Churchill Downs notes: Magic Hour must slow it down in Falls City Handicap

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Of course Ian Wilkes misses Fort Larned. The recently retired winner of the 2012 Breeders’ Cup Classic gave Wilkes and owner-breeder Janis Whitham and their families a ton of thrills, and it’s only natural that a vacuum has been created in his absence.

Still, there’s a filly with a blood connection to Fort Larned still in the Wilkes barn at Churchill Downs, and she stands a chance to reprise a fraction of family glory on Thanksgiving Day in the Grade 2 Falls City Handicap. Her name is Magic Hour, and she, like Fort Larned, traces her dam-side lineage to the great Bayakoa.

Magic Hour was produced by Affluent, who was out of Trinity Place, a daughter of Bayakoa. Fort Larned was produced by Arlucea, out of Bayakoa.

“They’re different types of horses, although Magic Hour does like to go to the lead like he did,” said Wilkes, who won the 2008 Falls City with Miss Isella.

Magic Hour has won four races, including two ungraded stakes, from 13 career starts and figures as a major pace factor in the Falls City when stretching out to 1 1/8 miles off slightly shorter races. The 4-year-old Awesome Again filly faded to eighth after contesting a hot pace in her most recent start, the Nov. 2 Chilukki at Churchill, but four weeks before that, she defeated the Falls City highweight, Don’t Tell Sophia, at Indiana Downs.

“Obviously, she just went too fast in the Chilukki,” Wilkes said. “If we can slow it down this time, she’ll have a much better chance. She’s getting better, in my opinion. She’s shown she can run with good fillies before.”

Before the Indiana Downs race, Magic Hour ran second at Ellis Park to Devious Intent in the Gardenia Stakes, the race in which Groupie Doll finished third in her first start in eight-plus months.

Magic Hour, with Brian Hernandez Jr. making up most of a 115-pound impost, figures as one of the longer-priced horses in the $150,000 Falls City, for which the likely favorites are Don’t Tell Sophia (122), Flashy American (118), and Wine Princess (117). Entries were to be drawn Sunday.

Big fields for juvenile stakes

Fairly big fields are taking shape for the pair of Grade 2, $150,000 stakes that close the 25-day fall meet next Saturday. Churchill racing officials are listing the following 2-year-olds as probable or possible:

Kentucky Jockey Club: All Cash, Almost Famous, Awesome Sky, Bro Rodrigeaux, Culprit, Dobra Historia, Financial Mogul, Ichiban Warrior, Laddie Boy, and Sheikinator.

Golden Rod: Bird Maker, Canaryinacoalmine, Daddy’s Memory, Madly Truly, Naive Enough, Playful Love, Room Service, Spangled Banner, Stonetastic, Streethomealabama, and Vexed.

Entries for both 1 1/16-mile races will be drawn Wednesday. They anchor the second of two Stars of Tomorrow programs, the 2-year-old-only cards that have been fall staples since 2005.

Little Mike to Hong Kong Cup

Trainer Dale Romans said he has “no idea” how Little Mike will match up with the opposition Dec. 8 in the Hong Kong Cup, where the 6-year-old gelding faces such international stars as Military Attack, Akeed Mofeed, and Cirrus des Aigles. The $2.8 million race is run clockwise at about 1 1/4 miles.

“I’d guess he’ll be a longshot because they tell me that’s what the American horses usually are over there,” Romans said. “But I do like seeing how he came out of the Breeders’ Cup.”

Little Mike, an earner of almost $3.5 million, breezed an easy five furlongs here Friday in his first work since finishing seventh in the Nov. 2 BC Turf at Santa Anita. He is scheduled to leave Monday for Hong Kong, with Romans following “about a week out from the race.”

Turfway Park starts Sunday

In recent years, Churchill has run its closing-day program on the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend. This was after Turfway Park gave up the date so as not to “orphan it,” with a gap of dark days ensuing.

But this year, with that Sunday happening to be the first of December – a month into which Churchill prefers its fall meet not delve – Turfway has the date back, with its holiday meet (and four straight months of winter racing) starting then.