Thu, 10/20/2016 - 12:06

Coasted bests stablemate in Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf drill

Debra A. Roma
Coasted has already won twice on turf at the Miss Grillo's distance of 1 1/16 miles.

ELMONT, N.Y. – Coasted, the winner of the P.G. Johnson Stakes at Saratoga and third as the favorite in the Miss Grillo at Belmont, worked five furlongs in 1:01.73 over the Belmont Park training track Thursday. Trained by Leah Gyarmati, Coasted is being pointed to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf on Nov. 4 at Santa Anita.

:: Breeders’ Cup Challenge: Results, replays, charts, and more

Thu, 10/20/2016 - 12:06

Prat picks up mount on Effinex for Breeders' Cup Classic

Barbara D. Livingston
Effinex has only four opponents in the Jockey Club Gold Cup on Saturday.

ELMONT, N.Y. – Trainer Jimmy Jerkens and stable manager Russell Cohen confirmed that Flavien Prat will ride Effinex in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Prat, the second-leading rider at the Santa Anita meet with 11 wins from 50 mounts, replaces Mike Smith, who is riding Travers winner Arrogate.

Prat tied Rafael Bejarano for leading rider at Del Mar.

:: Breeders’ Cup Challenge: Results, replays, charts, and more

Thu, 10/20/2016 - 12:00

Shaman Ghost goes long in Breeders' Cup Classic work

Emily Shields
Shaman Ghost, ridden by Joel Rosario, wins the Brooklyn Invitational by 4 1/4 lengths Saturday.

ELMONT, N.Y. – One day later than planned, Shaman Ghost got in his long-distance workout for the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic, breezing seven furlongs in 1:28.47 over the Belmont Park training track Thursday.

:: Breeders’ Cup Challenge: Results, replays, charts, and more

Wed, 10/19/2016 - 15:50

Boys are all here for the Mohawk Stakes

Barbara D. Livingston
King Kreesa (No. 2) edges Kharafa for the win in the West Point Stakes on Friday.

ELMONT, N.Y. – Lubash, Kharafa, and King Kreesa are the last three winners of the Mohawk Stakes, and they reunite at Belmont Park in Saturday’s renewal of the $200,000 stakes, which drew a field of nine 3-year-olds and up going 1 1/16 miles on the turf.

Kharafa won the Ashley T. Cole last month, while King Kreesa won the West Point earlier in the year. All the major players in the statebred male turf division are in this field, including Tapitation, who won the Kingston here in May.

Wed, 10/19/2016 - 15:46

Hot City Girl tries to keep Iroquois in the family

Barbara D. Livingston
Jose Ortiz collects one of his four wins on the card aboard Hot City Girl in the Union Avenue.

ELMONT, N.Y. – La Verdad won the $150,000 Iroquois in back-to-back years for owner Sheila Rosenblum and trainer Linda Rice. On Saturday at Belmont Park, Hot City Girl will try to step in for her retired older sister when she heads a field of six entered in the Iroquois at 6 1/2 furlongs.

Hot City Girl, also owned by Rosenblum and trained by Rice, is coming off a 1 3/4-length victory in the Union Avenue Stakes at Saratoga. Prior to that, she finished third behind Haveyougoneaway and Quezon in the Dancing Renee.

Wed, 10/19/2016 - 15:36

Wonder Gal in familiar situation in Empire Distaff

Barbara D. Livingston
Wonder Gal, who finished fifth in the Gallant Bloom, is a leading contender in the Empire Distaff on Saturday.

ELMONT, N.Y. – Last year, Wonder Gal came off an eighth-place finish in the Grade 1 Test at seven furlongs to win the Empire Distaff at Belmont Park by a convincing 2 1/2 lengths. On Saturday, she will try to bounce back off a fifth-place finish in the Grade 2 Gallant Bloom at 6 1/2 furlongs in the $250,000 Distaff at 1 1/16 miles.

Trainer Leah Gyarmati said she and owner Jeff Treadway chose the Distaff over the $150,000 Iroquois at 6 1/2 furlongs because they felt the race would be “a little bit softer, and she won’t have to run off her feet,” Gyarmati said.

Wed, 10/19/2016 - 15:36

Empire Dreams fresh for Empire Classic

Adam Coglianese/NYRA
Empire Dreams, with Manny Franco aboard, wins the Empire Classic by three-quarters of a length Saturday.

ELMONT, N.Y. – If Empire Dreams can finish 2016 like he did 2015, he certainly will have made up for lost time.

Over the last 10 weeks of 2015, Empire Dreams won the $300,000 Empire Classic and the $100,000 Alex M. Robb Handicap, while in between narrowly missing a third victory in a division of the New York Stallion Stakes.

Wed, 10/19/2016 - 14:49

Matriarch, American Oaks next-race possibilities for Mokat

Emily Shields
Mokat, shown winning the San Clemente, will make one more start in a major stakes this season.

Mokat, the California-based Grade 2 winner who finished fifth in the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup at Keeneland last Saturday, will start in at least one more major stakes on turf this year.

Trainer Richard Baltas said he is considering running Mokat in the $300,000 Matriarch Stakes, for fillies and mares at a mile at Del Mar on Dec. 4, or the $300,000 American Oaks, for 3-year-old fillies at Santa Anita in the final days of the year.

Wed, 10/19/2016 - 14:40

Breeders' Cup Mile: Mondialiste likely to take a second crack at race

Four-Footed Fotos
Mondialiste received a fees-paid berth to the Breeders' Cup Turf, but will likely run in the BC Mile instead.

Trainer David O’Meara has confirmed that Mondialiste will be cross-entered in the Breeders’ Cup Mile and Breeders’ Cup Turf but said the Mile remains the most likely target.

Mondialiste won the Arlington Million, a Win and You’re In race offering a fees-paid berth in the Turf. But Mondialiste is a 6-year-old with 22 starts, a miler who never has raced farther than 1 1/4 miles, and it seems late in the game to stretch him out to 1 1/2 miles.

Wed, 10/19/2016 - 14:26

Breeders' Cup Turf: Erupt emerges as contender

Michael Burns
Erupt upset the Canadian International at 12-1 on Sunday.

By way of Canada, the European contingent for the $4 million Breeders’ Cup Turf at Santa Anita on Nov. 5 grew stronger last weekend.

Erupt won the Grade 1 Canadian International at Woodbine on Sunday, a performance expected to lead to a relatively quick turnaround to the BC Turf. Erupt was available at 7-1 or 8-1 with British bookmakers on Wednesday, behind the New York-based Flintshire (2-1) and the Europeans Highland Reel (5-2) and Found (3-1).