With a week to go until GI Belmont S., trio of Brad Cox cadets completed their final pieces ahead of Saturday’s final leg of Triple Crown at Churchill Downs.
Angel of the Empire (Classic Empire), Hit Show (candy ride {Arg}) and faucet A pair of shoes (faucet) each put on five-part compositions while a handful of additional Cox stable of stars completed their final tweaks in preparation for bids in a well-stocked Belmont card . The Churchill Downs-based Cox team will arrive in Belmont Park on Monday.
angel of the empirewho finished third in the GI Kentucky Derby, finished the fastest of any Cox’s Belmont rivals, stopping the clock at 59.80 seconds.
The winner of the GII Risen Star S. and GI Arkansas Derby for the Albaugh Family Stables, Angel of Empire placed the final bid in the Kentucky Derby for a wide angle from behind the crew and came in third.
“I think he has a lot more to show,” Cox said. “We always thought he would get better if he did more based on his pedigree and physicality, and he did. His numbers in the Kentucky Derby have gone up and he has five weeks to recover from that number. From a physical standpoint, he seems to be continuing to grow and I like what we’ve seen from him in his works.”
Three post-Derby works by the Pennsylvania pony led Cox to believe that the Angel of Empire would enjoy the Belmont distance.
Cox explains: “He always gallops very well. “Perhaps the best part of his works is that on the second turn he continues to want to gallop backwards. We are happy to give him the opportunity to go that far.”
Based on how the Belmont field is shaping up, Cox said he’s hopeful that Angel of Empire can sit in a slightly more favorable position this time around.
“I think people will get a little closer to the pace. We probably won’t see 45 and change in Belmont. If we did, I don’t know who would do it. I think naturally, he’s probably going to be a little bit better than he was at the Kentucky Derby.”
Not far behind the Angel of Empire in the Kentucky Derby was intern Cox impressions. After breaking a pole, the gray pony sat a few ponies along the tracks and then looked poised for success as he made a wide detour at the far turn, but the May 9 pony was unable to resist ponies like Mage (gunman) and was urged by Manny France to maintain fifth place.
A hybrid of Gary and Mary West, the Hit Show earned points in its Derby at the Aqueduct, winning over GIII Withers S. by 5 and a half minutes and then finishing second in the GII Wood Memorial S.
Cox says the pony’s relationship with New York could serve him well on Belmont Day.
“He has had some success at the Aqueduct, and with the NYRA tracks, they seem to be a little deeper and more sandy. He has the ability to pass the Aqueduct, so we hope that he can get past the Belmont track. We think he ran a really good race in the Kentucky Derby and we’re thrilled he’s gone a mile and a half. Manny Franco came back and mentioned Belmont right away, so he could be a horse that could move forward in Belmont.
On Saturday morning, Hit Show aired the five extensions in 1:01.60.
Cox’s last pony in Belmont, faucet A pair of shoeshas done four works at Churchill Downs since coming in second to GI Preakness who finished fourth on Red Route One (gunman) in Bath House Row S. at Oaklawn Park on April 22. While working on Saturday, he stopped the clock at 1:00.60.
Co-owned by Spendthrift Farm, Steve Landers Racing, Martin Schwartz, Michael Dubb, Ten Strike Racing, Jim Bakke, Titletown Racing, Kueber Racing, Big Easy Racing, Winners Win and Michael Caruso, faucet The shoes broke his seven-and-a-half-foot daughter at the Fair Grounds last December. This year, he finished fourth and then third against the subsidy company before finishing second in the Stakes at Oaklawn.
Cox said that the pony’s pedigree was a key consideration in sending his son faucet-is the father of four Belmont S. winners – his graded bet debut in the Triple Crown finals.
“He’s on the side” faucetwhich obviously everyone knows that those horses do well over a mile and a half on dirt…and he’s half the size of GISW Cyberknife (gunman),” Cox said. “He just seems to get better the more he does it. He advanced in Bath House Row S. and he had plenty of time to recuperate after that. I think he clearly has to take it one step further and I hope that he does. He’s a pretty steady, steady working horse and always gallops well. He gave us some confidence that he could enjoy a mile and a half.”
In addition to the Cox’s Belmont contenders, the champion caravans (Mizzen Mast) will also bid for Grade I in Jaipur S. next weekend. Campaigned by Quatar Racing, Marc Detampel and Madaket Stables, last year’s GI Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint winner was originally slated for the G1 King’s Stand at Royal Ascot, but her relationships chose to act. a much shorter route to Belmont for the six-stage Jaipur race, which challenges the Breeders’ Cup and provides an automated stop for the Turf Sprint.
“She had a big run at Belmont last year in GIII Intercontinental S., so we’ll see if we can do it again this year with only boys in Class I,” Cox said. or not. “Obviously she has that ability, has won the Breeders’ Cup, and now she is doing really well. She looks really great.
Caravel overtook four stretches on Churchill Downs on May 24 and then covered the same distance on the main track at: 49.40 on Thursday.
Cox explains: “We chose to do the hard work with just scheduling and shipping and everything. “She was a good homemaker and galloped well. We are pleased with how she looks and how she moves.
Belmont Workers at Belmont, Gulfstream
Also on Saturday morning, Todd Pletcher’s Belmont-bound junior champion Forte (Violence) and GI Blue Grass S. winner faucet Trice (faucet) reached the main track at Belmont.
Repole Stable and St. Elis Stable’s Forte has enjoyed massive success five times under Irad Ortiz Jr. with odds: 59.67, working together with the first winner Varatti (Into Mischief).
Pletcher later said: “I think it was a super good wind. “He went 59 and 3 and it looks like he’s doing it well inside himself, galloping very well. He came back and cooled down quickly. That’s exactly what we’re hoping he’ll get out there and do and I think based on the strength of his gentle breezes he’ll come in as well as we’d hoped.
After being scratched in the GI Kentucky Derby due to a bruise on his right front paw, Forte was placed on the 14-day mandatory veterinary list. Under HISA Rule 2241(a), to be removed from the list, Forte must work in front of a prescribed veterinarian — which he completed last week — and then produce a blood sample after the work. there. Pletcher said that Forte’s blood sample came back negative.
faucet Trice, who finished seventh in the GI Kentucky Derby for Whisper Hill Farm and Gainesway Stable, ran the half-mile with a time of: 49.89 on Saturday, accompanied by Classic Catch winner (Classic Empire).
“I think he looks great,” Pletcher reported. “He is crossing the ground very well. He is a horse that moves well. We wanted to do with him a little less than we did with Forte, as he ran in the Derby and has had two successes since. For him, it’s more of a maintenance job, and it looks like he’s continued down the main road here really well.
Meanwhile at Gulfstream, Il Miracolo (gunman) made five that lasted for 1:00.88. Enter the Belmont field with an optional grant claiming to win on May 11, the foal trained by Antonio Sano and campaigned by Alexandres, Inc.
Last year’s 2 year old FORTE champion (outside) went through 5 rounds with a score of 59 3/5 and lost 1:12 2/5 in his final set for G1 Belmont Stakes due to @NYRABets pic.twitter.com/ydMYJWqmVB
– Ryan Martin (@RyanMartinNYRA) June 3, 2023
1st place winner TAPIT TRICE (outside) runs half mile at 49 4/5 and out 1:02 to prep for G1 Belmont Stakes first @NYRABets pic.twitter.com/m8dnCi496b
– Ryan Martin (@RyanMartinNYRA) June 3, 2023
