Maidens Are No ‘Bargain’ In Minnesota Raceday Fest

I like bargain breds. 

There, I’ve said it.  No shame in admitting one’s deep, dark secrets to the Sim at large.  I like…bargains.

If you have enough credits, or enough BP, you can breed Storm Cats and A.P. Indys until you get Carpal-Tunnel.  But success is a bit sweeter if you find a sire that you can rely on while the rest of the Sim spends time and energy looking for top-shelf sires with which they can create good-looking horses that can turn out to be the biggest flop since the movie “Gigli”.  I tend to breed a lot more horses for well under 100 BP than I do “super-duper” horses with blue blood coursing through their veins.  It takes a lot of experimentation to get a few good horses with pedigrees that fly under the radar and costs that are literally a drop in the bucket.  But when one of them unexpectedly sets the world on fire, that’s when you have a good story to tell the world.

At Minnesota Downs, they have something special up their sleeves for this weekend.  The Minnesota Raceday Festival features a special event on its card that is a true test of a breeder’s ability to turn “cheap” straw into winning gold.  It’s called the Bargain Bred Sprint MSW, a maiden race for horses bred “inexpensively”, and it’s to be contested on the grass at a distance of five furlongs, for a purse of $75,000.  It’s a special event, to be certain, and so the usual race preview doesn’t really apply here.  I’m going to take a look at the pedigree, the past performances (where applicable—four of these are firsters), and try to give you a good look at these entrants…behind the bargain.

Whatsaguygottado [Hubba Hubba x Indy Mood x Native Prospector] breaks from the rail for trainer tip2no, and he’s one of the first-time starters in the field.  His pedigree is interesting, in the sense that it’s holding close to tradition: it’s a Storm Cat x A.P. Indy x Mr. Prospector pedigree, only it’s more like “Storm Cat x A.P. Indy x Mr. Prospector: The Next Generation”.  The sire, Hubba Hubba, is a half-brother to the old-school classy mare Paseana(ARG), and Indy Mood was a half to another champion femme, Saratoga Dew.  As for Native Prospector, he won four times and passed away in 2000, but not before siring 15 crops of racing age that included Andestine, winner of the 1994 Milady Handicap, and other graded stakes winners Goldigger’s Dream, Knight Prospector, and sire Aloha Prospector.  For a bargain, there are some nifty, high-class bloodlines here, including inbreeding to Secretariat 4Sx5D.  That said, though, remember that this is a five-furlong turf sprint, and about the only thing missing here is some turf background.  As we all know, that’s not to say he won’t appreciate the lawn, but the odds appear on paper to be stacked against him.  Props, though, should go out to the breeder for identifying a sire and a dam-sire of underappreciated quality to combine here.  If the turf isn’t his bag, he should bounce upwards nicely on dirt.

Sahmmy Slew [Sahm x Sadler Slew x Mongo] is the morning-line favorite here for trainer undercover, even as she’s 0-for-7 lifetime, which by far makes her the most experienced horse in the field.  Still, she’s earned paychecks in six of those races, and her best numbers are on turf, which puts him clearly above the other starters here.  Her pedigree for a bargain-bred is fascinating, also.  Sahm won the Knickerbocker Handicap at Aqueduct in 1998, and his dam was the only son of the champion filly Salsabil, the first filly in 90 years to win the Irish Derby.  Sadler Slew was a son of Seattle Slew out of a Canadian stakes-winner, and Mongo was the champion grass horse of 1963, and won such minor, obscure races as the United Nations Handicap…twice.  She’ll be coming late, she only missed by a head last out, and has the circuit’s leading rider in the irons.  She’s formidable…unless her bad racing luck continues.

Naydim North [Midyan x Lucky North x Sefapiano] races for the barn of rharfo8, and he’s 0-for-4 lifetime, with no monies earned.  His numbers regularly hit the upper 50s, like the temps in autumn, but he’ll likely need an improvement into Indian-summer territory for his best effort, even with two middling turf tries in his past.  He’s a son of Group III winner Midyan; his dam-sire, Lucky North, won the 1986 Phoenix Handicap at Keeneland; and Sefapiano, his DDS, is a mating of the influential sire Fappiano with the Grade I mare Sefa’s Beauty.  Quality abounds in the blood, though he still is looking for his best stride as a juvenile.

Minnesota Spur [Stroll x Flying Spur(AUS) x Mystiko] is an intriguing firster from the barn of nowhere, and this filly certainly has a bargain pedigree worthy of being 9/2 on the morning line.  She’s from Sim first-crop sire Stroll, who experienced a lot of success back in 2003 by winning a pair of graded grass races: the Grade II Jamaica Handicap, and the Grade II National Museum Of Racing Hall Of Fame Stakes.  Flying Spur(AUS) was a son of Danehill who won a number of Group races in Australia, and Mystiko, the DDS, won the British 2,000 Guineas.  Grass really should not be a problem, but distance might be, as this filly is bred for a bit longer than a turf sprint.

Graham Crackers [Graeme Hall x Slick Slew x Globe] has some racing experience for trainer unshaded99, and, alas, these experiences have been…um…crummy.  She’s 0-for-3, with her last (on grass) being the slowest speed fig of her career, although she’s shown some slight tendencies for early speeds.  Her pedigree is pretty nifty, as sire Graeme Hall excelled at classic distances at 3 and 4, winning the Arkansas Derby, the Jim Dandy, and the Stuyvesant Handicap; plus, his dam Win Crafy Lady was a graded winner at sprint distances (she particularly enjoyed racing on Aqueduct’s inner track).  The DDS, Slick Slew, is a son of Seattle Slew who was a sire in the Dominican Republic, and the DDS, Globe, was a late-blooming son of Secretariat, winning a pair of Aqueduct graded handicaps at 5.  She’ll likely be up near the front early, but she’s likely going to be a late bloomer herself, and the distance and surface appear to be less than ideal matches.

Country Fried Cat [Timber Country x Sir Cat x Petionville] represents torrential, and he’s pretty well-bred for a “bargain” firster here.  Timber Country (by Woodman out of prolific Eclipse-winning broodmare Fall Aspen) is one of those Preakness winners, a la Bee Bee Bee, Aloma’s Ruler, and Deputed Testimony, that time forgot.  But he was a force at 2, winning the Breeders Cup Juvenile and the Champagne before being sent off to Japan and, later, Dubai, after his racing career.  Sir Cat won graded turf races at Aqueduct, Saratoga and Gulfstream into the late-1990s, and Petionville won the Louisiana and Ohio Derbys on dirt as well as the La Jolla Handicap on grass.  Ideally, he should be able to stay a distance of ground, and shouldn’t object to grass.  Sprinting shouldn’t be too bad for a debut, but he’s bred for longer routes on either surface.

Mystigny [Shagny x Mystiko x Buckfinder] is 0-for-4 lifetime thus far for chuckrock, and so far, his impression on railbirds has been negligible.  In his career, he’s improved from his debut figs (which were in the 40s), but only after coming off the grass following a failed turf effort (a 47).  This, one might surmise, does not inspire a lot of confidence.  In his pedigree, though, there’s some class to be had.  Shagny is out of a full sister to influential sire Storm Bird.  Mystiko, remember, won the British 2,000 Guineas (a mile on grass for three-year-olds).  And Buckfinder is a graded winner who equaled a track record at Keeneland at 8.5 furlongs.  He should evolve nicely at 3 and beyond, and grass and middle distances should appeal, but on recent form, he falls behind the curve.

Bronnie [Texas Glitter x Tomorrows cat x Sea Hawk], for metsfan, is another whose recent improved form came after a horrible race on grass and a switch back to the dirt.  Her only turf fig was a 45, but she’s rounded into form late, with a 59 in a maiden claimer last out on dirt.  She closed well late there, and a similar effort on the lawn might be asking a lot of her, but it isn’t unheard of.  Her pedigree is friendly to the conditions: Texas Glitter loved sprinting, particularly on grass, with graded wins at Hollywood, Laurel, Gulfstream, and Calder, and he set a track record going six panels on grass at Laurel.  Tomorrows Cat preferred classic distances, winning the Grade II Pegasus at 3.  And Sea Hawk was a French horse who won the Criterium de Saint-Cloud at 2 and the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud at 3, and later became an accomplished sire in Ireland and Japan.  That should give her a decent background to develop more at 3, but her current form doesn’t quite recommend her in this spot.

Coldheartedrevenge [Even The Score x Moscow Ballet x Corporate Report] is a first-time starter representing torrential, and thus is a stablemate of fellow firster Country Fried Cat.  How does he stack up?  Well, his sire Even The Score did well on the Louisiana circuit early in his career, placing in some Fair Grounds stakes on grass.  But he did even better on the West Coast last year, winning a couple of Hollywood graded handicaps on dirt.  Moscow Ballet is a good sire of turf sprinters, and a Group III winner in Ireland, and Corporate Report, the DDS, won the Travers in ’91, but is a half-brother to a pair of talented turf horses: the Group III-placed Swiss Affair and Grade III winner Drachma.  So, there’s plenty of turf ability, and some speed, in his blood, and he has a decent jock on board.  It’s speculative, but potentially he could find this surface to his liking; a fair chance here.

Theo’s Bargain [Sure Blade x Beldale Flutter x Cragador(GB)] has an outside post for theodore2, and in four starts he has hit the board twice while descending the claiming ladder; his best results have come around the $2,000 level, and his numbers keep going up without a grass race in him.  He’s bred to make a strong turf debut, in theory: Sure Blade is a son of Kris(GB), and a Group II and Group III winner in England.  Beldale Flutter won the Group I Benson and Hedges Gold Cup and Belgium’s Grand Criterium International D’ostende, and the DDS, Cragador(GB), was stakes-placed at Ascot.  This colt’s shown a preference for coming from off the pace on dirt, but in this grass debut, all bets are off.  In any event, indications are that in time he should appreciate added ground.  Taking to the lawn should be a decent bet in theory, but there are no guarantees in Sim handicapping.  That his dirt numbers show a little bit of life at a low claiming level isn’t that encouraging for his prospects here, but you just never know with juveniles.

It’s a challenge to handicap a maiden baby race in any dimension, and with bargain breds, because the sires don’t always get a strong workout with a large crop to track progress, it’s that much more complicated.  Based on the research and the past performances, I’ve come up with the following selections.

1.       Sahmmy Slew

2.       Coldheartedrevenge

3.       Minnesota Spur

4.       Country Fried Cat

5.       Theo’s Bargain

Good luck to all on the Minnesota Raceday Festival card, and happy racing!