Year 18 • No. 12 Monday, August 6, 2018 The aratoga Saratoga’s Daily Racing Newspaper since 2001 Sales Pitch Fasig-Tipton kicks off 2018 sale SANDY’Z SLEW WINS TROY TAGG, REALM UPSET ALYDAR YEARLING SALES PREVIEW Tod Marks Tod 2 THE SARATOGA SPECIAL MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 2018 here&there...at Saratoga Presented by Neuman Equine Insurance ............ equineinsurance.com T-SHIRT SLOGAN OF THE DAY Oklahoma Derby (28th running, won by Texas Chrome in 2016) BY THE NUMBERS 64: Texts received by Rick Violette after the Whitney. 8: Rum cakes brought to Saratoga from Lexington for the Mill Ridge consignment (bak- ery undisclosed). 3: Dish Network dishes attached to a tree near Barn 79. 1: Laptop owned by trainer David Donk. 2: iPads owned by trainer David Donk. 1: iPhone owned by trainer David Donk. NAME OF THE DAY Therapist, second race. Oak Bluff Stables’ 3-year-old colt is by Freud (by the way, the sire is a Name of the Day machine) RELATIVE OF THE DAY Osare, seventh race. Bridlewood Farm’s 3-year-old filly, a winner last time for trainer Jonathan Thomas, is a half-sister to Arrogate. Tod Marks Now That’s a Horse. Saratoga Springs Police Department’s King Tut greets some fans at the track Saturday. darleyamerica.com GOLD GLORYThree of the five million-dollar-plus juveniles sold this spring were by him. Plus: sales-topper Brill posts an 88 Beyer on debut – the highest of any 2018 two-year-old. Medaglia d’Oro: siring stars who earn their stripes. Darley MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 2018 THE SARATOGA SPECIAL 3 here&there...at Saratoga Presented by Neuman Equine Insurance ..................... equineinsurance.com WORTH REPEATING “This horse will be a mile and a quarter horse down the road, I’ll go to the Hill Prince now. Super nice horse, he’s got everything.” Trainer Chad Brown, after Raging Bull won the Hall of Fame Stakes “I like the idea of training horses there as babies, I like the pedigrees, I like the stallions there.” Owner Peter Brant, describing his approach to European racing “I ride him, ride him, ride him, he gave it to me, but it took a long time. He was fighting to hold Now on Broadway. his position in the ground. The thing with him, he never gives up, he tries, he tries, he tries.” Jockey Joel Rosario about Hall of Fame winner Raging Bull “The good news is they hide a lot of dirt.” Wear What You Love™ The Special’s Sean Clancy, about his son Miles’ preference for madras shorts “I tell people, I rode bulls, trained horses and now I’m on my third occupation, second guessing, and I’m doing a great job.” Hall of Fame trainer Carl Nafzger “The highest-cruising-speed horse I’ve ever ridden.” EMBRACE THE RACE® Valet Rodney Paine, on galloping Diversify 327 Broadway Saratoga Springs “I’m at a loss for words, which I know, is pretty amazing.” Rick Violette, after the Whitney embracetherace.com “If she knew, she would have have had five.” Irad Ortiz Jr., on his mother’s ability to produce jockeys Raising and Selling Racehorses ® ® and its affiliate NICOMA Barn 5 Hip 23 - CARPE DIEM - Lemon Splendor f. Hip 98 - TAPIT - Seattle Smooth f. Hip 106 - CURLIN - Shop Again f. Contact: Headley c: 859-221-5108 Price c: 859-321-5117 millridge.com nicoma.com Editors/Publishers The aratoga Sean Clancy: (302) 545-7713. [email protected] Joe Clancy: (302) 545-4424. [email protected] Managing Editor Tom Law: (859) 396-9407. [email protected] 259 East Avenue Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 Writers: Ben Gowans, Sarah Newman, Shayna Tiller, The Saratoga Special, thisishorseracing.com Brandon Valvo, David Woods. (the old feed store) Thoroughbred Racing Calendar, The Best of The Saratoga Special. Handicappers: Charles Bedard, Donald Phillips, John Shapazian. thisishorseracing.com Call us about your editorial needs. Design: Todd Koch. Published Thursday through Sunday Home Office: 364 Fair Hill Drive, Suite F, Elkton, MD 21921 during the racing season. (410) 392-5867 • Fax (410) 392-0170 Photographers: Tod Marks, Dave Harmon, Connie Bush. Plus Monday, Aug. 6 and Tuesday, Aug. 7. Distribution & More: Jane Crager, Kevin Murphy, Morgan Yaeger. 4 THE SARATOGA SPECIAL MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 2018 #1 Freshman Sire at Fasig-Tipton July - First Crop Yearlings Sold For $275,000, $250,000, etc. “Palace Malice was talented at every point in his life on the racetrack and he seems to be passing a ton of athleticism on to his progeny. Our filly out of Southern Belle was as athletic as they come and we are very excited for her future. We are big time believers in Palace Malice.” - Jacob West HIP #60 CONSIGNOR: Select Sales Agent for Machmer Hall BUYER: Eclipse Thoroughbreds Partners BREEDER: Machmer Hall Inquiries to Tom Hamm and Rebecca Nicholson 859.873.7053 • www.threechimneys.com @ three_chimneys LGB, LLC 2018 MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 2018 THE SARATOGA SPECIAL 5 QUOTE OF THE DAY here&there...at Saratoga “You have an audience. They’ve been watching for two days.” Presented by Neuman Equine Insurance ..................... equineinsurance.com Gainesway’s Neil Howard, as two children watched from WORTH REPEATING a window in the house next door to the consignment “Is he on the correct side?” Trainer Dale Romans, about a kid working in politics “He doesn’t know what a Polaroid is.” Romans, after someone suggested Ortiz needed an instant camera “Maybe (Jose and Irad) weren’t going to win, so they canceled the last two races.” Jock’s agent Steve Rushing, after the Lure and Waya were rained out Saturday 800-523-8143 (the Ortiz brothers swept the three other stakes on the card) “If I don’t come back, you’ll know where I am.” The Daily Gazette’s Mike MacAdam, heading to a history tour at Greenridge Cemetery on Lincoln Avenue after working the beat on the backstretch Sunday morning Maryland, My Maryland “I’ve come up with a new slogan and I’m going to make t-shirts - 3 months, 3 lengths.” Country Life Farm Trainer Chad Summers, hoping to turn the tables on Diversify with Mind Your Biscuits in the Breeders’ Cup Classic after a 3 1/2-length loss in the Whitney “If you knew how many times in my professional career I’ve asked that, ‘Where’s Dennis?’ If I had a dollar for every time …” Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning Jr. when The Special’s Tom Law went looking for Dennis Lynch “I’ve held off so far. I’m going in.” Fasig-Tipton auctioneer Tom Biederman, sampling some Mill Ridge rum cake Sunday afternoon (see By the Numbers) “It’s good for the paper right?” Tristan Barry, assistant to trainer Todd Pletcher, waiting out the Whitney lightning delay with a group from The Special “If we add up all the placings together do they add up to a win?” Owner Ike Thrash to trainer Brad Cox after their Kelly’s Humor finished third in Saturday’s Grade 1 Test ELLEN B. PONS B. ELLEN We’re two fabulous first-crop foals by Mosler (War Front). “They actually do, if we get to the end of the year and we’re still around.” There are a lot more just like us on farms all over the Cox responding to Thrash’s question Mid-Atlantic (he bred 102 mares his first season). “I’ve got a lot of bullets. I don’t have many big bullets, but I’ll fire them.” Everyone is talking about us – you’ll see why Trainer David Donk, launching into a stable tour when we start showing up at the sales! “They know when you win here. They also know if you didn’t win.” Josh Pons 443-807-0644 v Mike Pons 410-459-8517 v Christy Holden 410-808-1325 Donk, on a trainer’s life at Saratoga compared to Belmont or Aqueduct Bel Air, MD 21014 • 410.879.1952 v countrylifefarm.com v [email protected] 4-Time GSW over $1.8 Million Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile-G1over Gun Runner • Godolphin Mile -G2, etc. 1st Foals Arrived this Year TAMARKUZ by Speightstown Kent Barnes, Stallion Manager 859-224-4585 www.shadwellfarm.com 6 THE SARATOGA SPECIAL MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 2018 The Top 10 Presents the Photo of The Special keeps up with a list of the meet’s best – performances, achieve- the Day ments, oddball feats of human or equine wonder. We’ll update it daily, or try to any- way. Bold means they’re new. And congratulations 1. Imperial Hint. Vanderbilt July 28. You Congratulations to Kirkwood-sold going to argue with that performance? Kirkwood pinhook Special, small sprinter won Grade 1 with Realm and his connections on speed, style, simplicity. And we wrote Monday’s Alydar Stakes win! about him 18 months ago. I’m Betty G stakes win at Ellis Park 2. Diversify. Yo. Now that’s a Whitney. on her Best older horse on the grounds breaks on top and rips it up from there – winning in hand and stretching his streak to three. 3. Monomoy Girl. C.C.A. Oaks July 22. How good was that? Unquestioned queen of the meet. As Dylan sang, somebody get her a brand new leopard skin pillbox hat. 4. Weekend Hideaway. John Morrissey July 26. Who you callin’ old? Dismissed at kirkwoodstables.com 10-1, he won the N.Y.-bred stakes for the (859) 312-3414 second time – four years after the first one. Yearling to 2-year-old prep 5. Chad Brown. Just when you thought Steve Asmussen and others had a chance, 2-year-olds in Pinhooking the training-title favorite seized control.