Keeneland, Race 6 – Saturday, October 14, 2023
By 2YO EdgeMan
KEE6:101423 – One mile and a 1/16th on the dirt. Twelve males (eleven colts and one gelding) are entered and set to compete in this affair. They all have experience – no First-Time Starters in this one. Five have been out one time previously, five have done battle twice and two of these dudes have three races behind them.
#2 – Dornoch (7/2) – This Danny Gargan trained Good Magic colt has a full brother who you know – Mage. His dam was a fine runner, too, having pulled down four victories in 17 outings, good for $299K in winnings, including a score at third asking as a 2YO at Belmont, zipping off an excellent 87 Equibase Speed Figure. Today’s colt did well in the auction ring as a yearling when he sold in the top 10% of his class from his dad in 2022, demanding $325K (7/81). He’s been out in the afternoon twice – his first effort was a runner up finish at SAR on 7/29/23 to the good colt, Seize the Grey. Most recently, he shipped to Monmouth Park for the $200K Sapling Stakes where he went off at odds of 3/2 and ran a big race, even taking the lead on the far turn, before getting run down by the dynamite Repole colt – Noted. He earned an excellent 86 Equibase Speed Fig for that effort. Since that race, Gargan shipped him back to Saratoga where he gave him four half mile breezes.
#4 – Django (8/1) – Kenny McPeek is in charge of this colt who is sired by Medaglia d’Oro and is out of a mare who won four times in her 21 races, which earned her $159K. She was also a first out winner when she scored at Ellis Park in August of her 2YO year with a 75 EBSF. This dude is a homebred from Cypress Creek Equine and he’s raced three times prior to today. He really moved up last out at Churchill when he made a big run around the last turn and down the lane, actually getting the lead, but Parchment Party did slip through on the rail, ultimately scoring by 1 ¼ lengths. McPeek has only had time for one morning freshener at Keeneland since his last race.
#11 – Nuevo Empire (20/1) – This Calumet Farm homebred is conditioned by Robert Medina and is sired by Classic Empire. His Tapit dam was 0 for 3 on the track and this is her only foal of racing age. He’s raced one time – back on 9/22/23 at CD – when he went seven furlongs on the dirt. After a slow start, he eventually got rolling and ended up finishing fourth, 3+ lengths behind. Medina put him back to work after that run and he earned a bullet going four panels at the Thoroughbred Training Center in Lexington – 48.6 seconds (1/14).
#12 – Dive Bomber (5/2) – The Morning Line fav is by the terrific First Crop Sire from Spendthrift Farm – Omaha Beach. He was a $400K yearling pickup last fall (8/87), so he was also in the top 10% of his daddy’s class as a yearling in 2022. Brad Cox has had him out in the afternoon to battle it out twice previously, both at Saratoga on their dirt oval – the first time he went six furlongs and then, most recently, he competed over seven panels. Last out, he was bet down to odds of 8/5 and ran in the runner up spot the whole way around and eventually finished right there, in second, four lengths shy of General Partner. He was rewarded with a nifty EBSF of 83. Brad then shipped him to Ellis Park for three works – 4f, 4f and 5f – and recently vanned him over to Lexington for one five pole work on 10/7/23 here at Keeneland.
Pick – #2 Dornoch – I really do think that this race comes down to two stand out colts. However, as you sharp Edgies know, I always pick one horse – and only one (I don’t pick half the field like many others out there and don’t even try to sneak in two ‘picks’). I ended with this guy because of the determination and grit that he showed in his last race – especially in light of the fact that it was against stakes company. The victor that day was Noted – and he is the real deal. In fact, he has since come back from that race with a second place showing (only losing by a nose) in the G2 Castle & Key Bourbon Stakes on the grass at Keeneland. Additionally, it goes without saying that his full bro won the G1 Kentucky Derby this spring and his mom was a good race mare and pretty precocious, too. He’ll get the services of Luis Saez in the saddle and he rode him in his debut performance, so he should know him a bit. I’m jealous of House of Fred Top-10, as they are the lucky owners of this dude in the Game of Silks. Good luck!
