Breakout Beyers: Concert Tour deserves ovation

Each week in this space, the top Beyer performances by maiden winners will be featured and analyzed. Click here for a complete archive.

Concert Tour

Jan. 15, Santa Anita 4th race, MdSpWt61k
Beyer: 88
6f 1:10.40, 1st by 3 1/2 lengths
b. c. 3, Street Sense – Purse Strings, by Tapit
Owner: Gary and Mary West
Trainer: Bob Baffert
Breeder: Gary and Mary West Stables

Well, we don’t know how he responds to the crop, since the rider never even cocked it in this colt’s career debut. Like so many live Baffert-trained first-time starters, this horse was running through the bridle in the early stages without getting to the point of running off – just a powerful animal wanting to do more. Wore tiny-cup blinkers and a shadow roll, had more than ample early speed, and this looked a lot more like an afternoon workout than a race. Despite coasting across the wire, he still galloped out an eighth of a mile (if not more) in front of the competition. Not a whole lot of black type in near family, the dam retired after posting a 12th-start maiden sprint win, but the big-picture pedigree plus the visuals from this race suggest a colt that will handle a middle distance, which, one assumes, he’ll be trying next out.

Li’l Tootsie

Jan. 16, 2nd race Fair Grounds, MdSpWt50k
Beyer: 89
6f 1:09.74, 1st by 4 lengths
b. f. 3, Tapiture – Informative Style, by Dayjur
Noteworthy siblings: Stylish Citizen (Proud Citizen) – stakes winner, $150K earnings; Ultimate Question (Proud Citizen) – stakes winner, $147K earnings; Watch This Cat (Eskendereya) – stakes-winner, $237K earnings
Auctions: Keeneland Nov. breeding 2018 – $13,000; Keeneland Sept. yearling 2019 – $105,000
Owner: Joel Politi
Trainer: Tom Amoss
Breeder: Davant Latham

Was a tricky day at Fair Grounds for figure-making, with a bevy of slow races later on the 13-race card, and it wouldn’t have been surprising had this second-time-starting filly’s Beyer come up over 90. Not only did she win by four lengths, the runner-up was six clear of third and the show horse was four clear of fourth, with six more fillies behind them. Broke on top but rated behind dueling leaders before asserting on the turn and taking over in upper stretch. Runs with her ears back and didn’t change leads until the jockey fairly aggressively asked her to just before the eighth pole. Her gallop-out was decent, not spectacular. The dam is by sprinter Dayjur and was a sprinter herself, and the family generally leans one turn over two. This filly, who is very fast, possesses powerful hindquarters and goes like a horse who probably will prefer shorter trips but as of this writing was likely to make her next start in a route.

Nocturnal

Jan. 15, 6th race Gulfstream, MdSpWt40k
Beyer: 91
1M 1:36.06, 1st by 3 3/4 lengths
b. c. 4, Palace Malice – Only by the Night, by Tale of the Cat
Owner: Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Cheyenne Stables
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
Breeder: Candy Meadows

Tend to eschew 4-year-old maiden winners in this space unless they look potentially special – like this colt. Wow – that was a lot of horse running around the Gulfstream main track. He looks big all over, and fast, yet Pletcher brought him back for his second career start and first race since March in a one-turn mile, which he handled easily. The debut came at seven furlongs and in it he finished second to stablemate Dr Post, who turned into a useful 3-year-old. This was a short field, and he was prominent from the start, but the best part of his performance was the end of it. A couple of foes – including the Pletcher first-time starter Bold Agenda, favored at 6-5 – tried to make a run at him at the three-sixteenths, but Nocturnal just had been cruising, despite setting a solid pace, and responded quickly to jockey Luis Saez’s encouragement, gaining several lengths on the chasers before being geared down at the wire. Galloped out with his ears straight up, like this had been easy for him, which should give connections plenty of hope for the rest of the winter and spring.

Lijana

Jan. 16, 5th race Fair Grounds, MdSpWt50k
Beyer: 80
1M turf 1:37.01, 1st by 1 1/2 lengths
b. f. 3, Hard Spun – High Wire Act, by Medallist
Auctions: Keeneland September yearling 2019 – $50,000; OBS Spring 2yo 2020 – $440,000
Owner: Belladona Racing
Trainer: Cherie DeVaux
Breeder: Godolphin and Charles Deters

Had made a favorable impression debuting in New York last fall with a fine second behind promising White Frost in a turf route, and lived up to her short price here, albeit with a perfect trip. Big score as a pinhooked filly, going for nearly nine times the yearling price when sold back at a breeze-up auction last March. Don’t see too many sharp maiden winners out of Medallist mares, and the pedigree suggests dirt as much as turf, but turf it appears to be. Has so far been more of a positional pace horse than a filly with a wicked turn of foot, but the natural talent was there from the first appearance and there should be development to come in the months ahead.

Too Boss

Jan. 17, 1st race Aqueduct, MdSpWt77k
Beyer: 81
7f 1:25.05, 1st by 5 1/2 lengths
Gr. c. 3, El Padrino – Bossy Posse, by Posse
Owner: Michael Cascio
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
Breeder: Mr. and Mrs. Michael Joseph Cascio

Debut in December and was an okay second before moving a couple notches forward here while racing on Lasix for the first time and stretching out from six to seven furlongs. Short field, slow track, and he was up on the pace from the start, so even though you already may be taking winter AQU winners with a grain of salt, add another grain due to the particular circumstances. That said, his funky stride (very high knee action) covers quite a bit of ground and he looks like a stretch-out candidate. Probably not graded-stakes class but doesn’t need to be to do well since he’s a Pa-bred.

Ready for Change

Jan. 14, 4th race Fair Grounds, MdSpWt45k
Beyer: 88
5.5f 1:04.37, 1st by 11 1/4 lengths
b. f. 4, More than Ready – Single Solution, by Flatter
Noteworthy siblings: No Fault of Mine (Blame) – stakes winner, $267K earnings; Focused (Distorted Humor) – $195k earnings
Owner: Lothenbach Stables
Trainer: Neil Pessin
Breeder: Lothenbach Stables

Long time to make career debut, which was intended for turf and rained out, but made an outstanding impression on dirt, nonetheless. Granted, the field was short and soft enough that she was a 3-5 favorite, but she just whistled, showing good speed, doing this easily, and most encouraging, perhaps, was the fact the race came on dirt. She’s by strong turf influence More than Ready and the Grade 3 turf-stakes-winning dam is part of an excellent family that includes Grade 1 turf winner Vacare and active stakes-level, multi-surface threat Captivating Moon. Look forward to seeing this filly get into something like a one-mile grass race.

Blameworthy

Jan. 16, 4th race Fair Grounds, MdSpWt50k
Beyer: 80
6f 1:10.29, 1st by 1 1/4 lengths
b. c. 3, Blame – Roman Chestnut, by Roman Ruler
Noteworthy siblings: Put Da Blame On Me (Blame) – $205K earnings
Auctions: Keeneland September yearling 2019 – $60,000 RNA
Owner: Two Hearts Farm and Don Janes
Trainer: Chris Davis
Breeder: Two Hearts Farm

Third start, third 80 Beyer Speed Figure. Poor fella in his debut ran into Swiftsure, who was the best maiden 2-year-old winner the first few weeks of the Fair Grounds meet, and then second out hooked Prate, the best maiden winner of any sort during this Fair Grounds meet. He’s got decent speed and is above average for sure, but has he made much progress yet through these three starts, and does he have many special characteristics? So far, it doesn’t look like it. The dam won the Busher on dirt and the pedigree is very dirt-laden, so wonder if Blame’s turf influence ever comes out here. Not sure true routes are in his future, but a mile or so, maybe.