Red-hot McGaughey has more stakes on his mind
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ELMONT, N.Y. – Trainer Shug McGaughey won the first two races of the Belmont Park fall meet on Sept. 18, and 30 days into the season, he’s still winning.
Sunday, McGaughey won three more races, giving him a record of 9 for 28 at the fall meet. The three horses who won Sunday – Pentathlon in the Grade 3 Forty Niner, Quiet Power in a first-level allowance, and the 2-year-old filly Flightress in a maiden race – could all come back in stakes before the meet ends.
Pentathlon, who earned a 105 Beyer Speed Figure for his 1 1/2-length victory in the Forty Niner, will run in the Grade 2, $500,000 Cigar Mile here Dec. 5. Pentathlon is responsible for two of McGaughey’s nine wins at the meet, having also won an allowance on Oct. 4. Last fall, Pentathlon won an allowance before running fifth in the six-horse Cigar Mile field.
Asked if there is a difference in this year’s Pentathlon compared to last year, McGaughey said “he probably has trained better, especially when he got up to Saratoga. He had a couple of eye-opening works, then we laughed because he would work good and run bad, but now he’s working good and running good.”
Quiet Power, a 3-year-old son of Tapit, won a first-level allowance race going 1 3/16 miles on turf by 2 1/4 lengths. McGaughey said he plans to bring Quiet Power back in the Grade 2, $500,000 Jockey Club Derby going 1 5/16 miles on Nov. 28.
“He’ll run as far as you want him to run,” McGaughey said.
Flightress, a daughter of Flightline, won a 1 1/16-mile maiden race by 1 3/4 lengths. That was her third start, but first going beyond a mile. McGaughey isn’t sure whether he will keep Flightress on dirt in a race like the Grade 2, $250,000 Demoiselle on Dec. 5 or switch her to turf in the $175,000 Chesley Flower on Nov. 27
“If she hadn’t won the other day I was going to put her straight onto the turf,” McGaughey said. “I think the longer the better for her, so I got to figure that part of it out. She’s still not running fast, but she’s improving. Distance will be her friend.”
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