The Jockey Club
Good Day! Welcome to the lovely Deauville Racetrack in France on this beautiful day for racing! We have quite the card of races this week with five graded races at the track today. This track will be hosting a Grade III, three Grade II’s and our feature today, the Grade I “The Jockey Club” for 3 year olds going a mile and five/sixteenths on the turf. These three year olds will be competing for a $500,000 purse and a place in immortality with that elusive Grade I victory status. This will be a 12 horse race with some real nice ponies so this is definitely a coveted trophy that the connections will be proud to add to the trophy shelf. Let’s get to the competitors.
STARBRITE STYLE(ENG) from the Thierry stable from the Zeco stable group and representing the Benelux residency will be going off from the inside post. This son of Medicean has race 11 times, including three graded stakes races at this point in his career. He has already posted 4 victories moving up through the conditions. He has yet to post a stakes win but did finish a third in the GIII Classic Trial earlier this year. We will see if he can take down the highest level of competition today. This brown colt goes off at 13-1 for the longest race of his career.
INDY INDY INDY G(KY) will be coming out the 2 hole and will be representing dgdg from the pgpg stable group and the Kentucky Horsemen residency. This horse is a son of, you guessed it, AP Indy. This colt is coming into this race as the lightest raced; having only ran 6 races in his life, including only 2 on the grass. After running so so on dirt in his first two races, the stable saw him out running in the grass and realized that the colt loved the stuff. They entered him in an allowance, won that race, and then did it again to get the same result. Being undefeated on the turf is impressive and this horse won running away, so why not jump up to the Graded level and add 2.5 furlongs, and make them prove you can be beat. The morning line has this colt at 13-1.
MONSUNNINESADDLED(GER) from the network7 stable will be coming out of the 3 gap. This son of Monsun has yet to finish out of the money in his 8 career starts, with an impressive 5 victories. This colt is coming off of a 2nd place finish in the GII German Guineas over a mile. This will be the longest race of his career by a furlong, but in his previous longest race he did win a stakes race. This horse loves to be a front runner so it will be interesting to see how he handles the added distance. This colt will be going off at 8-1.
CAN’T SLOW DOWN(ENG) will be representing the desperado5 stable from the desperado group and blazing saddles residency. This son of Pivotal will actually be stepping back in distance after his 4th place finish in the GI Sydney Derby over a mile and a half. This colt looked to be game through the 3rd call closing on the leader before fading at the end. This colt will try to better that mark today and post his first stakes victory. He comes into this race with a 14-1 morning line.
MOSKOVSKAYA(KY) from the super10 stable and More Evil than the Evil Empire group and DelPenn National residency will be going off at 12-1 from the 5 slot. This colt is a son of Dynaformer and will be running his 2nd graded race today, coming off a 2nd place finish in the 10 furlong Griffen earlier this month. Like most of the horses in this race, this will be the longest distance that this colt has run. He should be able to handle the distance though, as he did run just a half furlong short of this last time out. This colt has been on a roll the past three races after a rough start to his career. Will he be able to break through in this group? We will find out today.
GPS TO FINISH LINE(KY) will be running out of the #6 spot. This son of Henrythenavigator will be representing the Lgbost stable group today. This impressive colt will be trying to return to the form that has already produced four stakes wins, including 2 of them in graded company. Today’s race should add some much needed distance, as this horse never seems to have enough room to run. Even in defeat this colt has been putting up some excellent speed figures and that is why he is going off at 5-1 today at the GI level with a large field.
WOLFMAN HAS NARDS(KY) is a closer from the cmd group representing the Comedy Central Residency. This son of Ghostzapper loves to start out in last place and has yet to win a race where he wasn’t at least 8 lengths back. This colt is coming off a very impressive victory in the GIII Dee Stakes last time out. This horse will definitely be making a charge at the end and it has yet to be determined whether or not his connections will actually start him at the line, or will give everybody else a head start. This colt goes off at 9-2 and is the co favorite.
ZAPINGO(IRE) from the andros stable, rafas group, and the Minnesota Downs residency will run the 8 hole. This is the highest ranked colt in the field and is no stranger to graded company. Of the son of Galileo’s 13 career starts, 7 have come against graded company, including a victory in the GII Grand Critter Stakes last year. While this horse has yet to post a victory this year, the added distance should help as this horse likes to come from the back of the field as well. This colt who ran a 106 SP# last time out will be the co favorite at 9-2 today.
FLASH IN YOUR EYES(KY) from the seedly stable, and the UFO testing center group is the longest horse in the field, with a morning line of 24-1. This probably has a lot to do with the fact that this son of Unbridled’s Song broke 84 sp# for the first time last time out and has yet to race against Stakes Company on the grass. The only other stakes race that this horse has entered was a forgettable appearance on the dirt. This horse does have momentum on his side today. Two straight victories heading into today’s race is definitely the way you want to be going and you never know how you will do against the top horses in the world until you try. That being said, this horse has very nice breeding and definitely belongs amongst the elite.
HIGH GOLD N BOLD(IRE) of the reigart stable and briant breeding and racing empire will be representing GR Simsters today. This son of High Chaparral will be bringing some speed to today’s race. This colt will be making his 6th Graded start today and will be looking for his first graded win. This horse has actually raced at 10.5 furlongs before, and posted an impressive 100 sp# in finishing 3rd in the GIII Super Hero Role Playing Stakes. That was the fastest figure of his career and it gives this 10-1 colt hope that today could be even better.
DERBY WEEK PRAYER(KY) is a son of Distorted Humor and will be representing pazsixx, from the PazJazz Music City stables and the Minnesota Downs residency. This horse is coming off a pair of 2nd place finishes in GIII races and would love to continue that run of success. While this horse was not initially bred for the turf, as evident by the name, this has become one nice little turfer. This will be the longest race of his career, but only by a half a furlong. Looking at past performances, you should be able to tell whether this is this colts day right away, as he rarely makes a late move or falls from his position. This horse will go off at 6-1 today.
HACKER’S MANIFESTO(IRE) will represent the mtk76 stable out of the Shamrock Stables Group and will represent the Blazing Saddles residency. This horse comes off a magnificent victory in the GII Derby Stud Trail last time out. That was a tremendous jump in speed for this Teofilo colt and all of the connections involved would love to see a repeat of that performance. Will the horse feel disrespected going off at 12-1 after that victory? Lets find out.
In handicapping this race, I believe that MONSUNNINESADDLED(GER) will lead the pack from the start. Many in this field will come with him but in the end I think that WOLFMAN HAS NARDS(KY) will eventually come out on top from way in the back with ZAPINGO(IRE) following in 2nd place, while also coming from behind but with not quite the move that WOLFMAN HAS NARDS(KY) will make. I think that the show will go to DERBY WEEK PRAYER(KY) who will come from just off the pace and stand still while hanging on as the other two make their move.
Good Luck to All the Connections!