Saturday & Sunday • August 28 & 29, 2021 FEC/FTBOA PUBLICATION www.wiretowire.net FLORIDA’SDAILYRACINGDIGEST FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION or to subscribe, please call Antoinette at 352-732-8858 or email: [email protected] In This Issue: Essential Quality Headlines Travers Field Medina Spirit Supplemented to Sunday’s Shared Belief Letruska Leads Accomplished Field in Personal Ensign Brown Continues Hot Streak as Favorite Rastafara Captures Riskaverse 2021 Thoroughbred Industry Employee Awards Finalists Announced Florida-bred Cajun’s Magic/LAUREN KING PHOTO Chase to the Championship Cajun’s Magic One to Gulfstream Park Charts Track Results & Entries Beat in FSS Affirmed Florida Stallion Progeny List BY BROCK SHERIDAN _____________ he will face 10 rivals in the Affirmed for 2- Florida Breeders’ List year-old colts and gelding by registered Without stablemate Dean Delivers to Florida stallions. Wire to Wire Business Place compete against this time, Stonehedge The Florida Sire Stakes Affirmed is the LLC’s homebred Cajun’s Magic is the co-feature Saturday at Gulfstream along heavy favorite to win the $200,000 Florida with the $200,000 Florida Sire Stakes Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ As- Susan’s Girl for 2-year-old fillies by regis- Featured Advertisers sociation Florida Sire Stakes Affirmed Sat- tered Florida sires at seven furlongs. urday at Gulfstream Park. The seven Trained by Michael Yates, Cajun’s furlong Affirmed is the second leg of the Magic rallied from fifth early in the Desert Big Lick LLC. male division of the Florida Sire Stakes Vixen to lock up with Dean Delivers at the Florida Department of Agriculture after the six furlong, $100,000 Desert Vixen top of the stretch as those two took their on July 31 at Gulfstream, which Cajun’s fight to wire while finishing 10 lengths FTBOA Magic won by a neck ahead of Dean Deliv- ahead of Gold Special in third followed by ers. Merlin and Big and Classy in fourth and Peterson Smith Equine Hospital However, Cajun’s Magic does not appear fifth respectively. to have frightened off much competition as See CAJUN’S MAGIC on page 3 Seminole Feed Page 2 Wire to Wire August 28 & 29, 2021 Back to Top Page 3 Cajun’s Magic Continued from COVER Trained by Jeff Engler for “It was pretty exciting. It was a great horse race. It’s not often Lea Farms LLC, Lightening that you’re in that position,” Yates said of stretch-long duel between Larry is a graduate of the 2021 Cajun’s Magic and Dean Delivers. OBS March Sale where his cur- Gold Special, Merlin and rent owners purchased him for Big and Classy all return in the $50,000 out of the Pick View Affirmed for another shot at consignment. Cajun’s Magic, who provided Lightening Larry will be rid- Stonehedge principals Gilbert den by Romero Maragh from and Marilyn Campbell with post four and they are 6-1 in the their 17th win in the series and morning line. fifth victory in the Dr. Fager. Trainer Ralph Nicks looks Yates has now won three for his fifth consecutive victory Florida Sire Stakes races after in the Affirmed with Spendthrift also taking the 2018 Dr. Fager Farm LLC and William and with Cajun Firecracker and the Corinne Heiligbrodt’s Cattin, a 2020 Desert Vixen with Go Jo three-and-three-quarters-lengths winner of a $50,000 maiden Jo Go. Ralph Nicks/COGLIANESE PHOTO Cajun’s Magic has won two claiming going five-and-a-half of three career starts including a furlongs at Gulfstream on July 31; and Jacks or Better Farm Inc.’s state-bred maiden special Awesome Crusader. weight going five-and-a-half Nicks previously won the Affirmed with Soutache in 2017, Jesus Rios/LAUREN KING PHOTO furlongs on July 3 at Gulfstream Garter and Tie (2018), Liam’s Lucky Charm (2019) and Breeze on in his second start. He was second to Of Revolution in his debut By last year. going five furlongs in May at Gulfstream, a race in which Yates “I came to Florida when Gulfstream went to year-round racing. said Cajun’s Magic learned to come from off the pace. [The Florida Sire Stakes is] a program that you need to be active “I kind of expected that he would [show more versatility in the in,” Nicks said. “In six years, we’ve been fortunate—my crew and Dr. Fager] because in his first race, he didn’t break on top; he was clients – to win nine of them now. It’s been great. It’s kind of sur- in traffic and made a middle move. That was due to me not being real. Each additional one adds up for the crew and clientele. They overly aggressive with his gate works before his first start,” Yates said. send me horses to target this. The Racing Gods have allowed us [to Cajun’s Magic is a Florida-bred son of Cajun Breeze, who was excel]. We’ve been fortunate so far.” owned and trained by Yates during his racing career and now stands Cattin is from the first crop of Pleasant Acres Stallions resident at the Gilbert’s Stonehedge Farm South. Neolithic out of Adios Dawn, by Ocala Stud stallion Adios Charlie. Cajun’s Magic is out of Mollie Magic, by Factum and is listed Cattin was bred in Florida by Curtis Mikkelsen and Patricia Horth as the 7-5 favorite in the morning line. Jesus Rios will ride the and he was a $25,000 purchase by the Heiligbrodts at the 2020 OBS earner of $112,900 from post five. Winter Mixed Sale from the Beth Bayer consignment. Listed as the second choice at 9-2 in the program is King Cab Cattin is 15-1 in the morning line and will don the number eight from the barn of trainer Edward Plesa Jr. saddle towel while carrying jockey Luca Panici. King Cab will be making only his second career start after de- Awesome Crusader is by Ocala Stud’s first crop sire Greenpoint- buting with a three-length victory against Florida-bred, special crusader and is out of Awesome Belle, by Awesome of Course, who weight maidens going six furlongs on Aug. 6 at Gulfstream, a race also stands at Ocala Stud. Awesome Belle won the 2011 FSS My in which fellow Affirmed entrant Awesome Crusader was second. Dear Girl and was third in the FSS Susan’s Girl that year for Fred An earner of $39,000, King Cab is by Ocala Stud freshman sire Brei’s Jacks or Better Farm. Noble Bird and is out of Alotofappeal, by Trippi and was bred in Jacks or Better Farms leads all owners and breeders with 19 vic- Florida by Ocala Stud, Edward Wiest and William J. Terrill. Aloto- tories in the Florida Sire Stakes including a sweep of the 2010 filly fappeal has also produced stakes-winner B C’s Train; Grade 3- division with Eclipse Award-winning champion Awesome Feather; placed runners Talk Logistics and Schivarelli; stakes-placed a sweep of the 2009 male division with Jackson Bend; and Fort Sonoma Cash; and Big Rings, who was third in the Florida Sire Loudon, who took all three races in the 2011 male division. Stakes My Dear Girl last year won by Princess Secret. Still a maiden in three starts including the previously mentioned King Cab was consigned by Ocala Stud to the Ocala Breeders’ second to King Cab, Awesome Crusader is 30-1 in the morning Sales Open Sale in June where current owners David Melin, Leon line. He is set to depart from post nine with jockey Cristian Torres. Ellman and Laurie Plesa purchased him for $110,000. The remainder of entrants in post position order include Octane, Samy Camacho, who guided King Cab in his maiden victory, Merlin, Clapton, Big and Classy, Gilligan and Gold Special. will again be in the saddle and they will break from post six. First post at Gulfstream Saturday is 12:20 p.m. EDT. Lightening Larry will be new to the Florida Sire Stakes after winning a state-bred maiden special weight by two lengths going five furlongs in his second career and most recent start at Gulf- stream on June 18. He was also second in his first start behind win- CLICK HERE for the latest ner Hope In Him in a maiden special weight for Florida-breds The Florida Horse going four-and-a-half furlongs on June 4. In two starts, the son of Uncaptured out of Moon and Sun, by ONLINE Malibu Moon, who was bred in Florida by Michelle Redding, has earned $50,450. Wire to Wire August 28 & 29, 2021 Back to Top Page 4 Wire to Wire August 28 & 29, 2021 Back to Top Page 5 Essential Quality Headlines Travers Field BY NYRA PRESS OFFICE _____________________________ Blue Grass and seventh in the Kentucky Derby. SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY—Reigning Eclipse Award-winning The Robertino trainer Brad Cox has already secured a memorable meet at historic Diodoro trainee com- Saratoga Race Course and will be looking to accomplish a feat that peted in the Triple has not been achieved in 79 years when he sends out ultra-consis- Crown’s second leg, tent Godolphin homebred Essential Quality in Saturday’s Grade 1, running fourth in the $1.25 million Runhappy Travers at the Spa. Preakness won by Rom- The 152nd running of the Runhappy Travers—for 3-year-olds bauer in May at Pim- contesting the classic distance of a mile-and-one-quarter—is slated lico, before a as Race 12 on the packed 13- third-place Ohio Derby race card that features seven Keepmeinmind/COADY PHOTO (G3) performance be- graded stakes among six Grade hind winner Masquepa- 1 contests.