Chelsea Durand Photo

Motion armed with eclectic arsenal for Belmont Stakes Racing Festival

Trainer Graham Motion is looking to field an eclectic assortment of horses during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival next week, from the up-and-coming 3-year-old Rugbyman, who is under consideration for the $150,000 Easy Goer on Belmont Stakes Day, to the stalwart Augustin Stable homebred Spring Quality, who at age 6 will be making his first Grade 1 appearance in the $1 million Woodford Reserve Manhattan at 1 ¼ miles on the turf.

Motion also is pointing Lady Alexandra, who won the License Fee in her first start for him, to the Grade 3, $200,000 Intercontinental on opening day of the Festival, Thursday, June 7; European import Esquisse to the Grade 2, $600,000 New York presented by NYRA Bets on Friday and Serena’s Song winner Berned to the Grade 1, $750,000 Ogden Phipps on Belmont Stakes Day.

Rugbyman, a gray son of Tapit bred and owned by Wertheimer Et Frere, finished a closing third in his debut on April 13 and followed that with a rousing 14-length maiden victory over older horses at a mile at Belmont Park.

“He was impressive enough in his maiden victory to consider a stake for his next start,” said the trainer. “A lot will depend on how be breezes on Friday.”

Spring Quality, a son of Quality Road out of the Deputy Minister mare Spring Star, made a single appearance at age 2, winning a seven-furlong maiden at Keeneland, then reappeared in the spring as a 4-year-old to take an optional claimer at Tampa Bay Downs. Given more time off, he finally began racing on a consistent basis in 2017, notching his first graded stakes win in November in his second start on turf in the Grade 3 Red Smith Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack.

In his first start this year, he was beaten less than a length by fellow Manhattan hopeful Robert Bruce in the Grade 3 Fort Marcy.

“He had little niggling issues that kept him away from the races, but knowing he had the ability, his owner [George Strawbridge] was very patient with him,” said Motion, noting Spring Quality has won five of 10 starts, with three seconds. “I always thought he could be a grass horse, but he was running so well on dirt I didn’t move him [until the second half of 2017].”

Spring Quality was entered in the Robellino at Penn National in August, which wound up coming off the turf and which he won by a neck. He followed that by finishing second in the Roanoke at Parx, and an encouraging fourth in the Grade 2 Knickerbocker at 1 1/8 miles at Belmont.

“Looking back, maybe I should have moved him [onto turf] earlier,” said Motion. “That being said, I’ve always had this race in mind for him, and the timing of the Fort Marcy was perfect.”

Lady Alexandra, who was purchased last year for $375,000 by the Heider Family Stables at the Horses of Racing Age Sale at Keeneland following an optional claiming victory at Belmont in June, made one subsequent start at Saratoga for trainer Tom Proctor, finishing eighth in the Coronation Cup. Sent to Motion over the winter, she trained forwardly and made her 4-year-old debut a winning one with a 3 ½-length score in the License Free going six furlongs.

“I was extremely impressed with her performance in that race,” Motion said.

Esquisse, who arrived in Motion’s barn in late fall of 2017, finished third, beaten 1 ¼ lengths in a one-mile allowance in April at Keeneland and second, one length back, in an optional claimer on May 18 at Belmont.

“Her races here have been very good,” said Motion of the British-bred daughter of Dansili. “Perhaps she’s showing more in the morning than in the afternoons. Her mother [the Rahy mare Legerate] ran 1 ½ miles, so perhaps the difference might be the extra quarter-mile.”

Berned, owned by Robert Masiello and West Point Thoroughbreds, would be making her third Grade 1 appearance in the 1 1/16-mile Ogden Phipps, having finished fourth in the Coaching Club American Oaks at Saratoga last summer and seventh in the Starlet at Laurel Race Course as a 2-year-old while under the care of Tom Albertrani.

The Bernardini filly is 1-0-1 this year, with a third-place finish in the Grade 2 Barbara Fricthie at Laurel and a sixth in the Grade 3 Distaff Handicap at Aqueduct.

“This would be a big step up for her,” said Motion. “A lot will depend on who is running.”

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Lucullan ready to step up for Grade 1 debut in Manhattan

Godolphin Racing’s Lucullan is “doing very well” ahead of his Grade 1 debut in the Manhattan, reported Kiaran McLaughlin on Wednesday. The eighth straight start on grass for the colt by Hard Spun will be a step up in class, said his trainer, but the Kentucky-bred should benefit from a couple of factors while taking on a talented group.

The distance of 1 ¼ miles, a bit longer than his customary attempts at 1 1/8 miles, should also aid his late running style, McLaughlin noted.

“He’s doing very well,” he said. “It’s a tough race for us, but we feel like he likes the Belmont turf course, and he’s gets in light. He’s getting in at 114, so he should be good.”

Two of the colt’s three career victories have come over the Belmont grass after he necked out a maiden win in his third career start while making the switch to turf. He also earned a two-length victory that fall over the Widener course following a third-place finish at Saratoga Race Course that summer.

The chestnut son of Hard Spun closed out his 3-year-old season in the Grade 3 Hill Prince in October, where he utilized his strong kick to close well amid a four-wide journey over the inner turf to finish second. In that effort, fell a neck short of Yoshida, now a Grade 1 winner after winning the Turf Classic at Churchill Downs earlier this month.

The Manhattan will be the fourth start of the year for the earner of $260,450 through nine starts. He was third last time out in the Grade 3 Fort Marcy on May 3 behind the talented Robert Bruce and has been based at Godolphin’s private Greentree Training Center in Saratoga since.

McLaughlin said Runhappy winner Westwood is heading towards a start in the Grade 2, $250,000 True North for 4-year-olds and up at 6 ½ furlongs on Friday, June 8.

The 4-year-old gelding covered four furlongs in 48.23 seconds over Belmont’s training track on Wednesday morning, his first work since his three-quarter-length victory in the six-furlong Runhappy at Belmont Park on May 12.

“He worked good this morning, 48 and change,” said McLaughlin. “He moved up a day because of the weather. He’s heading to the True North and doing well. Johnny [Velazquez] will ride.”

By Bernardini and out of Hall of Fame mare Ashado, Westwood earned his first stakes victory in the Runhappy, which followed his stakes debut in the Grade 3 Commonwealth at Keeneland, where he was passed late to finish fifth by two lengths, his lone off-the-board finish in eight starts.

One day removed from Belmont Stakes Day, Peter Deutsch’s Kentucky Oaks runner Take Charge Paula will make her return in the $150,000 Jersey Girl at six furlongs on Sunday, June 10.

McLaughlin expects the Take Charge Indy filly to work in the coming days. In her morst recent breeze, she went four furlongs in a bullet 47.34 seconds on May 25 over the training track.

Take Charge Paula put together a three-race win streak beginning last fall and culminating with a 3 ½-length score in the Grade 3 Forward Gal at Gulfstream Park in February. She followed with back-to-back seconds in the Grade 2 Davona Dale and the Grade 2 Gulfstream Park Oaks.