Bold lift-off for Breeders’ Cup

Vinery champion More Than Ready clicked up a gear ahead of the Breeders’ Cup when his classy sprinter Tom’s Ready won the Bold Ruler Hcp-Gr.3 at Belmont Park on Saturday.

Tom’s Ready joined the millionaire’s club for his latest black-type victory under Joel Rosario.  “The pace was good and he had a nice run,” Rosario said.  “We were a little wide going into the stretch but I was trying to make him feel comfortable before he got the job done.”

It was his fourth at stakes level among 6 wins from 19 starts for prizemoney of $1,013,767.  The Dallas Stewart trainee had won the Woody Stephens Stakes-Gr.2 and Ack Ack Hcp-Gr.3 in 2016 and Leemat Stakes-LR earlier this year.

Stewart has elected to keep him in New York instead of heading to the west coast for the Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar this Friday & Saturday.

The $750,000 Cigar Mile-Gr.1 on December 2 at Aqueduct will be the final assignment for Tom’s Ready.  He will then retire to cover his first book at Spendthrift Farm in Kentucky.

Undefeated More Than Ready filly Rushing Fall will be one of the favourites for the opening race of the Breeders’ Cup Championships at Del Mar this Friday.  A last-start winner of the Jessamine Stakes-Gr.3 at Keeneland, she has been entered for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf-Gr.1.

“Because there was such a short turnaround between the Jessamine and Breeders’ Cup, we decided to keep the filly in Kentucky,” trainer Chad Brown said after watching Rushing Fall breeze 800m in 47.80s.  “She’s been doing super.”

More Than Ready colt Catholic Boy, winner of the of the With Anticipation Stakes-Gr.3 on August 30, logged 800m in 47.80s at Del Mar ahead of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf-Gr.1 on Friday.

Last-start Santa Anita Sprint-Gr.1 winner Roy H has also been working well in advance of the Breeders’ Cup Sprint-G1 this Saturday.  The Peter Miller-trained son of More Than Ready covered 1000m in 1.03s at Santa Anita last Wednesday.

TOM’S READY