Ron Moquett's rough draft for Whitmore's 4-year-old season has required revision but may keep the original ending.
A victory Friday in North America's oldest stakes race gave Whitmore automatic entry to the $2 million Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Sprint Nov. 4 at Del Mar in Southern California. Winning the Grade 2 $250,000 Stoll Keenon Ogden Phoenix gave Moquett, owner and trainer of the Pleasantly Perfect gelding, his first graded victory at Keeneland and Whitmore's third of the year.
"It's a little early to tell (about the Breeders' Cup), but that's been our goal all year," Moquett said by telephone from Lexington, Ky. "I'm going to relish this Phoenix victory, but the Breeders' Cup has been our goal, so if everything's great, we're going.'
Breaking from outside post 11 and carrying co-high weight of 122 pounds, Whitmore prevailed in a blanket finish between Awesome Banner and 5-2 favorite Limousine Liberal. Awesome Banner flirted with an upset at 16-1, leading early and through five furlongs in 57.73 seconds. Whitmore got the fast-rated six furlongs in 1:09.90, paying $8.80 to win and boosting lifetime earnings to $1,172,000.
"When I made my move, he was game," said winning jockey Manny Franco. "He never gave up, and we did it."
Said Moquett: "I'm proud of him. He's an awesome horse. I'm glad he got to show it today."
Owned by Moquett's Southern Springs Stables in partnership with Robert LaPenta and Sol Kumin's Head of Plains Partners, Whitmore has Grade 3 wins at Oaklawn Park (Count Fleet Sprint Handicap) and Maryland's Pimlico Racecourse. He finished third in the Grade 2 True North in June at New York's Belmont Park and third in the Grade 3 DeFrancis Memorial Dash Sept. 16 at Maryland's Laurel Park.
Moquett planned to race Whitmore in Saratoga's Grade 1 Vanderbilt Handicap in late July before a shipping mishap in upstate New York. "He handled the plane flight fine," said Moquett, "but came off the van taking him from the airport to the track a little awkward and turned his shoe sideways."
Uncontested, Oaklawn's Smarty Jones winner in January for trainer Wayne Catalano and Little Rock co-owner Harry Rosenblum, finished sixth in the Phoenix.
* Trainer Mark Casse's third win on Keeneland's opening-day card came with Heavenly Love ($13.40) in the Grade 1 $400,000 Darley Alcibiades for 2-year-old fillies. A second-out maiden winner on grass Sept. 7 at Kentucky Downs, Heavenly Love romped home by 5 1/2 lengths with a fast-rated mile and sixteenth in 1:45.32. Debby Oxley is owner-breeder of the Malibu Moon filly, with the same connections as 2017 Grade 1 Arkansas Derby winner and reigning male juvenile champion Classic Empire.
Princess Warrior -- trained by Ken McPeek, who like Casse is an Oaklawn regular -- finished second by 1 1/2 lengths over the Casse-trained Dancing as 3-2 favorite. Trainer Brad Cox, another Oaklawn campaigner, took the next two spots with Sassy Sienna and Kelly's Humor.
Heavenly Love qualifies for the $2 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Nov. 3 at Del Mar. The John Oxley-owned Classic Empire won last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Santa Anita.
Sports on 10/07/2017