Yockey's Warrior Exits Thanksgiving 'Cap in Good Shape
Trainer Al Stall, Jr., was satisfied with what he saw from Yockey’s Warrior one day after the son of Warrior’s Reward impressed onlookers with a sharp victory in the $75,000 Thanksgiving Handicap.
“He seems okay,” Stall said. “He’s very quiet, laid back and just walking around; so far, so good with him. We’ll give it a few more days and further evaluate him, but the preliminaries look good.”
In the holiday feature, the dark bay relaxed well just off the pace before wearing down the leaders and asserting himself by 2¼ lengths at the wire. The victory was his first in a stakes in his first try in added-money company. After a series of minor set-backs, it was the four-time winner from 10 start’s first time lining up victories back-to-back. Previously, he was an impressive winner in allowance company at Keeneland.
“This particular horse forced us to give him breathers,” Stall, who owns the colt in part with Stewart Madison et al., said. “It was not like with Blame or others where we gave them time off on purpose, but it still worked out for him. If the race Thursday was at the end of a long year, we would back off, but the exciting part is we still don’t know what we have and he’s just getting good. We aren’t sure what is next, but we have had minor discussions about it.
“For now we’ll just enjoy this and see where he will go from there,” Stall concluded. “We haven’t got to the bottom of him. If he keeps improving, you never know what he could be.”
MARCO MISCHIEF PROMISING IN GRADUATION: In a field flush with Kentucky-breds with fashionable pedigrees, including two halves to Grade I winners, Louisiana-bred juvenile colt Marco Mischief closed with aplomb down the long Stall-Wilson turf stretch at Fair Grounds on Thanksgiving afternoon and caught Zinger, a half-brother to Eclipse finalist I’m a Chatterbox, by a head at the wire in the one-mile maiden special weight under Marcelino Pedroza for trainer Leo Gabriel, Jr.
Owned by Jay and Joan Janssen, the son of America’s top 2-year-old sire Into Mischief was making his second start and first on the grass. At first asking, in a seven-furlong dirt maiden at Gulfstream Park West on Oct. 15, the bay colt closed from well back in last of six to finish second by 3¼ lengths at the wire.
“I thought he would be a lot closer today and all of a sudden he was dead-last early on,” Gabriel said. “That’s why I put the blinkers on him. Last time we really thought a lot of him, he just got so far back last time, but really came running. The blinkers didn’t do any good today, but he won. We thought he was a nice horse and he proved it today. Now I can put him with Louisiana-breds.”
Marco Mischief was a $135,000 purchase at the Ocala Breeders’ Sale April 2016 Spring Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training. He earned an 81 Equibase Speed Figure for his win in which he closed from nearly 10 lengths back, passing 10 horses to claim his first victory.
WORK TAB: Consistent turf allowance and stakes campaigner R. Great Adventure, who was claimed for $62,500 last out on Nov. 9 by trainer Keith Bourgeois for owner Troy Williams, worked a half-mile in 50.40 for his new connections.
Talented stakes-winning 4-year-old Maryland-bred Mayla worked a half-mile in 50.20 for trainer Bret Calhoun. The Carl R. Moore Management and Brad Grady-owned daughter of Sharp Humor exits a fifth after setting the pace in the Grade II Chilukki Stakes at Churchill Downs on Nov. 5.
Group III winner Aktabantay (GB) continues to work well locally for Tom Morley, negotiating three furlongs in 37 flat for owner Rainbow’s End Racing Stable.
Abundant Flurry worked an easy half-mile in 52.60 for trainer Neil Pessin and owner Lothenbach Stables. The promising and lightly raced 3-year-old daughter of Midshipman had worked a bullet three furlongs in 35.80 on Nov. 14 in her first work back since early September.
Source: Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots