NOTES Hunter O’Reilly in good order after Bowling Green upset win

By NYRA SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. »Hunter O’Riley came out of his impressive win in the Grade 2, $250,000 Bowling Green in good order, trainer Jimmy Toner said Sunday morning outside his barn.

“He came back very good, he’s very happy I’m very proud of him,” Toner said.

The 4-year-old son of Tiz Wonderful rallied from last to beat Bigger Picture by a neck, notching his first stakes win. Ridden by jockey Florent Geroux, Hunter O’Riley registered a personal-best 104 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort.

“I saw him making his move and I thought he could get a piece of it, but as he came on, I was trying to figure out if he could get second or third,” Toner said. “All of a sudden, he won. I just watched him pass one by one. For him to get up and win like that, it was very exciting.”

Hunter O’Riley was actually cutting back to the Bowling Green distance of 1 3/8 miles on the inner turf after previously running at two miles in a fifth-place effort in the Grade 3 Belmont Gold Cup on June 9.

“He tries hard every time he runs and gives you everything,” Toner said. “The problem with two-mile races is the [competition]. Last time there were four European horses in front of him. They’re used to that type of racing and slow it down. They’re kicking, but they kick off in front of him, so it’s hard to catch them. Yesterday, there was enough legitimate pace where he was able to make his run.”

Toner said Hunter O’Riley has relished training at Saratoga. That comfort with the track was evident with the late surge that Toner said he had in 22 4/5 seconds to help him capture his first stakes victory.“You come up with 22-and-4, that’s a pretty good move,” Toner said. “He’s done well since he’s come up here. He loves the track and had been training good. He’s a neat horse to be around. He’s just a happy horse. He’s always so giving and willing; he’s a lunch-pail kind of a guy. He loves to do his job and loves his training.”

Time and Motion breezed Saturday in preparation for the Grade 2, $400,000 Woodford Reserve Ballston Spa on Travers Day, August 26. The Phillips Racing Partnership homebred was clocked going four furlongs in 49.45 seconds on the Oklahoma turf track in her first breeze since finishing third in the Grade 3 Modesty Handicap on July 8 at Arlington.

“She breezed really nice yesterday; she looks good and came out of her last race in Chicago in good order,” Toner said. “We want to try something different. We know the Ballston Spa is a mile-and-a-sixteenth [on the turf], but we want to run and it looks like the ideal place to go.”

Time and Motion won her last start at the Spa, capturing the 2016 Grade 2 Lake Placid for her first graded stakes victory. The 4-yearold daughter of Tapit has finished on the board in eight of her last 10 starts, including a win in the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup in October 2016.