It's been a fascinating three days of top racing.
It all started with the Belmont Gold Cup which gave the winner a "golden ticket" entry to the Melbourne Cup. It is run over the 3200m which is a very rare distance in America. The Cup went to The Grey Wizard, who had been second last year, Motion-Velazquez the team behind him. He races at the rear of the field and then comes home like an express
Flemington should suit him. Motion said he would have to speak to the owner and check out a few more details before making a commitment but the horse had pulled up well after the race.
Friday's Intercontinental was a great battle between The Future is Now and Roses for Debra. Third went to Kaufymaker who was up front for most of the race. Love Reigns was scratched.
With five runners in the Just A Game Chad Brown was expected to figure in the results and managed to get the quinella but not the trifecta. And it wasn't his more favoured runner who took the prize but the French-bred Chili Flag who gave jockey Irad Ortiz his fourth winner for the day. Whitebeam was second at 5/2 and third went to Mission of Joy on 13/1.
The New York Stakes went to the Argentinian Didia. She was a star in her native land but has required some patience on the part of trainer Ignacio Correas to bring her along so today's win was a great relief to all concerned. Jose Luis Ortiz was the winning jockey keeping the family name up front. Neesie Marie was second at 25/1 and two lengths behind Didia and War Like Goddess ran third. English Rose was disappointing.
The Acorn Stakes saw the McPeek-Hernandez team collect another trophy as Thorpedo Anna, the winner of the Kentucky Oaks, run away with this one to finish 5 lengths ahead of Leslie's Rose with a pair of Squeezes in third and fourth – Power Squeeze and My Mane Squeeze. Just FYI was up there for a while but then faded back into the pack and did not emerge out of it. Could have been a problem.
