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Team Valor International will fire two shots in a bid to win the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (gr. IT) for the second straight year. State of Play and Lucky Chappy will represent the stable and trainer Graham Motion in the $1 million race Nov. 5 at Churchill Downs in Kentucky.
Undefeated State of Play resumed training Oct. 12 at Keeneland after a fever knocked him out of his intended prep in the Oct. 9 Bourbon Stakes (gr. IIIT) at the Lexington track. The War Front colt has not raced since his victory in the Sept. 1 With Anticipation Stakes (gr. IIT) at Saratoga, which earned him a “Win and You’re In” berth in the Juvenile Turf.
Lucky Chappy (by High Chaparral) will be made eligible for the Breeders’ Cup at a cost of $130,000 after a troubled but promising first race in the United States. He finished third in the Bourbon Stakes in his first outing since taking the Premio Giuseppe de Montel in Italy July 3 after getting off to a slow start.
After watching a replay of the Bourbon several times, Motion advised Team Valor CEO Barry Irwin that he would like to start Lucky Chappy in the Breeders’ Cup. Irwin took a poll of the colt’s partners, and they voted in favor of paying the six-figure fee to make him eligible for the Breeders’ Cup program for the rest of his career.
Last year, Team Valor scored in the Juvenile Turf with Pluck, and Motion prevailed in the Emirates Airline Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf (gr. IT) with Shared Account.
