Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Amy’s Challenge impressive
Trainer Mac Robertson put it simply when asked to talk about Amy’s Challenge, the 2-year-old filly he trains.
“That one can run,” Robertson said.
That she can. Debuting against males in the seventh race Aug. 6 at Canterbury Park, where Robertson is leading trainer, Amy’s Challenge went to the front and never looked back – and if she had, she probably wouldn’t have seen any horses. She won by 16 1/2 lengths and ran 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:03.89, a time good for a 91 Beyer Speed Figure, among a handful of 90-plus Beyers earned by 2-year-olds so far this year.
Amy’s Challenge is by Artie Schiller and is the second foal to race produced by the Jump Start mare, Jump Up, who went 3 for 3 and won a route race in her brief career on the track. She is owned by the Novogratz Racing Stable of Joe and Amy Novogratz who, Robertson said, already have turned down lucrative offers and plan to keep their filly. Amy’s Challenge obviously has speed and precocity, but Robertson believes she will comfortably extend beyond sprints.
“We had her in Hot Springs since January and always liked her,” he said. “She’s a fast filly that goes smooth and looks like a route horse.”
Robertson watched in amazement, he said, when Amy’s Challenge had her first halfmile workout June 23 at Canterbury.
“That was the best work I’ve ever had on a 2-year-old by far. She’s been good since Day 1. However many times she’s worked, it’s always been special,” Robertson said.
Since Amy’s Challenge raced fast and worked fast before her race, Robertson said he has been going slow this week. There are no set plans for her next start, but Robertson said he would prefer one more sprint before a try at a longer trip.
“We always try to develop horses, and I’m more worried about next year than next week,” he said. “But if she’s the fastest one right now, I do want to take advantage of that.”
Thoughtless favored in Hoist Her Flag
Robertson should have a major say in the featured $50,000 Hoist Her Flag, race 7 on Sunday at Canterbury. The Hoist Her Flag is a six-furlong dash for older fillies and mares, and Robertson starts Thoughtless and Beach Flower.
Both horses do their best work as stalkers, and with plenty of pace entered in the race that seems like a good thing. Thoughtless, who has been training with Mac’s father, Hugh, at Arlington for this start, drops in class after finishing sixth in the $100,000 Saylorville Stakes at Prairie Meadows. Her baseline performance makes her the horse to beat Sunday, but Thoughtless had no punch at all last out while racing with front bandages added to her equipment. She’s 3-1 on the line and seems likely to go postward at a lower price than that.
Blinkers off for Mr. Jagermeister
Mr. Jagermeister remains on course to start in the Northern Lights Futurity later this month at Canterbury, a race in which he figures to be heavily favored.
Trained by Valorie Lund, Mr. Jagermeister romped against Minnesota-breds in his career debut, then got caught up in a hot pace and finished second by a couple lengths to The Tabulator in the $65,000 Prairie Gold Juvenile on July 28 at Prairie Meadows.
Lund said Mr. Jagermeister is scheduled to have his first work since the Prairie Meadows on Sunday. Lund has been galloping Mr. Jagermeister without blinkers, stood him in the gate this week to get approval to take blinkers off, and plans to race Mr. Jagermeister in the Northern Lights without a hood.
“He’s fairly immature and has a lot of room to improve,” Lund said. “He just needs to relax a little more.”
Mr. Jagermeister is part of the second crop of horses sired by Atta Boy Roy, whom Lund trained during his racing career and who took her to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.