Tricky Temper topples elder foes in Union Avenue

By Tom Law

Jeremiah Englehart felt like the time was right to give Tricky Temper a short break last fall after some up-and-down results over a 19-day span during the Belmont at the Big A meeting.

Mark Stanley, who owns the daughter of Into Mischief, didn’t exactly agree.

“I don’t know,” Stanley told Englehart. “I don’t like doing that when they’re doing well.”

Tricky Temper showed how well 22 days later with a victory over eventual champion New York-bred 2-year-old filly Cara’s Time and other New York-breds in the Key Cents Stakes at Aqueduct. Tricky Temper didn’t run again for two months and earned a break after a third in the Franklin Square to open her sophomore campaign in mid-January.

“When she ran third it was kind of a bad third; then it was OK to give her the time off,” Englehart said. “And now she’s come back with some really good races as a 3-year-old.”

Tricky Temper turned in one of those Friday at Saratoga Race Course, upending five older New York-bred fillies and mares in the $125,000 Union Avenue Handicap under Flavien Prat.

The 2-1 second choice, Tricky Temper handled 4-5 favorite Leeloo by 3 lengths to improve to 4-for-10 in her career. She also improved to 3-for-6 at Saratoga, adding the Union Avenue to her victory in a state-bred allowance-optional 14 days ago.

“Coming out of her last race, coming off that two weeks’ layoff, she was really strong in the mornings,” Englehart said of the filly Stanley purchased at the 2023 OBS April sale for $230,000. “She seemed really happy. I told Mark when this race came back, it’s another two weeks. We were nominated so we could probably go ahead and give it a go.”

Stanley didn’t hesitate.

“I’m game,” he told Englehart.

Not among the entries in the Union Avenue scheduled for August 9 but moved to Friday when Tropical Storm Debby canceled racing, Tricky Temper broke fast between longshot Captainsdaughter and Cousin Kristi before Prat allowed her to drop behind the speed of Majestic Return, Leeloo and Security Code.

Majestic Return and Leeloo battled through quick fractions of :22.23 and :45.46 with Tricky Temper taking aim at the leaders on the outside. Security Code made a similar run at the top two from the inside but didn’t quicken like Tricky Temper as the field straightened away.

Tricky Temper took control outside the eighth pole, rushing past Leeloo and a tiring Majestic Return past 5 furlongs in :57.61. Prat stayed busy from there and Tricky Temper drew off to win in 1:10.19. Leelee held second, 3 1/4 lengths ahead of Security Code with Majestic Return, Cousin Kristi and Captainsdaughter completing the field.

“Very straight forward,” Prat said. “She jumped well out of the gate and gave us a good position right away. I was traveling very well behind the leaders and when I tipped her out, she gave me a good kick.”

The Union Avenue marked Tricky Temper’s fourth straight start at Saratoga. She finished third, beaten just 2 1/4 lengths in the Bouwerie Stakes coming back from almost six months on the sidelines on New York Showcase Day to close the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival. She followed that up with a sixth in an open-company allowance July 19 before winning against state-breds August 2.

Englehart joked that he hated running off short rest, despite some encouraging statistics to the contrary making their way through the airwaves Friday morning.

“It was funny, the NYRA show was talking this morning about how I’m like 32 percent on two-week layoffs,” Englehart said. “I’m like, ‘That can’t be right, I absolutely hate doing the two-week layoff thing.’ ”

Englehart instead credited the filly, who was bred by Sequel Thoroughbreds and Lakland Farm, and her regular morning partner for her success now past the midpoint of her 3-year-old campaign.

“This was all her. She’s been different this year,” Englehart said. “In the mornings last year, I never could figure out what she was. I didn’t know if she was turf. I ran her the first time and she won an off-the-turf dirt race, and I didn’t know really. In the mornings, she never grabbed the bridle, she just did what we asked her to do. This year, she’ll try to run off because she is just enjoying herself. She is having fun when she goes out there.

“I’ve got to give a big shout out to Talia Viscusi, her exercise rider. She works very hard getting her to relax. She’s done a great job with her.”

Foaled at Sequel Stallions New York in Hudson, Tricky Temper is the fourth foal out of the stakes-winning Any Given Saturday mare Winter Book. She was one of 17 New York-bred juveniles that sold for six figures at last year’s OBS April sale.

Tricky Temper is a full-sister to winner Mischief Mogul and a half-sister to winners Winter Wolf and Marley’s Ghost. A six-time winner and earner of $148,299, Winter Book is also the dam of the New York-bred 2-year-old Gift Box filly Leave the Go Girl and a filly by Yaupon born March 14 in New York.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2024/08/16/tricky-temper-topples-elder-foes-in-union-avenue/

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Out On Bail edges Jet Sweep Joe in Skidmore

By Alec DiConza

The $150,000 Skidmore Stakes proved a battle from the start between eventual winner Out On Bail and runner-up Jet Sweep Joe, but the duel wasn’t quite over after they crossed the finish line. Out On Bail needed nearly every inch of the 5 1/2-furlong turf sprint for 2-year-olds to get by Jet Sweep Joe, winning by a head at the wire, and then needed the approval of the stewards to officially make him the winner after an inquiry and jockey’s objection put the hard-earned victory in jeopardy.

Mike Maker, who trains Out On Bail for owners Case Chambers, Paradise Farms and David Staudacher, stayed calm through the post-race process. He believed the result would stand after the inquiry.

“I just kind of rolled my eyes,” Maker said about the inquiry. “You can watch the head-on and see (Jet Sweep Joe) just keep carrying and carrying us. It was kind of puzzling, but it’s not the first time I’ve been puzzled.”

Out On Bail sat second while chasing Jet Sweep Joe in the early stages through fractions of :23.53 and :47.03 over the Mellon Turf Course labeled good. The New York-bred colt by two-time New York-bred Horse of the Year and multiple Grade 1 winner Tiz the Law drew even with Jet Sweep Joe at the top of the stretch before the latter drifted out.

In the final sixteenth, Out On Bail came back in on Jet Sweep Joe, putting the two in close quarters as they raced across the finish line heads apart. Out On Bail did prevail under Jose Ortiz and was left up by the stewards.

“The horse next to me kept drifting out, drifting out almost every step of the way,” Ortiz said. “Finally, in the last sixteenth, I put a head in front. And then obviously I tried to keep my ground and I pushed him a little bit in, but almost the whole stretch he was laying on top of me the whole way. If I had run second, I was going to claim foul, too. I guess he took a shot, but I knew his horse was drifting on me almost the entire stretch, so I knew I had a point in my favor there. If I came in a little bit at the end, so what? It wasn’t ever a hard bump. He didn’t give me a hard bump, either, but he drifted out, so I drifted in. It was 50-50. Nothing happened – just two good horses out there battling each other. He came out a bit, I came in a bit, but there never was a hard contact made, so that’s good. That helped a lot for my case. I’m very happy with the win and very happy for the connections.”

Out On Bail finished second in his debut and third in his second start, both state-bred maiden special weight races on dirt. He then made first start on grass in another state-bred maiden race at Saratoga, winning by a half-length. Maker made the decision to try the turf after being disappointed with Out On Bail’s second start, but always thought that grass could be in the future of his colt.

“He didn’t run to our expectations second start on a dry track, so always something we felt we needed to try,” he said.

Maker said that Out On Bail could run next in the Grade 3 Futurity at Aqueduct, a prep for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint.

Bred by Matthew Nestor, Out On Bail is the first winner out of the Street Cry mare Judge Lee. Out On Bail originally sold for $40,000 out of the Summerfield consignment at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale. He sold for $110,000 to Case Chambers at this year’s OBS March sale.

A two-time winner in seven starts, Judge Lee is the dam of a yearling full brother to Out On Bail also bred by Nestor.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2024/08/16/out-on-bail-edges-jet-sweep-joe-in-skidmore/

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