Todd Pletcher Eclipse Award of Merit: D
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SUNDAY, JANUARY 19, 2014 732-747-8060 $ TDN Home Page Click Here FEW ECLIPSE SURPRISES, CLOSE CALLS LECOMTE RIVALS IN ‘TROUBLE’ A veritable who=s who of the Thoroughbred industry It=s a pretty steep climb from Louisiana-bred maiden gathered in the Sport of Kings Theatre at Gulfstream company into open Grade III, but Ken and Sarah Park Saturday evening for the 43rd annual Eclipse Ramsey=s Vicar=s In Trouble (Into Mischief) negotiated Awards, where Morton Fink=s Wise Dan (Wiseman=s the hike with aplomb, Ferry) became the first to sweep three divisions in racing away from his consecutive years. The chestnut easily outpointed rivals in the stretch for a GI Breeders= Cup Classic hero Mucho Macho Man convincing, if a bit green, (Macho Uno) and 6 3/4-length victory in champion 3-year-old Saturday=s GIII Lecomte Will Take Charge S. at the Fair Grounds. (Unbridled=s Song) to AYou don't know [how take down Horse of they'll handle two turns] the Year honors, until you really do it,@ becoming the first jockey Rosie Napravnik Vicar’s In Trouble (center) rallies repeat winner of the said of the winner, into the lane Hodges Photography award since Curlin in stepping up in trip off a 2007-8. Wise Dan maiden win over six panels. AHe's got natural speed Wise Dan Horsephotos also successfully which left our options open. The horse has been repeated as improving and I think he is still a little immature but I champion older male and champion turf male, and Fink think he can move up a lot from this race." Cont. p4 told the audience on hand and those watching on television or online that he would try to >convince= LEATHERBURY PASSES VAN BERG trainer Charlie LoPresti to consider races on the dirt as Legendary Maryland trainer King T. Leatherbury tied he stays in training in 2014. Besilu Stables= Royal Delta and then passed Jack Van Berg to take fourth on the (Empire Maker) was also winning an Eclipse Award for all-time win list Saturday afternoon at Laurel Park. the third straight year when she took down top honors Leatherbury got win 6,417 when Toni With an I as champion older female, while Groupie Doll emerged victorious in the fourth. Three races later, (Bowman=s Band) was deemed to have done enough for Princess Appeal got up in the final jumps to allow the a second straight champion female sprinter title. 80-year-old conditioner to move into sole possession of Spendthrift Farm=s Beholder (Henny Hughes) became the spot with career victory 6,418. the first since Silverbulletday in 1998-1999 to follow up on a championship season at two with another Eclipse at age three. In a division thought to be a close call, it proved something very different, as she bested GI Kentucky Oaks winner Princess of Sylmar (Majestic Warrior) by a convincing margin of 207-42. Cont. p3 2013 ECLIPSE AWARD WINNERS 2yo Male: Shared Belief (Candy Ride {Arg}) 2yo Female: She’s A Tiger (Tale of the Cat) 3yo Male: Will Take Charge (Unbridled’s Song) 3yo Female: Beholder (Henny Hughes) Older Male: Wise Dan (Wiseman’s Ferry) Older Female: Royal Delta (Empire Maker) Male Sprinter: Points Offthebench (Benchmark) Female Sprinter: Groupie Doll (Bowman’s Band) Male Turf Horse: Wise Dan (Wiseman’s Ferry) Female Turf Horse: Dank (GB) (Dansili {GB}) Steeplechase Horse: Divine Fortune (Royal Anthem) Owner & Breeder: Kenneth & Sarah Ramsey Outstanding Jockey: Javier Castellano Apprentice Jockey: Victor Carrasco Outstanding Trainer: Todd Pletcher Eclipse Award of Merit: D. Wayne Lukas In This Issue 60 Broad St., Suite 100 Red Bank, NJ 07701 (732) 747-8060 (732) 747-8955 (fax) www.thoroughbreddailynews.com www.thetdn.com CO-PUBLISHERS Barry Weisbord, President [email protected] • @barryweisbord Sue Finley, Vice President [email protected] • @suefinley BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Gary King, Director of Business Development [email protected] EDITORIAL King Leatherbury surpasses Jack Van Berg into fourth in all- [email protected] time wins Jim McCue/MJC Jessica Martini, Editor-in-Chief Alan Carasso, Managing Editor Steve Sherack, Racing Editor Brian DiDonato, Racing Analyst/Soc. Media Dir. Mucho The Best In Sunshine Millions Justina Severni, Associate Editor Christie DeBernardis, Assistant Editor Mucho Macho Man (Macho Uno) may have been denied at last night’s Heather Likins, Assistant Editor Eclipse Awards, but sent a message to the racing community that things Catlyn Spivey, Assistant Editor might be different this time next year. Making his first start since winning ADVERTISING the GI Breeders’ Cup Classic Nov. 2, the 6-year-old buried his rivals in [email protected] Saturday’s Florida Sunshine Millions. Alycia Borer, Director of Advertising Coverage p5 Lia Kusch, Senior Advertising Designer Sarah K. Andrew, Senior Advertising Coordinator/Director of Distribution Another Rising Star for Tapit Amanda Crelin, Advertising Designer Robert S. Evans’s Tonalist (Tapit) overcame a wide run on the turn to Amanda Foster, Advertising Assistant become the newest TDN ‘Rising Star.’ CUSTOMER SERVICE Coverage ATW p3 [email protected] Vicki Forbes, Director of Customer Service INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Robert Williams, Director of IT [email protected] Gregg Casillo, DB Administrator, Programming [email protected] WORLDWIDE INFORMATION Kelsey Riley, International Editor [email protected] Sean Cronin, Newmarket Bureau, Cafe Racing Tom Frary, Newmarket Bureau, Cafe Racing [email protected] EST Race Click for TV 7:00p La Canada S.-GII, SA (Brisnet.com PPs) HR/TVG TDN P HEADLINE NEWS • 1/19/14 • PAGE 3 of 10 • thoroughbreddailynews.com 2014 Eclipse Awards cont. Less-debated and widely expected were the victories Posthumous Award to Points... by Will Take Charge (Unbridled=s Song) as champion The Eclipse for champion male sprinter provided the 3-year-old male and Dank (GB) (Dansili {GB}) as older night=s most touching moment, as Points Offthebench turf female. Will Take Charge easily outdistanced (Benchmark), who suffered a catastrophic injury in the GI Kentucky Derby winner Orb (Malibu Moon) by a vote days leading up to the GI Breeders= Cup Sprint, was of 231-15, and his owner Willis Horton provided some named champion over that race=s winner Secret Circle of the evening=s most entertainment during his (Eddington). The 2-year-old divisions each featured acceptance speech, delivered with typical Arkansan drama and question marks going into Saturday night=s defiance. Whereas earlier European-based winners of ceremonies. In the male category, voters were faced the turf female Eclipse were rewarded for a single with the dilemma of whether to reward the late-season outstanding performance on these shores, Dank made two giant splashes in the U.S., first proving a heroics of Jim Rome and company=s Shared Belief convincing winner of the GI Beverly D. S. in August (Candy Ride {Arg}), the GI Breeders= Cup Juvenile before outlasting The Fugue (GB) (Dansili {GB}) in the success of New Year=s Day (Street Cry {Ire}) or the GI Breeders= Cup Filly/Mare Turf. Dank defeated the late consistency of Havana (Dunkirk). In the end, the Laughing (Ire) (Dansili {GB}) by a convincing margin. brilliant run of Shared Belief won out as he prevailed in In the human categories, Ken and Sarah Ramsey the night=s closest contest by a tally of 115 to 99 from accepted for outstanding owner and breeder on the the now-retired New Year=s Day. J “TDN Rising heels of unprecedented success in 2013. Todd Pletcher Star” J She=s A Tiger (Tale of the Cat) was all but a took home a record sixth statuette as outstanding shoo-in for champion 2-year-old filly until a trainer, while at the other end of the spectrum, a most disqualification in the GI Breeders= Cup Juvenile Fillies humble Javier Castellano was named outstanding brought Ria Antonia (Rockport Harbor) into the mix. But jockey for the first time. Victor Carrasco was the voters went headlong for She=s A Tiger, choosing her outstanding apprentice. Trainer D. Wayne Lukas was by a margin of 212 to 15 for GI Breeders= Cup Juvenile introduced by his protege Todd Pletcher, and delivered Fillies Turf winner Chriselliam (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}). an apparently extemporaneous and heartfelt speech. He recognized those owners who helped cement his Hall of Fame career, trainers he=s worked alongside over the TDN TODAY years and warned his younger colleagues that he has Headline News.. 10 pages no intention of slowing down anytime soon. The TDN Special Eclipse Award Edition follows Headline News TDN P HEADLINE NEWS • 1/19/14 • PAGE 4 of 10 • thoroughbreddailynews.com FEATURE PRESENTATION • GIII LECOMTE S. ‘Vic’ Is Quick... Vicar=s In Trouble ran to debut odds of 5-1 when third in a Keeneland maiden Oct. 11, but earned a crack at this test with a 13-length demolition of his fellow Bayou-breds going six furlongs Dec. 13. Fastest away from the stalls for Rosie Napravnik, Vicar=s In Trouble came back to his rider nicely when Roman Unbridled (Roman Ruler) pressed through to lead into the first turn. Sugar Bowl S. winner Albano (Istan) looped up into third turning up the backstretch, with favored Gold Hawk (Empire Maker) one spot further back. A touch headstrong through the middle of the race, Vicar=s In Trouble drew on even terms midway on the turn, hit the front on his wrong lead at the quarter pole, was well clear when drifting towards the inside in the final furlong and proved easily best. The next race in the series is the $400,000 GII Risen Star S. to be contested at a mile and a sixteenth Feb.