{"id":310084,"date":"2025-08-01T19:56:12","date_gmt":"2025-08-01T19:56:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/310084\/"},"modified":"2025-08-01T19:56:12","modified_gmt":"2025-08-01T19:56:12","slug":"g1-saratoga-derby-invitational-harrington-coming-in-hot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/310084\/","title":{"rendered":"G1 Saratoga Derby Invitational: Harrington coming in hot"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li><strong>G1 Saratoga Derby Invitational: Harrington coming in hot<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Far Bridge works for G1 Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer<\/li>\n<li>Doc Sullivan earns career-best 98 BSF in John Morrissey score<\/li>\n<li>Kentucky Derby-winner Mystik Dan breezes on turf at Saratoga<\/li>\n<li>Correas expects Utah Beach to rise with the tide in G1 Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer<\/li>\n<li>Howard Wolowitz, Bentornato work for D\u2019Angelo at Saratoga<\/li>\n<li>Mullikin back on the tab at Saratoga, Meringue tries dirt in G3 Adirondack<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Respected as one of Europe\u2019s most adept conditioners, Ireland\u2019s dual-purpose trainer extraordinaire Jessica Harrington goes into Saturday\u2019s Grade 1, $750,000 Saratoga Derby Invitational with her best-ever chance to achieve a coveted stateside Grade 1 when she saddles 7\/5 morning-line favorite\u00a0Hotazhell\u00a0in the 1 3\/16-miles Mellon turf affair.<\/p>\n<p>For the third consecutive year, per a partnership between the New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) and Moonee Valley Racing Club, the race\u2019s winner will receive an automatic berth into the prestigious Group 1, AUD$6 million Ladbrokes Cox Plate, set to take place on October 25. State of Rest captured the 2021 Saratoga Derby and went on to win the Cox Plate.<\/p>\n<p>A Group 1 winner at two by top-notch stallion Too Darn Hot, Hotazhell could become Harrington\u2019s \u2018lucky number 13\u2019 as her baker\u2019s dozen-completing attempt at a North American graded stakes. Ten of her 12 tries thus far have been at the top level, with her best results coming from 2019 Grade 1 Breeders\u2019 Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf fourth Albigna and 2020 Grade 1 Breeders\u2019 Cup Juvenile Turf fourth Cadillac. The latter would return the following year to finish ninth in Harrington\u2019s lone attempt at the Saratoga Derby, giving the multiple Group 1-winning conditioner in Ireland, France and England her lone Spa experience.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCadillac was a different horse; a bit of a hot horse and very keen, while this horse is more laidback and I think that helps him a lot,\u201d Harrington said. \u201cI think he also comes into the race a better-class horse than Cadillac, as well. I think he could be the best we\u2019ve brought over [since Albigna], or at least I hope so. He\u2019s not too big and he\u2019s a bonnie little horse who seems to have settled in very well. He isn\u2019t used to seeing all the horses going every direction in the mornings, but other than that, he\u2019s been great.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A dual Olympic-qualifying three-day eventer in the past, Harrington is renowned globally as a pure horseman who knows her stock inside and out, while never being afraid to allow them time or &#8211; on the other hand &#8211; ask them the big class questions against the best of their generation. The confidence-laden latter has been on blast with Hotazhell, as the 2024 Group 1 Futurity Trophy winner jumped into the deep end in his sophomore bow in May\u2019s Group 1 Irish 2000 Guineas against Europe\u2019s best sophomore miler, Field of Gold, finishing third. He was then brought back about six weeks later to take on Europe\u2019s best middle-distance runners in a brackish edition of the Group 1 Eclipse, finishing a respectable 3 1\/2-length fifth behind familiar foe Delacroix.<\/p>\n<p>From the immediate family of Ouija Board\u2019s great rival and five-time Group 1 winner Alexander Goldrun, Hotazhell has shown said familial grit in defeat, as well as victory. His win over Delacroix in October\u2019s Futurity Trophy by a nose came after a thrilling quarter-mile battle, while his other two stakes victories, the Group 3 Tyros and Group 2 Beresford, came after engaging and ultimately mercilessly grinding away his foes. For American racing fans seeking some level of familiar form, he was a game and begrudging second to 2024 Grade 1 Breeders\u2019 Cup Juvenile Turf champ Henri Matisse last August, re-engaging that foe after being passed and catching the eye in second.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think American racing should do for him,\u201d Harrington said. \u201cHe\u2019s raced around a bend at The Curragh, Sandown and Leopardstown, so I don\u2019t think that will worry him. He\u2019s very adaptable.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn the Eclipse, it didn\u2019t go to plan at all,\u201d she continued. \u201cWhat happened was there was meant to be a pacemaker in Delacroix and he fell out of the stalls [failed to break effectively] and the French horse [Sosie] and myself were making the running and that wasn\u2019t the plan. I really liked the way he stayed on at the end. He\u2019s got plenty of fight. He likes to get into a fight, actually, and in Europe horses can come a little wide on him [where he cannot engage], so I think he will like it here where the horses will be a little closer to him. I would love a bit of cover for him, it\u2019s just whether I\u2019m going to get it or not. I\u2019m actually quite happy I\u2019m drawn out in seven, so at least we can decide where we go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As a whole, Harrington is enjoying the experience of being in Saratoga and soaking up the environment during one of its most intense weeks; a place where people who sometimes like their horses more than people can find that happy medium.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s lovely here &#8211; we got the rain yesterday and today is beautiful and I look forward to seeing the horses,\u201d Harrington concluded. \u201cIt would be brilliant &#8211; absolutely brilliant &#8211; if we could win this race. We\u2019re always striving to do better and get better and to win here would be just lovely.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Shane Foley will ride Hotazhell from post seven of nine.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">***<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><strong>Far Bridge works for G1 Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>LSU Stables\u2019 multiple Grade 1-winner\u00a0Far Bridge\u00a0breezed five furlongs in 1:02 1\/5 seconds on Friday over the Oklahoma turf training track, according to NYRA Clockers, towards a title defense in next Saturday\u2019s Grade 1, $750,000 Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer, a 1 1\/2-mile inner turf test for older horses, at Saratoga Race Course.<\/p>\n<p>The Sword Dancer awards a \u201cWin and You\u2019re In\u201d berth to the Grade 1 Breeders\u2019 Cup Turf in November at Del Mar \u2013 a race Far Bridge was ninth in last year at odds of 7-1.<\/p>\n<p>Trained by Miguel Clement, the much-the-best last-out winner of the local 11-furlong Grade 2 Bowling Green on July 12 worked in company with dual graded stakes-winner\u00a0Tawny Port,\u00a0who is also nominated to the Sword Dancer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat was a good work,\u201d said Clement. \u201cThat was a good solid work. We are looking forward to his race. He is training great. He loves it here. I know it will be a good field, there\u2019s two Godolphins [Nations Pride, El Cordobes] that came over, but nevertheless, we are still bullish on him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe do believe he\u2019s the best turf horse in America in that division,\u201d Clement continued.<\/p>\n<p>The 5-year-old English Channel bay has the wins to defend that statement, flexing his class at longer distances including Grade 1 scores traveling 12-furlongs last year in the Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer in August on firm Spa turf and the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic one month later on good Belmont at the Big A green.<\/p>\n<p>In Grade 1s, he is 8-3-0-3 with an additional score in the Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational as a sophomore at Belmont Park. He has banked in excess of $2.3 million via a 18-9-3-3 overall record.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s so talented,\u201d said Clement. \u201cHe seems to excel in turf marathon events. He is versatile. He\u2019s won Grade 1s on the lead and can handle any ground. He won the Joe Hirsch in a bog from last. He can have tactical speed if need be. He is quick out of the gate if you want him to be. He has a great turn-of-foot. He is amazingly versatile.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Far Bridge\u2019s Sword Dancer triumph last year came for the late Christophe Clement, who won the event a record five times [Honor Glide, 1999; Winchester, 2011; Gufo, 2021-22; and Far Bridge, 2024].<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">***<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><strong>Doc Sullivan earns career-best 98 BSF in John Morrissey score<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Tristar Farm\u2019s\u00a0Doc Sullivan\u00a0returned from a more than four-month layoff to post a dramatic head score in Thursday\u2019s $150,000 John Morrissey, a seven-furlong sprint for New York-breds 3-years-old and up, at Saratoga Race Course.<\/p>\n<p>The 4-year-old Solomini dark bay, who was trained through his first 14 starts by Mike Miceli, enjoyed a freshening in Kentucky after a fourth-place finish in an open optional-claimer in March at Aqueduct Racetrack.<\/p>\n<p>He trained into his return with the John Ortiz stable in Kentucky and proved to be resilient when fresh in Thursday\u2019s test under Hall of Famer Joel Rosario, overtaking Grade 1-placed The Wine Steward with a valiant lunge for the wire to stop the clock in a final time of 1:22.69 on the muddy and sealed track. The winning effort registered a career-best 98 Beyer Speed Figure.<\/p>\n<p>Daniel Ortiz, brother and assistant to John Ortiz, said he was proud of the effort from the hard-trying colt, who picked up his first win since taking the state-bred Mike Lee over a sloppy and sealed surface here last June.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cComing off the layup you never know what a horse is going to do physically because they&#8217;re lacking a race, but I think that was just a perfectly-timed ride from Joel,\u201d Ortiz said. \u201cYou can tell the horse was getting a little tired but when he caught up to that horse in front of him, that&#8217;s when his heart kicked in.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe&#8217;s an alpha through-and-through and he showed it there,\u201d Ortiz added. \u201cHe eyed that horse down and ran right past him &#8211; and that horse ran a good race as well, we just got up there right in time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz said he was pleased to end up on the right side of a win photo after Tristar Farm homebred\u00a0Valentine Crusader\u00a0landed a nose second to Toga Twist on July 6 here in a state-bred maiden tilt.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have a very promising 2-year-old for Tristar that just got beat by a whisker here in a maiden special weight &#8211; that one hurt, but that&#8217;s horse racing,\u201d Ortiz said. \u201cIt can go up and down. We&#8217;re just enjoying the high right now. It\u2019s always nice to win a race here at Saratoga &#8211; to get our first winner of the meet in a stakes race is a special thing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The win had added meaning for the barn as owner Glenn Lostritto, son of the late Joe Lostritto, was onsite Thursday to celebrate with family and friends.<\/p>\n<p>The family connection is one that the 26-year-old Ortiz said he can relate to, working side-by-side with his older brother as well as his sister, Karla, who handles social media duties, and having grown up in a racing family where his father, Carlos Ortiz, was once a jockey in New York.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI&#8217;ve been on the clock since I was born,\u201d said Ortiz, with a laugh. \u201cIt\u2019s a family operation here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And the considerable hours are made all the more meaningful with a win.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI ride Doc every morning. I gave him his first couple breezes up here and then passed the keys to Joel. We call it the Ortiz weight training. I&#8217;m 150 pounds if I miss breakfast,\u201d said Ortiz, with a laugh.<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz said even Doc Sullivan was still relishing the moment Friday morning.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe went out for his daily roll in the sandpit, and he loved it. He ate well, he&#8217;s happy and on his toes,\u201d Ortiz said.<\/p>\n<p>Doc Sullivan, bred by Seamus Coughlan, was purchased for $59,000 at the 2023 OBS June 2-Year-Olds and HRA Sale. He has banked $497,090 via a 15-5-5-2 ledger.<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz noted that Four G Racing\u2019s Kentucky homebred\u00a0Reining Flowers\u00a0is in good order following her neck third here on July 26 in the Grade 3 Lake George presented by Surfside traveling 1 1\/16-miles over firm turf for sophomore fillies.<\/p>\n<p>With Hall of Famer John Velazquez up, the Midnight Storm dark bay saved ground from the inside post and made a strong inside bid down the lane with the eventual winner, Daisy Flyer, rallying further out on the course in pursuit of pacesetting Classic Q. A blanket finish saw Daisy Flyer get up to win by a neck with Classic Q holding place honors by a nose.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was tough to lose by that much, especially when the next jump you&#8217;re ahead of the leader,\u201d said Ortiz of the first graded placing for Reining Flowers. \u201cThat&#8217;s how it goes &#8211; we couldn&#8217;t have asked for a better ride from Johnny or a better effort from the filly. She came out of it well. Now we&#8217;ll pick our race and try again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The next logical local option is the one-mile Grade 2, $400,000 Lake Placid on August 23, but Ortiz said no decision has been made as of yet.<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz also indicated that WSS Racing\u2019s\u00a0Brightwork\u00a0could test her 3-for-3 record at the Spa in the Grade 1, $500,000 Resorts World Casino Ballerina, a seven-furlong sprint for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up on August 23. The Ballerina offers a \u201cWin and You\u2019re In\u201d berth to the Grade 1 Breeders\u2019 Cup Filly and Mare Sprint in November at Del Mar.<\/p>\n<p>Brightwork captured the Grade 3 Adirondack and Grade 1 Spinaway here as a 2-year-old. Last August, she returned from a more than nine-month layoff following a sixth in the Grade 1 Breeders\u2019 Cup Juvenile Fillies to win the Spa\u2019s Grade 3 Prioress by a neck over subsequent dual graded stakes-winner Two Sharp.<\/p>\n<p>The 4-year-old Outwork bay, last seen finishing eighth in the Grade 2 Chicago on June 21 at Churchill Downs, has worked back twice over the Saratoga main track, including a half-mile in 48.18 seconds July 28.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe&#8217;s a horse for Saratoga,\u201d Ortiz said. \u201cShe&#8217;s telling us she has something special in her and if there&#8217;s ever a place to run good it&#8217;s here. She\u2019s grown so much and loves training up here. She&#8217;s telling us that she might be ready.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Brightwork, bred in Kentucky by Winnstay, Inc. and H. Allen Poindexter, has banked $660,989 through a 10-5-0-1 ledger.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">***<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><strong>Kentucky Derby-winner Mystik Dan breezes on turf at Saratoga<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Lance Gasaway, 4 G Racing, Daniel Hamby, III, and Valley View Farm\u2019s Grade 1 Kentucky Derby-winner\u00a0Mystik Dan\u00a0took to the grass for the first time on Friday over Saratoga Race Course\u2019s Oklahoma turf training track, with NYRA clockers timing him through a solo five-eighths breeze in 1:02 flat with Luis Rivera, Jr. up.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReally pleased,\u201d trainer Ken McPeek said at his Saratoga barn. \u201cI always wanted to try him on the turf, and he looked like he loved it. We\u2019re contemplating some options and this is a horse that\u2019s done everything we\u2019ve ever asked him to do. I think he\u2019ll relish it; it\u2019s just a matter of finding the right spot at the right time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The 4-year-old son of Goldencents was last seen finishing fourth in the Grade 1 Stephen Foster on June 28 at Churchill Downs, the site of his Kentucky Derby coup last year over subsequent Champion 3-Year-Old Colt Sierra Leone, as well as a 1 1\/4-length score in the Grade 3 Blame two starts back.<\/p>\n<p>Mystik Dan is out of the Colonel John mare Ma\u2019am, whose four wins included one on turf in 2017 at Ellis Park. Ma\u2019am is a half-sister to Renaissance Art, who was Group 3-placed going 12 furlongs on turf in Hong Kong, and Revamp, who was placed on synthetic going the same distance in England. His second dam Lady Siphonica is a half-sister to Rose of Summer, dam of Laragh \u2013 a Grade 1-winner on synthetic and dual Listed stakes-winner on turf \u2013 and multiple turf graded stakes-winner Summer Front.<\/p>\n<p>Goldencents has also seen his progeny have success on turf, led by dual Grade 1-winner Going to Vegas, along with multiple graded\/group stakes-winners Phantom Currency and Wildman Jack, and Grade 3-winner That\u2019s Right.<\/p>\n<p>McPeek said he is still evaluating options for Mystik Dan, with an eye on the lucrative Kentucky Downs meet.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a race down there that I think will be ideal for him, so right now that\u2019s what we\u2019re kind of leaning towards,\u201d McPeek said.<\/p>\n<p>Mystik Dan holds a career record of 14-4-3-1 with more than $4.4 million in total purse earnings. He was bred in Kentucky by Gasaway, Hamby and 4 G Racing.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">***<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><strong>Correas expects Utah Beach to rise with the tide in G1 Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If Ignacio Correas declares a horse in a Grade 1, he does so with purpose, no matter what the odds may say. In fact, in the four American top-level affairs he has annexed, his runners have gone off at 9\/1, 8\/1, 7\/1 and 9\/2 &#8211; so it is no surprise that the Argentinian master conditioner will be taken seriously when he saddles\u00a0Utah Beach\u00a0in the Grade 1, $750,000 Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer next Saturday.<\/p>\n<p>Entering off a troubled seventh as the 2\/1 second choice in the Listed Chorleywood on June 14 &#8211; in which the eventual winner slammed into his hind end at a crucial leveling-out point at the top of the stretch, disheveling the 5-year-old gelding and deflating his rally &#8211; the son of 2007 Sword Dancer runner-up and subsequently crowned Champion Turf Horse English Channel has proven that when given the unhindered opportunity, he can be exceptional. Such has been evident twice this season in graded stakes company, taking April\u2019s Grade 2 Elkhorn at Keeneland by a head and May\u2019s Grade 3 Louisville at Churchill Downs by 1 1\/2-lengths.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe was very impressive at Keeneland and Churchill, especially at Keeneland where he is based, but I think he is going to run big at Saratoga if he doesn\u2019t have trouble like last time,\u201d Correas said. \u201cThe horse will keep running; the further the distance, the better with him, from a mile and a half to two miles &#8211; he can handle that and is a better horse at those distances.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe has had a couple of bad trips, but that\u2019s racing, especially turf racing,\u201d Correas continued. \u201cWhen you run a horse, sometimes you get bad trips, especially in America where we are running at shorter trips more often and it gets complicated, but I really like this horse, and I think he is still improving. My hope is that he develops to have the quality of a horse who can be competitive in the Breeders\u2019 Cup. Of course, that\u2019s always your hope, that you can have a horse good enough for big days like the Breeders\u2019 Cup and Dubai World Cup.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The gray charge is out of the Lasting Approval mare My Own Story, who has produced three significant earners: Utah Beach [$689,535], Dueling Grounds Derby winner My Afleet [$394,612] and Grade 3 American Derby winner Real Story [$394,592]. Per Correas, the potential she passed on was often in direct proportion to petulance.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have a lot of help with him because I trained his brothers, so he didn\u2019t have an option to be too tough because I got him and as soon as he came as a 2-year-old, we knew him and what he would try to do,\u201d Correas reflected. \u201cReal Story was very difficult to train and just a very tough horse in general. Utah Beach is tough, but not as tough as that, thanks to knowing the family. Luckily, he is very easy to ride in the race, you can put him wherever you want, but he is very tough in the morning. He just wants to go full speed. That said, he is also very talented. I like his chances, and I know he is good enough to do well in this race, but we have a long way, still.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Correas confirmed that Utah Beach will leave Keeneland on Tuesday and arrive Wednesday morning at Saratoga. Jose Ortiz, who was aboard last year\u2019s Grade 1 New York winner Didia for the barn, is expected to take the mount.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">***<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><strong>Howard Wolowitz, Bentornato work for D\u2019Angelo at Saratoga<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Abraham Gold\u2019s\u00a0Howard Wolowitz\u00a0posted his third work since a five-month respite when covering five-eighths in 1:01.88 on Thursday over Saratoga Race Course\u2019s Oklahoma dirt training track for trainer Jose D\u2019Angelo.<\/p>\n<p>The son of Munnings won the Grade 1 Franklin Simpson in September at Kentucky Downs and is eyeing a return to the unique southern Kentucky racetrack for the Grade 1 Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint on August 30.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe worked pretty good and we are looking forward to working again next week. The plan is to run at Kentucky Downs on August 30,\u201d D\u2019Angelo said.<\/p>\n<p>Howard Wolowitz was last seen finishing off-the-board in the Group 2 1351 Turf Sprint in February at King Abdulaziz Racecourse in Saudi Arabia, and returned to the work tab on July 13 to post a three-furlong bullet in 34.47 over the Gulfstream Park Tapeta. He returned with another bullet on July 20 when covering a half-mile in 44.36 over the same surface ahead of his move north to the Spa.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe sent him to the farm and he had some strong gallops there to get him ready for his workouts at Gulfstream,\u201d D\u2019Angelo said. \u201cI galloped him a lot at Palm Meadows to prepare for that. He worked in company both works, very good. He improved so much from the layoff, growing and maturing. He\u2019s stronger and looks so good.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>D\u2019Angelo sent out Leon King Stable Corp.\u2019s\u00a0Bentornato\u00a0for a sharp half-mile work on Friday over the Spa main track, with the 4-year-old son of Valiant Minister covering the distance in a bullet 45.01. He has posted a series of breezes at Palm Meadows and Gulfstream Park as he works his way back from a layoff dating to a runner-up finish to Straight No Chaser in the Grade 1 Breeders\u2019 Cup Sprint in November at Del Mar.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe worked so good today and came back OK,\u201d D\u2019Angelo said. \u201cThe ultimate goal is the Breeders\u2019 Cup Sprint, so we\u2019ll probably have him ready [to race] around the last week of the meet here. We don\u2019t have a race picked yet. I want to see him more ready and then figure it out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bentornato won a trio of stakes as a juvenile at Gulfstream, and posted a strong sophomore campaign that included a third to Forever Young in the Group 3 Saudi Derby and a win in the Grade 2 Gallant Bob at Parx Racing ahead of his half-length defeat at the Breeders\u2019 Cup.<\/p>\n<p>D\u2019Angelo also noted that stakes-winner\u00a0Gabaldon, away since a third in the Texas Glitter in March at Gulfstream, is targeting the Grade 3, $175,000 Mahony on August 10 here, while Listed stakes-winner\u00a0Spirited Boss\u00a0is resting on the farm and Grade 3-placed\u00a0Cloe\u00a0is targeting the Grade 2 Music City on September 6 at Kentucky Downs.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">***<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><strong>Mullikin back on the tab at Saratoga, Meringue tries dirt in G3 Adirondack<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>WinStar Farm\u2019s Grade 1-winner\u00a0Mullikin\u00a0breezed a half-mile in 49.40 seconds on Thursday over the Spa main track in his first work back since a second in the Grade 2 Alfred G. Vanderbilt on July 19 at Saratoga Race Course.<\/p>\n<p>Trained by Rodolphe Brisset, the 5-year-old Violence dark bay worked solo with reigning Eclipse Award-winning rider Flavien Prat aboard.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe did good and we weren\u2019t looking for anything too fancy. I wasn\u2019t sure how much rain we were going to get, and I didn\u2019t want to be pushed to the weekend, so we let him cruise an easy half on his own,\u201d said Brisset. \u201cFlavien was very happy with him and he looks like he came out of it very good.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mullikin was defeated 2 1\/2 lengths last out by Book\u2019em Danno, the same rival who beat him 1 1\/4 lengths in his prior start in the Grade 3 True North here. Nonetheless, Brisset said Mullikin is possible for a title defense in the seven-furlong Grade 1, $500,000 Forego on August 23 here.<\/p>\n<p>That race offers a \u201cWin and You\u2019re In\u201d berth to the Grade 1 Breeders\u2019 Cup Sprint in November at Del Mar \u2013 a race Mullikin was third in last year to Straight No Chaser.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s possible. I\u2019m not committing us to it yet,\u201d said Brisset. \u201cIt\u2019s 0-2 against Book\u2019em Danno, and I don\u2019t know what they\u2019re doing with him, but we are the defending champ in the Forego and he wouldn\u2019t have to ship this time. I kept him there on purpose and maybe not having to ship and having run there a couple times might make a small difference.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe has run three times this year and we have a fresh horse who looks like he\u2019s bouncing off it in the right way. Maybe we see the best of him in the next one,\u201d Brisset added.<\/p>\n<p>Elements Racing\u2019s\u00a0Meringue\u00a0is tabbed at morning line odds of 10-1 in Sunday\u2019s Grade 3, $175,000 Adirondack, a 6 1\/2-furlong sprint for juvenile fillies here.<\/p>\n<p>Meringue, a Frosted gray, graduated in her lone start when closing from last-of-8 to win a five-furlong maiden turf sprint at Churchill Downs. She broke outwardly from the inside post and was eight lengths back early, showing a nice turn-of-foot in the lane under Luan Machado, and will have Flavien Prat aboard Sunday from post 5.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe didn\u2019t show speed first out, but I\u2019m looking forward to having her a little closer than as far back as she was first out,\u201d said Brisset. \u201cWe\u2019re excited to have her on the dirt and to see what we\u2019ve got.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Brisset said Meringue\u2019s debut was on turf for optimal scheduling.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe always need a race for our horses,\u201d said Brisset. \u201cThe mentality is to get them fit enough where they can [move forward] and sometimes the talent takes over and then you have what happened with Meringue. I ran her on the grass because that was the only race available at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Brisset figures Meringue will be off the pace again and has prepared accordingly. The race features 2-for-2 Mythical, a speedy winner of the Listed Tremont versus males tabbed at 4-5 on the morning-line.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve got two strong works right off the bat and galloped her behind horses to get the kickback and she worked through it nicely, never lifted her head or anything,\u201d said Brisset. \u201cShe shipped in on Wednesday and it looks like she settled in good. We schooled her today and she was good, she galloped on the main and it looks like everything is in place.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bred in Kentucky by Mesingw Farm, Meringue is out of the Street Sense mare Catbrier, and her second dam is dual Grade 3-placed Kiawah Cat.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"G1 Saratoga Derby Invitational: Harrington coming in hot Far Bridge works for G1 Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":262395,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4107],"tags":[1071,79,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-310084","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-racing","8":"tag-racing","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114955274414132098","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/310084","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=310084"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/310084\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/262395"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=310084"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=310084"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=310084"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}