{"id":486451,"date":"2025-10-09T19:41:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-09T19:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/486451\/"},"modified":"2025-10-09T19:41:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-09T19:41:09","slug":"bank-frenzy-on-target-for-250k-empire-classic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/486451\/","title":{"rendered":"Bank Frenzy on target for $250K Empire Classic"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li><strong>Bank Frenzy on target for $250K Empire Classic<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Horsepower stretches out in Listed Artie Schiller<\/li>\n<li>Sand Pipes heading in the right direction before Listed Artie Schiller<\/li>\n<li>Ready for Candy on target for G2 Sands Point<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>LSU Stables\u2019 multiple stakes-winning New York-bred\u00a0Bank Frenzy\u00a0breezed on Monday at Belmont Park in preparation for the state-bred $250,000 Empire Classic, a nine-furlong route for 3-year-olds and up, on October 25 at Belmont at the Big A.<\/p>\n<p>Saturday, October 25 is the annual Empire Showcase Day card, which includes nine New York-bred\u202fstakes\u202fvalued at $1.9 million in total purses. The card is highlighted by two nine-furlong events for 3-year-olds and up worth $250,000 in the Empire Classic and its counterpart, the Empire Distaff for fillies and mares. Empire Showcase Day will also include seven $200,000\u202fstakes\u202fin the Sleepy Hollow, Maid of the Mist, Mohawk, Ticonderoga, Iroquois, Hudson and the inaugural running of the New York Turf Sprint Championship at six furlongs for 3-year-olds and up.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Trained by Rudy Rodriguez, Bank Frenzy completed a half-mile in 50.66 seconds over the dirt training track under the guidance of regular jockey Manny Franco, who has been aboard the gelding for his past three works at Belmont.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s doing very good and we\u2019re very happy with the way he\u2019s coming along now,\u201d Rodriguez said. \u201cI was lucky enough that the owner gave me the chance to wait instead of going to Philadelphia or Charles Town. He\u2019s been running all year, so a little freshening is good. Manny has been breezing him and he\u2019s very happy with him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The 5-year-old Central Banker gelding was last seen finishing a flat fifth in the state-bred John Morrissey sprinting seven furlongs on July 31 at Saratoga Race Course, where he broke slowly and gave chase throughout, finishing 5 3\/4 lengths back of the victorious Doc Sullivan. The Morrissey was Bank Frenzy\u2019s first start at less than one mile since a neck second in the 6 1\/2-furlong NYSSS Times Square in 2023 for trainer Lisa Lewis.<\/p>\n<p>The consistent chestnut is 2-for-3 at the Empire Classic distance, his only loss a second in that event last year when he was away slowly and trailed 8 1\/2 lengths back before making a steady rally. Two starts back, he took the nine-furlong Commentator on June 4 at Saratoga after a sharp break and a stalking trip, pouncing from second into the final turn and driving to a 1 1\/4-length victory.<\/p>\n<p>Rodriguez said a clean break is the key for Bank Frenzy, who has finished first or second in 8-of-10 outings for his conditioner.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s got to break good,\u201d Rodriguez said. \u201cLast time [in the Empire Classic], we didn\u2019t break that good and he had too much to do, but he still finished a very good second. Hopefully this time he breaks good, puts himself in a good position and takes it from there. He broke very good in the Commentator, and he\u2019s a hard-knocking horse.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bred by Chester and Mary Broman, Bank Frenzy has put together a 19-9-5-0 record with just over $700,000 in total purse earnings. His stakes wins also include an open company score in this year\u2019s Listed Stymie in March, and further state-bred success in last year\u2019s Evan Shipman Handicap and Alex M. Robb, and this year\u2019s Haynesfield.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">***<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><strong>Horsepower stretches out in Listed Artie Schiller<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>D.J. Stable\u2019s\u00a0Horsepower\u00a0will stretch out to one mile for the first time in\u00a0Saturday\u2019s Listed $150,000 Artie Schiller, for 3-year-olds and up on the inner turf, at Belmont at the Big A.<\/p>\n<p>Trained by Joe Orseno, the 4-year-old Good Samaritan gelding enters from a rallying 1 3\/4-length second to Simcoe last out in the seven-furlong Grade 3 Vigil on September 13 over the Tapeta at Woodbine Racetrack. The effort, which represented Horsepower\u2019s longest race to date, earned a career-best 95 Beyer Speed Figure.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve been progressively trying to get him to go a little farther. Last time I took him to Woodbine and he handled the seven-eighths perfectly,\u201d Orseno said. \u201cWe tried to get him to rate and he rated fine. I need to handicap the race, but he might need to use some tactical speed in this race. I didn\u2019t see a lot of speed, but I haven\u2019t really gotten into it yet. He\u2019ll do either: sit close or you can take him back.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Three starts back, Horsepower won the Karl Boyes sprinting six furlongs over the Presque Isle Downs synthetic on July 4. Between that effort and the Vigil was a fourth in Colonial Downs\u2019 5 1\/2-furlong Listed Van Clief over turf on August 9, landing two lengths back of the victorious Witty.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think as long as the turf is firm enough, he\u2019ll be fine,\u201d Orseno said. \u201cI don\u2019t see why he wouldn\u2019t get a mile. The question is, turf versus Tapeta. He seems to run better on Tapeta, but he\u2019s handled turf.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Horsepower boasts a career record of 15-5-5-0 with $303,542 in earnings. Dylan Davis has the call from post 5.<\/p>\n<p>Orseno also updated on Robert Cotran\u2019s\u00a0Aye Eye,\u00a0a deep-closing debut winner in August at Saratoga Race Course who next posted a pair of off-the-board results in the Grade 1 Spendthrift Farm Hopeful at the Spa and Grade 1 Champagne on October 4 at Belmont at the Big A.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAfter he broke his maiden, we put him in two ambitiously placed spots, just taking a shot and it didn\u2019t work out. I\u2019m going to give him a month in Ocala and give him a little turn out time, then bring him back to South Florida to prepare for a 3-year-old campaign,\u201d Orseno said. \u201cHe\u2019s doing great, he\u2019s fine, we are just giving him some time off those two races to freshen his head up a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">***<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><strong>Sand Pipes heading in the right direction before Listed Artie Schiller<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Stanley Bergman\u2019s\u00a0Sand Pipes\u00a0has been on the improve ahead of his stakes debut in Saturday\u2019s Listed $150,000 Artie Schiller, a one-mile inner turf test for 3-year-olds and up, at Belmont at the Big A.<\/p>\n<p>Trained by Lindsay Schultz, the 4-year-old Summer Front bay brings two consecutive stalking wins traveling 1 1\/16 miles at Monmouth Park. The latest score, which came by three lengths over High Beta on September 14, returned a career-best 88 Beyer Speed Figure.<\/p>\n<p>Sand Pipes, who holds a 14-3-2-2 record with $135,563 in earnings, graduated fifth-out last October when elevated to first at Laurel Park. His recent two wins, both under returning rider Samuel Marin, are the only times he has crossed the wire first.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere are some real horses in here and it is a tough spot,\u201d Schultz said. \u201cBut he is obviously coming into it in good form, and he is ready to take the next step. The horse is doing great, and we are looking forward to running him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Schultz said Sand Pipes has come into his own as a 4-year-old.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe broke his maiden about a year ago, he was first by DQ, he had never crossed the wire first until the \u20181-X\u2019 in August at Monmouth, which helps because he is getting some confidence now,\u201d Schultz said. \u201cSamuel Marin has also been riding with a lot of confidence. He\u2019s getting him out of the gate and into position. This horse has had some troubled trips, but the last two, he has been kept forward in a good spot.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sand Pipes has relished a closer-up trip under Marin, who will look to engineer another winning run from post 3.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s been giving him a good warm-up before the race and trying to get him to run out of there a little bit,\u201d Schultz said. \u201cFor whatever reason, he previously wasn\u2019t breaking well and he was getting stuck in these terrible spots. He\u2019d come running, but there isn\u2019t always enough time to get up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Schultz and Marin will look to return to the success of Choctaw Racing Stable\u2019s 2-year-old filly\u00a0Newtown Pike, who closed to win her six-furlong debut by a nose on October 5 here at odds of 26-1. The winning effort earned a 60 Beyer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not sure what is next for her, I\u2019ll probably give her some time before her next, start whether it be Kentucky or Oaklawn, I\u2019m not sure,\u201d Schultz said. \u201cThis filly has worked well, obviously she was a little green in her start, but Sam did a great job and that was impressive that when she finally figured it out, she ran by them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">***<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><strong>Ready for Candy on target for G2 Sands Point<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Lindy Farms\u2019\u00a0Ready for Candy\u00a0provided trainer Philip Antonacci with his first graded stakes victory in the Grade 3, $175,000 Winter Memories on September 20 at Belmont at the Big A, and will look to keep the graded success rolling in the Grade 2, $200,000 Sands Point, a nine-furlong turf route for sophomore fillies, on October 18 here.<\/p>\n<p>The Twirling Candy dark bay stalked and pounced to a nose victory in the one-mile Winter Memories, remaining perfect through two starts for Antonacci after graduating by 7 3\/4-lengths with a pacesetting romp in a nine-furlong maiden in August at Saratoga Race Course. She placed in three Woodbine stakes from seven outings as a maiden last year for trainer Mike DePaulo, and joined the Antonacci barn after being purchased for $400,000 at this year&#8217;s Fasig-Tipton Kentucky February Mixed Sale.<\/p>\n<p>Antonacci said he likes what he\u2019s seen from the Ontario-bred since her determined graded stakes breakthrough.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe\u2019s doing well and feeling good, so we\u2019re pointing for the Sands Point,\u201d Antonacci said. \u201cShe\u2019ll work Saturday \u2013 she had a tough race, so we just gave her a little extra time in between to breeze her back. She\u2019s feeling really good and is ready to breeze, so we\u2019ve just got to keep her on the ground.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bred by Mark Dodson, Ready for Candy is out of the stakes-placed More Than Ready mare Enoree, a half-sister to Grade 3-winner Grand Bili and dual stakes-placed Conquest City Girl.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Bank Frenzy on target for $250K Empire Classic Horsepower stretches out in Listed Artie Schiller Sand Pipes heading&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":486452,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4107],"tags":[1071,79,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-486451","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\/115345914980902233","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486451","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=486451"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486451\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/486452"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=486451"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=486451"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=486451"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}