Hard Not to Like Finds 'Way'
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SUNDAY, JULY 26, 2015 732-747-8060 $ TDN Home Page Click Here HARD NOT TO LIKE FINDS ‘WAY’ TO WIRE PLEASURE POSTPONED Peter Fluor and K.C. Weiner of Speedway Stable In a rain-blighted renewal marred by the withdrawal went to $1.5 million to secure 2014 GI Jenny Wiley S. not only of its chief protagonist Golden Horn (GB) (Cape winner Hard Not to Like (Hard Spun) at last year=s Cross {Ire}) but also of the interesting contender The Keeneland November Corsican (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and the solid Flintshire (GB) Sale (click here for (Dansili {GB}), Saturday=s G1 King George VI and story), and their Queen Elizabeth S. was at least partly salvaged by a investment paid thrilling duel up dividends once again Ascot=s stretch in as the 6-1 shot rallied which Postponed resolutely to nip Tepin (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) (Bernstein) in edged out old rival Saturday=s GI Diana S. Eagle Top (GB) at Saratoga. Kitten=s (Pivotal {GB}) by a Queen (Kitten=s Joy), a nose. rabbit for favored Having become L to R: Hard Not to Like, Tepin, Stephanie s Kitten embroiled in a Kitten’s Queen | Horsephotos = (Kitten=s Joy), once mid-race ruckus again outfinished her stablemate to be third. The chalk when third and Postponed (rail) noses out Eagle Top settled for a non-threatening fifth. "This horse is much second, in the King George |Racing Post better now and is only improving,@ offered Hall of respectively, in the Famer John Velazquez, who was celebrating a graded G2 Hardwicke S. over this course and distance last time stakes double after taking the GIII Sanford S. via DQ June 20, the duo joined battle at the proper part of the one race earlier aboard Uncle Vinny (Uncle Mo). AAs the race this time with Sheikh Mohammed Obaid Al distance of the races got longer, the better the horse Maktoum=s Postponed headed by the 5-2 favorite became. The horse is a little small and doesn't have the passing the furlong marker. Battling gamely against the speed to stay with the other horses in the first part of fence for Andrea Atzeni to get back on top of Golden the race. The longer the race went on, the longer her Horn=s stable companion in the last stride, the 6-1 shot, strides became." Cont. p3 always prominently placed, was providing trainer Luca Cumani with a belated first King George. EIGHT IS ENOUGH FOR CCA OAKS Led by a pair of last-out Grade I winners, Sunday=s Cont. p9 GI Coaching Club American Oaks at Saratoga has plenty to offer. Curalina (Curlin) returns after posting an improbable win in Belmont=s GI Acorn S. June 6. The chestnut rallied smartly to get there by a neck after getting squeezed badly at the start. She posted a runaway optional claiming tally around two turns at Churchill May 1 and is currently riding a three-race winning streak. "We're very excited Curalina | NYRA/Coglianese about the way she's been training," trainer Todd Pletcher said of the Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners colorbearer. "Her works up here have been especially good. Our concern in the Acorn was backing up to a mile. Then, she got sandwiched at the start and pinched back to last. The way she overcame that adversity to win was quite impressive. Stretching back out to two turns going 1 1/8 miles should suit her very well." Cont. p9 IN THIS ISSUE Spa’s Sanford S. Goes the Way of Uncle Vinny Via DQ Magna Light (Magna Graduate) was first past the post in Saratoga’s GIII Sanford S. Saturday afternoon, President & Co-Publisher: Barry Weisbord but it was Uncle Vinny (Uncle Mo) who claimed all [email protected] the glory with help from the stewards, after the former @barryweisbord impeded his rivals with some midstretch hijinks. Their Sr. V.P. & Co-Publisher: Sue Finley ruling gave Ashford Stud resident and 2010 juvenile [email protected] @suefinley champ Uncle Mo (Indian Charlie) his first graded- Magna Light crosses the wire ahead stakes winner as a sire from his first crop of runners. V.P., International Operations: Gary King of Uncle Vinny | Horsephotos [email protected] @garykingTDN Page 6 EDITORIAL [email protected] Editor-in-Chief: Jessica Martini Del Mar’s Bing Crosby Managing Editor: Alan Carasso Senior Editor: Steve Sherack S. Offers BC Sprint Racing Editor: Brian DiDonato Associate Editor: Justina Severni Berth Associate Editor: Christie DeBernardis Assistant Editor: Heather Anderson Six runners face off at the seaside in the GI Bing Assistant Editor: Ben Massam Crosby S. at Del Mar Sunday evening, headed by Ron Ellis trainee Masochistic (Sought After), who is ADVERTISING seeking his fourth consecutive victory and [email protected] second-straight at the highest level. However, he has to Masochistic | Benoit Photo Director of Advertising: Alycia Borer Art Director: Lia Kusch contend with recent GIII Los Angeles S. hero Sr. Ad Coordinator/Dir. of Distribution: Distinctiv Passion (With Distinction). Sarah K. Andrew Advertising Designer: Amanda Crelin Page 9 Advertising Assistant: Amanda Foster Social Media Strategist: Nichola Henry Honor Code, ‘Dandy’ CUSTOMER SERVICE [email protected] Hopefuls Work Toward Dir. of Customer Service: Vicki Forbes INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Spa Stakes Director of IT: Robert Williams ‘TDN Rising Star’ and GI Metropolitan H. hero [email protected] Honor Code (A.P. Indy) breezed five panels in 1:01.05 Director of Internal IT: Ray Villa through the Saratoga fog Saturday morning in [email protected] preparation for the GI Whitney H. Aug. 8. The attractive bay was joined on the worktab by Honor Code | Adam Coglianese WORLDWIDE INFORMATION Godolphin’s GI Wood Memorial S. hero and International Editor: Kelsey Riley GI Belmont S. runner-up Frosted (Tapit), who is pointing toward the GII Jim Dandy S. [email protected] Aug. 1, as well as Ralph Evans and WinStar Farm’s MGSW Upstart (Flatter). Newmarket Bureau, Cafe Racing: Page 10 Sean Cronin & Tom Frary [email protected] 60 Broad Street, Suite 100 Red Bank, NJ 07701 732-747-8060 | 732-747-8955 (fax) www.thoroughbreddailynews.com EST Race Click for TV www.thetdn.com 10:35a Grosser Dallmayr-Preis-Bayerisches-G1, MUN ----------------------- ----------- 10:40a Prix Robert Papin-G2, MLF ----------------------- ----------- 4:41p Royal North S.-GIII, WO (TJCIS.com PPs) HR/TVG 6:07p Coaching Club American Oaks-GI, SAR (TJCIS.com PPs) HR/TVG 7:40p Bing Crosby S.-GI, DMR (TJCIS.com PPs) HR/TVG TDN P HEADLINE NEWS • 7/26/15 • PAGE 3 of 15 • thoroughbreddailynews.com Saturday, Saratoga Also Ran: My Miss Sophia, Stephanie's Kitten, Lady DIANA S.-GI, $500,000, SAR, 7-25, 3yo/up, f/m, Lara (Ire), Waltzing Matilda (Ire). Click for the 1 1/8mT, 1:45.22 (NCR), fm. Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free 1--HARD NOT TO LIKE, 123, m, 6, by Hard Spun Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, 1st Dam: Like a Gem (MSW, $554,216), by Tactical Cat sponsored by Fasig-Tipton. 2nd Dam: Its a Ruby, by Rubiano Second in the 2012 GI Ashland S. while conditioned 3rd Dam: Likeashot, by Gun Shot by Woodbine-based Gail Cox for her breeder, Hard Not ($1,500,000 HRA '14 KEENOV). O-Speedway Stable To Like was transferred to Michael Matz for her 4-year- LLC; B-Garland E. Williamson (ON); T-Christophe old campaign, and annexed the GIII Marshua=s River S. Clement; J-John R. Velazquez. $300,000. Lifetime that January before going winless in six subsequent Record: 20-8-3-2, $1,261,671. Werk Nick Rating: tries that year. She raced only twice in 2014, but took Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. advantage of those appearances, annexing a Gulfstream optional claimer in February and defeating future stablemate Discreet Marq (Discreet Cat) in the Jenny Wiley in April. Registered Ontario-Bred Hard Not to Like=s first appearance for her new connections was somewhat bittersweet. She showed 2--Tepin, 121, f, 4, Bernstein--Life Happened, by she still had plenty left in the tank when crossing the Stravinsky. ($140,000 Ylg '12 FTSAUG). O-Robert E. wire first in Tampa=s GIII Endeavour S. Jan. 31, but Masterson; B-Machmer Hall (KY); T-Mark E. Casse. was DQ=d to second for interference. Third in an $100,000. attempted Wiley title defense over yielding sod Apr. 11, Deuce Greathouse Yearling Purchase she shipped out to Santa Anita to annex the GI Gamely BRED BY, FOALED & RAISED AT MACHMER HALL S. going this trip May 5. Hard Not to Like settled in a very distant fourth early SELECT SALES Graduate...Exceeding Expectations as Tepin and My Miss Sophia (Unbridled=s Song) 3--Kitten's Queen, 115, m, 5, Kitten=s Joy--High Chant, appeared to be getting sucked into a duel with Kitten=s by War Chant. O/B-Kenneth & Sarah Ramsey (KY); Queen through hot opening splits of :23.54 and :47.20. T-Chad C. Brown. $50,000. The top three were still five or more lengths ahead of Hip 101 - Full sis selling at FTSAUG with TAYLOR MADE Hard Not to Like at the top of the lane, and Tepin was Margins: NO, NK, 2. Odds: 6.20, 3.00, 26.75. working hard to put away the pacesetter with a sixteenth of a mile to race. Cont. p4 TDN P HEADLINE NEWS • 7/26/15 • PAGE 4 of 15 • thoroughbreddailynews.com Diana S. cont. Hard Not to Like found her best stride at that point, and scurried home to get her nose down just in time while lowering the course record set by Shakis (Ire) (Machiavellian) in the 2007 GII Bernard Baruch H.