Cover image courtesy of Melissa Bauer-Herzog
Former Godolphin 4-year-old impresses on Hong Kong debut
Enrich Delight (Medaglia D'Oro {USA}), who raced as Chenier in Australia, has made a huge impression on his Hong Kong debut, winning a Class 2 race over 1400 metres at Sha Tin.
In a race which featured a quartet of well-performed former Australian gallopers, it was a brave ride from Joao Moreira that made the difference as he squeezed through a gap late to win by a 1l for trainer Caspar Fownes.
As Chenier, he won one race in Australia for Godolphin trainer James Cummings, while he was placed in the G3 CS Hayes S. and finished fourth in this year's G1 Australian Guineas.
Also impressing on his Hong Kong debut was Tourbillon Diamond (Olympic Glory {Ire}), known as Eric The Eel in Australia, who surged through to grab third, only 1.25l from the winner. He won four races in Australia for Stuart Kendrick and finished third in this year's G1 Australian Derby and is now in the stables of Danny Shum.
Dual Group 1 winner Shadow Hero (Pierro), debuting for David Hayes, missed the start slightly and had little luck in the straight, finishing seventh in a solid Hong Kong debut.
He finished just behind Healthy Happy (Zoustar), who raced as Leviathan in Australia, winning two of his five starts. He had already made his Hong Kong debut winning a Class 3 race last month for his new trainer Frankie Lor.
Lemon Pop takes Tokyo Derby prep
The first of four races on the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby, the 1600-metre Cattleya S. (allowance), took place Saturday on the eve of the G1 Japan Cup at Toyko Racecourse, with US-bred Lemon Pop (USA) (Lemon Drop Kid {USA}) running his record to two wins from as many starts with a convincing victory.
Lemon Pop, a debut winner in a 1300-metre newcomers’ event at Tokyo on November 7, broke without incident and was ridden positively from gate one by Keita Tosaki to sit in the wake of pacesetting Takeru Pegasus (Jpn) (Dunkirk {USA}), who was coming off a 9l maiden victory over Saturday’s track and distance.
Sitting the pocket into the long Tokyo straight, Lemon Pop rolled away from the fence to come after the front-runner and wore that one down to take it by a cosy 1.5l. It was a gap of 10 back to Plus Ultra (Jpn) (Discreet Cat {USA}) in third.
Lemon Pop races for Godolphin and was purchased on behalf of Sheikh Mohammed’s operation by Harry Sweeney’s Paca Paca Farm for US$70,000 (AU$94,671) at the 2019 Keeneland September Sale out of Padraig Campion’s Blandford Stud consignment. The chestnut was bred by Olly Tait, who served as chief operating officer of Darley for 15 years prior to his departure in 2014, and his wife Amber.
The Cattleya Sho offered Derby points on a 10-4-2-1 scale. The second leg of the series is the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun (1600 metres) at Kawasaki December 16, followed by the Listed Hyacinth S. back at Tokyo in February and the Fukuryu S. (allowance) at Nakayama.
Frosted gets first American stakes success
Travel Column (USA) became Frosted's (USA) first American stakes winner overcoming a checkered passage in Saturday’s G2 Golden Rod S. at Churchill Downs.
A half-step slow out of the gates, Travel Column was last to make the clubhouse turn and was taken hold of by Florent Geroux as Farsighted (USA) (Bernardini {USA}) took them along at a sensible clip.
The US$850,000 (AU$1.15 million) Fasig-Tipton Saratoga acquisition was slipped a bit of rein at about midway and improved her position into midfield and within striking distance as they hit the turn. Going well as they neared the stretch, Travel Column had absolutely nowhere to go and was carefully maneuvered across three sets of heels to lay down a four-path challenge in the final furlong. Recent debut winner Clariere (USA) (Curlin {USA}) hit the front with time ticking away, but Travel Column had the answers and raced past that one en route to a determined success.
Travel Column ranks as the most expensive of her sire’s 67 first-crop yearlings reported as sold in 2019. The second black-type winner (Frosted’s Australian-bred son Ingratiating was a Listed winner at his first asking at Flemington Racecourse on October 3), Travel Column is a half-sister to an American Pharoah (USA) colt that fetched US$1.25 million (AU$1.67 million) from Speedway Stables to be the second most expensive horse at this year’s Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase in September.
Domestic Spending's Hollywood Derby
Saturday’s G1 Hollywood Derby was claimed by Domestic Spending (GB) (Kingman {GB}), who inflicted a narrow defeat on Smooth Like Strait (USA) (Midnight Lute {USA}). Gufo (USA) (Declaration Of War {USA}) was third.
“I thought I was going to be closer with him, but he came out of there a little slow and we were in the back,” the winning rider, Irad Ortiz Jnr commented. “I worked my way up on the backside and he was running perfect. When I asked him for his run at the three-eighths (pole), he was ready. He really put in a nice kick. He’s been a little green in his earlier races, but he’s getting better all the time.”
A debut winner at Tampa in February, Domestic Spending returned from a four-month absence to best subsequent stakes winner Don Juan Kitten (USA) (Kitten’s Joy {USA}) in a June 7 Belmont allowance ahead of a third to Decorated Invader (USA) (Declaration Of War {USA}) in the G2 Hall of Fame S. at Saratoga on July 18. The gelding was last seen getting the better of Gufo by a head in the Saratoga Derby on August 15.
Domestic Spending is the 13th Graded/Group winner for Kingman and becomes his third to strike at the top level, joining Persian King (Ire) and Palace Pier (GB).
Summer Pudding stays undefeated in Summer Cup
Silvano’s (Ger) 2019-2020 Horse of the Year Summer Pudding (SAF) took her record to nine-from-nine with a victory in Saturday’s G1 World Sports Betting Gauteng Summer Cup at Turffontein in South Africa.
Racing against males for the first time, the 4-year-old mare made her move in the final 300 metres of the 2000 metre race to win by 2.5l over Running Brave (SAF) (Brave Tin Soldier {USA}).
Winning her third Group 1 affair, Summer Pudding is out of the Group 3 winner Cherry On The Cake (SAF) (Strike Smartly {Can}). That mare is a half-sister to South African champion Cherry On The Top (SAF) (Tiger Ridge {USA}) and out of Group 2 winner Carolina Cherry (SAF) (Fort Wood {USA}).
Turned Aside adds second stakes to resume for American Pharoah
A Grade 3 winner earlier this year, Turned Aside (USA) (American Pharoah {USA}) added a second stakes win in his last three starts to his resume on Saturday with a victory in the Listed Aqueduct Turf Sprint Championship S. at Aqueduct.
Always in touch with the leaders in the 1200 metre turf race against his elders, Turned Aside joined the battle for the command in the final 200 metres. From there, he pulled away from the field with a late run by El Tormenta (Can) (Stormy Atlantic {USA}) taking his margin to 1.25l in the end.
“It’s a big step up to run a 3-year-old against older horses and I thought this was a deep, competitive field,” said trainer Linda Rice. “There were some really solid turf sprinters in here. It’s the end of the 3-year-old season, so we didn’t have very many options. This horse has trained outstanding all year."
Out of the Grade 3-placed War Front (USA) mare Sustained (USA), he is the best runner in his first three generations. He is from the first northern hemisphere crop of Coolmore Australia’s Triple Crown winner with American Pharoah’s first Australian crop on the track this season.
