Kentucky Cup Juvenile S. (gr. III)
(gr. III , 8.5f ,)
POINT GIVEN
(CH h,
114
lb) $62,600
Thunder Gulch —Turko's Turn , by
Turkoman
B—The Thoroughbred Corp.,
KY.;
O—The Thoroughbred Corporation;
T—Bob Baffert
Holiday Thunder
(CH h,
114
lb) $20,000
Thunder Gulch —Magical Holiday , by
Slew o' Gold
B—S-B 1998 J.V. No. 1,
KY.;
O—John C. Oxley;
T—John T. Ward, Jr.
The Goo
(B h,
116
lb) $10,000
Meadowlake —Halo's Gleam , by
Halo
B—Dr. George S Stefanis,
KY.;
O—E. Paul Robsham Stables LLC;
T—Nicholas P. Zito
Margins: 3½, 4, ½. Others: Clever Thorne 114($5,000) , Dancing Missile 116($2,400) , Son of Rocket 116 , Millenimax 114 , Headlite 112 , Running Rahy 114 , Snow Ridge 114 , Drumcliff 116 . Winning Jockey, Shane J. Sellers.
California-based trainer Bob Baffert had a good visit to Kentucky Sept. 16. Baffert left Turfway Park with two stakes winners, Captain Steve in the Kentucky Cup Classic Stakes (gr. II), and Point Given in the Kentucky Cup Juvenile Stakes (gr. III).
His Juvenile winner went 11/16 miles over a fast track in 1:47.01, beating Holiday Thunder by 31/2 lengths, with The Goo another four lengths back in third. The win was Point Given’s second from three career starts. He made his racing debut Aug. 12 at Del Mar, finishing second in a maiden special weight contest. He went on to break his maiden by two lengths Aug. 26, also at the seaside oval.
Point Given races as a homebred for Prince Ahmed Salman’s The Thoroughbred Corp. Salman purchased Turko’s Turn, the dam of Point Given, for $130,000 while in foal to Dehere at the 1996 Keeneland November mixed sale. Hill ‘n’ Dale Sales Agency consigned the mare to the sale. The Thoroughbred Corp., through the consignment of Mill Ridge Sales Agency, sold her at the 1998 Keeneland November mixed sale while in foal to Hennessy. David Gavin’s Ironwood Farm signed the $160,000 ticket to take her home. “She was a really nice racemare, and she was going for a good price. I liked the fact that she was in foal to Hennessy. Overall it was just a good buy,” said Gabriel Duignan, horse manager at Ironwood Farm, which keeps about 16 mares.
The resulting Hennessy filly was sold for $120,000 to Hill Pass Stable at the 1999 Keeneland November mixed sale. The 8-year-old mare also has a Tale of the Cat filly foaled in April that is consigned to the Keeneland November mixed sale. Turko’s Turn is currently in foal to Charismatic.
The Thoroughbred Corp. bought the mare back from Ironwood shortly after Point Given made his first start. “When Point Given made his first start, and it looked like he was going to be pretty good, they bought her back for a lot more than what we paid for her originally. The good thing is that we have the Tale of the Cat foal,” Duignan said.
Thunder Gulch is the sire of Point Given and eight other stakes winners, including additional 2000 added-money winners Spain, who won the Turfway Breeders’ Cup Stakes (gr. III) the same day as Point Given won the Juvenile, and C’Est L’ Amour (gr. II). He also is the sire of Australian stakes winners Anatomy and Clonmel and Brazilian group III winner Thunder Queen. The syndicated stallion stands at Ashford Stud near Versailles, Ky. His 2000 fee was $25,000.—L.D.
