Bernie Dickman

Bucchero’s 22nd winner is Sharon’s Grey Hope, a 3-year-old Indiana-bred who added to the stallion’s growing reputation of siring runners who have what the TV analysts like to call a great “turn of foot.”

Sharon’s Grey Hope was off in mid-pack in a 5 1/2-furlong maiden special race at Horseshoe Indianapolis, and was a good 10 or 11 lengths behind 3-1 pace-setter First Elkton when they hit the quarter in :22.49. Going to the half, Samuel Bermudez sent the 3-year-old filly up on the outside and Sharon’s Grey Hope responded with an Azeri-type move that shot her up to third entering the stretch.

When they straightened out in the lane, the filly bred by Southern Chase Farm and Karen and Greg Dodd was still six lengths behind First Elkton, buts she dug in and went past the leader like she was standing still. Sharon’s Grey Hope won by nearly two lengths clocked in 1:05.52, and earned a check for $21,600, breaking her maiden in her fourth start. Bucchero’s progeny earnings jumped to $828,150 for 2023.

Hard Astray looked more like Secretariat in the Belmont Stakes than a claimer at Mountaineer who was winning for the seventh time in his career and first of 2023.

In a one-mile race with veteran Yuri Yuranga aboard, the 6-year-old gelding by Gone Astray jumped out to the lead, opened up by two lengths in a :23.83 quarter, was 2 1/2 lengths in front after a half in :47.11, stretched it to six lengths with three quarters in 1:12.88. and cruised home by nearly eight lengths in 1:40.75 without receiving a threat.

Hard Astray, bred by JDAB Stables, paid $21.20 and earned a check for $4,814, raising his lifetime total to $52,622 on a record of 7-2-1 in 26 starts. He’s Gone Astray’s 21st winner of 2023.

Bucchero’s sizzling month of June continued yesterday with a maiden-breaking run by New Jersey-bred Delightful Ava at Monmouth Park.

The 3-year-old filly went wire-to-wire with Romero Maragh, racing ‘about’ 5 1/2 furlongs on the grass, winning in her fifth try and paying $14. She held off any challengers by passing the markers in :22.54, :45.22 and :57.76, before putting up a final clocking of 1:04.16 and scoring by half a length, worth $15,960 to owner/breeder Gregory Krlka.

Delightful Ava is Bucchero’s 21st winner in his sophomore season, and lifted him within less than $10,000 from reaching $800,000 in 2023 progeny earnings.

At this time of year, few stallions have reached a point where at least half of their runners have won at least one race. Long On Value has defied that statistic. The son of Value Plus has 10 starters and yesterday picked up his fifth winner; he’s 28th on Florida’s general sire list and only one stallion above him is also at 50 percent.

No. 5 for Long On Value is Constitutionalist, a 3-year-old filly who was so well-regarded she went off at 3/10 in a five-furlong maiden special at Mountaineer and paid $2.60. With Charle Oliveros in the saddle, the filly bred by George J. Kerr sat third early, moved after a quarter and was best by nearly three lengths at the wire.

Constitutionalist broke her maiden in her eighth start; she was clocked in 1:00.39 and collected a check of $9,570, boosting her total to $20,810.

The similarities between Oh Donna’s score in the third race at Belmont Park yesterday, and Dream Astray’s in the ninth race at Monmouth Park, were somewhat on the eerie side.

(1) Oh Donna is by Pleasant Acres stallion Bucchero; Dream Astray is by Pleasant Acres stallion Gone Astray.

(2) Oh Donna broke her maiden at the Meadowlands on Oct. 21 of 2022, and hadn’t raced since, a span of eight months. Dream Astray broke his maiden on Sept. 30 of 2022 at the Meadowlands, and hadn’t raced since, a span of 8 1/2 months. So both are now on two-race winning streaks, however far apart.

(3) Oh Donna broke through the gate, then went wire-to-wire in a seven-furlong race that went in 1:26.92, winning by 2 1/4 lengths. Dream Astray went wire-to-wire in a race at 1 1/16 miles on the grass that went in 1:43.24, winning by 3 3/4 lengths.

(4) Oh Donna earned a check for $15,400; Dream Astray earned $14,400.

Non-similar facts: Oh Donna is a 3-year-old filly bred by Edward R. Schuster in Florida – she paid $6.40 and was claimed. Dream Astray is a 5-year-old gelding bred by Kenneth D’Oyen in California – he paid $15.20 and wasn’t claimed.

After seven straight races at Gulfstream Park which produced one second and one third, Pink Party Pants shipped out west to Prairie Meadows and broke her maiden with a wire-to-wire performance in her first try over the track in Altoona, Iowa.

Ramsey Zimmerman carefully guided the 3-year-old filly from the first crop of Bucchero past the furlong markers in :22.80, :46.46 and :58.91 en route to a 2 1/4-length victory in 1:11.68 for the six furlongs and she earned a check for $7,980.

Bucchero has had 43 runners from his initial crop compete thus far in 2023 and 19 have won, resulting in $748,764 in progeny earnings. At that pace, he should wind up with about $1.6 million at year’s end, cementing a very successful sophomore season. However, only four of his 89 2-year-olds have started, so $2 million or more is a distinct possibility.

If anyone was looking for a movie to commemorate the career debut of Sentella, “A Star Is Born” seems highly appropriate.

The 3-year-old Neolithic filly bred by Andy and Susy Cant exploded on the scene at Charles Town last night in a $29,400 maiden special at 4 1/2 furlongs. With Jose Montano aboard, Sentella broke last of 10 from the No. 2 post, but her rider quickly rushed her up on the rail and she was settled in third under a stranglehold as they hit the quarter.

As the leaders were entering the stretch, they separated and Montano sent Sentella through the opening and into the lead, catching track announcer Paul Espinosa by surprise. When he picked up Sentella’s run, he shouted “Sentella with a huge move . . . she went by . . . just electric the move she put on . . . Sentella is drawing away like a good thing . . . wins by 7.” He was right on, the $11,000 OBS October yearling won by 7 1/4, clocked in :52.64.

The good thing had her final work at Charles Town – 4 furlongs in :47.60, second best of 21 at the distance that day, yet she was allowed to go off at 10-1, and she paid $22.80. Sentella’s initial payday came to $17,478 and it doesn’t appear as though it will be her last.

Long On Value has had just 10 runners thus far in 2023, but he picked up winner No. 4 when Don’t Question Me made an eye-opening run to capture a mile and a sixteenth maiden claimer at Penn National Wednesday night.

It took the 3-year-old gelding bred by Joseph Arbiritanza nine tries to get his first victory, but when it came, it was a thing of beauty. He broke fifth on the rail under Richard Chiappe, and drifted into the two path as they passed the quarter in :24.54. He began moving up on the backstretch and was fourth as they hit the half in :48.34, but suddenly dropped back for no apparent reason and was six lengths behind the leaders on the turn. Just as quickly, Don’t Question Me revved it up and closed the gap with a rush, went after the three battling leaders in the lane and coasted to the finish 1 1/2 lengths in front.

Don’t Question Me paid $13, earned a check for $8,160, and despite this being his first score, he raised his record to a respectable 1-0-3-3 in his nine starts.

Neolithic is less than $100,000 away from reaching the $2 million mark in career progeny earnings after the victory of Chalcolithic in a mile and 70-yard race at Delaware Park.

The 3-year-old filly owned and bred by William A. Smith enjoyed a rail trip early in the race under a stranglehold by Cecily Evans, swung out for racing room on the turn and was all out getting up at the wire by a neck. With her second victory in four starts this year, she paid $7, earned a check for $11,400 and lifted her sire over $1.9 million in earnings.

R Averie Lynn continued her assault on the Delaware Park oval yesterday, getting her eighth career victory, seven of them coming in Joe Biden’s home state.

The 5-year-old Gone Astray mare went wire-to-wire in a $25,500 starter allowance under Daniel Centeno and paid $5 for her second victory in a row, both of them receiving 87 Equibase ‘E’ speed figures. Bred by Dancing Wind Stables, R Averie Lynn was a $25,000 OBS July 2-year-old, and the $14,400 prize for her latest score, by nearly three lengths, boosted her lifetime earnings to $193,986 on a record of 8-12-3 in 34 starts.

Beauty of the Sea scored her second victory in a row on Saturday and gave sizzling Bucchero his fifth winner in the span of seven days.

The 3-year-old filly bred by Shade Tree Thoroughbreds finished fifth in her only try last year, but now has two victories and a second in her three 2023 starts at Gulfstream. With Edgar Perez aboard in yesterday’s race at 5 1/2 furlongs on the Tapeta course, Beauty of the Sea was off third from the rail, stalked the leaders until the turn, then split horses in early stretch and went on to score by two lengths. She was clocked in 1:04.19 and received an Equibase ‘E’ speed figure of 81.

Beauty of the Sea earned a check for $25,800, raising her four-race total to $58,960.