Ring Weekend Gets Up, Sets Course Record in Baruch

Ring Weekend | Benoit Photo

Ring Weekend, making just his third start of the year, rebounded from a lackluster effort in the Aug. 20 GI Fourstardave H. to earn a gritty victory while setting a new course record in Sunday's GII Bernard Baruch H. at Saratoga. The chestnut gelding, winner of the 2014 GII Tampa Bay Derby, added a pair of graded events over the turf at Belmont and Saratoga near the end of his sophomore campaign. He made only one start at four, but made the most of the opportunity with a one-length triumph in the Mar. 7 GI Frank Kilroe Mile.

A narrowly beaten second behind the reopposing Takeover Target (Harlan's Holiday) while suffering a wide trip in his first start in over a year in the May 21 GII Dixie S., Ring Weekend raced keenly after getting pinched back at the break and checked in sixth in the Fourstardave.

Favored to make amends Monday, Ring Weekend sat just off the pacesetters while saving ground along the hedge behind fractions of :23.26 and :46.59. He tipped out a path in upper stretch, reeled in pacesetting Take the Stand and outbattled Jay Gatsby, who was trying to desperately rally between those two foes in the dying strides. Connections had to then sweat out an inquiry into the tight finish, but jockey John Velazquez was always confident the victory was secure.

“I was pretty certain when the horse [Jay Gatsby] got between us, I went to lean a little bit, but I saw the horse on the inside start coming out with him at the same time,” Velazquez explained. “You can see how far out we came from the rail because the horse on the inside was coming out, so I was not concerned about the inquiry.”

Terry Finley of co-owner West Point Thoroughbreds, admitted he was confident Ring Weekend would return with a good effort Monday.

“The day after the Fourstardave, Graham [Motion] said, 'I think we've got a shot to run him back at the end of meet' and it kind of took me back a little bit,” said Finley. “All week long, he's trained great and I had a great feeling. I don't ususally tell everybody, but I told everybody I thought he would be very tough today. I had no reservations about bringing him back because Graham's got a really good sense of this horse and he really loves this horse. All those things put together, we had a lot of confidence in putting everything together towards this outlook and we have great partners.”

Pedigree Notes:

Ring Weekend's victory gave leading sire Tapit his second graded victory of the afternoon after Scuba's win in the GIII Greenwood Cup S. Tapit also had a pair of dead-heat winners in the GI Spinaway S. in Sweet Loretta and Pretty City Dancer at Saratoga Saturday.

Multiple stakes placed Free the Magic produced a full-sister to Ring Weekend in 2015 who is catalogued as hip 839 at the upcoming Keeneland September sale. The mare was bred back to the Gainesway stallion this year. Her Danish-bred dam Pompoes (Den) (Belmont), a French Group 1-placed juvenile, is also the dam of MGSP Three Generations (Alydar) and GSW Forest Wind (Green Forest).

Monday, Saratoga
BERNARD BARUCH H.-GII, $250,000, SAR, 9-5, 3yo/up,
1 1/16mT, 1:38.29 (NCR), fm.
1–RING WEEKEND, 118, g, 5, by Tapit
1st Dam: Free the Magic (MSP), by Cryptoclearance
2nd Dam: Pompoes (Den), by Belmont
3rd Dam: Wilhelmina, by Pall Mall (Ire)
($310,000 Ylg '12 KEESEP). O-St. Elias Stable & West Point
Thoroughbreds; B-Gainesway Thoroughbreds Ltd. (KY); T-H.
Graham Motion; J-John R. Velazquez. $150,000. Lifetime
Record: GISW, 17-6-4-2, $1,305,410. Werk Nick Rating: A+.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.[bullet ad=”gainesway-consigned-by”][bullet ad=”gainesway-keesep-2016-hip-839″][bullet ad=”irt-shell”][bullet ad=”crupi-trained”][bullet ad=”kbif-g2g3″]2–Jay Gatsby, 116, r, 4, Giant's Causeway–Starry Dreamer, by
Rubiano. O-Allen Stable, Inc.; B-Joseph Allen (KY); T-James A.
Jerkens. $50,000.
3–Take the Stand (Arg), 117, h, 5, Not For Sale (Arg)–Taken
Away (Brz), by Wild Event. O-Earle I. Mack LLC, Wachtel Stable
& Brous Stable LLC; B-Santa Maria De Araras (ARG); T-William
I. Mott. $25,000.
Margins: NK, NO, 3/4. Odds: 2.95, 3.35, 4.70.
Also Ran: Farhaan, Dubai Sky, Reporting Star, Takeover Target, Solemn Tribute, Natchez. Scratched: War Dancer.
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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