Bill Oppenheim
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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 8, 2017 NEOLITHIC HEADED TO JERKENS BACK AT SANTA ANITA WITH SHAMAN GHOST By Michael Adolphson DUBAI WORLD CUP Trainer Jimmy Jerkens is hoping for a second chance at a first impression this weekend at Santa Anita Park with Shaman Ghost (Ghostzapper) entered in Saturday=s GI Santa Anita H. The veteran conditioner is preparing the GI Woodward S. winner for a 10-furlong, Grade I event in Arcadia for the second time in just over four months after scratching Shaman Ghost from the GI Breeders= Cup Classic in November when the bay spiked a fever in the 24 hours leading up to the race. "He's really doing well right now," Jerkens reported from Santa Anita while waiting for his GI Pegasus World Cup runner-up to arrive. "He has not missed a beat and just had a nice work in company [five furlongs in 1:00 flat at Palm Meadows Saturday]. I wasn't really tempted to run in the [G1] Dubai World Cup. Everybody does it and it seems a bit nerve-racking.@ Cont. p3 Neolithic | Lauren King IN TDN EUROPE TODAY SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE APEX By Christie DeBernardis Bill Oppenheim breaks down the Southern Hemisphere Starlight Racing=s Neolithic (Harlan=s Holiday) will ship to Dubai Apex ratings, comprising sires in Australasia, South America Mar. 14 for a start in the $10-million G1 Dubai World Cup at and South Africa. Meydan Mar. 25, Starlight principal Jack Wolf confirmed to TDN Click or tap here to go straight to TDN Europe. Tuesday after it was originally reported by Bloodhorse. Runner-up in the GIII Discovery S. last November at Aqueduct, Neolithic romped by nine lengths next out in a Gulfstream allowance Dec. 14, giving his connections the confidence to try the $12-million GI Pegasus World Cup Jan. 28. The dark bay ran a game third after setting a fast pace that day, finishing behind another impressive performance from champion and >TDN Rising Star= Arrogate (Unbridled=s Song), who is also bound for Dubai. AI think the horse performed well in the Pegasus,@ Wolf commented. A[Trainer] Todd [Pletcher] has liked the horse from the get go and when he came back as a 3-year-old turned 4-year-old, the horse seemed to be doing very well. From the standpoint of whether to go to Dubai, first of all, it was nice to be invited. Once we were invited, it was basically a decision between there and the [GI] Big >Cap [Mar. 11]. Although it is a hard sell to say that we can beat Arrogate, assuming Arrogate still goes [to Dubai], from an economic standpoint, it made more sense to take a shot over in Dubai.@ Into Mischief – Golden Works, The Breeders’ Farm by Banker’s Gold | Fee: $15,000 S&N 859.294.0030 | spendthriftfarm.com PRESIDENT & CO-PUBLISHER Barry Weisbord @barryweisbord [email protected] SR. V.P. & CO-PUBLISHER Sue Morris Finley @suefinley [email protected] V.P., INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS Gary King @garykingTDN [email protected] Wednesday, March 8, 2017 EDITORIAL [email protected] Editor-in-Chief Jessica Martini @JessMartiniTDN Managing Editor Alan Carasso @EquinealTDN Senior Editor Steve Sherack @SteveSherackTDN Racing Editor Brian DiDonato @BDiDonatoTDN Associate Editors Christie DeBernardis @CDeBernardisTDN Ben Massam @BMassamTDN Assistant Editors Heather Anderson @HLAndersonTDN Joe Bianca @JBiancaTDN ADVERTISING [email protected] Director of Advertising Alycia Borer Advertising Manager Lia Best Advertising Designer Amanda Crelin Advertising Assistants Alexa Reisfield Michelle Benson Ready for my close-up. A Florida-bred 2017 filly by Gone Astray, out of Tereska (Tale Photo Editor/Dir. of Distribution Sarah K. Andrew @SarahKAndrew of the Cat), poses for the camera at Dancing Wind Farm in Ocala. Click here to submit [email protected] photos of your 2017 foals for consideration in the TDN. Please include sire, dam, owner, and photographer’s name. | Photo courtesy of Dancing Wind Farm Social Media Strategist Justina Severni Director of Customer Service Vicki Forbes [email protected] OP/ED: DEAN TOWERS Director of Information Technology 5 Ray Villa In “The Pegasus, The Blockbuster Effect and The Super User, op-ed columnist [email protected] Dean Towers examines how racing can better appeal to and target its most highly engaged consumers. WORLDWIDE INFORMATION International Editor Kelsey Riley @kelseynrileyTDN [email protected] European Editor Emma Berry [email protected] Newmarket Bureau, Cafe Racing Sean Cronin & Tom Frary [email protected] 60 Broad Street, Suite 100 Red Bank, NJ 07701 732-747-8060 | 732-747-8955 (fax) www.TheTDN.com TDN HEADLINE NEWS • PAGE 3 OF 6 • THETDN.COM WEDNESDAY • MARCH 8, 2017 Jerkens Back at Santa Anita, continued from p1 Crown, taking the prestigious Queen's Plate S. and running Jerkens continued, AMr. Stronach wasn't crazy about the idea second in the Prince of Wales S. and didn't really give it much thought. Our goal was the Pegasus AI think he showed a lot of class when Brian had him and he and to go from there. You kind of want to keep them in some ran hard in the Canadian Triple Crown,@ Jerkens said. AHe's a kind of rhythm. We didn't want to wait until pretty hardy animal, especially as far as the [GII] Oaklawn [H.] and didn't want to go horses go these days. He came out of those to Dubai. With Arrogate (Unbridled=s Song) races with some rough ankles and had some going to Dubai, that made [the Big >Cap] time. We got going again right before New more appetizing.@ York last year and he hasn't looked back AI really liked his race [in the Pegasus],@ since. He's a horse who needs a little tender the conditioner added. AHe really came out loving care, but he's good once you get him of the gate running and that's a great sign. in the gate. They ran away from him and he idled a little The conditioner added, ASanta Anita can down the back and then when he was be very speed-favoring and he is going to asked, he ran very willingly. He usually have to be lucky. Hopefully there's a little throws a good run in and I think even in his pace. It all depends on how fast they're Shaman Ghost | Leslie Martin going. He wasn't too far behind in the bad races he's had legitimate excuses.@ Woodward and will like the distance. Hopefully we get a little The 11-time Grade I-winning trainer has conditioned the luckier this time around.@ Canadian champion for his last six starts, originally getting him in With stable star Effinex (Mineshaft)--who was third in last December 2015 after the earner of $3,089,311 had made eight year's 'Big Cap' as the 7-5 chalk--retired to stud, Jerkens hopes starts for Brian Lynch. So far, Jerkens and Shaman Ghost have Shaman Ghost can pick up the mantle in 2017. He also has a pair won the GII Brooklyn going 12 furlongs and placed in both the of 4-year-olds with positive trajectories in Unified (Candy Ride Pegasus and GI Clark H. in addition to his Woodward win. As a {Arg}) and Delta Prince (Street Cry {Ire}) among his 40 horses in sophomore, he ran in the first two legs of the Canadian Triple training. Cont. p4 FIRST YEARLINGS SELL THIS SUMMER. Fees: $7,500 S&N | $9,000 Breed Secure The Breeders’ Farm 859.294.0030 | spendthriftfarm.com Unbridled’s Song – Stop Traffic, by Cure the Blues TDN HEADLINE NEWS • PAGE 4 OF 6 • THETDN.COM WEDNESDAY • MARCH 8, 2017 Jerkens Back at Santa Anita, cont. Unified (r) holds off Mind Your Biscuits in the GP Sprint | Kenny Martin Centennial Farms' ATDN Rising Star@ Unified returned from an eight-month layoff to hold off Grade I winner Mind Your Biscuits (Posse) Feb. 25 in the GIII Gulfstream Park Sprint S., winning his fourth race from five career outings and annexing his third graded stakes. AUnified came back big,@ Jerkens said. AI think we'll go to the [GI] Carter [H. Apr. 8] with him. I really like the way he is training and think he'll have enough time between races. If they're fresh and have to run hard when they weren't ready for it, you worry about a bounce, but we had him good and prepared.@ Fellow ATDN Rising Star@ Delta Prince, a Stronach homebred and half-brother to champion Royal Delta (Empire Maker), came into Jerkens' care last year and won like a good thing in a first-level Gulfstream Park turf allowance Feb. 18. The victory was his second in a row following a Dec. 26 graduation. ADelta Prince has a lot of talent,@ Jimmy Jerkens Adam Coglianese Jerkens commented. AWe will likely go through the conditions with him and if he wins well in a two-other-than, maybe we will look for a stakes with him. He was very close to running for [previous trainer] Christophe [Clement] at the end of the Gulfstream meet last year, but something came up. We got him and he's done very well and I think he has a future. Like with all the horses, you still have to lead them over there. It's incredible how bad, good or lucky things can go all at once with a barn. You just try to stay upbeat and do what you know and keep the horses happy.@ For $300, your job will run on this page in the TDN, be posted on the careers section of our website for one month, and be promoted through our social media channels: FACEBOOK (32,551 Likes) TWITTER (16,400 followers) INSTAGRAM (19,300 followers) Contact the TDN Ad Staff: [email protected] for details or to post a job TDN HEADLINE NEWS • PAGE 5 OF 6 • THETDN.COM WEDNESDAY • MARCH 8, 2017 In movies and music, we've seen what Mr.