Tales of Chaucer 'tough to beat' in Churchill Downs' Bashford Manor
Trainer Norm Casse began training on his own in late March but is already attempting to win his first stakes race with 2-year-old maiden winner Tales of Chaucer, who is the 4-1 second choice on the morning line in Saturday's Grade 3, $100,000 Bashford Manor at Churchill Downs.
Tales of Chaucer, a half-brother to New York-bred stakes-winning fillies Filibustin and Indy’s Lady, led every step of the way in his June 1 debut and was a strong 3 ½-length winner in the slop at Belmont Park over five furlongs.
“If Tales of Chaucer runs back to his maiden win, he could be tough to beat,” Casse said. “I wasn’t expecting him to have to run against 12 other horses, though. He fits in the race but anything can happen in a full field.”
The New York-bred son of Forty Tales, who was purchased for $58,000 at the OBS March Sale, will attempt to give 34-year-old Casse his first stakes win as a first-year trainer. The colt’s ownership group includes Michael and Jules Iavarone, Becky Thomas’ Sequel Racing, Samuel R. Freeman, Dorsey Jackson and Casse’s Cardinal Hill Racing.
“He’s a really good looking horse,” Casse said. “We’ve partnered with some great owners on this horse and he’s shown in his training and debut how talented he is.”
The complete Bashford Manor field from the rail out (with jockeys, trainers and assigned weight): Shanghaied Roo (Gabriel Saez, Bret Calhoun, 120 pounds, 9-2 morning line odds); Weiland (Carlos Villasana, John Ennis, 122, 6-1); Baytown Glory (Jack Gilligan, Paul McEntee, 120, 30-1); Sir Truebadour (Ricardo Santana Jr., Steve Asmussen, 120, 4-1); Mr Chocolate Chip (Euclyn Prentice Jr., Cory Davidson, 120, 30-1); The Song of John (Sonny Leon, Rey Hernandez, 120, 20-1); Eye Cloud(Rogelio Miranda, Tracy Norris, 120, 20-1); Mr. Granite (Nathan Vickers, Wayne Rice, 120, 30-1); Tales of Chaucer (Julien Leparoux, Norm Casse, 120, 4-1); Dalliance (Arienne Cox, Wayne Rice, 122, 20-1); Toothless Wonder (Mario Gutierrez, Doug O’Neill, 120, 7-2); Cat Addiction (C.J. McMahon, Steve Asmussen, 118, 15-1); and Overanalyzer (Andres Ulloa, Michelle Elliott, 120, 20-1).