Euros Serve Notice
– Saturday was a good day for European invaders at Belmont. In the Garden City Breeders’ Cup, Alexander Tango “swooped past the other eight 3-year-old fillies in the final three-sixteenths of a mile to win … by three-quarters of a length” (DRF). Riding the four-year-old Irish filly for the first time, jockey Shaun Bridgmohan settled Alexander Tango far off the pace, which gave her connections some worry. “Ideally, we wanted to be mid-pack early. We thought she would be well-suited for American racing, because she runs best with a good pace in front of her,” said assistant trainer James Stack. “I thought we were done on the backstretch; the pace was slow and she was farther back than I thought she would be” (Sporting Life). Alexander Tango will stay at Belmont and could start next in the Flower Bowl Stakes on September 29.
– In the Man o’War, Doctor Dino rebounded from his second to Jambalaya in last month’s Arlington Million to prevail by a head over Sunriver. Don’t look for the five-year-old son of Muhtahir in the Breeders’ Cup though. Trainer Richard Gibson said the horse would head back to France early next week (NYRA).
– Another we might not see in the Breeders’ Cup is Ginger Punch, who validated her Go For Wand win with another dominating victory in the Ruffian Handicap (Blood-Horse). It was the filly’s third straight win and the final time of 1:40.25 broke the stakes record of 1:40.35 set in 2000 by Riboletta. Despite being a daughter of 1998 BC Classic winner Awesome Again, Ginger Punch isn’t nominated to the BC for some inexplicable reason (BRIS), and will have to be supplemented $180,000 to take her so-called guaranteed “Win and You’re In” spot in the Distaff. “I’ll speak to Mr. [Frank] Stronach,” said trainer Bobby Frankel after. “You could draw the 12-hole and be [expletive] or the track could come up sloppy” (NY Daily News).
– My money would still be on Lawyer Ron retiring to stud at Stonewall after the Breeders’ Cup Classic, but it doesn’t sound like everyone involved in managing the four-year-old colt’s career is set on that plan. In response to the question, “Where would you like to go that you haven’t yet been?”, Ron Bamberger, executor of the Hines estate, said, “I have not yet been to Dubai, that looks like a trip worth taking. Maybe with Lawyer Ron in March 2008 for the races?” (TDN). I don’t dare hope.
