Silver Skillet rolls to victory in Wednesday’s Suzie O’Cain Stakes at Saratoga. Susie Raisher/NYRA Photo.
By Alec DiConza
Dean Reeves made the joyful walk to the Carmen Barrera Room to celebrate with friends and partners, almost all with glasses of champagne in their hands, after the 3-year-old filly Silver Skillet he owns in partnership dominated Wednesday’s $125,000 Suzie O’Cain Stakes at Saratoga Race Course.
Reeves Thoroughbred Racing is certainly no stranger to success with New York-breds on a big stage. Last year, the stable won the Cab Calloway division of the New York Stallion Series Stakes with Dakota Gold, and collected five stakes victories with City Man that included three on the NYRA circuit. This year, City Man won the Kingston, Dakota Gold won the Hudson Valley and Ramblin’ Wreck won the Spectacular Bid division of the NYSS.
“We’re big in the New York program,” Reeves said. “We kind of look at these races and try to spot our horses for these races. We’ve got Ramblin’ Wreck tomorrow coming back in that race (the $125,000 Rick Violette). We’ll be running Dakota Gold and City Man in New York-bred races later in the meet. We spot our horses for these because the purse money is very, very good. Anytime you win at Saratoga, we’ll take it in a New York-bred or an open company.”
Silver Skillet broke from post five in the field of nine and sat behind a fast pace set by Kosuke, who went the opening half in :46.80. Silver Skillet, a daughter of Liam’s Map bred by Robert Chasanoff, was sixth in the strung out group going into the far turn. She swung four-wide turning for home and kicked well clear of stakes winner Orange Freeze to win by 3 1/4 lengths under Joel Rosario. The final time for the 1 1/16 miles was 1:41.67 for trainer Christophe Clement and Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, Steven Rocco and Tango Uniform Racing LLC.
The trip worked out according to Clement, who hoped his filly would have plenty left for the stretch run.
“I told [Rosario] before the race, ‘there’s still plenty of juice in the turf. Be sure to save something for the quarter pole,’ ” Clement said. “If anything, the other filly moved too early and paid for it at the end. There’s a bunch of juice in the ground. Very happy, it keeps Reeves happy. Life is good.”
Rosario rode to the instructions, making sure she had enough at the end.
“We are always concerned with how fast we were going, but it looked like she was responding really well to me,” he said. “I felt very confident when turning for home. Every time I asked her, she was there for me.”
Rain, which forced three of the five carded turf races to switch to the main track, left the course listed as good. Clement was not worried about the condition of the grass, though, when considering how Silver Skillet would perform.
“She won on it when she won the first race here,” Clement said, referencing Silver Skillet’s 1-mile allowance win July 15. “I thought it was also more good turf than firm turf. I was pretty sure she was going to do well in it. She was a touch rank early on, but mentally she handled it.”
Silver Skillet ran five times on dirt to begin her career, highlighted by a third in the Maid of the Mist Stakes on Empire Showcase Day during the Belmont at the Big A meeting. She’s improved since switching to the lawn, with two wins in three starts on the surface.
“She ran on dirt as a 2-year-old because I did not quite realize that she was a turf horse; she’s a Liam’s Map,” Clement said. “Then we switched her to the turf and since we switched her, she’s always run nicely and finished second at Belmont. She’s won two here.”
The switch to turf that has turned her career around only adds to Reeves’ appreciation for the Clement stable and his training job with his horses.
Dean Reeves congratulates Joel Rosario after they teamed to win Wednesday’s feature at Saratoga. Susie Raisher/NYRA Photo.
“They’re true horsemen, he and Miguel both,” Reeves said. “It’s just like in this we are talking about how he recognized that this horse could run on turf, and now she’s put together some solid wins on turf and is improving. He did the same thing, Miguel did, with Senbei, moving him from dirt to turf. And sometimes we’ll move from turf to dirt. They’re such horsemen and they recognize the needs of the horses and just do a great job for us. Getting with them as trainers has moved our entire stable up.”
The respect is mutual, as Clement is thankful for the continued successful collaboration with Dean and Patti Reeves.
“I’m a lucky guy because I’ve got fast horses from people like Mr. Reeves,” he said.
Soraya Rocco, wife of Steven Rocco, was elated after the victory in the stakes named for the late former member of the New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. board and a recognizable figure in the state’s breeding and racing industries.
“It means the world to us,” she said of Silver Skillet, a $260,000 purchase at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale. “She’s very special to my husband and I. He actually saw her at the sale and he knew there was something special. We’re very, very proud and excited. It’s our second win here, we’re just over the moon.”
As for the next time fans will see Silver Skillet, Clement plans on bringing her downstate to Aqueduct for more stakes action.
“We will go to Aqueduct and then we have to choose to go to either an open-company stake against 3-year-old fillies or against older New York-bred mares,” he said.
Silver Skillet improved to 3-1-2 in eight starts and earned $68,250 to boost her earnings to $281,820. She was purchased from the Mill Ridge Sales consignment at the Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale by Joseph Migliore, agent.
Silver Skillet is the second foal out of the stakes-winning Red Giant mare Catcha Rising Star. Chasanoff purchased Catcha Rising Star, winner of the 2016 West Virginia Senate President’s Cup Stakes and the earner of $235,050, for $85,000 at the 2017 Keeneland November breeding stock sale.
Catcha Rising Star produced her first foal, the New York-bred Congrats filly Gianduia, in 2019. Silver Skillet came next and Catcha Rising Star was sold in foal to New York-based stallion Honest Mischief to Thorndale Farm for $53,000 at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga fall mixed sale.
Catcha Rising Star’s yearling filly by Honest Mischief bred by Eaton & Thorne Inc., was purchased by The Elkstone Group for $35,000 at this week’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale.
