Buck Butler’s homebred Rotknee rolls to victory in Sunday’s Damon Runyon for NY-bred 3-year-olds. Susie Raisher/NYRA Photo.

By Tom Law

William “Buck” Butler’s second-generation homebred Rotknee continued his ascent up the New York-bred 3-year-old male division with a front-running victory in Sunday’s $97,000 Damon Runyon Stakes at Aqueduct.

A month removed from running an allowance-optional field off their feet early on the way to a 3-length comeback win, Rotknee did it again in the 7-furlong Runyon. The son of Runhappy broke sharp, opened up quick on his four opponents and stayed on through the stretch to win by 2 3/4 lengths over Agility.

Rotknee also went to the front early in his maiden victory going 6 furlongs Aug. 1 at Saratoga Race Course. Butler and jockey Manny Franco both conceded after the victory that they planned those tactics again for the Damon Runyon with trainer Mike Maker.

“That was the plan,” Franco said. “I didn’t want to change anything with him. I rode him last time and I went to the lead and he kept going. So, going seven-eighths today, I expected to be on the lead, too. I let him break out of there, got the lead and he did the rest.”

“What was not to like?” Butler said. “I heard from Mike, we were looking to do what we did. The fact that he had no company [on the front end], I was thrilled. We hadn’t done the 7 furlongs before so that gave me a little trepidation coming down, but he pulled out all stops.”

The 2-1 second choice behind the 3-5 favorite Best Idea, who came into the Damon Runyon off a 5 3/4-length debut victory Feb. 12 at Aqueduct, Rotknee was 1 1/2 lengths in front through the opening quarter-mile in :23.37 with Agility.

Rotknee continued the maintain that same advantage over Agility around the far turn and to the half in :46.69 while Mister Larry, Best Idea and G Munning lagged 5 or more lengths back on the bend. Dylan Davis went to the whip on Agility approaching the quarter pole, trying to cut into Rotknee’s advantage to no avail. Rotknee went past the eighth pole 3 lengths clear and Franco stayed busy in deep stretch.

Agility held second and the finish, 5 3/4 lengths ahead of G Munning, who edged Best Idea by a nose for the show spot. Rotknee won in 1:27.06 over the fast track.

“I was happy with my position, he was just lugging in with me down the stretch,” Davis said of Agility, second last time to Rotknee’s stablemate Barese in the Rego Park Stakes Jan. 9 at Aqueduct. “I thought he got in his own way – he stayed on his left lead the whole time. I talked to [trainer Jorge Abreu] and we’re going to change the bit on him and maybe stretch him out a little more. I thought if he was able to be straight and switch his leads properly and maintain a straight course, he would have won this race, for sure.”

Manny Franco rode Rotknee to 3-length win in February and again Sunday in the Damon Runyon. Joe Labozzetta/NYRA Photo.

Foaled at Keane Stud in Amenia, Rotknee is the second foal out of the winning Speightstown mare In Spite of Mama. The mare’s first foal, Lookin for Trouble, a 4-year-old New York-bred son of Into Mischief, finished a game second in a state-bred allowance-optional two races after the Damon Runyon. In Spite of Mama is also the dam of the 2-year-old New York-bred Bolt d’Oro colt Mama’s Gold and a yearling filly by Audible. She was bred to 2019 Preakness Stakes winner War of Will in 2021.

In Spite of Mama, a 10-year-old out of the Carson City mare Mama Theresa, went 3-2-2 in 17 starts for Butler and Maker from 2014 to 2016.

Butler bought Mama Theresa for $65,000 at the 2005 OBS April sale of 2-year-olds in training. She won six of 25 starts, placed in two stakes and earned $240,898 for Butler and Timothy Twomey and the late trainer Dominic Galluscio. In Spite of Mama is Mama Theresa’s second foal and a half-sister to four other winners, including stakes winner A Freud of Mama, an earner of $399,818 who also finished third in the Grade 3 Matron Stakes at Belmont Park in 2019 for Butler and Maker.

“Mama Theresa … she’s the base that we’ve put this all together from,” Butler said. “For a guy that’s learning the ropes here, she’s been very good to me.”

Rotknee picked up $55,000 for his connections and improved to 3-for-4 in his career. He finished second in his debut, a 5 ½-furlong maiden on a muddy track July 9 at Belmont Park. Rotknee won his second start, taking a similar state-bred maiden at 6 furlongs Aug. 1 at Saratoga. He came out of that an injury to a splint bone and missed the rest of his juvenile season.

Maker wasn’t sure Rotknee was completely ready for his comeback – despite seven breezes over the Belmont training track from Dec. 19 to Feb. 2 – but he showed no signs of rust in his 3-length victory under Franco.

Kisses for Emily #5 (L) breaks her maiden over Starship Laoban #10 in the $100,000 Society Hill at Parx Racing in Bensalem, PA on March 8, 2022. The New York-Bred daughter of Union Jackson was ridden to victory by Dylan Davis and is trained by Louis Linder, Jr., for owners Branjam Stable and Dave Clark. Photo by Bill Denver/EQUI-PHOTO.

By Tom Law

Kisses for Emily kept the New York-bred program rolling Tuesday with a maiden-winning score in the $100,000 Society Hill at Parx Racing.

The 3-year-old daughter Union Jackson, New York’s leading freshman sire in 2021, led a 1-2 finish for New York-breds in the 6-furlong stakes with a 1-length victory over the Laoban filly Starship Laoban. Sent off as the 5-1 fourth choice in the field of five under Dylan Davis, Kisses for Emily overcame a bump early and found her best footing late to win in 1:13.29.

Kisses for Emily, bred by Sequel Stallions NY LLC and Lewis Lakin and owned by Bran Jam Stable and David Clark, also gave Union Jackson his first stakes winner in the Society Hill. Union Jackson, a 10-year-old son of Curlin out of the Dixie Union mare Hot Dixie Chick, stands for $2,5000 at Sequel Stallions New York in Hudson. Kisses for Emily was foaled at Sequel Stallions NY in Hudson.

Kisses for Emily’s victory is the fifth open-company stakes victory for a New York-bred in a four-day span, following Coinage in Palm Beach and Spandarella in the Grade 3 Herecomesthebride at Gulfstream Park Saturday, Venti Valentine in the $250,000 Busher Invitational at Aqueduct Saturday and Bank Sting in the Heavenly Prize Invitational at Aqueduct Sunday.

Consigned by Sequel Bloodstock as Hip 367 and sold to Mike Mellen for $125,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May sale of 2-year-olds in training, Kisses for Emily came into the Society Hill winless in her first five starts.

She raced three times at 2, finishing third in her final start of 2021 in a 7-furlong New York-bred maiden for trainer John Toscano Jr. Transferred to trainer Louis Linder Jr., Kisses for Emily finished second and third in 6-furlong state-bred maiden races in January and February prior to her stakes debut.

Kisses for Emily was bumped early and 10 lengths back as Disco Ebo and Starship Laoban vied for the early leading through the opening quarter-mile in :22.17. Kisses for Emily continued to lag 8 lengths behind as Starship Laoban wrested a narrow lead from Disco Ebo through the half in :45.76. Davis tipped Kisses for Emily out in the lane and she surged past her fellow New York-bred in deep stretch for the victory. Starship Laoban, an 11 1/2-length winner of an open optional-allowance Feb. 16 at Parx, finished 4 ½ lengths ahead of 9-1o favorite Disco Ebo with Perfect Direction fourth and Martini’s America fifth.

Kisses for Emily picked up $60,000 for her victory in the Society Hill and boosted her earnings to $94,100.

Kisses for Emily is the third foal out of the unraced Malibu Moon mare Caldwell, a half-sister to the dam of multiple graded stakes winner and sire Rockport Harbor. Caldwell’s first foal, the Kentucky-bred Danza gelding Hail to the Chief, is 2-0-4 in 12 starts for $75,479 in earnings. Her second foal, the Jimmy Creed colt Sultan Murad, sold for $14,000 at the 2019 Keeneland September yearling sale.

Caldwell is also the dam of the 2-year-old New York-bred Unified filly Queenpin, who sold for $225,000 to Flying P Stable at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred sale; and a  yearling colt by World of Trouble.

Bank Sting scores first open-company stakes victory – and fourth overall – in Sunday’s Heavenly Prize at Aqueduct. Chelsea Durand/NYRA Photo.

By Tom Law

Bank Sting flew the flag for Central Banker in 2021, winning two stakes and three other races and banking $321,300 to put her sire atop New York’s general sire list for the first time.

She matched that stakes haul Sunday, venturing into open company for the first time and scoring a determined victory over Battle Bling in the $121,250 Heavenly Prize Invitational at Aqueduct. She also deposited another $68,750 to not only reclaim her spot at Central Banker’s leading earner of 2022 but padded his lead on this year’s New York sire list.

“She’s a pleasure,” said Joe McMahon, who bred Bank Sting with his wife Anne in the name of their McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds and campaigns the 5-year-old mare with Hidden Brook Farm. “She’s got seven wins in nine starts. That’s remarkable.”

Central Banker, a 12-year-old Grade 2-winning son of Speightstown, stands for $7,500 at McMahon of Saratoga in Saratoga Springs.

“She has a lot of run and it’s great for Central Banker. We’re lucky to have her,” McMahon said.

Originally targeted for the $100,000 Biogio’s Rose at 1-mile for state-bred fillies and mares, Bank Sting wound up in the rescheduled Heavenly Prize at the same distance when the former didn’t fill. The Heavenly Prize also didn’t have enough runners for its original spot on Saturday’s Gotham Day card at Aqueduct, so the NYRA racing office got creative and essentially combined the two stakes.

Sent off the 2-1 third choice in the field of five despite a record of 5-for-6 at Aqueduct coming in and off a two-month freshening after her victory in the 7-furlong La Verdad Stakes Jan. 2, Bank Sting switched to the outside from post two after the break and found a tracking position behind 8-5 favorite Maiden Beauty.

Maiden Beauty and Kendrick Carmouche carved out opening fractions of :24.18 and :47.92 through the opening half-mile with Dylan Davis and Bank Sting just a half-length back. Truth Hurts, Sharp Starr and Battle Bling chased a little further back.

“She didn’t come out the best and it took her two or three jumps to get into a stride and find her rhythm,” Davis said. “By that time, Kendrick was able to take over to the lead, but I was happy laying second. She was very comfortable in that position.”

Dylan Davis gives all the credit to “gutsy” Heavenly Prize winner Bank Sting. “She’s a great ride,” he said. Susie Raisher/NYRA Photo.

Bank Sting pulled alongside Maiden Beauty approaching the quarter-pole and after those two matched a few strides, Davis asked for more and his mare responded. Bank Sting shrugged off Maiden Beauty, drifted a bit and withstood a late rally from Battle Bling to win by a neck. Maiden Beauty finished 2 1/2 lengths back in third and Sharp Starr was fourth, giving the New York-bred program a 1-3-4 finish on a weekend that also featured open-company stakes wins by Coinage, Venti Valentine and Spendarella.

“She’s a great ride. She’s gutsy and she has a lot of heart,” Davis said of Bank Sting. “For a second, I thought the other horse [Battle Bling] was going to overlap her but she was able to re-engage. She’s smart – she had a little left in the tank and was able to get to the wire first.”

Bank Sting certainly knows how to win. She improved to 7-for-9 in the Heavenly Prize and boosted her bankroll to $475,050. Bank Sting ranks as Central Banker’s fourth leading earner, behind Bankit ($1,060,905), Newly Minted ($516,738) and Bank On Shea ($497,750).

“She’s just determined,” said Tonja Terranova, assistant to her husband John Terranova. “This filly doesn’t want to get beat and she keeps seeming to find more. We went a little too easy on her going into her last race, but we stuck it to her going into here to make sure she was fit. The track has been demanding on them. She’s awesome. We’ll see what’s in store for her the next time.”

Born and raised at McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds, Bank Sting is the fifth foal out of the stakes-placed New York-bred Precise End mare Bee in a Bonnet. She’s a half-sister to four other winners – including the stakes-placed Liberty Island and her full 4-year-old sister Lot of Honey.

Bee in a Bonnet is also the dam of an unnamed 2-year-old filly by Central Banker and a yearling colt by the late Laoban. She was bred to McMahon’s Solomini last season.

Bank Sting finished fourth in her debut in a division of the New York Stallion Series Stakes late in her 2-year-old season in December 2019. She didn’t return to the races until early last February and she won four straight from there, including the Critical Eye Stakes on Big Apple Showcase Day in late May at Belmont Park. Off until a fifth in the slop in the Empire Distaff Handicap on Empire Showcase Day in late October, Bank Sting hasn’t lost since with victories in the Staten Island division of the NYSS, La Verdad and Heavenly Prize.

“In the stretch, she really dug in,” McMahon said of his mare’s latest victory. “It looked like the other horse [Battle Bling] was going to go by, but Dylan said she dug right in as soon as she saw her. Last time, she was in the worst part of the racetrack. She was way out there and the rail was very live that day. That was a tough race, tougher than this race.”

Spendarella storms to front-running victory in Saturday’s Grade 3 Herecomesthebride in her second start. Gulfstream Park Photo.

By Tom Law

Spendarella showed up in one of Graham Motion’s springtime outposts last year and the recent Hall of Fame-nominated trainer and his team immediately liked what they saw.

“She always showed plenty of promise, we just had to give her more time,” Motion said. She came to me last spring at Keeneland actually, but she just needed more time over the summer.”

Spendarella needed the spring, summer, fall and some of the winter. She didn’t debut until early February, but made quick work of a field of an open-company maiden field going two turns on the grass at Gulfstream Park. The daughter of Karakontie did the same Saturday, closing Gulfstream’s rich Fountain of Youth Day card with a dominating front-running victory in the Grade 3 Herecomesthebride Stakes. Sent off as the 8-5 favorite off her flashy maiden score, Spendarella ran to her odds with a 1 1/2-length victory over third choice Opalina with second choice Mischievous Kiss third in the field of 11.

“She’s always been a nice filly, and she just keeps growing and getting more intelligent about the job,” said Alice Clapham, Motion’s Florida-based assistant. “She seems to know what life’s about. The first race really kind of helped her grow up.”

Bred Antony Beck’s Gainesway Thoroughbreds LTD, foaled at Sequel Stallions NY in Hudson and raced in Beck’s brown and white Gainesway Stable colors, Spendarella and jockey Jose Ortiz went to the front of the 1-mile Herecomesthebride on the firm ground.

Spendarella dictated the terms throughout, first maintaining a 1-length advantage over Dia de Sol through the opening three-quarters of a mile before shrugging off that foe around the far turn. Spendarella opened up approaching the stretch and was 3 lengths clear at the eighth pole as the closers started to wind up.

Mischievous Kiss, who rated well back in third most of the trip, went after the leader first before being overtaken by Opalina. The latter cut into the winner’s margin slightly in the stretch but was a clear second best, 1 ½ lengths clear of Mischievous Kiss in third with Last Leaf fourth. Spendarella won in 1:34.38.

“She broke well. Much better than the first time,” said Ortiz, who rode Spendarella in her 2 3/4-length win going 1 1/16 miles on the grass Feb. 2.

Offered late in the 2020 Keeneland September yearling sale as Hip 3161, Spendarella was reported sold for $220,000 to Ballyfair Bloodstock out of the Gainesway consignment. She’s out of the winning Unusual Heat mare Spanish Bunny, the dam of Grade 1 American Oaks and Grade 2 Honeymoon winner Spanish Queen.

“Mark Casse trained her full sister, so she had some credentials already, and it looked like she was a two-turn type,” Motion said.

Before the Herecomesthebride Motion said Spendarella could show up in her native state and Clapham echoed that sentiment after the filly’s victory worth $72,850.

“She’s a New York-bred, so she’ll most probably head up there, at some point,” Clapham said. “She’ll let us tell us where she wants to run.”

Venti Valentine smashes her four foes in Saturday’s Busher Invitational to get on the Kentucky Oaks trail. Chelsea Durand/NYRA Photo.

By Tom Law

Venti Valentine returned to her native New York in late February and by early March she and her connections found themselves on the road to the Kentucky Oaks.

The daughter of Firing Line all but locked up her spot in the field for the May 6 Oaks at Churchill Downs with a dominating 7-length victory in Saturday’s $250,000 Busher Invitational Stakes at Aqueduct. Off since her close second in the Grade 2 Demoiselle in early December at Aqueduct, Venti Valentine earned 50 points toward a spot in the Oaks field and added to her bankroll for trainer Jorge Abreu and owners NY Final Furlong Racing and Parkland Thoroughbreds.

Manny Franco rode the chestnut filly for the first time in the afternoon and came away impressed.

“She’s a nice filly. She’s improving every time she runs,” Franco said. “I worked her last time and she went a half-mile, so I got to know her. She was ready for the race.”

Venti Valentine started her career with an overland come-from-behind victory in a 6-furlong New York-bred maiden in late September at Belmont before returning a month later to win the $242,500 Maid of the Mist Stakes on a sloppy track on Empire Showcase Day. She earned a trip to open company after that victory and finished second, beaten only a neck by recent Suncoast Stakes and Kentucky Oaks contender Nest, in the 9-furlong Demoiselle.

Abreu shipped Venti Valentine south to his wintertime base at Palm Meadows Training Center after the Demoiselle. She breezed four times over the Palm Meadows main track, including a 5-furlong work in 1:02.45 Feb. 11 before returning to New York. She breezed once more, a half in :49.87 on the Belmont training track, Sunday to tighten up for the 1-mile Busher.

The weeks and days leading up to the Busher didn’t come without some hesitation.

“I was a little concerned about her because we missed two breezes with her,” Abreu said. “She got sick on me after we breezed her the first time. She spiked a temperate of 102 and I didn’t breeze her. She really came into the race with four breezes. Irad [Ortiz, Jr.] breezed her three times over the five-eighths or three-quarters [at Palm Meadows] and he was pretty happy with her. I had Manny breeze her here and she breezed well over the training track.”

Sent off the 5-1 fourth choice in the field of five, Venti Valentine raced fourth early while Magic Circle and Radio Days sparred through the opening quarter-mile in :24.23. Franco inched Venti Valentine up to third approaching the half in :48.19 as Magic Circle continued to lead by a half-length from 1-2 favorite Radio Days.

Franco gave Venti Valentine her cue midway around the turn and she responded, circling past the two leaders and took the lead in the stretch. She opened up in a snap, leading by 2 lengths in midstretch before pouring it on late to win in 1:39.65. Shotgun Hottie, the longest shot on the board 22-1, passed the tiring front runners for the runner-up spot with Magic Circle third, Radio Days fourth and Sterling Silver fifth.

“I know this filly was going to run a good race,” Abreu said. “I’m not going to lie, I didn’t know she was going to win that easy. She ran a really good race. She’s been a classy horse since Day 1. She’s been showing that she has a lot of determination and a lot of talent. She showed it today.”

Bred by Final Furlong Racing Stable and Maspeth Stable and foaled at Schuylerville Thoroughbred Farm in Schuylerville, Venti Valentine is the second stakes winner produced by Glory Gold along with Espresso Shot. Venti Valentine’s connections also campaigned Espresso Shot, a multiple stakes winner of $516,625 who sold for $300,000 to Spendthrift Farm at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November mixed sale.

Final Furlong Racing purchased Espresso Shot for $69,000 at the 2017 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale. A year later they bought Glory Gold, carrying Venti Valentine in utero, for $13,000 at the Keeneland November breeding stock sale. She’s produced four winners.

“This is a better horse than Espresso Shot,” Abreu said. “Not for nothing, but she just shows more determination than Espresso Shot. Espresso Shot looked like she loved Aqueduct and her distance was limited. This filly – the farther she goes, the better she’ll be.”

Abreu said the Grade 3 Gazelle April 9 at Aqueduct, which offers 100 points to the winner toward a spot in the Kentucky Oaks field, would be Venti Valentine’s next start. Venti Valentine earned $137,500 for the Busher win to boost her earnings to $366,250.

Rascal Cat, an 11-time winner who formerly stood in Arkansas, is headed to Cazenovia College in central New York. Photo courtesy of J & M Equine Reproduction Center.

Rascal Cat, a 17-year-old son of Pulpit who won 11 times during his career and stood most recently at Arkansas State University, is headed to the Northeast to help establish a Thoroughbred breeding program at Cazenovia College in Central New York.

BloodHorse reported the move last week in its online story titled “Rascal Cat Helping to Launch Another College Program.”

Here is the full report, courtesy of BloodHorse:

Dr. William McGuire is expanding the breeding program at Cazenovia College near Syracuse, N.Y., with the same stallion that helped him establish a Thoroughbred breeding program at Arkansas State University.

Rascal Cat, a 17-year-old son of Pulpit, has been relocated to New York where he will train students in how to handle stallions and will be available to outside breeders for a $1,000 fee.

“He has the perfect stallion temperament for helping train college students,” said McGuire. “While he is definitely a stallion, his demeanor lessens the risk to students that are just learning how to handle stallions in the live cover breeding process.”

McGuire started the breeding program at Arkansas State in 2017 and brought in Rascal Cat from Oklahoma. The stallion was a standout as a yearling, selling for $1.3 million to Stonestreet Stables out of Taylor Made Sales Agency’s consignment at the 2006 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. He is out of the winning Storm Cat mare Razzi Cat and is a half brother to group 1 winners Rocking Trick and Randy Cat. His family is rich in European success, with 35 stakes winners named under his third dam, Vale.

As a racehorse, Rascal Cat was hampered by a condylar fracture and yet he won 11 races and placed in 20 others out of 68 starts and earned $203,124. He had limited opportunities as a stallion without a stakes win to his credit. His six crops are represented by 33 foals that include 19 starters and seven winners. His best runner to date is Rascal Candy who has won five times and placed in 12 other races out of 27 starts on his way to earning more than $50,000.

“He has a nice conformation and has sired winners from a limited number of offspring,” said McGuire. “As far as what he will add to the New York-bred program, I feel that he brings excellent bloodlines for a very affordable fee for owners.”

The only Thoroughbred mares Cazenovia owns right now are used for equitation classes, so McGuire said the school is seeking mare donations for the breeding program. The resulting foals from the program will be used for weanling and yearling management classes and eventually will be prepped for a sale.

The college has one other stallion, a Holsteiner named Royal Appearance, who is used for training in artificial insemination and is bred to warmblood mares.

McGuire began at Cloud County Community College in Concordia, Kansas, where he taught animal science classes, anatomy, and physiology, and implemented the college’s equine program. He also started the college’s rodeo team, equestrian team, and coached the horse judging team. After 15 years in this position, he accepted a job with New Mexico State University and served as a Northern New Mexico Horse Specialist among many other roles. He next went to Arkansas State and then took a job in 2019 as assistant manager at Sequel Stallion New York. He became a visiting instructor at Cazenovia College in August 2021.

Un Ojo puts his name in the mix for the Kentucky Derby with a victory in Saturday’s $1 million Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park. Coady Photography.

By Tom Law

Cypress Creek Equine LLC’s Un Ojo shocked the 31,000-strong at Oaklawn Park Saturday and put a New York-sired colt on the road to the Kentucky Derby with a monstrous victory in the $1 million Grade 2 Rebel Stakes.

The 3-year-old son of the late Sequel New York resident Laoban, given his name after losing one eye in a paddock accident as a yearling, shocked the crowd on one of Oaklawn’s biggest days with the half-length win over Ethereal Road as the longest shot on the board at 75-1. The victory earned Un Ojo 50 points toward a spot in the Kentucky Derby starting gate – basically an automatic bid – and gave trainer Ricky Courville the biggest stakes win of his career.

“It’s crazy. It’s kind of shared between me and Tony (trainer Tony Dutrow) because I sent him to Tony, to Aqueduct, for the winter and Tony had him until Monday and sent him back to us,” Courville said. “Gosh, I feel bad for Tony. The owners kind of decided (on the Rebel). I think Tony was wanting to keep him up there for the Gotham, but they wanted to not go back to a one-turn mile and (Kevin Moody of Cypress Creek Equine) wanted to send him down here and take a shot at the money. He kept saying the two turns is going to be better for us.”

Un Ojo, who had previously collected 4 points with his second in the Grade 3 Withers Stakes at Aqueduct, moved into second on the leaderboard with 54 total points toward Kentucky Derby eligibility.

Clay Courville, Ricky Courville’s 25-year-old son and assistant trainer, couldn’t hide his excitement for the victory.

“I’ve loved this horse since Day 1,” he said. “I knew he had the talent to be this kind of horse. I always had the confidence in him. He just improved so much every single day, every single race. This is a dream come true. Two strong efforts in his last two races. Closed really well in the last two races with Mr. Anthony Dutrow, who has done a great job with the horse.

“He sent him down here for us to run and he came here. We were hoping he would close good. He kind of laid a little closer than we thought. He grinded away today.”

Bred by Southern Equine Stables LLC and foaled at Fort Christopher’s Thoroughbreds in Fort Edward, Un Ojo is out of the multiple stakes-placed A.P. Indy mare Risk a Chance. Southern Equine purchased Risk a Chance, herself a second generation New York-bred from the Bromans’ program, in foal to Laoban for $40,000 at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga fall mixed sale.

Risk a Chance is also the dam of Risky Analysis, an active daughter of Freud who is already a five-time winner of over $115,000. Her four-year-old, Chief Commander, a New York-bred colt by Quality Road, sold for $550,000 at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale of selected yearlings. Un Ojo has a 2-year-old half-brother by Ghostzapper who sold for $180,000 to Calumet Farm at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale.

Un Ojo finished eighth, beaten 24 lengths, in his career debut going 6 furlongs Oct. 9 at Keeneland before a 4 1/4-length victory in a 6 1/2-furlong maiden at Delta Downs a month later. He finished fourth in the Jean Lafitte Stakes at Delta on Nov. 20 for Ricky Courville before shipping north to Dutrow at Belmont Park. He finished a late-running second in his return to the Empire State in the $500,000 Great White Way division of the New York Stallion Stakes Series in mid-December. Uno Ojo finished second in the Grade 3 Withers at 9 furlongs on a muddy track at Aqueduct Feb. 5 before returning to the Courville barn earlier this week.

Un Ojo earned $600,000 for his Rebel victory to pad his earnings to $776,321.

Jacob’s Arch, a $100,000-earner and half brother to New York-bred Horse of the Year Naughty New Yorker, is thriving in his second career. Photo provided by Justine Watson.

By Melissa Bauer-Herzog

It isn’t often a mare can lay claim to champions in multiple disciplines, but the popular broodmare Naughty Natisha can do just that through her sons Naughty New Yorker and Jacob’s Arch.

The more well-known of the two in racing circles, Naughty New Yorker was a millionaire racehorse who also took home New York-bred Horse of the Year honors during his eight seasons on the track. His year-older half-brother Jacob’s Arch was no slouch on the track, winning five times and earning $100,345 during a 23-race career, but has become an even better dressage horse.

Jacob’s Arch’s career ended in 2008 when he fractured a knee but his story was just beginning. Breeders Dr. Bill Wilmot and Dr. Joan Taylor happily brought the then 7-year-old home to rehab and start a new career. After a few false starts when Jacob’s Arch decided the new careers weren’t the right ones for him, he was connected with Justine Watson of Lincoln University, Pa., through the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance-accredited After The Races when he was 17.

Watson admits that she was told by some people that an off-track Thoroughbred may not be the best choice for her first horse, but “Archer” was her perfect choice.

“I was looking for my first horse, I had just picked up riding a few months prior and I was leasing an off-track Thoroughbred, so I was looking around and found After the Races,” she said. “I thought he looked really cute, and he was described as a really classy guy with a good brain, so I went out and took a look at him.

“He was really in-tune with things. I took my horse friends to come look at him with me, so they rode him first and they liked him, so I got on him. Instead of being up and ready to roll, he was very kind. He listened and seemed to know I didn’t have that much experience.”

Bred by Dr. Bill Wilmot and Dr. Joan Taylor, Jacob’s Arch is now a success in dressage at age 21. Photo provided by Justine Watson.

The pair started learning about dressage and four years later are competing in Training Level and First Level with Lauren Annett. Watson’s biggest moment in the time she’s owned Jacob’s Arch came last year when they qualified for their United States Dressage Federation region’s finals and rode into the famed Rolex Stadium at the Kentucky Horse Park.

“I just took up riding when I was 28 or 29 and this was our first year doing recognized,” she said. “It’s been really cool having him. I don’t know if I’d be able to do it without him, to be honest. I know we didn’t place but it’s a historic place to ride.”

That wasn’t the only accomplishment on their resume last year. During an awards ceremony Feb. 19, the pair took home six divisional championships in their local dressage organization and two reserve championships in the USDF’s All Breeds – Jockey Club category.

“It was a nice way to reflect back on our season,” she said. “I’m pretty sure we had 30-plus competitive rides this season, which is no small feat in itself, let alone our first season. We have come so far in a very small amount of time, and he still improves almost every ride. I know people get caught up in winning things, but a lot of dressage is against yourself. You’re trying to get them more through and straighter to get that 0.5-1.0 more in the transition score to bump your overall. And by getting your horse to go better, you’re preserving them.  That’s the real prize for me.”

Jacob’s Arch turned 21 this year and has given no signs he’s ready to retire. Watson and Jacob’s Arch are aiming toward a return to regionals and possibly USDF finals this year. Jacob’s Arch seems as happy as ever to compete.

“He’s going to have to be the one to tell me what he wants to do,” Watson said. “He’s really happy having a job because he always shows up and is so professional. Even when he doesn’t want to do something he’ll just give an old-man groan. I’ll ride him until he says he can’t do this anymore.”

No matter what they do, they have a built-in cheering squad with his breeders.

The late Todd Yaeger, longtime manager at Wilmot and Taylor’s Stepwise Farm in Saratoga Springs, was also excited to hear about Jacob’s Arch every time he saw Watson and even took her to see the workouts and meet different people at Saratoga Race Course.

Jacob’s Arch, raised in upstate New York at Stepwise Farm in Saratoga Springs, now lives with Justine Watson in southeastern Pennsylvania. Photo provided by Justine Watson.

“I have to give a major shoutout to Bill and Joan,” Watson said. “You always hear horror stories about these horses, but I talk to Bill pretty frequently. He keeps me up on other horses they’ve bred, they really do care about their horses. I’ve gotten to do a lot of cool things [because of Jacob’s Arch]. I’ve always been into horse racing but knowing these guys, I got to meet up with Todd Yeager and when I went to Saratoga and see the morning workouts. He was always a big, big Archer fan and always wanted to know what the old man was up to.”

Watson’s job as a physician assistant in cardiac surgery keeps her busy enough that she’s not yet thinking about buying a younger horse to have ready when Jacob’s Arch retires, but said another OTTB will be at the top of her list.

“I would like to continue with OTTBs because I just love their work ethic,” she said. “They’re super-cool horses. They’re beautifully bred. The OTTB for 500 bucks may get you farther than the dressage-bred horse you spent $30,000 on. I wish more people would get on board with taking them up the levels because I think they’re very smart and very athletic horses and they’re bred for stamina and working, why not? I’m hoping I can get another Thoroughbred.”