Midnight Storm Strikes in the Eddie Read

Midnight Storm | Horsephotos

Fresh on the heels of a gritty victory in the GI Shoemaker Mile at Santa Anita June 4, Venneri Racing and Little Red Feather Racing's Midnight Storm (Pioneer of the Nile) proved his toughness once more with a hard-fought front-running tally in Del Mar's GII Eddie Read S. Sunday evening. The 5-year-old turned back a host of challengers to give Little Red Feather a sweep of the day's North American graded stakes after the partnership won the GIII Ontario Matron S. with Midnight Miley (Midnight Lute) hours earlier. The Eddie Read was Midnight Storm's fourth overall graded stakes success, making amends for a fifth-place finish as the favorite in last year's renewal of the race.

“His confidence is just sky high right now,” winning trainer Phil D'Amato said after the race. “When he gets good, he gets really good and he's just coming into his own.”

With his victory, Midnight Storm also reaffirmed his affinity for the Del Mar lawn, having won his first graded stake in the GII Del Mar Derby in 2014. He returned to the seaside oval to capture the GII Seabiscuit H. last November and kicked off his 2016 campaign with a fourth in the GI Frank Kilroe Mile at Santa Anita Mar. 12. The dark bay shipped east to run seventh behind Divisidero (Kitten's Joy) in Churchill's GI Woodford Reserve Turf Classic May 7, and he recently returned to Southern California to breakthrough at the Grade I level with a determined wire-to-wire score in the Shoemaker.

Away without incident as the 8-5 favorite, Midnight Storm set a composed pace with Bolo (Temple City) locked on his flank through a half-mile in :48.03 and six panels in 1:12.18. Shaking free from that rival midway on the final bend, the 5-year-old cornered into the stretch with a host of pursuers swelling up to challenge. Momentarily ceding the lead to rail-skimming Si Sage (Sageburg {Ire}) in midstretch, he repelled that rival's bid inside the final furlong and dug in determinedly to fend off another late challenge to his outside from Ashleyluvssugar (Game Plan) in the shadow of the wire.

“I had the good trip,” said winning rider Rafael Bejarano. “I knew this was a challenge for this horse–going a mile and one-eighth. So I tried to save all I could. I tried to slow it down as much as I could. When [Ashleyluvssugar] came to me, my horse fought him. He didn't get by me. My horse battled. He's very game. I asked him for something extra at the end, and it was there.”

D'Amato added, “The reason I ran him in here is he came out of the last race like he hadn't even run… If he comes out of this race like he came out of his last one, maybe [he will run in] the [Aug. 21 GII] Del Mar Mile, but we'll see what he tells us.”

The winner's dam, My Tina, is also responsible for an unnamed juvenile colt by Stay Thirsty, as well as a yearling colt by Pioneerof the Nile who was scooped up for $300,000 by Venneri Racing at Keeneland November last year. The mare was most recently bred back to Bodemeister.

 

Sunday, Del Mar
EDDIE READ S.-GII, $251,380, DMR, 7-17, 3yo/up, 1 1/8mT, 1:47.88, fm.
1–MIDNIGHT STORM, 124, h, 5, by Pioneerof the Nile
1st Dam: My Tina, by Bertrando
2nd Dam: Ask Directions, by Darby Creek Road
3rd Dam: Khal On Me, by Vertex
($38,000 RNA Ylg '12 KEESEP). O-A Venneri Racing, Inc. & Little
Red Feather Racing; B-Alex Venneri & Marjorie Post Dye (KY);
T-Philip D'Amato; J-Rafael Bejarano. $150,000. Lifetime
Record: GISW,17-7-3-0, $981,110. Werk Nick Rating: A+++.
*Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.[bullet ad=”blackwood-graduate-2″][bullet ad=”warrendale-midnightstormsales”][bullet ad=”vinery-sales-grad”][bullet ad=”kbif-g2g3″]2–Ashleyluvssugar, 120, g, 5, Game Plan–Ashley's Folly, by
Urgent Request (Ire). O-Sharon Alesia, Bran Jam Stable &
Ciaglia Racing LLC; B-Estate of Alesia, Bran Jam Stables &
Ciaglia Racing LLC (CA); T-Peter Eurton. $50,000.
3–Flamboyant (Fr), 122, g, 5, Peer Gynt (Jpn)–Relicia Bere (Fr),
by Until Sundown. O-David Bienstock & Charles N. Winner;
B-SNC Regnier & San Gabriel Inv. Inc. (FR); T-Patrick Gallagher.
$30,000.
Margins: HF, NK, HD. Odds: 1.70, 5.80, 4.50.[bullet ad=”irt-shell”]Also Ran: Si Sage (Fr), Finnegans Wake, Patentar (Fr), Texas Ryano, Ohio (Brz), Bolo.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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