SUNDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2016 >TEMPLE= KEEPS THINGS IN >MOTION= LADY ELI >BOWLS= >EM Having posted a career-best 108 Beyer Speed Figure in OVER AT BELMONT winning Keeneland's GI Maker's 46 Mile during the spring meeting and given the presence of champion Tepin (Bernstein) in the sex-restricted GI First Lady S., it seemed logical enough to try Miss Temple City (Temple City) back against the boys in the GI Shadwell Turf Mile, a "Win and You're In" qualifier for the GI Breeders' Cup Mile. And the 4-year-old filly proved equal to the task yet again, pouncing from just off the pace and then holding off a desperate late run from Ironicus (Distorted Humor) for the victory. A luckless and controversial runner-up in last year's GI Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup, Miss Temple City resumed in fine fashion in this year's Maker's 46, then was far from disgraced when fourth in the G2 Duke of Cambridge S. over a turf course perhaps easier than she likes it at Royal Ascot June 15, 24 hours after Tepin's win in the G1 Queen Anne S. Fourth, beaten all of a neck, in the GI Diana S. on her American comebacker July 23, the dark bay was pinched back late when fifth in the GII Ballston Spa S. Aug. 27, a race which produced Lady Eli | Sarah K Andrew photo Saturday's GI Flower Bowl S. winner Lady Eli (Divine Park). See p6 Looking to make amends for a brave first career defeat when IN TDN EUROPE TODAY first up for nearly 14 months in the GII Ballston Spa S. at CHURCHILL TAKES CHARGE IN DEWHURST Saratoga Aug. 27, Sheep Pond Partners= Lady Eli (Divine Park) Churchill (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) continued a dream run for his sire and = made a successful return to the winner s circle with a much-the- connections when winning the G1 Dubai Dewhurst S. best victory in Saturday=s GI Flower Bowl Invitational S., earning Click or tap here to go straight to TDN Europe. herself a spot in the field in the GI Breeders= Cup Filly & Mare Turf at Santa Anita in a months= time. Winner of the 2014 GI Juvenile Fillies Turf at Santa Anita, Lady Eli was well on her way to last year=s championship meeting, with three wins from three starts to begin the campaign, including a facile defeat of Itsonlyactingdad (Giant=s Causeway) in the GI Belmont Oaks Invitational last July. But bad luck intervened, as Lady Eli stepped on a nail on her way back to the barn and developed laminitis in both front feet. Uncertain about a return to the races and focused on the filly=s survival, connections took a wait-and-see approach, but by December, Lady Eli had returned to light training at Palm Meadows. She managed to turn in a pair of official works over the winter in South Florida, but went missing from the worktab for about two months and Chad Brown began to get serious again in May, with a start at Saratoga mooted as a possibility. What once appeared unlikely became reality when Lady Eli made it back to the races on the Travers S. undercard, and she looked on her way to a fairy-tale win in the Ballston Spa, only to relinquish her theretofore perfect record at the hands of longshot Strike Charmer (Smart Strike), posting a career-best Beyer (101) in the process. Cont. p7 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] Sunday, October 9, 2016 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 Noah “Thor” Syndergaard (left) of the New York Mets makes an appearance at Advertising Designer Belmont Park Saturday to cheer on his namesake Syndergaard (Majesticperfection) in Amanda Crelin Advertising Assistants the Grade I Champagne Stakes. | Photo: NYRA Brittlan Wall @bwallTDN Alexa Reisfield HOPPERTUNITY MAKES MOST OF OPPORTUNITY 3 Photo Editor/Dir. of Distribution After swerving another meeting this year with California Chrome Sarah K. Andrew @SarahKAndrew [email protected] (Lucky Pulpit) in last weekend’s GI Awesome Again S., Hoppertunity (Any Given Saturday) took the Big Apple by Storm Saturday. Social Media Strategist Nichola Henry @NicholaHenryTDN [email protected] FINLEY: A SOMEWHAT SUPER SATURDAY 8 Bill Finley watched Saturday’s stakes bonanza from a computer Director of Customer Service Vicki Forbes in wet New Jersey and shares his thoughts on the afternoon. [email protected] TODAY’S GRADED STAKES Director of Information Technology EDT Race Click for TV Ray Villa [email protected] 10:45a Premio Verziere-G3, SSI -------------- ----- 11:55a Premio Dormello-G3, SSI -------------- ----- WORLDWIDE INFORMATION 4:56p Grey S.-GIII, WO TJCIS PPs TVG International Editor 5:10p Dixiana Bourbon S.-GIII, KEE TJCIS PPs TVG/NBC Kelsey Riley @kelseynrileyTDN [email protected] 5:45p Juddmonte Spinster S.-GI, KEE TJCIS PPs TVG/NBC European Editor 7:00p L.A. Woman S.-GIII, SA TJCIS PPs TVG 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 22 • THETDN.COM SUNDAY • OCTOBER 9, 2016 FEATURE PRESENTATION GRADE I JOCKEY CLUB GOLD CUP Sometimes horse racing is akin to dodge ball. Just ask Bob Baffert. Originally headed towards last weekend=s GI Awesome Again S. and the thankless task of facing California Chrome (Lucky Pulpit), Hoppertunity (Any Given Saturday) was instead re-routed for Saturday=s $1-million GI Jockey Club Gold Cup. The decision reaped rewards when the veteran entire sat handy to a moderate tempo and outfinished favored Effinex (Mineshaft) to earn a date against Chrome and company in the GI Breeders= Cup Classic back in Arcadia Nov. 5. And there will be no ducking anyone then. Hoppertunity, who led home a sophomore 1-2-3 in the 2014 GI Clark H., won the GII San Pasqual S. and was second to Effinex in defense of the Clark in nine trips to the post last season. Victorious in the GII San Antonio S. to kick off this campaign, the bay was third to California Chrome in the Hoppertunity | Sarah K Andrew photo G1 Dubai World Cup Mar. 26, taking home a cool $1-million check, but had rolled a hard eight in his last two, with fourth-place efforts in the GI Gold Cup at Santa Anita June 25 and to California Chrome in the GI TVG Pacific Classic Aug. 20. Hoppertunity fell out of the gates and lobbed along from last, hugging the fence and never far from the front, as Protonico (Giant=s Causeway) and Effinex crawled through the opening half-mile in a pedestrian :49.03. The cadence quickened as they raced through an internal quarter-mile in :23.15, but Hoppertunity was keeping pace for John Velazquez, even if he was being niggled along to do so. With Mike Smith swinging off Effinex, the duo loomed up outside of Protonico and the race looked like his to lose, but Hoppertunity was switched away from the fence and into the clear to make best use of his grinding style. Almost lazily, Effinex inched up to grab a narrow lead approaching the eighth pole, but it was Hoppertunity who was finishing more generously to scoop his second career top- level success. Cont. p4 TDN HEADLINE NEWS • PAGE 4 OF 22 • THETDN.COM SUNDAY • OCTOBER 9, 2016 Jockey Club Gold Cup cont. GI Jockey Club Gold Cup "There wasn't a whole lot of speed in the race other than Effinex,@ commented Jimmy Barnes, traveling assistant to Baffert. AEverybody stayed sensible. The most important thing for Hopper is that he was standing good and broke good and he Saturday, Belmont Park was placed more forwardly in the race, especially on a slow JOCKEY CLUB GOLD CUP S.-GI, $980,000, BEL, 10-8, 3yo/up, pace, that's probably why he was a little closer. We always 1 1/4m, 2:00.68, ft. thought in our minds that he would like these big turns here, 1--HOPPERTUNITY, 126, h, 5, by Any Given Saturday and this big, deep track where he would have a chance to come 1st Dam: Refugee (SP, $114,070), by Unaccounted For from behind.@ 2nd Dam: Polish Maid, by Danzig The winner and runner-up are on track for a rematch in the 3rd Dam: Davona Dale, by Best Turn ($300,000 Ylg '12 KEESEP). O-Karl Watson, Michael E. Pegram Classic. & Paul Weitman; B-Betz/D.J. Stable/Kidder/J. Betz/Robenalt (KY); T-Bob Baffert; J-John R. Velazquez. $600,000. Lifetime Pedigree Notes: Record: 22-6-6-4, $3,562,675. *1/2 to Executiveprivilege (First A half-brother to multiple Grade I-winning >TDN Rising Star= Samurai), MGISW, $999,000; and Profit (Not For Love), SP, Executiveprivilege, also campaigned by this triumvirate, $180,285. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the Hoppertunity is also kin to LNJ Foxwoods= Freedom (War Front), eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. a $650,000 Keeneland September who was most recently a neck Purchased by Donato Lanni/Hill ‘n’ Dale Bloodstock away from breaking her maiden over the Churchill turf course Sept.