Aqueduct wrap: Xigera, Everso Mischievous win Grade 2 stakes

Xigera confirmed her status as an elite dirt horse with an impressive 3 1/2-length score in Saturday’s 66th renewal of the Grade 2, $250,000 Mother Goose, a nine-furlong route for sophomore fillies, at Aqueduct.

Trained by Philip Bauer and piloted by Julien Leparoux, the Nyquist dark bay entered from a commanding 6 1/4-length romp in the 1 1/16-mile Seneca Overnight on Sept. 23 at Churchill Downs to secure her first main track win. The talented dark bay previously won a trio of turf starts, including the one-mile Tepin in July at Ellis Park.

Bauer and owner-breeder Richard Rigney had considered sending Xigera to the Breeders’ Cup Distaff on Nov. 4 at Santa Anita, but believes the team made the right decision to ship the emerging star to New York.

“The hindsight is the easiest sight, so now that it’s done, it was the right decision,” Bauer said. “I’m overwhelmed. It’s a pretty cool race historically. This year, as a whole, has just been phenomenal for Richard and us, and to accomplish what we have is something special and we need to make sure we don’t take it for granted. It was the right decision and hopefully it will springboard her to a 4-year-old campaign that has been as impressive as her last two races.”

Xigera stalked in second position to the inside of the Junior Alvarado-piloted Defining Purpose as the Chad Brown-trained Undervalued Asset led the seven-horse Mother Goose field through splits of 23.79 seconds, 48.46 and 1:12.95 over the fast main track. Occult, the 2-1 Brown-trained second choice under Irad Ortiz, Jr., raced in fifth position down the backstretch and made her move outside rivals as Undervalued Asset took the field into the final turn.

Leparoux gave Xigera her cue midway through the final turn and put away the challenge of Ashland (G1) winner Defining Purpose, opening up a 2 1/2-length advantage at the stretch call, before surging to a comfortable score in a final time of 1:48.99. Defining Purpose completed the exacta by three-quarters of a length over the late-running Occult with Julia Shining, Foggy Night, Undervalued Asset and Peak Popularity completing the order of finish.

Bauer credited Leparoux with engineering a perfect trip.

“I told Mr. Rigney going into the first turn, ‘There’s no excuses. If she’s good enough, she’ll win,’” Bauer said. “Especially when they slowed it down the second quarter. We thought the four (Undervalued Asset) was going to be a rabbit considering the entries for Chad. When the fractions were as realistic as they were, I felt pretty confident into the far turn when Julien was in position and the demeanor he presented sitting on her. You never know until they cross the wire, but I’d like most of my horses to look like that at the quarter pole.”

Leparoux said he felt confident throughout as he tracked the early speed of Undervalued Asset.

“She has good tactical speed as long as she’s relaxed,” Leparoux said. “I knew Chad would send one of his fillies to the lead, so I was planning on sitting next to him and making a big run at the end. We always knew she was talented. She’s very good on the turf, but on the dirt it looks like she’s much better.”

Alvarado said the Kenny McPeek-trained Defining Purpose, who added the Indiana Oaks (G3) to her ledger in July, was brave in defeat.

“My filly did what I thought she was going to do. I took my shot at the quarter pole to the favorite, I tried to make it competitive there,” Alvarado said. “But she pulled away from me. My filly still ran a great race to get second. I thought I had enough horse to at least put up a fight, but the other filly was too much today.”

Xigera graduated at second asking in August 2022 over turf at Saratoga and subsequently was elevated to third that October in her dirt debut in the Alcibiades (G1) at Keeneland. She would make her next four starts on turf, winning twice, before returning to the main track in the Seneca Overnight.

Bauer indicated Xigera could make her next start against older fillies and mares in the Falls City (G3) on Nov. 23 at Churchill Downs.

Xigera, out of the stakes-winning Black Tie Affair mare Argent Affair, is a half-sister to graded stakes-winner Forty Under, who won the 2018 Pilgrim (G3) over the Belmont Park turf. She banked $137,500 in victory while improving her record to 9: 5-1-1 and returned $4.10 for a $2 win bet.

Everso Mischievous beats elders in Forty Niner

Qatar Racing’s stakes-winning sophomore Everso Mischievous defeated elders in his graded stakes debut, fending off a late rally from dual New York-bred stakes winner Dr Ardito to capture Saturday’s 43rd running of the Grade 2, $300,000 Forty Niner – formerly known as the Kelso – for 3-year-olds and upward going a one-turn mile at Belmont at the Big A.

Trained by Brad Cox, Everso Mischievous entered the Forty Niner from a sharp 3 1/4-length victory in the seven-furlong Harrods Creek on September 23 at Churchill Downs. The Into Mischief bay has finished no worse than second in six lifetime starts, which also includes a seven-furlong maiden triumph at second asking at Churchill Downs as well as a first level allowance score against elders at the same distance on Aug. 5 at Saratoga.

Breaking from post 2 under Cristian Torres, the Qatar Racing-owned Everso Mischievous rated a close second and tipped a path to the outside of the Kendrick Carmouche-piloted pacesetter Swiftsure, who registered an opening quarter-mile in 23.29 seconds and a half-mile in 45.89 over the fast main track. Around the far turn, Everso Mischievous matched strides with Swiftsure, and graded stakes placed Film Star joining them widest of all.

Everso Mischievous held clear command at the stretch call as Film Star and the slow-starting post time favorite Accretive put in their runs on the outside, but Everso Mischievous was able to keep his foes at bay and hang on to a half-length win in a final time of 1:35.32. Dr Ardito charged late to grab place honors, a nose in front of fellow Chad Brown trainee Accretive.

Completing the order of finish were FiIm Star, Swiftsure, Business Model and Double Crown. Synthesis was scratched.

“He was perfect. The trip worked out perfect. Kendrick went to the lead and I sat two-wide the whole race – that’s where he runs comfortable,” said Torres. “When we were turning for home, I asked my horse and he took off again. He’s a nice horse, so he finished up. They always thought this was a nice horse. In the beginning of his career, he was a little green, but it was just a matter of time that he’d mature. They put blinkers on him at Saratoga and he improved a lot. They’re very happy, I’m very happy, and I’m very grateful to ride this kind of horse.”

Torres earned his first career graded stakes triumph aboard Last Samurai in this year’s Razorback (G3) at Oaklawn Park and collected his sixth graded stakes win in the Forty Niner.

“It’s unbelievable. I can’t express how I feel,” Torres said. “To win a stakes race in any part of the country is awesome, but NYRA? It’s great.”

Brown was proud of Dr Ardito’s run under Manny Franco, but said he often is late on the scene.

“Dr Ardito ran good late. He's frustrating as sometimes he's just late to get going and it was just a little too late,” Brown said. “It's a double-edged sword; if you push him off the bridle too early, he's kind of a one-run horse. He wasn't really taking Manny there and I'm sure Manny wanted to be closer. It is what it is and just the way the race unfolded. The winner got a jump on everyone, but ran a really good race start-to-finish and finished the race off when it counted when everyone was running at the wire.”

Brown said Accretive, who was a last out second to Cody’s Wish in the Vosburgh (G2), was hindered by missing the break.

"It cost him a little bit there. It forced him to rush up and get a wide trip and it probably cost him a length or so,” Brown said. “My horses both ran solid, but the winner just ran a little bit better.”

Brown indicated that Dr Ardito and Accretive could target the $500,000 Cigar Mile Handicap (G2) on Dec. 2 at Aqueduct.

Everso Mischievous, who returned $7.20 for a $2 win wager, banked $165,000 in victory which upped his lifetime earnings past the half-million mark to $524,640. He now has a 6: 4-2-0 record.

Bought for $85,000 at the 2022 Keeneland November Sale, Everso Mischievous is out of the graded stakes-winning Medaglia d’Oro mare Ever So Clever. He was bred in Kentucky by Clearsky Farms.