The Pizza Man Heads West for Turf Cup, By Jeremy Balan, November 22, 2015
Well-travelled The Pizza Man will make his way back to the West Coast for the
Although a lung infection derailed a planned trip overseas to run in the Nov. 29 Japan Cup (Jpn-I), Midwest Thoroughbreds’ homebred son ofEnglish Channel should be a significant favorite in the 1 1/2 mile Hollywood Turf Cup, a race he finished third in last year, behind winner Finnegans Wake andPatrioticandproud.
MITCHELL: The Pizza Man Will Miss Japan Cup
Since last year’s Hollywood Turf Cup, however, the 6-year-old gelding has really hit his stride, most notably becoming the first Illinois-bred to win the Arlington Million (gr. IT) in August. He also won the Stars and Stripes (gr. IIIT) for the second year in a row, finished just a neck behind Grand Arch in the Shadwell Turf Mile (gr. IT) , and came in fifth in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf (gr. IT).
What The Pizza Man won’t have Thanksgiving Day, though, is regular rider Florent Geroux, who is scheduled to ride six races at Fairgrounds Race Course & Slots Thursday. Geroux has been aboard for the gelding’s last 10 starts, but Hall of Famer Mike Smith will take over for the Hollywood Turf Cup.
The Pizza Man’s most formidable opponent for the Hollywood Turf Cup appears to be Michael House’s Big John B, who entered the Breeders’ Cup Turf on a three-race win streak—including scores in the Cougar II Handicap (gr. III) and the Del Mar Handicap (gr. IIT), both at the seaside racetrack over the summer—but broke slowly at Keeneland and never got involved, finishing 10th.
ANGST: Big John B Repeats in Del Mar Handicap
A Florida-bred son of Hard Spun trained by Phil D’Amato, Big John B has a four-for-four record at Del Mar and is three-for-three over the track’s turf course.
The only other multiple graded stakes winner in the field is Sam-Son Farm’s homebred Up With the Birds, Canada’s 2013 Horse of the Year. The 5-year-old son of Stormy Atlantic trained by Graham Motion hasn’t won in eight starts since a victory in last year’s Nijinsky Stakes (Can-IIT), but could be primed for a winning run after finishing a solid second to Cannock Chase in the Pattison Canadian International (Can-IT) last time out Oct. 18 at Woodbine.
Hollywood Turf Cup S. (gr. IIT), Del Mar, Thursday, November 26, 2015, Race 7, 1 1/2m, Turf, $250,000, 3 yo’s & up, 2:00 PM (local)
PP | Horse | Jockey | Wgt | Trainer | M/L |
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1 | Class Leader (KY) | Santiago Gonzalez | 120 | John W. Sadler | - |
2 | Up With the Birds (ON) | Drayden Van Dyke | 124 | H. Graham Motion | - |
6 | The Pizza Man (IL) | Mike E. Smith | 126 | Roger A. Brueggemann | - |
5 | Procurement (FL) | Corey S. Nakatani | 120 | Thomas F. Proctor | - |
4 | Quick Casablanca (CHI) | Tyler Baze | 122 | Ronald L. McAnally | - |
3 | Danas Best (AUS) | Victor Espinoza | 120 | Philip D’Amato | - |
14 | Big John B (FL) | Rafael Bejarano | 124 | Philip D’Amato | - |
12 | Power Foot (KY) | Tiago Josue Pereira | 120 | Neil D. Drysdale | - |
8 | Power Ped (KY) | Mario Gutierrez | 120 | Neil D. Drysdale | - |
11 | Southern Freedom (KY) | Martin Garcia | 120 | Jerry Hollendorfer | - |
9 | Texas Ryano (KY) | James Graham | 120 | Carla Gaines | - |
13 | Wanstead Gardens (ON) | Gary L. Stevens | 120 | Neil French | - |
7 | Ganesh (BRZ) | Alex O. Solis | 126 | Richard E. Mandella | - |
10 | Generoso (URU) | Martin A. Pedroza | 124 | Paulo H. Lobo | - |
16 | Bird E House (KY) | Gonzalo Nicolas | 120 | Michael Pender | - |
15 | Flamboyant (FR) | Brice Blanc | 120 | Patrick Gallagher | - |
DOMENICA 22 NOVEMBRE 2015 Irlanda, Goffs November Foals: Movimento di €25,847,500 (-6%). Allevamento italiano in offerta, ecco i risultati..
Cue Card (centre): attempting to win a £1 million bonus this season
PICTURE: Getty Images
Cue camp look forward to Gold Cup challenge
THE owner of Cue Card has no fears about him tackling the Cheltenham Gold Cup this season as he looked forward to seeing him try to follow up his Betfair Chase victory in the William Hill King George VI Chase.
Cue Card’s defeat of two-time King George winner Silviniaco Conti at Haydock on Saturday set him up for a tilt at a £1 million bonus put up by Jockey Club Racecourses for any horse who wins the Betfair Chase, King George and Gold Cup.
Bob Bishop said neither the prospect of taking on Vautour, who made a winning reappearance at Ascot on Saturday, nor a first attempt on the Gold Cup at Cheltenham was reason to worry.
Cue Card was winning for the second time since undergoing surgery for a trapped epiglottis, and under new jockey Paddy Brennan.
Bishop said: “We were absolutely delighted with Cue Card. We thought he’d do well because of the way he ran at Wetherby and the way he’d been working, but sometimes how you work in the gym is not how you work in the ring. He’s a happy horse now, and he and Paddy are a perfect combination.
“I’m relaxed about Kempton. I watched the Vautour race. It was his first start this season, and runner-up Ptit Zig was race-fit, but it wasn’t the runaway victory everyone expected. They say you shouldn’t be frightened of one horse, and we have a horse who will give 100 per cent. If 100 per cent doesn’t turn out to be a winner, you can’t be too disappointed.”
‘Bonus exciting’
Bishop continued: “The bonus is a long way away but it all adds to the excitement. If he’s as good in March as he is now he’ll certainly run, and he’ll get the trip. We know now why he never got the trip – his breathing. Yesterday he was so comfortable and when he came back he wouldn’t have blown a candle out.
“He likes Cheltenham too. He won the Champion Bumper by eight lengths and the Ryanair by nine lengths, and got closest to Sprinter Sacre in the Arkle. We’ve no fears about Cheltenham at all.”
fonte : RacingPost
DOMENICA 22 NOVEMBRE 2015 Hong Kong, tempo di trials! Military Attack bene nella Cup, Beauty Flame a sorpresa nel Mile, Gold-Fun conferma sullo Sprint
Military strikes in LONGINES Jockey Club Cup
21/11/2015 17:12
Military Attack edged pole position among Hong Kong’s local contenders for next month’s G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Cup (2000m) with a narrow victory in that race’s premier lead-up, the G2 LONGINES Jockey Club Cup (2000m), at Sha Tin Racecourse today, Saturday, 21 November.
Caspar Fownes’ charge took the spoils by a head from last year’s winner, the ever-game Blazing Speed, and that gelding’s Tony Cruz-trained stablemate, the emerging talent, Beauty Only, ran on to finish a further half-length away in third.
“The five pounds was huge today but I really feel he’ll strip a lot fitter and be cherry ripe on the big day, so fingers crossed he pulls up all right,” said Fownes, referring to the G1 penalty Blazing Speed was required to concede to the winner.
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Military Attack takes the LONGINES Jockey Club Cup (Group 2, 2000m) at Sha Tin Racecourse today for trainer Caspar Fownes and jockey Zac Purton.
Military Attack, a two-time G1 winner himself, and a former Hong Kong Horse of the Year, has had to contend with niggling issues over the past couple of seasons. Fownes is hoping that the seven-year-old will have a trouble-free preparation into the LONGINES Hong Kong Cup on 13 December, in which the Oratorio gelding failed by a short-head in 2014.
“He’s had a lot of problems,” said the trainer. “Last season it was his feet and this time it’s his joints and a suspensory. It’s been a battle, day in and day out. The vets have done a great job, and my team as well, they’ve worked really hard. Everyone has put in the hours to just get that result for the owners and for the fans in Hong Kong.
“He’s getting on in age but I’m sure he’ll still be a force on the big day. I’d say he’ll strip a little bit fitter from this run, as I’m sure the second horse will – that was a big run from him, too. I’ll try to have him the best I can on the day.”
Zac Purton settled Military Attack on the fence, three back from the leader, Khaya. The Australian ace switched out his mount early in the stretch, tracking the run of Blazing Speed who hit the front under Neil Callan 300m from home. Purton dipped lower in the saddle and began punching vigorously with a furlong to race. Military Attack, nothing if not tough, responded determinedly to drive past the runner-up inside the final 100m and hold his rival through the final strides.
“I would have liked to have been on the outside and travelled a little bit easier,” said Purton. “But when we found ourselves on the fence I just had to wait for the run to come and I know he’s got a good turn-of-foot. I could feel through the run that he was quite comfortable and I knew he would give me a good kick when I asked him.
“He’s a horse that’s always been close to my heart. I’ve been riding him for a number of seasons now, on and off, so it’s good to get another nice win on him. Last season he had a good season but Caspar had a struggle with his feet, he had a lot of problems but he seems to be on top of it this season, and if that’s the case, hopefully he can go a head better in December this year and get the job done for us.”
fonte : HKJC
Flame burns Friend in BOCHK Wealth Management Jockey Club Mile shock
21/11/2015 18:24
Sha Tin Racecourse witnessed the biggest shock of the season so far as Hong Kong’s super star, Able Friend, failed to complete back-to-back wins in the G2 BOCHK Wealth Management Jockey Club Mile. The Tony Cruz-trained Beauty Flame took the spoils under an astute Gerald Mosse.
The John Moore-trained Secret Sham set steady fractions up front as Joao Moreira parked his esteemed stablemate more than eight lengths off the pace. Mosse, meanwhile, opted for the stalking role, allowing Beauty Flame – often a front-runner and twice second to Able Friend in G1 contests last term – to slipstream the leader.
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Gerald Mosse partners the Tony Cruz-trained Beauty Flame to victory in the BOCHK Wealth Management Jockey Club Mile (Group 2, 1600m) at Sha Tin Racecourse today.
“I was expecting that, if I was not going to make the running, the John Moore horse (Secret Sham) would, so I didn’t rush my horse and I got a perfect race,” said Mosse. “I just sat behind him and waited for the straight, like Tony told me to do, and when I pressed the button he answered perfectly.”
With 500m to race, Moreira, perhaps sensing the task facing the favourite, began pumping his arms. As the field of nine swept into the stretch, Beauty Flame quickened to lead at the 300m point. Able Friend made ground but progress was more grinding than blistering. Up ahead, Beauty Flame put daylight to the field, Contentment in closest pursuit, as Able Friend boxed on for third.
“He was just waiting for Able Friend but he didn’t see him so he didn’t push himself!” said a smiling Mosse following his length and quarter victory in a time of 1m 33.74s.
Trainer Tony Cruz was delighted: “We predicted how this race would be run. I believed one of John’s horses would set the pace for Able Friend, which would suit us perfectly and it came out exactly as we anticipated.
“I’m a little bit more than hopeful now,” he said of repeating the success in next month’s G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile. “To me the horse will be spot on for international day on 13 December. He’ll be better than today. All of my horses will be 100 percent on the big day, that’s for sure.”
Moore said of Able Friend’s run: “Moreira said when he got off that the track suited horses that were on the speed – that those on the speed were going to do better today. He still broke 22 seconds coming home (21.87s). He’s well enough. People might put it down to a flat run but I’d put it down to circumstances – the pattern of the race and so forth. He’ll be absolutely right for the Mile in December.”
Moore’s Designs On Rome, warming up for an attempt at a second consecutive win in the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Cup (2000m) next start and first-up for the season, finished sixth, three and a quarter lengths behind the winner.
fonte : HKJC
SABATO 21 NOVEMBRE 2015 Australia: Red Cadeaux non ce l’ha fatta… il globetrotter è stato eutanasizzato a causa di complicazioni
C’était le “Grand Match” de l’automne à Auteuil : Blue Dragon VS Bonito du Berlais. Finalement, l’affrontement s’est résumé à une partie de course-poursuite : toujours devant, Blue Dragon s’est montré intouchable pour Bonito du Berlais.
Il n’y a plus aucun doute possible : Blue Dragon est le meilleur 4 ans français sur les haies. Animateur, marqué à une dizaine de longueurs par Bonito du Berlais, Blue Dragon n’a jamais été vraiment inquiété par son rival dans ce Prix Renaud du Vivier (Groupe 1). Le match n’a pas franchement eu lieu : Blue Dragon est bien au-dessus du lot, un rouleau-compresseur, et, dans ce contexte d’une course-poursuite, Bonito du Berlais ne peut que limiter les dégâts, tout en étant le seul à ne pas totalement décrocher face au rythme imprimé par Blue Dragon.
Bonito du Berlais reste toutefois un adversaire à la mesure du talent du Blue Dragon. On compte loin entre ce dernier et le reste du peloton. Il y a d’ailleurs eu deux courses en une dans ce Prix Renaud du Vivier : celle de deux vedettes, Blue Dragon et Bonito du Berlais, et celle du peloton, composé de cinq chevaux qui se sont battus pour la 3e place, en ayant quasiment toujours une haie de retard sur les deux ténors. Il y avait deux machines et les autres et une machine encore plus puissante que l’autre :Blue Dragon.
Arrivée et rapports : 6 – 3 – 4
fonte : Equidià.