General Partner (#4 on the rail) was the pacesetter in the Grade 1 Champagne before Timberlake (#3 coming wide center) edged clear for the win with the Chad Brown trainee taking second. (Dom Napolitano)
~ Team Cody’s Wish Honored with Mr. Fitz Award at NTWAB Dinner
~ Future Stars Day Update
~ World Championship Day Update
Breeders’ Cup Around The Track
FANDUEL BREEDERS’ CUP JUVENILE
Klaravich Stables’ General Partner enters the $2 million FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) off two strong efforts, a dominant Saratoga 7-furlong maiden victory on Sept. 2 and a good second in the slop of Aqueduct’s Champagne (G1) on Oct. 7. Trainer Chad Brown seeks his second Juvenile win, following Good Magic (2017), who was also second in the Champagne.
General Partner gets his maiden win at Saratoga.
“If [General Partner] relaxes early, I think he’ll be able to handle two turns,” Brown said. “It will be interesting to see if he’ll be on the lead in this race or if he’ll rate while having a target. [General Partner] trains like he will, but that will be another big question mark. I do really like how [General Partner is] training.
“It can be a little difficult to evaluate the race when there’s a sloppy track, but [General Partner] ran well and did all the hard work on the front and still hung in there. I’m anxious to get him back on a dry track.”
NETJET BREEDERS’ CUP JUVENILE FILLIES
Chatalas had a light gallop over the main track as her last prep for the start in the NetJets Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies under Antonio Fresu.
“We were excited by her last race (winning the Chandelier Stakes-G2). She has such a long stride, we thought she would do well over a distance of ground. She was really gutty through the stretch. She’s doing really well. I loved the draw for this race; that post position (6) is perfect.” Said Chatalas’ trainer Mark Glatt
BIG ASS FANS BREEDERS’ CUP DIRT MILE
The highlight of the 63rd annual National Turf Writers and Broadcasters’ dinner Wednesday night was when Team Cody’s Wish was honored with the Mr. Fitz Award for typifying the spirit of racing.
The story of the relationship between Cody’s Wish and 17-year-old Cody Dorman – who was born with the rare genetic disease Wolf-Hirschhorn Syndrome – has been well documented. Cody’s Wish makes the final start of his career Saturday when he defends his title in the $1 million Big Ass Fans Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1).
Cody Dorman will be in the house to watch his pal along with his parents Kelly and Leslie and 10-year-old sister Kylie.
“Everything has been very special,” Kelly Dorman said about the Mr. Fitz Award. “What made it even better was that it was for the whole team.”
Representatives from Godolphin, which owns the horse, were at the dinner, as well as trainer Bill Mott and members of his team.
“I think they are all very appreciative,” Mott said. “The bottom line is this has been a savior for Cody; it has given him something to look forward to. We are rooting for both Codys. They are both very important to all of us.”
When the Dirt Mile is over, Cody’s Wish’s days on the track will be over. He will head to Jonabell Farm in Kentucky to start his career at stud. He will be missed around the barn, for sure, but Mott has been through this before.
“Look, I have been doing this long enough, I know it all comes to an end,” Mott said. “It’s a fact of life. He will be gone, but he has had a great career. We have done all we can do and it’s onto his next career.”
Cody’s Wish, the 9-5 morning line favorite for the Dirt Mile, has won 10 of 15 career starts.
“One reason we went to the training track was we wanted to slow him down. We want to make sure we save some gas in the tank,” said Bill Mott of Cody’s Wish’s Thursday outing where he jogged and cantered around the training track twice.
Chad Brown had had moderate success with Stage Raider with three wins and three placings even finishing second by a neck to his stablemate, Highly Motivated, in an allowance at Belmont May 22, 2022. But it was after finishing last in an allowance at Belmont June 15, 2023, that the Pioneerof the Nile colt was given two months off and transferred to DeVaux.
“I got him off of Chad Brown, my old boss. The horse has a lot of talent. He’s impeccably bred. He’s a half to Justify. He ran twice in New York and just really didn’t try. Didn’t really make an effort,” DeVaux said.
In his next start at Ellis Park August 13 in the R.A. Cowboy Jones Stakes, Stage Raider won by two at long odds rewarding his faithful with $40.34 on the win and earned Black Type.
“The Gunthers (breeders-owners) are just trying to see if we could take a different approach with him. We did and it worked out. He was a little difficult, just quirky. We have him in a really good routine. He goes out, has his routine and we really can’t stray too far away from what he does every day.”
September 30 Stage Raider would finish second to Zozos by one length in the Grade 3 Ack Ack at Churchill Downs. The notes said he needed a little more. But it seemed John D. Gunther’s homebred seemed to be turning a corner under his new trainer. Slowly.
“It’s one of those things. He just doesn’t enjoy being a stall. The first day we got him he was really unsettled. When the groom comes in at 4:45, he turns him right out. He doesn’t really do anything, but it just gets him out of the stall. Then he trains about 6:30 every day,” DeVaux continued.
DeVaux had Stage Rider gallop 1-1/2 miles under exercise rider Obed Roman Thursday and will do the same Friday.
“He is one that will train the morning (of a race), just to get out and do something. We won’t turn him out and risk something. It’s a lot for him to turn out and train and then run. For his last few races, we’ve just jogged him early and put him in just so he keeps some semblance of a routine. That seems to help him.
“It’s his world. We’re living in it.
“I don’t know if he’s always been this way, but as he’s gotten older it seems to have retooled his mind a little bit,” DeVaux concluded.
Zozos galloped 1-1/2 miles with Kelvin Perez aboard and will gallop Friday.
“He’s doing great. I think he has a good shot. I love the way the race is setting up on paper for him, so we’ll see,” said Cox.
PNC BANK BREEDERS’ CUP FILLY & MARE SPRINT
Trainer Michael McCarthy galloped Clearly Unhinged 1-1/8 miles Thursday and will go again Friday.
“She’s inside (post 2), so she’s going to have to get away from there cleanly,” said McCarthy
Eda galloped over the main track for trainer Bob Baffert and then exited via the tunnel and through the walking ring.She will return to the main track early Friday for a light gallop.
“Classwise, I don’t know how she fits. But based on how she’s run this year, she deserves a chance in this race. She’s been working well enough. I’m not really sure what happened in her last race, so I think you can throw that race out,” said Baffert
“Doing very good. Obviously, we made the trip because we think she’s doing as good if not better than before her last race. Not sure she can top that last race (a win in the Thoroughbred Club of America Stakes G2) at Keeneland Oct. 7), but she’s showing all the signs. She’s doing really good,” trainer Rodolphe Brisset said Thursday morning about Yuugiri.
“She obviously answered in a positive way what I was thinking when we took her back to one turn. This year, it’s been a good year. In the Madison (G1) at Keenland, I have absolutely no idea what happened. We turned things upside down and right and left and still couldn’t find anything. I told myself to put a line through it and not look back. She’s been very good her last two races,” the trainer concluded.
