'Moon' Eclipses Foes in Del Mar's GI Bing Crosby

Ransom the Moon | Benoit

Ransom the Moon (Malibu Moon), an eventful winner of this race last year when champion Drefong (Gio Ponti) lost Hall of Famer Mike Smith at the start, defended his title in style while punching his ticket to the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint.

Settled near the back behind quick opening fractions of :21.93 and :44.78 courtesy of the dueling duo of St. Joe Bay (Saint Anddan) and American Pastime (Tapizar), the bay began to roll on the far turn. He was swung out widest of all turning for home, and came flying over the top to soundly defeat last year's Breeders' Cup Sprint hero and 6-5 race favorite Roy H.

“This horse beat this field on the square,” winning trainer Phil D'Amato said. “Roy H is a great horse, hats off to him. But my horse, since I gave him a freshening awhile back, he has kind of become the horse of old.”

Fifth in last term's Breeders' Cup Sprint at Del Mar, the bay faced the starter two previous times this year, finishing second in the GII Kona Gold S. at Santa Anita Apr. 21 and fifth in the GI Metropolitan H. at Belmont June 9.

Saturday, Del Mar
BING CROSBY S.-GI, $302,070, Del Mar, 7-28, 3yo/up, 6f, 1:10.08, ft.
1–RANSOM THE MOON, 121, h, 6, by Malibu Moon
1st Dam: Count to Three (SW & GSP, $398,651), by Red Ransom
2nd Dam: Countus In, by Dancing Count
3rd Dam: Cloudy and Warm, by Cloudy Dawn
O-Agave Racing Stable & Jeffry Wilke; B-Sam-Son Farm (ON);
T-Philip D'Amato; J-Flavien Prat. $180,000. Lifetime Record:
24-6-7-1, $848,829. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.[bullet ad=”ontario-bred”]2–Roy H, 123, g, 6, More Than Ready–Elusive Diva, by ElusiveQuality. ($115,000 Ylg '13 KEESEP; $310,000 2yo '14 KEEAPR).
O-Rockingham Ranch & David A Bernsen LLC; B-Ramona S.
Bass, LLC (KY); T-Peter Miller. $60,000.[bullet ad=”claiborne”]3–Touching Rainbows, 119, g, 5, Aragorn (Ire)–Violin Case, by
Gold Case. O-KM Racing Enterprise, Inc. and Madaket Stables
LLC; B-Esembee Inc. (CA); T-Philip D'Amato. $36,000.
Margins: 2 1/4, HF, HD. Odds: 4.80, 1.30, 21.70.
Also Ran: Edwards Going Left, St. Joe Bay, American Anthem, Stallwalkin' Dude, Stone Hands, Annie's Candy, American Pastime, Tribal Storm. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

Pedigree Notes:

Ransom the Moon's graded stakes-placed dam–Count to Three–was Woodbine-based for Sam-Son and made 20 of her 22 career starts in sprints. Second dam Countus In annexed the 1990 GI Matriarch S., and was acquired by Sam-Son for $200,000 in foal to Red Ransom at Keeneland November six years later. That resulting foal became GIII Toronto Cup H. winner Think Red (Red Ransom). Count to Three has an unraced 3-year-old colt named Count Again (Awesome Again) and a yearling colt by Stormy Atlantic. She was most recently bred to Pioneerof the Nile.

 

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