Chancer McPatrick draws outside in Champagne; flashy Senza Parole steps up in Frizette

Sep 30, 2024 Kellie Reilly/Brisnet.com

Chancer McPatrick (left) and Ferocious fought out the finish in the Hopeful

Chancer McPatrick (left) prevails in the Hopeful (Photo by Coglianese Photos)

Trainer Chad Brown holds a strong hand in the Road to the Kentucky Derby and Oaks after scoring races at Aqueduct on Saturday. Hopeful (G1) hero Chancer McPatrick seeks another prestigious trophy in the Champagne (G1), and spectacular maiden winner Senza Parole makes her stakes debut in the companion Frizette (G1) for fillies.

Both contested around a one-turn mile, the Champagne and Frizette are worth points on the 10-5-3-2-1 scale to the top five finishers. They also serve as “Win and You’re In” events for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) and Juvenile Fillies (G1), respectively.

Champagne (G1)

Chancer McPatrick brings a perfect 2-for-2 record into the Champagne. The son of freshman sire McKinzie has defied troubled trips to rally impressively at Saratoga twice. After going last to first in his July 27 maiden, Chancer McPatrick hit the gate and got bumped in the Hopeful, causing jockey Flavien Prat to lose his stirrup. Yet he shrugged off that early mishap to prevail.

“Oh, he learned plenty,” Brown, a four-time Champagne winner, told NYRA publicity. “Both of his starts, he’s had to persevere through some trouble, tangled breaks, and some dirt in his face. He’s ran like an older horse. I’m pretty impressed with him.”

Chancer McPatrick has drawn the outside post 10 at Aqueduct, where he will meet Sanford (G3) scorer Mo Plex and several well-regarded maiden winners.

Todd Pletcher, who has saddled a record six winners of the Champagne, is double-handed in search of a seventh. Tip Top Thomas prevailed in the historically informative maiden on Travers Day, while Uncaged rumbled to a debut victory at the Spa on Aug. 3. Phil Serpe sends out Executive Order, who dominated a Saratoga maiden restricted to horses who brought no more than $50,000 at the sales.

Mo Plex, from the first crop of 2018 Champagne star Complexity, routed a New York-bred maiden here before landing the Sanford. Rather than facing tougher company in the Hopeful, trainer Jeremiah Englehart opted to revert to state-bred company for his latest start in the Aug. 25 Funny Cide S.

Englehart’s judgment was correct, considering that Mo Plex just barely got up in a photo. But the horseman expects improvement over a route of ground, and he’ll have that opportunity on the stretch-out here.

The only other entrant with a race over the Aqueduct track, Vekoma Rides, rolled by five lengths in his Sept. 14 premiere going six furlongs. Trainer John Kimmel doesn’t expect the relatively quick turnaround, or added ground, to be a hindrance for the son of freshman sire Vekoma.

“He won with some gas left in the tank, and he came out of it in good order,” Kimmel said. “(Jockey) Kendrick (Carmouche) had confidence when he rode him and told me he doesn’t think more distance will be an issue for this horse.'

“It was an easy race for him,” Kimmel added. “If it was a gut-wrenching performance, maybe we’d have to consider giving him more time. He’s kind of a tough horse to be around, a bully in the stall pushing you around. He thinks he’s the man. We’ll see what happens. It’s a race that has a lot of pluses if you win and not a lot of minuses if you don’t.”

Smoken Wicked has performed creditably in defeat in all of his stakes appearances. Most recently fourth to Chancer McPatrick in the Hopeful, the Dallas Stewart trainee was also second in the Bashford Manor S. at Churchill Downs and third in the Saratoga Special (G2).

New Jersey-bred J J Zo Zo proved himself in open company when wiring the Sept. 7 Smoke Glacken S. by 8 1/2 lengths, and he ventures away from Monmouth Park for the first time. Also shipping in are Colonel Bob, a first-out winner at Parx for Butch Reid, and Lethal Speed, who closed to spring a 12-1 upset in his Gulfstream Park debut.

Frizette (G1)

Senza Parole was the talk of the town after drawing off by 7 3/4 lengths in her Aug. 23 premiere at Saratoga. The daughter of Gun Runner registered a powerful 98 Brisnet Speed figure in that six-furlong maiden, and she’s bred to be even better with distance and maturity.

The Queens M G ranked as the division leader at Saratoga earlier in the summer, turning the Schuylerville/Adirondack (G3) double. But when seeking a rare sweep of the series in the Spinaway (G1), the Saffie Joseph Jr. pupil tired to fifth over a muddy track. Note that The Queens M G is cross-entered to the Alcibiades (G1) at Keeneland on Friday.

Others with stakes experience are undefeated Sorority S. vixen Social Fortress; Icona Mama, a close third in the Pocahontas (G3) on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks; Spinaway seventh Pondering, a Godolphin homebred who had won on debut at Ellis Park for Brendan Walsh; and Whatintheliteral, the upset winner of the June 6 Astoria but out of luck in three ensuing starts.

Aside from Senza Parole, two additional first-out winners are stepping up in class. Trainer Gary Contessa could have gone the conservative route with Another Cleeshay and pointed to a New York-bred stakes, but he prefers to give the Saratoga romper a chance at the highest level. Paradise City, The Queens M G’s stablemate from the Joseph barn, ships north after breaking her maiden in a sprint at Gulfstream Park.

Snowyte was a promising second in her unveiling at the Spa for Danny Gargan, and the Jorge Abreu-trained Scottish Lassie was third in the same maiden. The winner, Quickick, is in Friday’s Alcibiades.

The Frizette goes off as the seventh race at 3:17 p.m., followed by the Champagne as the eighth race at 3:49 p.m. (all times ET), and you can watch and wager at TwinSpires.com.

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