As Tepin Thrives, High Hopes for Talented Stablemate

Nearly two weeks removed from Tepin (Bernstein)'s monumental victory in the G1 Queen Anne S. at Royal Ascot, trainer Mark Casse is understandably still amazed by his champion mare. But as any veteran conditioner will tell you–especially one with multiple stables situated across the eastern seaboard–there is very little time to rest before the next important race comes up. Although Casse has a number of stakes runners penciled in for the coming extended weekend, the Canadian Hall of Fame trainer admitted that he has particularly high aspirations for the lightly raced 3-year-old Conquest Enforcer (Into Mischief), who could potentially take on older turfers in the GII King Edward S. Saturday.

“He's going to run in either the King Edward or the Charley Barley [for 3-year-olds July 3],” Casse said of the Conquest Stables colorbearer. “I think he's as good on grass [as he is on synthetic], and if he's as good as we think he is, I wanted to open up his options–and the best way to do that is to run him on the grass… It's still a long way to go, but we think he's one of the most talented horses we've ever had. We believe that he can compete at the highest level. I won't even risk trying him on the dirt–we already know he can run on the grass.”

Casse's confidence in Conquest Enforcer has been evident since day one and was bolstered by feedback from rider Patrick Husbands, who said that the bay was the most gifted horse he had ever sat on. The $210,000 Fasig-Tipton July yearling purchase reported home an even fourth on debut in the GII Summer S. at Woodbine Sept. 12 and followed with a dominant tally in the restricted Cup and Saucer S. over the lawn Oct. 11. Given ample time to mature during a winter layup, Conquest Enforcer recently returned to action with a seemingly effortless victory in the seven-furlong Queenston S. on the synthetic track at Woodbine, clobbering his rivals by 7 3/4 lengths [video].

Given Conquest Enforcer's plenteous talents, Team Casse has made a deliberate effort to remain patient and play to the sophomore's strengths. Such a strategy has swayed them away from any temptation to enter in Sunday's 10-furlong Queen's Plate S., a race that occasionally taxes horses' energy levels in the ensuing months.

“He's a real pretty horse,” Casse explained. “He looks more like a seven-eighths or miler [type]. He's more of a running back or fullback-looking horse–the best way to describe them is as football players. He's a beautiful horse, a massive horse. When he runs, you look and you think he's going five-eighths in 1:02 and he goes in :58. That's what has us excited.”

Although Conquest Enforcer will not be in the starting gate for the Queen's Plate, Casse will be represented in the Classic by once-beaten Leavem in Malibu (Malibu Moon), who enters off two consecutive wins around two turns.

“I don't think you could ask a horse to be doing any better,” Casse asserted. “He's only had three starts, which is a bit of a disadvantage, but I'll say he's experienced a lot in those three starts… I don't think you could look at a horse in the Queen's Plate that would enjoy a mile and a quarter as much as him. He just kind of gets going after a mile.”

As for Robert Masterson's Tepin, Casse said the celebrated mare continues to take everything in stride, including the rigorous travel schedule that just recently brought her back to her customary stall at Churchill Downs.

    Tepin | Horsephotos

“She's amazing,” the trainer said. “I actually think she likes it, she likes getting around the world. She's been on quite a trip. She's now back in Kentucky with [assistant] Norman [Casse] and Rosa [Jimenez], her groom, who she loves and has had her since the beginning. We're just going to let her tell us how she handled the trip. She'll go to Saratoga. It's something we'll talk about with Mr. Masterson, but there's a possibility she could make the [GII Ballston Spa S. Aug. 27], and the other race we're interested in is the [Sept. 17 GI] Woodbine Mile.”

Norman Casse knows Tepin better than anyone, according to his father, who also said the younger Casse would play an integral role in mapping out her course for the remainder of the year. And while the conditioner acknowledged that Tepin was defeated twice at Saratoga last summer–the only two losses in her last 12 starts–the trainer has no doubt that the dark bay has taken her game to an entirely new level in 2016.

“The Tepin we have now is much better than the Tepin we had last year,” Casse continued. “If you look at horses that were running close to her and she was barely beating [last year], she's now destroying those horses.”

Highlighting the importance of treating every horse as a unique athlete, Casse is understandably delighted to have a horse that relishes competition and activity like Tepin.

“She thrives on racing,” he concluded. “We've gotten to a point now where we run her a little more frequently and we train her a lot easier–and it seems to work.”