TUESDAY, JUNE 1, 2021 SMOOTH LIKE STRAIT COUNTRY GRAMMER BATTLES BACK IN GOLD CUP by Alan Carasso GETS HIS GRADE I Narrowly favored at 9-5 in Monday's GI Hollywood Gold Cup, WinStar Farm's Country Grammer (Tonalist) became his Lane's IN SHOEMAKER MILE End-based stallion's first Grade I winner, narrowly outbattling Royal Ship (Brz) (Midshipman) in a rousing finish. Away alertly, the former Paul Pompa runner was taken hold of to sit second as longshot Brown Storm (Chi) (Scat Daddy) rolled to the front and showed the way through moderate splits of :22.92 and :47.16. Switched off nicely in the two path for the run down the backstretch, Country Grammer was asked for a bit of acceleration and overtook Brown Storm at the three-furlong pole, but he soon had outside company in the form of Royal Ship, who was deftly slipped a bit of rein by Mike Smith at the 4 1/2-furlong marker and raced three wide just off the pace into the turn. Country Grammer and Royal Ship hit the quarter pole more or less on even terms, but the last-out GII Californian S. hero appeared to have all the momentum and was clearly in front entering the final eighth of a mile. But Country Grammer Smooth Like Strait | Benoit remained in for the fight, re-took the lead inside the final sixteenth of a mile and scraped home just in front as Royal Ship Cannon Thoroughbreds= Smooth Like Strait (Midnight Lute), came back at him at the wire. narrowly beaten in three previous attempts at the top level, "He ran super well,@ said winning jockey Flavien Prat. "He earned an automatic berth in the GI Breeders= Cup Mile with a broke well and I was able to get myself in a good spot. I was a wire-to-wire victory in the GI Shoemaker Mile S. Monday at little worried when I saw Mike Smith on the outside of me, I Santa Anita. Sent off at 3-5, the bay colt broke alertly and took wish I could have kept him inside. Mike took the lead on me, but the early lead under his own steam. He hugged the rail while my horse was really game to come back." pressed by Restrainedvengeance (Hold Me Back) and Whisper Trained by Chad Brown to win last year's GIII Peter Pan S., Not (GB) (Poet=s Voice {GB}) and the top trio separated defeating future G1 Dubai World Cup hero and 'TDN Rising Star' themselves from the rest of the field through fractions of :23.46 Mystic Guide (Ghostzapper) into third on that occasion, the and :46.43. The favorite began inching clear approaching the $60,000 Keeneland September yearling turned $450,000 OBS quarter pole and quickly put the matter to rest with a powerful April juvenile was fifth in the GI Runhappy Travers S. and kick in upper stretch that saw him burst away from his rivals changed hands for $110,000 as part of the late Pompa's before sailing under the wire a geared-down 1 1/2-length dispersal at this year's Keeneland January sale. He was beaten a winner. Say the Word (More Than Ready) closed late to be neck into second by Royal Ship when making his local debut in second. the GII Californian S. Apr. 17. Cont. p5 AToday feels very gratifying because the horse shows up and runs hard every time,@ said winning trainer Michael McCarthy. AI IN TDN EUROPE TODAY don=t think he was getting the respect he deserved earlier in the THE WEEKLY WRAP: REYNIER RULES year, but he showed up and put together a nice campaign. I=ve Emma Berry has the latest The Weekly Wrap, and trainer had an immense amount of faith in this horse all along, and I Jerome Reynier had a wonderful weekend of results. really believe that there are big things coming for him later in Click or tap here to go straight to TDN Europe. the year.@ Cont. p3 Filly o/o Modern Masterpiece, foaled 3/20 Colt o/o Lisa T, foaled 3/22 Filly o/o Earth Shaking, foaled 4/27 Filly o/o Set to Dance, foaled 3/2 PUBLISHER & CEO Sue Morris Finley @suefinley [email protected] SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT Gary King @garykingTDN [email protected] EDITORIAL [email protected] Editor-in-Chief Jessica Martini @JessMartiniTDN Senior Contributing Editor Tuesday, June 1, 2021 Alan Carasso @EquinealTDN Senior Editor Steve Sherack @SteveSherackTDN Racing Editor Brian DiDonato @BDiDonatoTDN Deputy Editor Christie DeBernardis @CDeBernardisTDN Associate Editors Christina Bossinakis @CBossTDN Joe Bianca @JBiancaTDN News and Features Editor In Memoriam: Ben Massam (1988-2019) ADVERTISING [email protected] Director of Advertising Alycia Borer Advertising Manager Lia Best Advertising Designer Amanda Crelin Advertising Project Manager Rachel McCaffrey Advertising Assistants Amie Newcomb Kristen Lomasson Photographer/Photo Editor Sarah K. 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WORLDWIDE INFORMATION International Editor Kelsey Riley @kelseynrileyTDN [email protected] European Editor Emma Berry [email protected] Associate International Editor Heather Anderson @HLAndersonTDN Newmarket Bureau, Cafe Racing Sean Cronin & Tom Frary [email protected] 60 Broad Street, Suite 100 Red Bank, NJ 07701 732-747-8060 | www.TheTDN.com TDN HEADLINE NEWS • PAGE 3 OF 10 • THETDN.COM TUESDAY • JUNE 1, 2021 Smooth Like Strait Gets His Grade I (cont. from p1) AI was just waiting for a Grade I for this horse,@ said winning rider Umberto Rispoli, who was capturing his third race on the holiday card at Santa Anita. AHe deserves it so much. So does the owner, Michael Cannon. We have some feedback after the races, he=s always positive. He always says, >Don=t worry, we=re going to go to the Breeders= Cup=. He was positive from the first day. I was hoping to see him today but, I=ll probably see him in Del Mar. I=m so glad for Michael and the groom, who treats him like a son, also the work rider, they do an amazing job with this horse. He=s so clever, so smart, he deserves a Grade I.@ Smooth Like Strait=s berth in the GI Breeders= Cup Mile will come over the same Del Mar course and distance at which he won the 2019 GIII Cecil de Mille S. as a 2-year-old. The bay colt captured last year=s GIII La Jolla H. and GII Twilight Derby and missed by just a head when second in the GI Hollywood Derby before concluding the year with a win in the Dec. 26 GII Mathis Brothers Mile. Smooth Like Strait opened 2021 with a neck runner-up finish in the Mar. 6 GI Frank Kilroe Mile and was a neck back in third behind the dead-heating Colonel Liam (Liam=s Map) and Domestic Spending (GB) (Kingman {GB}) after setting the pace in the nine-furlong GI Old Forester Bourbon Turf Classic last time out May 1. Smooth Like Strait and Umberto Rispoli | Benoit Pedigree Notes: Smooth Like Strait is the th Grade I winner for Midnight Lute, who is also the sire of champion Midnight Bisou and 2013 GI Malibu S. winner Shakin It Up and 2020 GI Gamely S. winner Keeper of the Stars, and 2013 GI Acorn S. and 2014 GI Humana Distaff S. winner Midnight Lucky. Cont. p4 TONALIST Tapit – Settling Mist, by Pleasant Colony COUNTRY GRAMMER WINS THE HOLLYWOOD GOLD CUP S. (G1) Becoming the first Grade 1 winner for Tonalist. Congratulations to owner WinStar Farm and breeders Scott Pierce & Debbie Pierce. COUNTRY GRAMMER $12,500 lanesend.com | t: 859.873.7300 TDN HEADLINE NEWS • PAGE 4 OF 10 • THETDN.COM TUESDAY • JUNE 1, 2021 Smooth As Usual has an unraced 2-year-old filly by Temple City named Unusually Smooth. She produced a colt by Midnight Lute in 2020 and was bred back to GI Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist. Smooth Like Strait=s third dam, Sky Meadows (Conquistador Ciel), produced the dam of ill-fated Grade I winner Siphonic (Siphon {Brz}). This is also the family of multiple Grade I placed Summer Front (War Front) and Grade I winner Laragh (Tapit). Mike Cannon purchased Smooth As Usual for $35,000 while in foal to Hat Trick (Jpn) at the 2013 Keeneland November sale. Monday, Santa Anita SHOEMAKER MILE S.-GI, $300,500, Santa Anita, 5-31, 3yo/up, 1mT, 1:34.19, fm. 1--SMOOTH LIKE STRAIT, 124, c, 4, by Midnight Lute 1st Dam: Smooth as Usual, by Flower Alley 2nd Dam: Beautiful Lil, by Aptitude 3rd Dam: Sky Meadows, by Conquistador Cielo 1ST GRADE I WIN. O/B-Cannon Thoroughbreds, LLC (KY); T-Michael W. McCarthy; J-Umberto Rispoli. $180,000. Lifetime Record: 15-7-3-2, $933,823. Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click for eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. 2--Say the Word, 124, g, 6, More Than Ready-- Danceforthecause, by Giant's Causeway.