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Governor Sam continues campaign in $150K Skidmore

by Christian Abdo

Bregman Family Racing and Swinbank Stables’ Governor Sam comes back quickly after a stakes win for Friday’s $150,000 Skidmore, a 5 1/2-furlong Mellon turf sprint for juveniles, at Saratoga Race Course.

Trained by George Weaver, the Improbable bay stalked the pace and lived up to his heavy favoritism in the five-furlong Tyro on August 3 at Monmouth Park when winning by a neck over returning rival Jet Sweep Joe.

Governor Sam’s successful stakes performance, which earned a career and field-best 78 Beyer Speed Figure, came after a 2 1/4-length score in a maiden over Friday’s course and distance on July 19 here.

“It takes the right type of horse to think about coming back quickly, especially after coming back quickly already, but this horse fits the bill,” said Weaver. “He is big. A chunk of a horse, he carries his weight very well. Nothing fazes him. He shipped to Monmouth and back well.”

Weaver said Governor Sam is having a strong term in office this year.

“He is in fine form. He’s on a roll. It seems like a good opportunity for him,” said Weaver. “He won a stakes race at Monmouth and got a decent speed figure without breaking that sharply. He got stalking position and when called upon, he got up and won it.”

In his first career outing, Governor Sam finished sixth in the five-furlong Royal Palm Juvenile in May at Gulfstream Park. He was three lengths back of the victorious Gabaldon, who exited to run a close second in the 27-horse Windsor Castle in June at Royal Ascot.

Out of the multiple graded stakes placed Into Mischief mare I’m Betty G, Governor Sam was a $275,000 purchase at the 2024 OBS Spring Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training. He is a half-brother to active graded stakes winner Pin Up Betty.

Tyler Gaffalione has the call from post 3.

Gary Barber’s Louisiana-bred Classic Time is set for both a grass and stakes debut in the Skidmore. Trained by Hall of Famer Mark Casse, the Classic Empire bay has made a pair of efforts at the distance on dirt, graduating last-out on July 12 here.

There, Classic Time stalked-and-pounced en route to a geared down 3 1/2-length victory, avenging a pacesetting head defeat to main track-only entrant Soontobeking on May 24 at Belmont at the Big A.

Classic Time returned to the tab with a half-mile breeze in 53.53 seconds over the Oklahoma turf on August 2. He covered the same distance on the Spa main track in 50.25 on August 8.

“The Classic Empires can do anything. I breezed him on the turf, I thought he went fair enough,” said Casse, who trained Classic Empire to win the 2016 Eclipse Award for Champion 2-Year-Old Colt. “I’ve always said training racehorses is putting a puzzle together, this is a piece I’m trying. Let’s see if it works.”

Out of the Indian Charlie mare Reading Room, Classic Time was a $40,000 purchase at the OBS Winter Mixed Sale.

Dylan Davis will be aboard from post 4.

Wathnan Racing’s Spiralizer looks to rebound on a new surface after a distant seventh in the six-furlong Listed Bashford Manor on June 30 at Churchill Downs.

Trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, the Twirling Candy bay made his dirt stakes try after a debut win where he was fractious at the gate but otherwise comfortable going five furlongs on June 13.

Asmussen said he looks forward to trying Spiralizer on the lawn after his Bashford Manor misfire. A Florida-bred out of the Speightstown mare Jotown, Spiralizer sold for $550,000 at the 2024 OBS March Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training. His second dam is multiple graded stakes winner Jojo Warrior.

“It was a hot pace and he drew the one hole. He was not in the right spot on the day. It was the circumstances,” said Asmussen. “He worked extremely well on the synthetic at OBS. He is by Twirling Candy, and this is another option.”

Spiralizer has breezed consistently over the Oklahoma since his last race, including in a sharp half-mile in 48.85 seconds on August 2, fourth-of-76 workers at the distance.

Flavien Prat will be aboard from post 5.

Case Chambers, Paradise Farms Corp. and David Staudacher’s New York-bred Out On Bail [post 2, Jose Ortiz] successfully switched to turf to graduate at third asking over Friday’s course and distance on July 24.

Trained by Mike Maker, the half-length pacesetting score over fellow state-breds was a popular one as the gray is from the first crop of fan-favorite New York-bred Tiz the Law.

Out On Bail was previously second to well-regarded filly Phoebeinwonderland in a five-furlong dirt sprint in May and third to next-out Grade 3 Sanford-winner Mo Plex in June, both at Belmont at the Big A.

Bred by Matthew Nestor, Out On Bail, out of the winning Street Cry mare Judge Lee, was a $110,000 purchase at the 2024 OBS March Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training.

Rounding out the field are Hall Stables’ dual stakes-placed Jet Sweep Joe [post 1, Joseph Bealmear] for conditioner Paul McEntee and Douglas Scharbauer’s Texas homebred Raise the Bar [post 6, John Velazquez], a debut winner for trainer Wesley Ward.

Weaver also entered Soontobeking for the main track-only.

The Skidmore is slated as Race 2 on Friday’s 11-race card which also features the $125,000 Union Avenue, a six-furlong handicap sprint for New York-bred fillies and mares, which was originally scheduled for August 9 and was redrawn as Race 9.

The race again drew seven entrants with five of its original contenders re-entering. Dual stakes-winner Kant Hurry Love was already expected to scratch from the race with a foot issue, while Early Edition was not re-entered by trainer Stacy Machiz.

The field is headlined by Leeloo [post 7, Jose Ortiz, 120 pounds], a multiple stakes-placed Practical Joke mare for trainer Ignacio Correas, IV, along with stakes-winner Tricky Temper [post 4, Flavien Prat, 114 pounds], who did not initially enter the race and was last seen winning a local state-bred optional claimer on August 2 for trainer Jeremiah Englehart.

Completing the field are the newcomer Majestic Return [post 6, Kendrick Carmouche, 118 pounds] for trainer Michelle Giangiulio, and returning entrants Cara’s Time [post 1, Eric Cancel, 115 pounds] for trainer Mitchell Friedman, the Phil Serpe-trained pair of Security Code [post 2, Jose Lezcano, 121 pounds] and Cousin Kristi [post 5, Luis Saez, 118 pounds], and Captainsdaughter [post 3, Javier Castellano, 118 pounds] for trainer Russell Cash.

First post is 1:10 p.m. Eastern.

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