Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Serengeti Empress breezes relaxed half-mile for Cotillion
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Serengeti Empress hasn’t raced around two turns since her frontrunning victory in the Kentucky Oaks. So when the filly leaves Churchill Downs this week for the Grade 1 Cotillion at Parx Racing, her trainer wants her in the proper frame of mind.
“My main concern is she’s not in sprint mode in her head,” said Tom Amoss. “And I don’t think she is.”
Serengeti Empress had her final breeze toward the $1 million Cotillion when going a solo half-mile in 48.80 seconds before dawn Friday at Churchill. It was the third work for the Alternation filly since she was a close second to Covfefe in the seven-furlong Test on Aug. 3 at Saratoga, a race that followed a runner-up finish in the June 8 Acorn going a one-turn mile at Belmont Park.
The 1 1/16-mile Cotillion, to be run next Saturday, is the last Grade 1 dirt route this year restricted to 3-year-old fillies and is shaping up as a rugged spot, as usual, with Guarana, Jaywalk, and Street Band among those expected.
“The theme is the same,” said Amoss. “Our filly will use her speed, and she’ll use it early. We’re moving back to two turns, and she’s been highly effective in several of those races – the Oaks, the Pocahontas, the Rachel Alexandra. The main thing is to get her to use her speed but also relax like she did in her work this morning.”
Amoss said Serengeti Empress will be ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr., replacing his brother Jose, who is committed to Guarana for Chad Brown. Jose rode Serengeti Empress in the Oaks and Test, while Irad rode her in the Acorn.
Serengeti Empress, along with other Kentucky-based horses headed to Parx, is booked on a charter flight for Wednesday.
Mr. Money ready for Pa. Derby
Bret Calhoun said Mr. Money has been so eager in his training toward the $1 million Pennsylvania Derby next Saturday that he skipped a final pre-race work with the colt Friday morning at Churchill.
Instead, Mr. Money went a “two-minute lick,” getting a mile in an unofficial 1:52 and change, according to Calhoun.
Mr. Money worked five furlongs in 58.20 on Sept. 5.
“Everything is right where we want it,” he said. “He went so fast last week and galloped out so strong that I didn’t want him to do something like that again. He’s very, very sharp right now, and I didn’t want him any sharper. He’s sitting on go.”
Mr. Money has won his last four races, all Grade 3 stakes, and faces his toughest task to date at Parx when he faces the likes of Maximum Security, War of Will, and Improbable. The Goldencents colt also is booked on the Wednesday charter flight.
Record betting at Ky. Downs
Record all-sources wagering and purse payouts once again were established at the five-day Runhappy meet that ended Thursday at turf-only Kentucky Downs in southcentral Kentucky.
Betting totaled $41,239,699, up 13 percent over the former record of $36.4 million set during the five-day 2018 meet, when a cancellation moved a Sunday card to a Wednesday. There were no cancellations or weather issues this year.
Purses totaled more than $11.5 million, also a 13 percent increase over 2018, with a perrace average of more than $230,000. Those figures include bonuses from the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund.
On the racetrack, Jose Ortiz earned his second straight Kentucky Downs riding title with 10 winners and a trackrecord $2.05 million in mount earnings, despite missing the first day of the meet. There was a three-way tie for leading trainer among Joe Sharp, Wesley Ward, and Ian Wilkes (four wins each). No owner had more than two wins.
Field size averaged nearly 11.3 starters per race, a remarkable number considering races are limited to 12 starters, while favorites won at a 34 percent clip (17 for 50).
This was the first Kentucky Downs meet under the new ownership of Ron Winchell and Marc Falcone, who bought the track in March.
“Our goal is to build on it, make it better,” said Winchell.
Kentucky Downs has asked for seven 2020 dates from the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, which will assign dates Nov. 1.
Covfefe to prep in Dogwood
Covfefe figures as a heavy favorite when she has her final Breeders’ Cup prep next Saturday at Churchill Downs in the $125,000 Dogwood Stakes at seven furlongs.
Trainer Brad Cox settled on the ungraded Dogwood because the distance is the same as the BC Filly and Mare Sprint, to be run Nov. 2 at Santa Anita, and to get a relatively easy race in her, as opposed to some of the graded preps that remain.
Covfefe, owned by LNJ Foxwoods, has won 4 of 6 starts, with her victory in the Grade 1 Test last month making her one of the early favorites for the Filly and Mare Sprint.
Meanwhile, Cox said Meadow Dance was to scratch this Saturday from the Open Mind to stay within the 3-year-old filly division in the Grade 3 Charles Town Oaks next Saturday.
◗ Hog Creek Hustle, a just-miss runner-up in the Grade 1 Allen Jerkens after winning the Grade 1 Woody Stephens in his previous start, will run next against older horses in the Grade 2 Phoenix, a six-furlong race on opening day, Oct. 4, at Keeneland.
The 3-year-old colt’s connections will then decide on which Breeders’ Cup race, the Sprint or Dirt Mile, is more suitable for him.
◗ A memorial service was to be held Saturday in Shelbyville, Ky., for Debbie Sanner, 53, who was married for the last 30 years to longtime Kentuckybased trainer Dan Sanner. Debbie Sanner died Tuesday from a brain aneurysm. The couple has one son, Brandon.