Arrogate's Medaglia d'Oro Half-Sis Graduates at Belmont

Osare | Adam Coglianese

4th-Belmont, $90,000, Msw, 6-21, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 1/4mT, 2:02.75, gd.
OSARE (f, 3, Medaglia d'Oro–Bubbler {MSW & GSP, $211.622}, by Distorted Humor) the half-sister to champion and 'TDN Rising Star' Arrogate (Unbridled's Song), Ch. 3yo Colt & MGISW, $17,422,600, returned 6-1 to her backers when graduating at second asking Thursday afternoon at Belmont Park. Enjoying a cushy ground-saving journey after a smooth departure from gate two, the Bridlewood colorbearer was shoved on and under a left-handed stick from Javier Castellano fully three furlongs from home. Cracked right handed in upper stretch, she still appeared destined for defeat entering the final eighth of a mile, but kept plugging away and grabbed longtime leader Windjammer (Ger) (Campanologist) on the wire to score by a head. Osare was offered by her breeder Clearsky Farm at the 2016 Keeneland September sale just a few weeks after Arrogate recorded his jaw-dropping 13 1/2-length victory in the GI Travers S. at Saratoga, but was remarkably sold on a bid of $300,000 from John Malone's operation. Arrogate would go on to add the GI Breeders' Cup Classic over California Chrome (Lucky Pulpit) and the inaugural running of the GI Pegasus World Cup. Osare was bet down to 18-5 for her Apr. 15 at Tampa and did her best work late to finish fourth. She was adding blinkers for Thursday's much tougher test.

“This was a complete team effort,” said George Issacs, general manager of Bridlewood Farm. “I was fortunate to be at the right place at the right time to buy her as a yearling. There wasn't black-type in the catalogue at the time and I just got very lucky and bought her for what I did. She was worth a lot after we bought her and obviously with what Arrogate managed to accomplish, she only got more valuable over time.”

Isaacs said that Osare had no physical shortcomings at the time of his purchase.

“She was very immature at the sale–she was narrow, immature and we got her home and just did what we normally do with a yearling like her,” he said. “She looked like the kind that if you gave her time, she would reward you for your patience. [Trainer] Jonathan [Thomas] and I agreed time would be her best friend, took a long approach, give her a chance to grow up. She grew like a weed when we got her. We treated her with a lot of TLC, and she has blossomed into a 16.3 filly, stands over a lot of ground, very scopey, big strapping filly. She got over turf well, broke poorly [at Tampa], but she broke sharp [Thursday] and Javier gave her a great ride. We determined that distance would be her true calling.”

For the time being, Isaacs suggested Osare's home would be on the turf.

“I just talked to [Mr. Malone], and his opinion is if it ain't broke don't fix it, so she'll probably stay on the turf for now,” he said. “I'm not going to say she won't try the dirt at some point, but now that we got the W, we'll probably just keep her there. NYRA writes plenty of races long on the turf, and even some black-type races, so we'll look that way.”

Bubbler was a three-time stakes winner and Grade III-placed at the races before being purchased by Clearsky's Eamon Cleary for $170,000 at the 2010 FTKNOV sale. Osare was followed by a Giant's Causeway filly of 2016 and Bubbler was offered in foal to Into Mischief at FTKNOV in 2016, only to be led out unsold when bidding stalled out at $4.7 million, an amount that otherwise would have topped the sale. She produced a filly by the Spendthrift stallion in March 2017 and a Tapit filly this past May 1. A half-sister to SW Unbridled Femme (Unbridled), Bubbler is a maternal granddaughter of Eclipse Award-winning juvenile filly Meadow Star (Meadowlake). Sales history: $300,000 Ylg '16 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: 2-1-0-0, $55,200. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
O-Bridlewood Farm; B-Clearsky Farms (KY); T-Jonathan Thomas.

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