FEATURE PRESENTATION • GI MALIBU S. If There Was Any Doubt As to Japan=S Horse of the Year Coming Into Sunday=S G1 Arima Kinen At
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TUESDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2011 732-747-8060 $ TDN Home Page Click Here ORFEVRE BEATS ELDERS IN ARIMA KINEN FEATURE PRESENTATION • GI MALIBU S. If there was any doubt as to Japan=s Horse of the Year coming into Sunday=s G1 Arima Kinen at Nakayama, Orfevre (Jpn) (Stay Gold {Jpn}), who this season became the country=s seventh Triple Crown winner, settled the matter with a decisive victory in the crown jewel of Japanese racing. "The horse was calm THE FACTOR TOO FAST IN MALIBU entering the track for the It was already hard to find a major race in Southern post parade, so I knew he California that Hall of Famer Bob Baffert hadn=t won-- would do well,@ said usually many times over--before George Bolton and Fog winning jockey Kenichi Horsephotos City Stables=s The Factor (War Front) eliminated one of Ikezo. AWe fell behind a bit the few remaining events on Baffert=s >to win= list with at the break and had to race farther back on the inside a powerful exhibition of speed in Santa Anita=s than I had wanted to, but I was able to steer him to the GI Malibu S. yesterday. The J “TDN Rising Star” J outside on the backstretch. I moved him forward reported home 3 1/2 lengths to the good of Rothko through the third corner, and the colt stretched really (Arch), with another 2 1/4 lengths back to East Coast well, outrunning his rivals in the final stretch. He's still invader Associate (Wando). Cont. p2 a young horse--he was born later than the horses of the same age group--but he is growing and getting better MALIBU S.-GI, $300,000, SAX, 12-26, 3yo, 7f, day by day. He is an amazing horse.@ Cont. p3 1:19 4/5, ft. 1--THE FACTOR, 123, c, 3, by War Front NOTHING >COMMON= ABOUT IT 1st Dam: Greyciousness, by Miswaki St George Farm Racing LLC=s Mr. Commons (Artie 2nd Dam: Skatingonthinice, by Icecapade Schiller) topped an exacta for his sire with a bold move 3rd Dam: Rain Shower, by Bold Forbes in Santa Anita=s GII Sir Beaufort S. Monday. Cont. p5 ($50,000 wlng '08 KEENOV; $40,000 yrl '09 FTKJUL; $250,000 2yo >10 BESMAY). O-Fog City Stable & George Bolton; B-H & W Thoroughbreds (KY); T-Bob Baffert; J-Martin Garcia; $180,000. Lifetime Record: 9-5-0-0, $652,180. Werk Nick Rating: C+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Sold by INDIAN CREEK for IROQUOIS BLOODSTOCK Purchased by Valerio Bloodstock & Management, LLC Raised & Sold by Hunter Valley Farm 2--Rothko, 119, c, 3, Arch--Raspberry Eggcream, by Time for a Change. O/B-Padua Stables (KY); T-Steven M Asmussen; $60,000. 3--Associate, 118, c, 3, Wando--Free as Tristan, by Crafty Friend. ($40,000 yrl '09 FTKJUL). O-JMJ Racing LLC & Sullivan Lane Stable; B-Dixie Farm (KY); T-Richard E Dutrow Jr; $36,000. Margins: 3HF, 2 1/4, NO. Odds: 2.60, 5.60, 3.90. Also Ran: Luckarack, Racing Aptitude, Hoorayforhollywood, Smash, Wine Police, Light Up the Score, Centralinteligence. Scratches: El Pocho (CHI). Click for the brisnet.com chart, the brisnet.com PPs or the free brisnet.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Taylor Made. P TDN HEADLINE NEWS • 12/27/11 • PAGE 2 of 7 • thoroughbreddailynews.com Factor Back... AIt=s exciting to win the Malibu,@ said Baffert. AIt=s a The Factor broke his maiden by 8 1/4 lengths with a great race, some great horses have won it, some great gaudy 108 Beyer Figure on this card a year ago, and trainers. It was lacking on my resume. I can put it on followed it up with a track-and-trip victory in the my website tonight.@ He continued, AThe Factor, you GII San Vicente S. in February. He showed the ability to could tell he was just kicking in gear at the end there. carry his plentiful speed over a route of ground when When The Factor runs his race, it=s going to be tough to grabbing Oaklawn=s 1 1/16-mile Rebel S. Mar. 19 by really beat him. The Factor we know showed up today.@ 6 1/4 lengths from champion 3-year-old male contender Winning rider Garcia offered, AI decided to let him run Caleb=s Posse (Posse), but was a no-show seventh in and put me wherever he wanted to put me, and look at the GI Arkansas Derby at odds-on a month later. Baffert what he did. I didn=t opted to play it safe with his star and bypass the Triple want to go to the rail Crown races, and the roan rewarded him with a victory today. I wanted to over elders in Del Mar=s GI Pat O=Brien S. Aug. 28. stay a little bit off and Backed down to a justified 2-5 in the GI Ancient Title S. if somebody wanted to here Oct. 8, the speedster was used up battling go, I just let them go through a :43.80 half-mile, and faded to fourth. He was and stayed outside. I part of a similarly hot pace last time in the GI Breeders= don=t think there was a Cup Dirt Mile at Churchill Downs Nov. 5, and could do horse that could beat no better than eighth. him today, he was Out of the box like a shot from his far outside post, really sharp.@ The Factor was unhurried by Martin Garcia, conceding Trainer Steve the early edge to a headstrong Asmussen, who also Centralintelligence (Smarty Jones). saddled eighth-place The Factor soon grew restless, finisher Wine Police The Factor Denies Rothko however, and he ranged up three- (Speightstown) and Benoit Photo wide to contest an opening quarter in ninth-place finisher :22.61 with stablemate Light Up the Score (Even The Score), was pleased with Hoorayforhollywood (Storm Cat) also Rothko=s runner-up showing in his first stakes try. AI in hot pursuit. Centralintelligence wish it could have been a little smoother for him around began throwing his head about inside The Factor Benoit Photo the turn, but he ran a good race. I=m very pleased with approaching the half, and quickly who he is,@ said Asmussen. dropped back to last after bothering A crowd of 44,579 were on hand for Santa Anita=s Hoorayforhollywood, giving The Factor a clear lead of traditional opening day card--the most since 1994. about a length and a half turning for home. Rothko, who also encountered a bit of trouble during the incident with Centralintelligence, appeared in with a chance to run down The Factor in the lane, but his challenge was quickly dismissed and the favorite was home free. Associate came from last to grab a piece. GI MALIBU S. The Factor (War Front) bounces back in a Centralintelligence was eased out of the race, but did big way. not appear to be injured. The Factor=s winning time of 1:19.89 was .19 seconds off the track record set by GII SIR BEAUFORT S. Mr. Commons (Artie Schiller) finds a seam and bursts his way through. Twirling Candy in last year=s Malibu. P TDN HEADLINE NEWS • 12/27/11 • PAGE 3 of 7 • thoroughbreddailynews.com Ofevre Beats Elders cont... The even-money choice facing a field that included reigning Horse of the Year Buena Vista (Jpn) (Special Week {Jpn}) and last year=s winner Victoire Pisa (Jpn) (Neo Universe {Jpn}), Orfevre hadn=t raced since his historic score in the G1 Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger) at Kyoto Oct. 23. Away from post nine under Ikezoe, the chestnut relaxed under cover toward the back of pack, some 10 lengths off Earnestly (Jpn) (Grass Wonder)=s early pace. They continued through an easy gallop as Victoire Pisa and Buena Vista tracked in second and third, respectively, before the pace quickened on the final turn. Orfevre, produced on the outside in upper stretch, still had five lengths to make up, but lowered his head determinedly and ate up ground with each stride. He finally hit the front in the final 200 meters and outfought a dead-game Eishin Flash (Jpn) (King=s Best) and the running-on To The Glory (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}) to the wire. The win margin was 3/4 lengths, with another neck back to third. Earnestly, in the mix until mid-stretch, faltered to be 10th, while Buena Vista came home a one-paced seventh, one spot ahead of Victoire Pisa. Sunday, Nakayama, Japan ARIMA KINEN-G1, -384,320,000, Nakayama, 12-25, 3yo/up, 2500mT, 2:36.00, fm. 1--ORFEVRE (JPN), 121, c, 3, by Stay Gold (Jpn) 1st Dam: Oriental Art (Jpn), by Mejiro McQueen (Jpn) 2nd Dam: Electro Art (Jpn), by Northern Taste 3rd Dam: Grandma Stevens, by Lt. Stevens O-Sunday Racing; B-Shiraoi Farm; T-Yasutoshi Ikee; J-Kenichi Ikezoe; -203,024,000. Lifetime Record: 11-7-2-1. *Full to Dream Journey (Jpn), Ch. 2yo Colt-Jpn, Ch. Older Horse-Jpn, MG1SW-Jpn, $8,553,923. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. 2--Eishin Flash (Jpn), 126, c, 4, King=s Best--Moonlady (Ger), by Platini (Ger). O-Toyomitsu Hirai; B-Shadai Farm; -80,864,000. 3--To the Glory (Jpn), 126, c, 4, King Kamehameha (Jpn)--To the Victory (Jpn), by Sunday Silence. O-Carrot Farm; B-Northern Farm; -50,432,000. Margins: 3/4, NK, 3/4.