Morton Fink

Mort Fink’s homebred Wise Dan achieved Grade I glory when he kicked clear of Mission Impazible in the final furlong to easily win the 137^th running of the $572,500 Clark Handicap presented by Norton Healthcare by 3 ¾ lengths on Friday at Churchill Downs.

Wise Dan gave Fink and trainer Charlie Lopresti a bit of redemption for last year’s Clark in which their Successful Dan was disqualified from an apparent victory. Successful Dan finished a head in front of Giant Oak a year ago, but because of interference with Redding Colliery in the upper stretch, was disqualified and placed third.

There was no doubt about Wise Dan’s sublime performance. Ridden by two-time Eclipse Award-winning jockey John Velazquez, Wise Dan tracked pacesetter Will’s Wildcat and Mission Impazible from clear sailing on the outside in third under a strong hold as the former led the field of 13 three-year-olds and up through fractions of 23.80, :48.24 and 1:12.80.

Midway around the final turn, Will’s Wildcat began to falter and Mission Impazible took the lead. Velazquez slipped Wise Dan some rein and the 4-year-old gelding quickly drew even from the outside. He kicked clear of that rival at the eighth pole and stood head and shoulders above the field in deep stretch while crossing the finish line in 1:48.95 for 1 1/8 miles over a fast track.

The versatile Wise Dan, a graded stakes winner on synthetic tracks and turf who entered the Clark off an impressive four-length romp in Keeneland’s Fayette (GII), is a gelded Kentucky-bred son of Wiseman’s Ferry out of the Wolf Power-SAf mare Lisa Danielle. The huge pot of $326,554 increased his earnings to $919,601. Overall, it was Wise Dan’s eighth victory from 14 starts (14-8-0-0).

Freddie Wirth, who guided Sentiment Sake to victory in the 1945 Clark, and Donna Allen, a vice president with Norton Healthcare, presented the Clark Handicap trophy to the winning connections.

Sent postward as 9-2 third choice, Wise Dan, who carried 120 pounds, returned $11, $6 and $4.20. Mission Impazible, who carried 116 pounds under Javier Castellano at odds of 7-1, paid $7 and $5.40. Flat Out, the 123-pound high weight and 2-1 favorite under Alex Solis, raced in mid-pack early and could only manage third, 2 ¾ lengths behind the runner-up, and paid $3.20 to show.

Mister Marti Gras, 9-2 second choice Ruler On Ice, Headache, Alma d’Oro, Will’s Wildcat, Prayer for Relief, Stately Victor, Demarcation, Pleasant Prince and General Quarters completed the order of finish.

The Clark was Wise Dan’s first stakes triumph on dirt. Before the Clark, he had three races on the Churchill Downs dirt that include maiden and allowance wins, both over sloppy surfaces, and a solid sixth-place finish in the 2010 Breeders’ Cup Sprint in which he was beaten just 2 ½ lengths by the champion Big Drama. He won the Firecracker (GII) on the Churchill Downs grass in early July, and added two stakes wins over synthetic surfaces: a victory in the Presque Isle Downs Mile in September and the Oct. 29 Fayette.

The Clark Handicap was run for the first time in 1875 during the first racing meet at Churchill Downs, which was then known as the Louisville Jockey Club. Like the Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (GI) and Kentucky Oaks (GI), the Clark has been renewed annually without interruption since its first running.

Racing at Churchill Downs continues Saturday with a 12-race “Stars of Tomorrow II” program exclusively for 2-year-olds with first post time of 12:40 p.m. (all times Eastern). Highlighting the program are two Grade II stakes: the 68^th running of the $150,000-added Golden Rod for fillies, which goes as the ninth race (4:42 p.m. post time), and the 85^th running of the $150,000-added Kentucky Jockey Club, which goes as the 11^th race (5:42 p.m. post time).

In just six years of existence, Stars of Tomorrow has been the launching pad for numerous graded stakes winners including 24 Grade I winners. Thirteen horses have exited the events and become millionaires: Court Vision ($3,746,658), Rachel Alexandra ($3,506,730), Lawyer Ron ($2,790,008), Pure Clan ($1,987,498), Shackleford ($1,985,803), Super Saver ($1,889,766), Macho Again ($1,825,767), Giant Oak ($1,484,829), First Dude ($1,442,140), Swift Temper ($1,296,688), General Quarters ($1,220,930), Fly Down ($1,187,935) and Any Given Saturday ($1,083,533).

Closing day of the 21-day Fall Meet is Sunday and Churchill Downs will offer free general admission to all patrons.

CLARK HANDICAP QUOTES

Charlie Lopresti, trainer of Wise Dan (winner): “It was perfect and I was pretty confident going into the race, other than about whether he could go the 1 1/8 miles on the dirt. But I thought he was going to run one of his best races today. I would have been disappointed if he didn’t do it. It looked like the Fayette. It was the same kind of race. He’s a pretty good horse. Just stay out of his way and try to take care of him.”

Q. What allows him to be so consistent on multiple surfaces?  “I just think he loves to run. We galloped him two miles the other day and the exercise rider came back and said he could have gone around five more times. He just doesn’t get tired. He just loves to run.”

Q. What are the plans for next year? “We’re going to give him the winter off, just like Turallure. We’ll give him some time to be a horse and then bring him back in the spring.”

Q. What went into the decision to ride John Velazquez for the first time? “Julien (Leparoux) rides all of our horses and he couldn’t ride him a few times and that’s why Jon Court got the mount on him (on thee occasions earlier this year). Jon Court has done a great job on him and it’s nothing he did wrong. Julien is our number one rider and rode him in the Fayette and when he won the Fayette he had already committed to ride in California today (Never Retreat in the Grade I Matriarch). I talked to the owner (Mort Fink) and he asked if we could get John Velazquez to ride him and I said I didn’t know if he would come. I called Angel Cordero (Velazquez’s agent) and he called me back in five minutes and said they were coming. Mr. Fink said any time that you can get John Velazquez on a horse you should try it.”

Q. How does it feel to win this race after being taken down with Successful Dan in last year’s Clark? “I was really disappointed last year. I just didn’t understand why they took his number down, but they saw it that way and I have to respect their opinion. I jokingly said surely we don’t get taken down this year. It’s a dream come true to be back here with this many good horses.”

John Velazquez, jockey on Wise Dan (winner): “I like these pickup mounts. It worked out perfect. I was on the outside and the trainer (Charlie Lopresti) told me he was going to be pulling pretty strong, but to keep him third or fourth. Right from the start I got him back and he settled pretty good. He was strong in hand and when I got to the quarter-pole he took off and moved so smoothly. He was very confident in himself.”

Todd Pletcher (via phone from New York), trainer of Mission Impazible (runner-up): “He’s run two big races, but unfortunately he’s been a bridesmaid twice there this year in the two Grade Is (the Stephen Foster Handicap and Clark Handicap). But it was another big effort from him and we’re proud of him.”

Q: Everything looked possible at the head of the stretch …“I thought at the three-eighths pole you could see Wise Dan was really loaded up, and then I thought we might have snuck away from him for just a half a second, but he (Wise Dan) was just too good on the day and hats off to him. He ran a big race and I’m very proud of our second.”

Q: Assuming he’ll race next year, so what will be the early plan for his 5-year-old campaign? “We might take a look at the (Grade I) Donn (Handicap at Gulfstream Park), and of course he loves the Fair Grounds, so those races there would certainly be possibilities. We feel like he’s a Grade I horse and we’ve been very unlucky not to win one, so that’s our main objective.”

Javier Castellano, rider on Mission Impazible (runner-up): “He loves Churchill. We had a beautiful spot today; we were where I wanted to be in the race. He settled down beautifully and I loved the way he did it. I think we were just second-best today. I’m very satisfied and very happy with the way he did it today. I’m not disappointed at all. I know we got beat and he finished second, but you’ve got to give a lot of credit to the winner. He was very impressive.”

“Scooter” Dickey, trainer of Flat Out (third as the favorite): Q: Jockey Alex Solis said he believed Flat Out just does not care for this racetrack.  What are you thinking? “I think that’s what we’ve got to kind of face. I saw him and he was laying perfect over there and he started his move, and I said ‘Well, if he likes this track he’s going to run good today. But he just looked like he got to fightin’ it, and Alex said when asked him to run he just can’t handle it. He said he had a hold of him and he had a lot of horse, and he was very happy with where he was laying. But when he asked him, it wasn’t there.”

Q: That’s amazing because he works so well over this track … “Yeah, but you know he’s only working five-eighths and all that. He laid right there with ‘em and he looked good, but that was it. He came back and seemed fine. I looked at his legs and they’re fine and everything, but it’s just one of those things, I guess.”

Q: You have talked about trying him on the grass next year. Is that still a thought? “Well, I’m going to Florida and I’m going to work him on it down there and see how he likes that. But we’ve enjoyed him. We’ve had a good time this year.”

Alex Solis, rider on Flat Out (third as the favorite): “He broke really good and I got a good position. He went really nice when he was in hand, but as soon as asked him to drop his head he’d just start swimming around. He struggled over the track too much.”

Q: You think he just doesn’t care for the track at Churchill Downs? “Definitely, because when you see the replay you can see him stumbling and losing his footing and he’s a horse that needs to get in a rhythm.”

Kelly Breen, trainer of Ruler On Ice (fifth): “Just looking back, they say he may not be at his best when he has to take all the dirt in his face and the one-post kind of put us there.  Garrett (jockey Garrett Gomez) didn’t mention anything negative about it, but knowing the horse it didn’t help our cause.”

Mort Fink’s Wise Dan stalked the pace and rallied to take over from Strike Impact in deep stretch to draw off and win the 21^st running of the Grade II, $203,000 Firecracker Handicap Presented by GE by 2 ¾ lengths over Baryshnikov on Monday to close out the 38-day Spring Meet at Churchill Downs.

Trained by Charlie Lopresti and ridden by Jon Court, Wise Dan ran the mile on a firm Matt Winn Turf Course in 1:34.59. It was Wise Dan’s fifth victory in 10 starts, but first on turf. He became the first horse to win the Firecracker without a previous race on the grass.

Wise Dan is a 4-year-old gelded homebred son of Wiseman’s Ferry out of the Wolf Power-SAf mare Lisa Danielle.

The victory was worth $119,567 and increased Wise Dan’s earnings to $323,047 with a record of 5-0-0 in 10 starts. The Firecracker was the second graded stakes victory for Wise Dan, who won the Grade III Phoenix at Keeneland last fall. That race served as a steppingstone to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Churchill Downs in which he finished sixth.

Longshot Plutonium and 6-1 chance Strike Impact prompted the early pace of :23.81, :47.19 and 1:11.12 with Wise Dan just off their hips in third from the outside. Strike Impact grabbed the lead at the head of the stretch and Wise Dan was in close pursuit four-wide to his outside. With clear sailing and right handed urging by Court, Wise Dan kicked home powerfully to turn back a late run by Baryshnikov, who rallied from the back of the pack to get the place.

“Wow! He ran huge,” said Lopresti, who breezed Wise Dan a half-mile in :48.80 over the Matt Winn Turf Course on Tuesday – a move that convinced him to enter in the Firecracker. “Jon rode him perfectly and that’s what this horse has needed all along. He had him sit back and just make one big run with him. I wanted that kind of a race. I didn’t want him in a speed duel. He needed to learn how to relax and he’s grown up and matured.”

It was the second stakes win of the meet for Lopresti, who also won the $76,445 Kelly’s Landing on June 24 with Here Comes Ben. He has four stakes wins at Churchill Downs overall. Fink combined with Lopresti to win the 2009 Northern Dancer (Grade III) at Churchill Downs with Successful Dan for his only other Churchill Downs stakes win. For the 50-year-old veteran Court, it was his 12^th stakes triumph beneath the Twin Spires.

Wise Dan, carrying 115 pounds, returned $30.60, $12 and $7.40 as a 14-1 wagering choice in the field of 10 older horses. Baryshnikov, the 5-2 favorite ridden by Julien Leparoux at 117 pounds, paid $5 and $3.80 and finished a neck in front of Strike Impact, who paid $4.20 to show under Robby Albarado at 117 pounds.

Mystic, Lubash, Plutonium, 119-pound starting high weight General Quarters, Joshua Reynolds, El Caballo and Omniscient completed the order of finish. Mister Marti Gras was scratched.

Leparoux won his eighth Churchill Downs riding title (fourth at the Spring Meet) with 53 victories with Corey Lanerie in second with 47 triumphs. Steve Asmussen held off late charges by Ken McPeek and Eddie Kenneally to win his 10^th training title and fifth straight which began with the 2009 Spring Meet crown. Asmussen had 18 wins, one more than McPeek and Kenneally. Richard and Karen Papiese’s Midwest Thoroughbreds Inc. was the leading owner with eight wins, two ahead of Jay Em Ess Stable and 17-time champs Ken and Sarah Ramsey.

Racing returns to Churchill Downs on Sunday, Oct. 30 for the 122^nd Fall Meet, a 21-day stand that will be highlighted by the return of the Breeders’ Cup World Championships to the track on Nov. 4 and 5.

FIRECRACKER HANDICAP QUOTES

Charlie Lopresti, trainer of Wise Dan (winner): Q. Immediate reaction after the race: “Wow! He ran huge. (Jockey) Jon (Court) rode him perfectly and that’s what this horse has needed all along. He had him sit back and just make one big run with him. I wanted that kind of a race. I didn’t want him in a speed duel. He needed to learn how to relax and he’s grown up and matured.

"Things have been tough on him. He had to come back off long layoffs and run against good horses. At Keeneland, I was a little disappointed in him in the Commonwealth (when he finished fourth) and then we threw him to the wolves in the Alysheba (finished eighth), but he really didn’t run a bad race and only got beat a few lengths and then he just lost by a couple of lengths. I told Mr. (Morton) Fink that he’s getting better every race and some horses it just takes a few races.”

Q. What went into the decision to try him on the turf? “Mr. Fink and I were talking about it and decided that since he was nominated we would go up and work him on the grass just to see what he would do. They had him coming home (in the workout) in 23 (seconds) and everyone was telling me he worked phenomenal and Jon (Court) told us he could have gone around the track again.”

Q. What’s the next spot for Wise Dan? “Turallure (also trained by Lopresti) was going to run in the Fourstardave (at Saratoga) and we might think of running him (Wise Dan) there, but I don’t know…we’ll want to try and keep the two apart. I don’t think there are any mile races up there and I don’t want to run him (Wise Dan) any further. We’ll look at the fall and the big races and the Breeders’ Cup (Mile), but he’s earned a little vacation so we’ll see how he comes out of this and then decide where to go.”

Mort Fink, owner of Wise Dan (winner): “This is one of the most exciting things that’s happened to me. This makes up a little bit for getting disqualified from the (2010) Clark (with Successful Dan). He’s a super horse.”

Jon Court, jockey of Wise Dan (winner): “I didn’t want to go with the leaders. The strategy was to get him to rate and he actually settled and we were able to wait for the punch down the lane. When we hit the top of the stretch, I had a bridle full of horse. I wanted to pull away as fast as I could and beat them to the wire and he did that. As the owner (Fink) said, it’s great when a plan comes together.”

Mike Maker, trainer of Baryshnikov (runner-up): “Not winning the race is the only thing I’d change. We’ll just take it race-by-race from here. Obviously he’s stepping up every time. There’s a big race run here in the fall and it would be nice to get back to that one.”

Jockey Julien Leparoux, rider of Baryshnikov (runner-up): “He ran good. He broke OK, but not as fast as the other ones. But they set a nice pace for us and he relaxed good and put me in the race on the backside, then he made his run and he ran big.

“In my mind I knew there was a lot of pace and the main thing was the start. He broke good, but not as fast. But I was comfortable there. He was nice and relaxed and I got a clean run after that. I was just second-best today.”

Q: Baryshnikov keeps stepping up … “He’s a nice horse and he keeps trying.”

Robby Albarado, jockey on Strike Impact (third): “Ideally, I would have liked to have been in the back a little bit more, but he was just a little keen. Having said that, I don’t think it compromised him because he ran to the wire. They just went awfully fast for him. When I turned for home, I loved where I was sitting, and he exploded, too. The horse was going really good.”

Tom McCarthy, trainer of General Quarters (seventh as the favorite): “He appeared to come back just fine.  He (jockey Jamie Theriot) said he was going just fine and he asked him to go at the quarter pole and he just came up empty, that’s all. Maybe he just bounced (from his first race of the year), I don’t know.”

Morton Fink’s Successful Dan outdueled Warrior’s Reward in a stretch-long battle by a head to win the 12th running of the $108,900 Northern Dancer (Grade III) for 3-year-olds on Saturday at Churchill Downs.

            Ridden by Julien Leparoux, Successful Dan reeled off fractions of :24.54, :48.63 and 1:13.01 with Warrior’s Reward and Calvin Borel lurking just behind in the field of six. Turning for home, Warrior’s Reward drew on even terms with Successful Dan but never could push on by as Successful Dan remained undefeated in three starts.

            Trained by Charles Lopresti, Successful Dan ran the 1 1/16 miles on a fast main track in 1:43.30. A Kentucky-bred son of Successful Appeal out of the Wolf Power mare Lisa Danielle, Successful Dan earned $66,843 with the victory and increased his earnings to $128,603.

            Successful Dan returned $6.40, $3.20 and $2.40. Warrior’s Reward paid $2.20 and $2.10 with Omniscient, ridden by Robby Albarado, finishing 3 ¼ lengths back in third and returning $2.40 to show. Dumar, Gresham and Broad Stone completed the field in order.

POST-RACE QUOTES – THE NORTHERN DANCER

JULIEN LEPAROUX, jockey of SUCCESSFUL DAN (winner)

            Q: When Warrior’s Reward came to you…

            “I thought that I had a lot of horse left when he (Calvin Borel) came to head me. I wasn’t really expecting to see him that early in the race so I knew I had to move early so he wouldn’t get the jump on us. If he would have moved before me, he would have probably won the race. This is a very good horse, he hasn’t made any mistakes yet.”

“I really thought Calvin was going to come by, but my horse just kept going and kept digging, so he fought and kept a head in front of him, so that was good.”

CHARLES LOPRESTI, trainer of SUCCESSFUL DAN (winner)

“It’s really exciting.  He’s a really nice horse, but we just didn’t know whether he’d get the two turns, but he sure fought hard today.”

Q: What did he show you that made you think he was good horse?

“When we breezed him early on, he’s such a big, long-striding horse, but the first time I breezed him a half-mile he went like :47 and he did it real easy, and I thought ‘Holy smokes, he’s a pretty nice horse’.”  We were optimistic when we ran him first time at Keeneland, then he was slow breaking and then he really showed a good race there.  Then I didn’t know if he’d like the dirt here, because he’d never been on the dirt.  But the way he ran here showed us he was a pretty good horse, and the next thing was to try to get him to go a little further.  We tried to get an allowance race for him here to try him around two turns and see what happened, but we couldn’t get it to go.  So we put him in here and it worked out pretty good.”

Q: How does this change your picture of going down the road with him?

“I think we’ve got a good horse and we’ll see how he comes out of it and go from there.  He really, really showed some heart here.  I thought there for a minute that he was beat, because that’s a very, very good horse that we ran against.  That’s a really good horse.”

CALVIN BOREL, jockey of WARRIOR’S REWARD (runner-up as the favorite)

“He ran good, he ran good. There was no pace and two horses were scratched. He just needed a little something to run at. He got a little tired right at the end, but he had never been that far under pressure. The race didn’t just set up to his style. He likes to take back and make a run. But that’ll happen sometimes. That’s why I had to lay a little closer, but he ran good and just missed.”

IAN WILKES, trainer of WARRIOR’S REWARD (runner-up as the favorite)

            “Both horses ran hard. The other horse (Successful Dan) just outran us down the lane. Let’s not undercut that, the winner ran hard. My horse ran good, but the other horse ran fantastic. I haven’t lost any faith in him. I thought he ran a tremendous race.”

            Q: What will you consider next?

            “Probably the Dwyer (the Grade II, $200,000 Dwyer Stakes for 3-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles will be run on Saturday, July 4 at Belmont Park). He needs more experience. Just like the horse who beat us. He ran twice and we had run four times. We need to keep going and our horse will get better.”

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