Breeders’ Cup World Championships
Friday, October 30 and Saturday, October 31
2-Year-Old Report
Saturday, October 31
$2 Million Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (Grade I) 2-Year-Old Colts & Geldings
$2 Million 14 Hands Winery Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (Grade I) 2-Year-Old Fillies
Tuesday, October 27, 2015
1 1/16 Miles
1 1/16 Miles
Contact Notes Team (859) 250-0358
Cocked and Loaded – Richard Ravin and Patricia’s Hope’s Cocked and Loaded, a
winner last out in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile ‘Win and You’re In’ Iroquois Stakes at Churchill
Downs, is impressing trainer Larry Rivelli with his progress since his aforementioned Sept. 12
victory. A winner of three of five, including the Tremont Stakes in June, the son of Colonel John
concluded his serious training with a 4f work in 49 1/5 at Keeneland on Oct. 23.
Rivelli, who won his second consecutive Arlington title this summer, will be starting his
first Breeders’ Cup contestant and is doing so for fellow Chicago-based connections. Cocked and
Loaded, who also broke his maiden at Keeneland on debut in April before being privately
purchasd, left Barn 64 on Tuesday morning and galloped on the training track.
“He galloped today for about a mile and a quarter and he’s happy,” Rivelli said. “He’s
doing as well as he could do. He breezed really good a couple weeks ago and then had an easy
half-mile (on Oct. 23) to stretch his legs. He came back perfect and is doing perfectly right now.
He’s fit, ran enough this year and is coming off his first two-turn event, so we are just keeping
him out of harm’s way now and galloping into the race.
“He has a great mind for this type of event,” Rivelli continued. “A lot of these horses are
going to be dealing with very different conditions than when they broke their maiden with a
small crowd at the track. He’s also an overall unbelievable athlete. He’s a small horse, but if you
watch him run, his stride is twice the length of his body and he has a quick turn of foot. He really
has a huge reach on him for a small horse and he never gets tired. It’s amazing.”
Irad Ortiz, Jr., who was aboard in the Tremont, returns to the saddle when the duo breaks
from post 5 on Saturday in the $2 million Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.
“Irad is the best in the country as far as I’m concerned,” Rivelli continued. “There’s no
doubt about it that we have the right guy for the job.”
Rivelli said that if the main track is sloppy again on Wednesday, he would repeat the
same gallop on the training track.
Mark Casse (Conquest Big E, Juvenile; Siding Spring Juvenile (AE) – Conquest
Stables, the nom de course for Chicagoans and longtime significant others Ernie Semersky and
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Dory Newell, incorporate “Conquest” when choosing the monikers for all of their horses. But
Conquest Big E is the only one among the more than 100 in their outfit to be named for
Semersky.
“Why was this horse the one chosen for the honor? First of all, he’s absolutely beautiful
and he’s a son of Tapit. Secondly, he’s got a beautiful way of going, and also, we knew right
away that he could really run. We had been saving this name for one we thought was really
special, and knock wood, he has been. He’s made it to the Breeders’ Cup,” said Mark Casse, who
is the stable’s private trainer and also an advisor at the sales, where Semersky and Newell are not
shy when it comes to buying top pedigreed young horses.
Conquest Big E graduated from the maiden ranks at second asking last out while going
two turns at Keeneland, so Casse knows he can handle the same 1 1/16 m distance in the
Juvenile. Even better, that score was over a sloppy surface.
“If the weather doesn’t improve and the track is off on Saturday, we won’t have to
worry,” the trainer said.
Incidentally, the Casse trained My Conquestadory, who was named for Newell, was the
stable’s first Grade 1 winner and finished fourth in the 2013 Juvenile Fillies Turf. Early Tuesday
morning, Casse opted to train Conquest Big E and Siding Spring with stablemates Tepin (Mile)
and Airoforce (Juvenile Turf) at Churchill because he felt the weather was a little better there.
After galloping 1 ¼ m each, the contingent then left Louisville and arrived at the Keeneland barn
in the late morning to join Conquest Daddyo (Juvenile Turf) and Catch a Glimpse (Juvenile
Fillies Turf.).
Casse said that with even worse weather in Wednesday’s forecast, his training plans for
tomorrow are undecided. All of the schooling for his quintet of Breeders’ Cup starters has been
completed.
Ken McPeek (Dothraki Queen, Juvenile Fillies; Rated R Superstar, Juvenile) –
Trainer Ken McPeek will be represented in both the juvenile races. Rated R Superstar, third in
the Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland last out, got post six in the Juvenile.
“The last time he ran, he drew the one hole which was a little problematic. Calvin Borel
had to commit from the inside,” McPeek said. “We were happy to see he drew at least a little bit
out. He needs to stalk off others and be able to rate a little bit and I think he can do that from
six.”
Dothraki Queen, a $35,000 yearling purchase who has earned $217,500 in three starts,
got post eight for the Juvenile Fillies. “She’s a filly that stalks off the pace. I’m thrilled with the
eight. Her last race [the Alcibiades at Keeneland], she didn’t have the greatest trip in the world,
got boxed in, ended up back in the pack and had to cut her way through and still. ran pretty good
to get second. I thought she was the best horse that day.
“Hopeful there will some pace in the race that sets up for a closer and that’s when she’ll
come running,” he said.
“I bought her here in the fall for $35,000, with a nice group of people we put together on
her. I do a lot of those, the Magdelena partnerships, where people can buy 20 percent shares.
She’s turned out to be a good one.”
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Keith Desormeaux (Exaggerator and Swipe, Juvenile; Right There, Juvenile Fillies)
– Big Chief Racing’s Saratoga Special winner Exaggerator, who exits a runner-up effort in the
Breeders’ Futurity at the Juvenile’s course and distance on Oct. 3, continues to train well for
Keith Desormeaux. Last year at Santa Anita, Desormeaux teamed up with his jockey brother
Kent to win the Juvenile with Texas Red. Exaggerator finished his serious work for the Breeders’
Cup with a On Tuesday, the son of Curlin galloped a mile on the main track and stood in the
gate.
“He’s good right now and very spirited,” Desormeaux said. “Between the Breeders’
Futurity and what we’ve done with him, I have no doubt about his fitness. It’s a matter of getting
a good trip and getting through when he needs to. It’s in the jockey’s hands. Trainers are often
skeptical about fitness, but in this case I am absolutely not.”
Swipe and Right There, both also owned by Big Chief Racing, are schedule to arrive late
Tuesday from Desormeaux’s California string and will gallop Wednesday morning.
Greenpointcrusader – Greenpointcrusader has been at Keeneland since Oct. 10, one
week after he won the “Win and You’re In” Champagne at Belmont Park. New York-based
Trainer Dominick Schettino, who is saddling his first Breeders’ Cup starter, is happy with this
colt.
“He shipped well,” Schettino, 49, said. “He acclimated well to the track. He breezed
twice over it very well. The way he’s training, I feel good.”
The son of Bernardini is a half-brother to Grade 1 winner Justin Phillip and three other
graded stakes winners. His New York owners are St. Elias Stable, owned by Vincent Viola,
owner of the NHL’s Florida Panthers and the husband and wife team of Mary Ellen and Anthony
Bonomo, who operate as MeB Racing Stable and Brooklyn Boyz Stables, respectively.
Greenpointcrusader will be stepping into new territory in the $2 million Juvenile - a twoturn race. The Champagne is a one-turn mile at spacious Belmont Park.
“I don’t think it will be a problem,” Schettino said. “The way he trains and as intelligent
as he is, I don’t think it will be an issue. I guess we’ll see Saturday. I don’t have any concerns.
I’m happy.”
Schettino opened his own stable in 1992 and has plenty of success in New York, but, like
his colt, is trying something new – the Breeders’ Cup.
“It feels good,” he said. “It’s something different, but it’s exciting. It’s a good feeling.”
Doug O’Neill (Nyquist and Ralis, Juvenile; Land Over Sea, Juvenile Fillies) – All
three of the youngsters got their exercise on Keeneland’s training track Tuesday morning each
galloping a mile, each under regular exercise rider Johnny Garcia.
“They all went easy,” O’Neill said. “We’ll just gallop up to the race.” And he kept the
door open for continuing the exercise on the training track.
Of the undefeated Nyquist, O’Neill indicated his start from Post 13 “could be a little
tricky, but it’s an OK run to the turn and Mario (Gutierrez) should be able to get some good
position. He usually leaves (the gate) running and is a natural competitor.”
Ralis has trained well in his time at Keeneland, O’Neill said, and is hopeful he will return
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to the form he showed in winning Saratoga’s Hopeful Stakes. “After the Hopeful we took him
back to California and then shipped him back to New York for the Champagne and I’m sure that
took a lot of him (lost by 15 lengths).We brought him right to Keeneland after that so he’s been
here awhile.”
Land Over Sea galloped a mile, also. The trainer characterized the daughter of Bellamy
Road as one who “tries hard every turn,” adding, “she likes to come from off the pace.”
The three 2yos are owned by Reddam Racing, the nom de course of J. Paul Reddam,
winner of the 2004 Juvenile as a partner in Wilko and the 2006 Turf with Red Rocks.
Nickname – LNJ Foxwoods’ Steve Asmussen-trained Nickname walked the shed row of
Barn 60 a day after working a maintenance half-mile in :49 3/5.
Rachel’s Valentina – A 2-for-2 record will attract a lot of attention in Rachel’s
Valentina’s direction for Saturday’s 14 Hands Winery Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, but her
breeding will also her one of the most popular horses in this year’s Breeders’ Cup.
The Stonestreet Stables’ homebred 2yo filly is the second foal of 2009 Horse of the Year
Rachel Alexandra, who earned a rabid following while winning the Preakness Stakes, Haskell
and Woodward Stakes against the boys. Rachel Alexandra’s first foal, Jess’s Dream, also created
a buzz at Saratoga when he won his debut in August.
“Her dam was an extremely popular horse. We saw it with Jess’s Dream – any of her
foals is going to get extra attention, as they should,” trainer Todd Pletcher said Tuesday morning.
“For her to come out and win her first two races and win a Grade 1 in her second start heightened
the interest. It’s certainly understandable that people would get excited about it.”
Rachel’s Valentina won both her starts at Saratoga, winning her debut by two lengths and
capturing the Spinaway by a length.
“It’s been easy for us, because the filly’s been so impressive and she was an easy filly to
prepare for her first start,” Pletcher said. “She’s given us a lot of confidence on the basis of what
we’ve seen in her training, so from that perspective, I haven’t felt any more pressure.”
Songbird – The 7-5 morning line favorite for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies galloped
1 1/2m on the Keeneland main track on Tuesday morning for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. While
she is the heavy favorite for Saturday’s race, Hollendorfer acknowledges how tough it could be
for the daughter of Medaglia d’Oro.
“I don’t take anything for granted,” Hollendorfer said of his undefeated 2yo filly.
“Somebody has to be the favorite and that’s us and deservedly so, but we respect everyone that’s
also in the race. We have a bit of a tough post (#10), but I think she has the talent to overcome
that.”
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