Horse Racing Thread

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Brilliant Goldikova Triumphs at Longchamp
Champion mare Goldikova made the perfect start to her 5-year-old campaign, winning the Prix d’Ispahan (Fr-I) by a half-length over Byword at Longchamp May 23.

The dual Breeders’ Cup Mile (gr. IT) heroine, who as usual caused a bit of a delay at the start, broke sharply and was content to sit off the quick early pace set by Next Vision and Celebrissime. The pacesetters opened up a few lengths on the field but Olivier Peslier, who has ridden Goldikova throughout her career, showed no signs of being worried, allowing Goldikova to settle behind the leaders in third.

As the field entered the long turn into the home straight, both pacesetters began to fade. Byword was under a full head of steam and was making an impressive move along the inside rail under jockey Maxime Guyon. The pair hit the front at the same time as Goldikova, who had swept by the leaders on the outside.

Byword and Goldikova matched strides briefly, but Goldikova went into another gear and drew off. The nine furlongs of the Prix d’Ispahan may have stretched Goldikova’s stamina a bit, as Byword cut into her lead in the final yards to finish just a half-length behind her at the wire.

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/57147/brilliant-goldikova-triumphs-at-longchamp



Tuscan Evening Seeks First Grade I in Gamely
She's triumphed 10 times in 14 starts in the United States in the past two seasons and is on a four-race winning streak, all coming in graded stakes during the recent Santa Anita meet. But for all Tuscan Evening has accomplished, the one thing that has eluded her is a grade I victory, an omission she'll try to correct in the $250,000 Gamely Stakes May 29 at Hollywood Park.

It won't be easy. Among her seven rivals in a stellar Gamely will be multiple grade I winner Forever Together, the 2008 Eclipse Award winner as the nation's outstanding female on grass, and a host of other grade II winners. The Gamely, at nine furlongs on the Hollywood turf course, is the ninth race on the program with a 5:05 p.m. PDT post.

Tuscan Evening, a 5-year-old Irish-bred daughter of Oasis Dream owned by William DeBurgh, has been sensational this year for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. During the Santa Anita season, the bay mare rattled off consecutive wins in the Monrovia (gr. IIIT), Buena Vista (gr. IIT), Santa Ana (gr. IIT), and Santa Barbara (gr. IIT) Handicaps -- at distances from 6 1/2 furlongs to 1 1/4 miles. This will be her third try at nine furlongs and her first since the Santa Ana win March 21.

This will also be Tuscan Evening's first grade I appearance since she finished second to Ventura in Hollywood's Matriarch Stakes (gr. IT) Nov. 28, losing by 1 3/4 lengths in her final race of the 2009 campaign. It is her only defeat in four starts on the Hollywood Park turf that includes a victory in the Royal Heroine Mile Stakes (gr. IIT) last July.

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/57203/tuscan-evening-seeks-first-grade-i-in-gamely

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1. McLaughlin is Now Carin' For Charly

So, is Charlybrown gonna get caught? Just you wait and see.

Trainer Kiaran McLaughlin feels Uptowncharlybrown, who was turned over to him earlier this month, is coming up to the June 5 Belmont Stakes (gr. I) in excellent shape and he has no concerns with the son of Limehouse getting the mile and a half.

“He’s training great, he covers a lot of ground, and he gallops out strong in his works, so I’m pretty sure he’ll get the distance,” McLaughlin said.

McLaughlin, who named Rajiv Maragh to ride Uptowncharlybrown, is in a similar position he was in 2006, when he captured the Belmont with Jazil . In both instances, neither the Kentucky Derby (gr. I) or Preakness (gr. I) winners were in the Belmont field.

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/57209/mclaughlin-is-now-carin-for-charly

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2. Fresh Quality Road Tops Met Mile Lineup

Freshened up since his sensational 12 3/4-length length triumph in the Donn Handicap (gr. I) nearly four months ago, Quality Road returns to action as the one to beat in the $500,000 Metropolitan Handicap (gr. I) at Belmont Park May 31.

Quality Road was handed top weight of 124 pounds for his return to action in the Met Mile against a solid group of seven older rivals. Edward P. Evans' 4-year-old homebred will be making his first appearance at Belmont since finishing second to Summer Bird on a sloppy track in the Jockey Club Gold Cup (gr. I) Oct. 3. He will spot his opponents between six and 10 pounds.

The field includes Warrior's Reward and Musket Man, the first two finishers in the Carter Handicap (gr. I) April 3, as well as Kensei, who annexed Belmont's Dwyer Stakes (gr. II) and the Jim Dandy Stakes (gr. II) at Saratoga last year. But Quality Road, despite the layoff, will go off as a heavy favorite in the Metropolitan, which is race 10 on the program at 5:49 p.m. EDT.

"He's been training very, very well and has had some very good breezes," said trainer Todd Pletcher. "We're going into the race extremely confident."

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/57235/fresh-quality-road-tops-met-mile-lineup?source=rss