Sunday’s $120,000 Galway for 3-year-old fillies going 5 1/2 furlongs on Saratoga’s Mellon turf course.

Li’l Tootsie, who ran ninth last out in the Grade 3 Indiana Oaks on July 7 at Indiana Grand Race Course, registered her first breeze on the grass with a five-furlong work in 1:03.66 on the Oklahoma training turf July 31 and Amoss said he was impressed with the effort.

“She’s a very talented sprinter,” Amoss said. “She’s never raced over the grass before, but the pedigree suggests it’ll work. We breezed her over the Oklahoma turf course and we thought she worked very well. This race gives us the opportunity to see if we can make her anything other than a dirt sprinter and broaden our horizons.”

Li’l Tootsie, bought for $105,000 at the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, is a daughter of Tapiture out of the Dayjur mare Informative Style. She drew the inside post in the Galway with Eric Cancel aboard and is 12-1 on the morning line.

“You always prefer to be further outside with a chance to position and make a late run without any traffic,” Amoss said. “The one-hole, it’s the shortest way home, but it presents potential problems for a horse who comes off the pace. We have to work out a trip from there and see what happens.”

***

Working hard pays off for Played Hard as she targets class jump in G1 Alabama

Making a stakes debut at Saratoga is often a daunting challenge. Competing in a Grade 1 under those same circumstances only adds to the level of difficulty, but trainer Phil Bauer said Played Hard has earned that right after posting a 4 3/4-length victory at the Spa earlier in the meet. Now, the daughter of Into Mischief will face a steep class increase as she readies for a start in the $600,000 Alabama for 3-year-old fillies going 1 1/4 miles on August 21.

Played Hard, owned by Rigney Racing, has never finished off the board in five starts, posting a 2-2-1 record since commencing her career with debut runner-up effort in March at Fair Grounds. After posting two runner-up efforts and a third in six-furlong sprints, Bauer stretched her out to 1 1/16 miles in June at Churchill Downs, resulting in a 5 1/4-length maiden-breaking score.

Bauer said the plan was to then enter a 1 1/4-mile allowance race at Saratoga for sophomore fillies, but plans changed and Played Hard entered a 1 1/8-mile contest for 3-year-olds and up. Facing older horses did not deter Played Hard, who led at every point of call and drew away to win by open lengths, registering a personal-best 89 Beyer Speed Figure for her victory on July 22. 

“She’s doing well. We originally were looking at a 10-furlong allowance a-other-than for 3-year-old fillies and if we were competitive, we would consider the Alabama,” Bauer said. “They had to combine the two races and she took on older fillies, so for her to win like she did, we felt like 10 furlongs is a unique distance that we can take a shot at. We’re excited to see how good we are.”

Played Hard did not race as a juvenile. The $280,000 purchase at the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, bred in Kentucky by Susan Casner, showed early ability in her workouts last year. But Bauer said the connections did not want to rush her development, and the move has paid off as she looks to improve to 2-for-2 at the famous track.

“We ran into a little hiccups; it looked like she was ready to make a start in the fall of her 2-year-old year and she indicated she was talented then,” Bauer said. “We ran into a little speedbump with her but given the quality she had shown and the time she needed, it just pointed towards a 3-year-old campaign.”

Bauer, who won his first race in 2013, has registered two career graded stakes wins –with Channel Marker in the 2015 Grade 3 Jaipur and the 2018 Grade 3 Hutcheson with Madison’s Luna – and will be seeking his first-ever Grade 1 victory. Those graded stakes victories also represent the two career scores for the ownership group led by Richard Rigney.

“This is why we do it. I think I’m more excited for the owners with everything that they’ve invested, that they are going to have the opportunity to participate,” Bauer said. “Hopefully, I can ride their coattails.” 

***

Soldier Rising pointed towards $1 million Jockey Club Derby Invitational

After a late-rallying second in the Grade 1 Saratoga Derby Invitational on August 7 at Saratoga, trainer Christophe Clement will give Soldier Risingsome extra ground in the $1 million Jockey Club Derby Invitational on September 18 at Belmont Park going 1 ½ miles. 

The Jockey Club Derby Invitational, a “Win And You’re In” qualifier for the Grade 1, $4 million Breeders’ Cup Turf in November at Del Mar, is the third and final leg of NYRA’s Turf Triple series, which also included the Belmont Derby Invitational [won by Bolshoi Ballet] and Saratoga Derby Invitational, both Grade 1. 

Owned by Madaket Stables, Michael Dubb, Morris Bailey, Wonder Stables and Michael Caruso, Soldier Rising was nearly ten lengths off the pace down the backstretch along the rail in the Saratoga Derby, where the consistent son of Frankel maintained his inside position with a strong turn of foot, but was unable to collar State of Rest, who won by one length. 

Never worse than second in five lifetime starts, Solider Rising was previously conditioned in France by Andre Fabre for whom he won two races, one of which was going 1 ½ miles.  

“He is in very good shape and he’s going to go back to Belmont Park, where he’ll run in the fall. That’s the plan at the moment,” Clement said. 

Clement also ran second in last year’s Saratoga Derby Invitational with Otter Bend Stables’ Gufo, who conveys a similar late turn-of-foot as his stablemate and was a next out winner of the Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational on October 3. 

Following three placings at Grade 1 level, Gufo found the winner’s circle once more when capturing the last out Grand Couturier on July 7 at Belmont Park at 1 ½ miles. The son of Declaration of War remains on target for the Grade 1, $750,000 Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer on August 28 at Saratoga. 

On Friday, Gufo worked five furlongs in 1:02 flat in company over the Oklahoma training turf. 

“Gufo worked this morning, he’s in line to go to the Sword Dancer is everything goes well,” Clement said. 

Clement will be in pursuit of his third Sword Dancer conquest having previously won with Honor Glide [1999] and Winchester [2011].

***

Stewart hopeful for upset victory with Will’s Secret in G1 Alabama

Known for swinging for the fences at a high level, trainer Dallas Stewart will seek another upset victory when he sends out graded stakes winner Will’s Secret for the Grade 1, $600,000 Alabama on August 21 at Saratoga Race Course. 

Owned and bred by Willis Horton Racing, Will’s Secret arrives at the prestigious event for sophomore fillies off a distant sixth as the favorite in the Grade 3 Indiana Oaks on July 7, where she raced along the rail down the backstretch and appeared to be making a move around the far turn, but was unable to make up ground in the stretch and finished 8 ¼ lengths to winner Soothsay. 

The uncharacteristic performance from the daughter of 2013 Travers winner and Champion 3-Year-Old Will Take Charge came after two Grade 1-placings when third to Malathaat, also pointing to the Alabama, in the Ashland on April 3 at Keeneland and the Kentucky Oaks on April 30 at Churchill Downs. 

“In her last race she had the one hole and it had rained, so it was pretty muddy down in the one hole where she was at,” Stewart said. Things just didn’t work out that day. She’s shipped up and doing fine. She’s caught some good breezes since coming up here. We know that she’s a nice filly.”

Following an off-the-turf maiden conquest in December at Fair Grounds, Will’s Secret captured the Martha Washington and Grade 3 Honeybee at Oaklawn Park. 

“She’s run well the first half of the year, so we’ll see what happens here at a mile and a quarter,” Stewart said. 

Stewart will look to add to his Saratoga stakes prosperity, which also includes victories in the Grade 1 Personal Ensign [2017, Forever Unbridled], the Grade 2 Jim Dandy [2008, Macho Again] and the Grade 2 Adirondack [2013, Designer Legs]. 

Stewart confirmed that veteran jockey Jon Court will retain the mount.