A Publication of the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association PAThoroughbred pabred.com July 2018 pabred.com Issue 52 REPORT PHBA and Penn Spring Quality Vet Join Forces to Improve Integrity of proves Horse Racing himself on Page 23 biggest stage In one of the most dramatic finishes on Belmont Stakes Day, PA-Bred Spring Quality Page 3 came from out of the clouds to prevail in a PA-Bred four-horse blanket finish in the $1 million yearlings selling Woodford Reserve Manhattan-G1. at FTK July Select sale PHBA Awards Led by Horse of the Year Unique Bella, the Page 24 PHBA annual awards, presented at the 39th Annual Iroquois Awards Banquet on June 8 at historic Hotel Hershey, honored and acknowledged another great year 2018 PA-Bred of accomplishments, as well as PA-Bred Stakes Schedule millionaires and a Lifetime Achievement Award to Hall of Fame trainer and Page 6 Page 30 PA champion breeder Jonathan Sheppard. Unique Bella Now a Millionaire Eclipse Award-winning Champion Female Sprinter of 2017 Unique Bella added to her A Letter from Executive laurels with a win in the Secretary Brian Sanfratello Grade 1 Beholder Mile Stakes, Page 22 which pushed her career Page 21 earnings past $1 million. Top prize: $500 PHBA 5 $100 prizes Summer Photo Contest Vacationing far and wide this summer? Submit photos of yourself in PHBA swag and be entered to win $500 or one of five $100 prizes! Submit your photos from June 1 - August 27. Winner and runners-up will be announced at PA Day at the Races on September 1 at Parx Racing. Submit your photos to [email protected] or Facebook.com/PA_BRED or Twitter.com/PAPHBA. Please include names, date and location. Need some PHBA swag? Stop in to the office or give us a call! Spring Quality proves himself on biggest stage by Linda Dougherty In one of the most dramatic finishes on Belmont The final time on the firm inner course was a swift 1:58.58 for the 1¼ miles. The win was the second straight upset in the Manhattan for Stakes Day, Pennsylvania-bred Spring Quality Motion, who saddled last year’s winner, 27-1 Ascend. came from out of the clouds to prevail in a four- Spring Quality earned $535,000, boosting his total earnings to $860,797. He’s now won six of his 11 lifetime starts. horse blanket finish to post an upset in the Grade 1, “I hated the post position, but he had a great trip,” said Motion $1 million Woodford Reserve Manhattan. afterwards. “We felt like there was quite a lot of pace. The one thing It was the first start in a Grade 1 race for big bay son of Quality we had to do was save ground; that was the most important thing. Road, bred by George Strawbridge Jr. and owned by his Augustin Sta- We saved ground on the first turn and I loved where he was down the backside. He had to swing a little wide coming off the bend, but he’s ble, and he was facing a full field of seasoned Grade 1 performers. But really special.” although Belmont bettors dismissed him at 18-1, he had the full faith Added Prado: “When I asked him, he kicked right in.” of Strawbridge and his trainer, H. Graham Motion. Spring Quality has made an impressive ascension up the class lad- Under a perfectly timed ride by Hall of Fame jockey Edgar Prado, der since he debuted as a 2-year-old at Keeneland in October 2014. the 6-year-old gelding broke from the far outside post 13 and lagged That day, in a seven-furlong maiden special weight on dirt, he drove at the back of the field early, then commenced his rally around the far from last to first, drawing away by nearly three lengths. But soon after, turn. Angling out eight-wide at the head of the stretch, he stormed he went to the sidelines for almost a year and a half, not appearing past horses and finished with a flourish, reaching the wire a neck in the entries again until March 2016 at Tampa Bay Downs. Running better than Sadler’s Joy, who was a neck better than Hi Happy. continues on page 5 PA THOROUGHBRED REPORT 3 Being a Pennsylvania-bredTop prize: Pays! $500 50% TO PA-SIRED, PA-BRED IN MAIDEN RACES RUN IN PA 25% TO NON PA-SIRED, PA-BRED5 $100 prizes PHBA40% ALL OTHER RACES FOR PA-SIRED, PA-BRED • 20% TO NON PA-SIRED, PA-BRED Summer 2018 FEE: 2018 FEE: $2,500 LIVEPhoto FOAL Contest $2,500 LIVE FOAL TALENT SEARCH GOT THE LAST LAUGH CATIENUS – MRS. K. DISTORTED HUMOR – THERESA’S TIZZY #2 ACTIVEVacationing STALLION BY TOTAL far STALLION and wideWinners this include summer? 3YO Stakes Placed AWARDS IN PENNSYLVANIA 2017 SEPICATO – Wnr of 3 Allowance races in 2017 SubmitBUY photos ONE GET of ONE yourself FREE SEASON in PHBA DEALS swag and beCALL entered US TODAY FORto DETAILS!win $500 or one of five $100 prizes! $2,500 LFG Submit2018 FEE: your photos from June 1 - August 27. 2018 FEE: $1,200 LIVE FOAL $1,500 LIVE FOAL Winner and runners-up will be announced at PA ECLIPTICALSPRALINE UPTOWNCHARLYBROWN ECLIPTICAL – MS. MOSTLY LIMEHOUSE – LA ILUMINADA Day at theFrom Racesthe female on family September of 2015 Triple 1 Crownat Parx Racing.#1 PENNSYLVANIA THIRD-CROP SIRES winner AMERICAN PHAROAH Submit your photos to [email protected] or Facebook.com/PA_BREDDon’t get some or Twitter.com/PAPHBA.of the money... get all of the money! Please include names, date and location. Need some PHBA swag? Diamond B Farm Stop in to the office or give us a call! GLENN & BECKY BROK u 1671 TILDEN ROAD u MOHRSVILLE, PA 19541 u 610.659.2415 u WWW.DIAMONDBFARMPA.COM SPRING QUALITY continued from page 3 Sonearly an identicalMany race, he captured Ways an allowance test,XXXX again at seven XXand started X trainingXXX better than XXX ever. We think the turnouts he’s had over furlongs on dirt, and once again headed for the sidelines, this time for the years are part of his success, but the real key with him has been one XXXX11 months. X XX XXX XXX XXword XX – patience.” XX XX X “He was rather big and lanky, but he showed much ability and talent Strawbridge has bred and raced three generations of Spring Quality’s as a 2-year-old,” said Strawbridge, who has owned and bred many top female family, all Pennsylvania-breds, beginning with First Approach, a Pennsylvania-breds through the years. “But he had some shin problems Grade 1-winning Northern Fling mare who captured the Flower Bowl utesequiasand we gave him destibus, time off and officiebrought him nem back- at Tampa, where he ran quam re odi debiscil ipsam sitibe- Handicap and three other graded stakes during her career in the early quama good racere odi but againdebiscil had someipsam tenderness. sitibe- We decided to give him rum fugita nes quos velest rehenihil 1980s. rummore fugitatime off, nes and whenquos he velest came backrehenihil (in an allowance at Laurel Park maxim voluptas et aute pos earum First Approach produced the outstanding turf mare Alice Springs in maximin February voluptas 2017) he etshowed aute enhanced pos earum potential.” quis estior a dolecta dolupti ber- quisBack estior with Motion,a dolecta Spring doluptiQuality made ber six- more starts in 2017, 1990, who was stakes-placedferit quat in France harum as a 3-year-oldcuptatias before aliandae return- feritwhich quat included harum a victory cuptatias in the $100,000 aliandae Robellino Stakes for Penn- ing to America and capturingdipiend three aecaecugraded stakes ptiatum during her eaquatem 4-year-old 1 campaign for trainer Jonathan Sheppard, including the All Along Stakes dipiendsylvania-breds aecaecu at 1 ⁄16 ptiatummiles on dirteaquatem at Penn National in August, and a volor as essum expelendae parum volorsecond-place as essum finish inexpelendae the $100,000 parumRoanoke Stakes at Parx Racing in (Grade 2) and the Matchmakersaeceptate Stakes (Grade simolupta 2). At 5, Alice a Springsaceper won- saeceptateSeptember, at thesimolupta same distance a and aceper on dirt, -in which he was narrowly two more graded events naturand placed si omnimagnitin two Grade 1 races, ipis theeos Beverly eum D naturdefeated si by omnimagnit the popular stakes ipis winner eos Page eum McKenney. and the Caesars International,quiasit the latterionseque against maleset lique at Atlantic magnimi City in quiasitIt wasn’t ionseque until October et that lique Spring magnimi Quality made his first start on turf, which she closed fast to liquatemjust miss catching qui occusae the top-class nisitia turf performer sit, when Motion sent him to Belmont Park for the Grade 3 Knickerbocker liquatem qui occusae nisitia sit, quos velest rehenihilSandpit maxim (Brz). vo- Stakes. Although he finished fourth that day, heluptas showed et ability aute on posa earumRetired quis to the es broodmare- utesequias ranks, Alice destibus, Springs was officiebred to top nem sire- 1 utesequiascourse that was destibus,less than firm, officie rallying widenem and- onlytior beaten a dolecta 3 ⁄2 lengths dolupti Deputy berferit Minister quat and produced quam Spring re odi Star, debiscil the dam of ipsam Spring Quality. sitibe- against a good field. And one month later, he collected his first turf stakes quam re odi debiscil ipsam sitibe- harum cuptatias aliandae“Spring dipiendQuality is runningrum fugitabetter than nes ever quos right velest now,” saidrehenihil Straw- win, capturing the Grade 3 Red Smith Handicap at Aqueduct under Prado. rum fugita nes quos velest rehenihil aecaecu ptiatum eaquatembridge.