October 30, 2015
An Interview With:
KIKI COURTELIS
SHANNON POTTER
THE MODERATOR:
Ladies and
gentlemen, the winner of the Longines Breeders'
Cup Distaff with Stopchargingmaria, trainer Todd
Pletcher has a horse in the finale, so we'll hope to
catch up with him later. But right now, we're joined
by owner Kiki Courtelis of TOWN AND COUNTRY
FARMS, as well as Shannon Potter, who serves as
racing manager. Congratulations to you both.
KIKI COURTELIS: Thank you.
SHANNON POTTER: Thank you.
THE MODERATOR: Kiki, tell us, first of all,
about the experience of watching this race today
and what you were feeling when you won the
Breeders' Cup Distaff.
KIKI COURTELIS: It was incredible. It's my
first Breeders' Cup race that I've ever had a horse
in, and just such an exciting experience. And to
have all of my friends and my family with me just
made it even better.
THE MODERATOR: Shannon, can you
talk about the ride that Javier gave this filly. He
found an amazing spot early on and it was a much
better trip than you all had at Saratoga.
SHANNON POTTER: Yes. Speaking with
Javier right before the race, he thought he would be
somewhere between third and fourth right off the
pace. That's where he really wanted to be. We
didn't think we were the pace of the race. So if we
could get a good trip, kind of set outside, if we could,
stay tucked in, we knew that Wedding Toast was
going to be close up there, so we wanted to kind of
set right off of her.
Javi has won a couple of races today, so it's
not like you have to tell him too much. He's the pro.
He's why -- he makes the big bucks, you know. So
that was as good a ride as she could have had.
THE MODERATOR: Very good. Kiki, can
you tell us the story of acquiring this filly from Mike
Repole about this time last year.
KIKI COURTELIS: It was this time. We
were looking to buy a young filly who had some
success on the race track, and could go on in her
four-year-old year and put the name Town and
Country into racing.
She was very sound. She was three years
old. She fit the mold perfectly, and Mike was nice
enough to let us have her.
THE MODERATOR: A Breeders' Cup win
is always special.
But you are based in
Georgetown, Kentucky. We are here at Keeneland.
Does that make it extra special for you?
KIKI COURTELIS: I get to sleep in my own
bed tonight
[Laughter]. So, yes, it is wonderful to be in
our hometown. My mom and I moved here eight
years ago and we're never going back to Florida.
We just love it here.
SHANNON POTTER: We were actually
talking on the way, walking from the saddling pack
over and I looked at Kiki and I said, look at this,
we're in the Breeders' Cup in our own hometown. I
mean, what could be better? It's magnificent, what
has actually transpired here. Keeneland looks like
a different place, you know, but it's absolutely
awesome. It's what horse racing's supposed to be.
THE MODERATOR: Questions from the
room?
Q. Hi, Kiki. Can you talk a little bit about
how long you and your mother have been
involved in racing and kind of what got you
started in it?
KIKI COURTELIS: We started with Arabian
show horses and my father is the one who started
the Arabian Jockey Club. We started racing
Arabians and Sheikh Mohammed had all of his
breeding stock with us in Florida. So we were in
charge of about 500 head of horses of his.
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My mom and I have always wanted to go to
thoroughbreds and we just decided to make the
move, and moved to Kentucky after four of our best
mares didn't hold their pregnancy when we got them
home. We just said, you know, if we're going to be
in this, we've got to be here.
Q. Congratulations.
KIKI COURTELIS: Thank you.
Q. How big is your broodmare band and
are you equally interested in racing and
breeding or what's the whole philosophy of the
operation that way?
KIKI COURTELIS: Yes. We have about 35
broodmares, about six of those we own with other
people, partners and friends who we've made in the
business.
We are commercial breeders. We do like to
offer everything for sale. But what doesn't sell,
we've made the decision to keep and run ourselves.
So it's good to help our broodmares and it's good to
prove them.
Q. Where do you board them?
KIKI COURTELIS: We have our own farm
in Georgetown.
Q. You made an interesting comment
after the race that the actual incident in the
stretch, the bumping, it almost didn't worry you
because you were just so proud of the filly's
effort. Can you elaborate on that feeling?
KIKI COURTELIS: Stopchargingmaria is
the most extraordinary racehorse I've ever known.
She gives 150 percent every single time. And I don't
think she knows she can lose. I just think she goes
after everything knowing she's going to win. She's
such a cool customer. She was so cool in the
Paddock.
Todd has done such an amazing job with
her. Her weight is perfect. She is at the top of her
game.
THE MODERATOR:
There's a lot of
interest here about plans for next year and whether
Stopchargingmaria might continue to train.
KIKI COURTELIS: She's going to come
home Sunday and we're going to take her over to
Haggard and get her checked out from top to bottom
and let the tests show if she wants to continue. I
know mentally she wants to continue. If she does,
and she checks out fine, she will go back to Todd.
THE MODERATOR: Very good. One more
from Tom.
Q. The personal incident at Saratoga,
she went to the front and ended late. She was
under pressure. Was a conscious decision
made today to race her off the pace?
SHANNON POTTER: Well, yes and no.
Basically, it looked -- like I said, there looked to be
some speed in the race. We didn't know if they
would go or not. We thought they would. We just
didn't want to get in the same situation we were at
in the Personal Ensign.
Untapable had a lot of speed. She was very
keen. It was not the ideal trip for sure, because we'd
battled on the rail. As you guys know, battling on
the rail at Saratoga all the way around is a tough
spot and hard to win and deep. So we just knew we
did not want in that spot again. If we could get her
clear, get her to the outside, have clear sailing, that
Javi thought, hey, we'll kick on by if we don't have to
make the lead.
The only way we were going to make the
lead is if everybody went really slow on the front
end, going into the first turn. That didn't happen.
Q. Given the fact she was very wide the
entire trip, that was a remarkable performance.
SHANNON POTTER: Thank you.
KIKI COURTELIS: Thank you so much.
Q. Going back to when you bought her
from Mike, did you specifically seek her out or
how did that come about, the purchase?
SHANNON POTTER: I guess I could
answer that for her. We were looking for a filly to
race, just like her, that had shown a lot of great
stakes potential.
Maybe something to add to the broodmare
band down the road. But Taylor Made had her in
the sale and she RNAed and we'd bid on one other
horse, and I kind of went into Todd and I said,
Todd -- and Todd was with us when we bid on the
other horse. Todd said, hey, why don't we take a
run at Stopchargingmaria. She's sound. She's a
little bit younger than the other horse we were trying
to bid on.
He said, and I think she'll continue to just
flourish. So we did. Struck a deal with Mike, and
that's kind of how it came about. I mean, we were
looking for a horse, not necessarily looking for
Maria. But boy, were we glad when all of it came
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together and we were lucky we didn't get the one we
bid on so we could get Maria.
THE MODERATOR: Have you guys heard
from Mike? He's always around Todd. Do you keep
in touch? Have you heard anything from him about
this filly?
SHANNON POTTER: No.
KIKI COURTELIS: Not yet.
THE MODERATOR: Very good.
Q. Any broodmares who are stakes
producers or stakes winners who we would
know about in the broodmare band?
KIKI COURTELIS:
Yes, we have
Champagne Royale who has produced as well as
Majestic Harbor. We have Lemon Kiss, who has
produced Lochte, she's in foal with a full brother or
sister right now, hoping to recreate the magic and -SHANNON POTTER: We have Upperline.
We actually had her first War Front baby in the sale
this year. She ran quite a bit here at Keeneland too.
Another filly named Agave Kiss. She ran quite a bit
in New York. That's -KIKI COURTELIS: Tap of the Day, she's a
full sister to Tapit. I can only see Maria right now,
sorry. I'd be happy to send you a list.
THE MODERATOR: Kiki and Shannon,
congratulations to you both. Thanks for your time.
After the finale, we hope to have Todd come by.
Congratulations again.
KIKI COURTELIS: Thank you so much.
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