By Steve Sherack
Arthur's Ride (Tapit), a disappointing fifth in the GI Jockey Club Gold Cup Stakes Sept. 1 after posting one of the more impressive performances of the year in the GI Whitney Stakes Aug. 3, remains on target for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar Nov. 2.
The stunning gray breezed five furlongs in 1:02.87 (1/2) for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott over Saratoga's Oklahoma training track over a surface labeled as “good” on a rainy Sunday morning Oct. 13, his fourth workout since the Jockey Club Gold Cup.
“Everything's been normal,” Mott said standing outside of his office at Barn 80. “He's been training with good energy, eating well. All the things you want to see. There are no negatives that I see at the moment.”
Arthur's Ride, a $250,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase by Glassman Racing, posted a breakthrough performance with a career-best 111 Beyer Speed Figure in a double-digit victory in an optional claimer going 1 1/4 miles at Saratoga June 7. He ran nine rivals off their feet following an aggressive ride from Junior Alvarado while making his stakes debut over a muddy track in the 'Win and You're In' Whitney. He tired to fifth, beaten 9 1/2 lengths, as the 4-5 favorite after facing some early pressure from eventual winner Highland Falls (Curlin) in the Jockey Club Gold Cup.
Arthur's Ride gearing up for @BreedersCup Classic over the Oklahoma training track at Saratoga pic.twitter.com/KPEaUzYiMn
— Steve Sherack (@SteveSherackTDN) October 12, 2024
“I guess the biggest step was coming out of the allowance race into the Whitney,” Mott said. “That was a huge jump, then we ran back in four weeks and probably as big of a race that he ran in the Whitney, I could see that he could possibly regress a little bit in the Jockey Gold Cup. Although I thought he was probably good enough to do it, he regressed a little bit, and now he's had a little more time to recover.”
Mott added, “I look for him to come back in the Breeders' Cup a little bit.”
While not ready to talk race strategy for Arthur's Ride in the Classic this far out–pre-entries for the Breeders' Cup will be announced Wednesday, Oct. 23–Mott said that his takeaway from the Jockey Club Gold Cup was that, “The horse doesn't need to be on the lead.”
Other potential 2024 Breeders' Cup runners for Mott include the GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf-bound War Like Goddess (English Channel). The 7-year-old mare worked four furlongs in :51.66 (70/84) over the Oklahoma training track Oct. 12. This will be the fourth and final trip to the Championships for the popular two-time GI Joe Hirsch Turf Classic S. heroine, who has been entered by owner George Krikorian for the Fasig-Tipton November sale. She was third as the favorite in the 2021 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf at Del Mar, third against males in the 2022 GI Breeders' Cup Turf at Keeneland and a troubled seventh in last year's Turf at Santa Anita. She came within a half-length of making it three straight wins against the boys in the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at the Big A Sept. 28.
Brittany Troxtell all smiles aboard War Like Goddess at Saratoga last weekend | Sarah Andrew
Juddmonte homebred and 'TDN Rising Star' Scylla (Tapit) worked a bullet four furlongs in :48.21 (1/31) for Mott over the Oklahoma training track Oct. 11. The well-related daughter of Close Hatches (First Defence) heads to the GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint following second-place finishes in the 1 1/16-mile GI Clement L. Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar Aug. 3 and seven-furlong GI Ballerina Handicap at Saratoga Aug. 24, respectively.
Lawrence Goichman homebred Scythian (Tiz the Law) punched her ticket to the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf with an 11-1 upset in the 'Win and You're In' GII Miss Grillo Stakes at the Belmont at Aqueduct meet Oct. 6. The New York-bred, one of four stakes winners for her freshman sire, is now two-for-two for Mott on the turf.
“They're all nice enough to warrant giving them a chance and seeing what we've got,” Mott said.
Recognized as Outstanding Trainer at the 2023 Eclipse Awards, Mott had three winners–Cody's Wish (Curlin) (Dirt Mile), Elite Power (Curlin) (Sprint) and Just F Y I (Justify) (Juvenile Fillies)–at last year's Championships held at Santa Anita. Cody's Wish and Elite Power were also Breeders' Cup winners at Keeneland in 2022.
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