One Master was scratched from the Breeders’ Cup Mile on Thursday morning because of persistently elevated muscle enzymes.
The elevated enzyme levels can produce a condition know as tying up, a locking of muscles that restricts movement, and that is what happened to One Master the first day she trained at Keeneland this week, according to trainer William Haggas.
Global Campaign, who races for the partnership of Sagamore Farm and WinStar Farm, will make the final start of his career in Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup Classic before going to stud at WinStar Farm. The race will also mark the end of the latest chapter in Sagamore’s history in the Thoroughbred industry, as the farm’s principals announced Thursday that they plan to use the Maryland property to focus on the Sagamore Spirit whiskey brand.
ELMONT, N.Y. – From 41 starts in this country, they have combined to win 27 races, 23 graded stakes, 17 Grade 1’s and bank nearly $8.5 million. They are all Breeders’ Cup winners. Two are champions.
On Saturday at the Breeders’ Cup at Keeneland, the triumvirate of Sistercharlie, Uni, and Rushing Fall will each make the final start of her career, and the significance of that is not lost on their trainer, Chad Brown.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint comes on the earlier side of Saturday’s card at Keeneland.
“I’m glad it’s 12:30,” said trainer Joe Orseno, who will saddle Imprimis as one of the favorites in the race, the fifth of 12 on the card. “I don’t have to sit around all day.”
Orseno had been waiting a long time for a horse like Imprimis, sixth in last year’s Turf Sprint at 11-1, to bring him back to the Breeders’ Cup with a major chance. But Orseno, 65, is no stranger to the sport’s biggest days, despite several years out of the spotlight.
Day 2, Breeders’ Cup 2020. Waist deep in Euros. No words to waste on cute introductions. One thing: Wet weather predominated this fall in England, Ireland, and France. Racecourses turned very soft and heavy for a couple months. Keeneland will be much different. Bump the firmer-ground horses that recently struggled, knock down those that moved forward under testing conditions.
On to the races.
Turf
It is a rite of fall, like the leaves changing colors, jackets getting dusted off for use as the wind picks up and temperatures drop. This is the time of year in racing when 3-year-olds see if they can step up and beat their elders in championship races, none more significant than the Breeders’ Cup Classic.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kurt Becker had something of a harrowing experience with the coronavirus and feels fortunate to be back calling the races Friday and Saturday at Keeneland.
Becker, the only race-caller in Keeneland history, was diagnosed on Oct. 23 as positive for the virus, forcing him to miss the final day (Oct. 24) of the 17-day fall meet. He was cleared earlier this week by health officials in his hometown of Altamont, Ill., and in Fayette County, Ky., to return to the announcer’s booth for the two Breeders’ Cup dates.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – With a strong purse structure, two turf courses that haven’t been used in 11 months, and a slightly shortened racing schedule, signs are pointing to a potentially strong Aqueduct fall meet, which gets under way Friday.
As was the case at both Belmont meets and at Saratoga, fans will not be permitted at Aqueduct due to COVID-19 restrictions put in place by the state. That will be particularly frustrating to fans considering the adjacent casino is open at 25 percent capacity, albeit under strict protocols.
It was just about feeding time the other morning at Al Stall Jr.’s barn at Churchill Downs and there was Tom’s d’Etat, in a familiar spot, peering out of his stall, eagerly awaiting brunch. It was the morning after his final work, six days before what will be the final start of his elongated and oft-interrupted career, in the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on Saturday at Keeneland, and the 7-year-old war horse was seemingly as eager as ever to get it on.
