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Bentornato, a Rising Star for Trainer D'Angelo, on Target for Breeders’ Cup Sprint
Bentornato en la Breeders’ Cup Sprint
Racing
Bentornato won the Gallant Bob Stakes, above, Sept. 21 at Parx Racing and is on target to compete in the Cygames Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Del Mar. (Eclipse Sportswire)
The undeniable quality of the speedy 3-year-old Bentornato boosts the chances of young Venezuelan trainer José Francisco "Kikito" D'Angelo in the Breeders' Cup. The World Championships that highlight the best of horse racing will be held at Del Mar on Nov. 1-2 for the 41st edition.
Translated from SPanish to English by Alexa Zepp
This important series consists of 14 Grade 1 races with $33 million in prize money, and for the 18th time horses from around the world were able to qualify through the "Win and You're In" Challenge Series program. This makes the handicapping and selection process more challenging, as in recent years the scales have increasingly tipped in favor of horses from Europe and Asia. Connections put it all on the line for these challenging races, and D'Angelo has good reason to aim high.
So far, in his short U.S. racing career, the Venezuelan trainer has surpassed over a hundred wins in a season twice and has qualified for the lucrative Breeders’ Cup series with racehorses Howard Wolowitz (by Munnings out of Forget Me Not, by Uncle Mo) and Bentornato (by Valiant Minister out of Her Special Way, by Put It Back). Bentornato secured his spot with his recent victory in the Grade 2 Gallant Bob Stakes at Parx Racing under the guidance of Puerto Rican jockey Irad Ortiz Jr.
This horse has already made a name for himself on the Florida circuit. After winning his debut and then his second race convincingly, his connections entered him in the demanding Florida Sire Stakes series. He won the first two legs, the Dr. Fager and Affirmed Stakes, but finished third in the final race going 1 1/16 miles after facing the challenge of two turns for the first time.
Jose D'Angelo, Bentornato, and owner Leon King. (Bill Denver/EQUI-PHOTO)
In his 3-year-old campaign, Bentornato recorded a third-place finish at King Abdulaziz Racetrack in the $5,625,000 Boutique Group Saudi Derby on Feb. 24 and a second in the Hilton Memorial Stakes at Charles Town on Aug. 23. He most recently won going six furlongs in a close finish on Sept. 21 at Parx Racing in the Gallant Bob Stakes.
This noble dark bay or brown colt is trained by D'Angelo for owner Leon King Stable. He was bred by Tanma Corp in Florida. Bentornato has secured five wins in eight starts, along with one second-place and two third-place finishes. He has accumulated $791,830 in purse earnings, giving him an impressive resume that unquestionably marks him as an elite racehorse.
After the Gallant Bob victory, D'Angelo praised Bentornato not only for his athletic ability but also for his “remarkable intelligence in learning from his training, especially in the starting gate, where he had some initial problems that he has overcome.”
This endorsement inspires more confidence for his connections and bettors, as this horse has shown that he doesn't back down from his rivals and seems to have a promising future that could result in another triumph, this time against the best in the world in the Cygames Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Del Mar.
For now, D'Angelo presents two strong contenders for the Breeders' Cup. The uncertain part is whether he will be able to surpass the second-place finish he achieved in the 2020 Big Ass Fans Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile with beloved Jesus’ Team, owned by Stud 7C, with Panamanian jockey Luis Sáez aboard.
La innegable calidad corredora del raudo tresañero Bentornato, blinda las posibilidades de triunfo del joven entrenador venezolano, José Francisco "Kikito" D'Angelo, en la serie de los mejores criadores del hipismo estadounidense, la Breeders’ Cup, a disputarse en Del Mar a principios de noviembre próximo.
En su edición 41 –la importante serie, consistente en 14 carreras de Grado 1 con $33 millones a repartir en premios– es la 18º ocasión que será abierta para jinetes y caballos de todo el mundo a través del programa "gana y participas" (Win and You´re In), lo cual complica la escogencia y el favoritismo dado que en las últimas ocasiones se ha visto la balanza inclinada hacia Europa y Asia; no obstante, a esas exigentes pruebas se acude por todo, y D’Angelo presenta excelente material para aspirar alto.
Hasta ahora, el trainer venezolano –que en corta campaña en el hipismo estadounidense vuelve a superar el centenar de triunfos en una temporada– clasificó para la millonaria serie con los ejemplares Howard Wolowitz (Munnings en Forget Me Not por Uncle Mo), y Bentornato (Valiant Minister en Her Special Way por Put It Back), por su reciente triunfo en el Gallant Bob Stakes G-2, de Parx Racing, bajo las órdenes de “La Máquina” boricua, Irad Ortiz Jr.
Este ejemplar se doblocoronó en el circuito de La Florida, ya que además de ganar su debut en un Maiden Special Weit y su siguiente prueba de manera contundente, sus conexiones decidieron llevarlo a la exigente serie de la triple corona en la cual se anexó los dos primeros peldaños y cayó en el tercero sobre distancia de 1700 metros en la que debió conformarse con un show –tercer lugar– luego de sortear el desafío de los cuatro codos por vez primera. Luego se recuperó y en su campaña de tresañero, Bentornato registra un tercer lugar en el hipódromo King Abdulaziz, en el marco de la Boutique Group Saudi Derby G3 el pasado 24 de febrero; un segundo en el Hilton Memorial Stakes corrido en Charles Town el 23 de agosto, y se acaba de imponer en 1.200 metros, en cerrado final, el pasado 21 de septiembre en Parx Racing en el Gallant Bob Stakes G2.
Así, el noble zaino entrenado por D’Angelo, propiedad del Leon King Stable LLC y criado en Tanma Corp, Florida, completa un registro de cinco triunfos en apenas ocho presentaciones, con un placé y dos shows, para sumar 791.000 dólares en premiación. Sin dudas, una destacada hoja de ruta que pertenece a un verdadero campeón.
Jose Francisco D’Angelo, luego del triunfo, tuvo palabras de elogio para su noble animal al que, además de exaltar por sus condiciones atléticas, ensalzó “por su destacada y demostrada inteligencia para aprender de los entrenamientos; sobre todo dentro del aparato, donde había tenido algunos problemas iniciales ya superados”. Ese aval genera más confianza a sus allegados y al apostador en general, ya que este ejemplar que ha mostrado que no se deja amilanar por sus rivales, parece tener un futuro promisorio, que pudiera presagiar un nuevo grito de guerra, pero ahora en las tribunas de Del Mar, cuando pase la raya en ganancia y retumbe ¡Bienvenido Nuevamente!
Lo cierto es que hasta los momentos el entrenador D’Angelo presenta dos cartas fuertes en la Breeders Cup. Lo incierto es si podrá superar el segundo lugar que obtuvo en 2020 con el favorito Jesus’s Team, pupilo del stud 7C, con la conducción del panameño Luis Sáez en el marco de la Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile donde resultó vencedor el tordillo Knicks Go.
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