Tone Broke Scores Again in Breeders' Stakes
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Photo: Michael Burns
Tone Broke wins the Breeders' Stakes at Woodbine
L and N Racing's Tone Broke picked up his second stakes score Aug. 17 at Woodbine, winning by 1 1/2 lengths in the CA$400,400 (US$301,701) Breeders' Stakes.
Guided by Rafael Hernandez, the son of Broken Vow broke inward and was steadied, then angled to settle on the rail and stalked the pace in fourth. Seguimi and Rising Star battled for dominance at the front of the pack before Rising Star edged away to take the lead as the mile went in 1:15.97.
Tone Broke dropped back briefly heading into the far turn, moved two wide, and was angled out to set down for a drive. He's a Macho Man collared Rising Star just before entering the stretch. The lead was short-lived as Avie's Flatter surged in front by a head in the final furlongs.
Rallying down the lane, Tone Broke overtook a fading Avie's Flatter, who was passed in the final seconds by He's a Macho Man. The final time for the 1 1/2 miles was 2:30.43 on yielding turf.
"He played around a little bit with the head before the start. My gate crew did a great job. He tried to straighten him up, but they opened the gate so quickly and he just came out with the head high," said Hernandez, who earned his third Breeders' Stakes victory. "He gave me a hard time to relax him, but by the first furlong, he was relaxed good.
"I was OK all the way, just at the three-eighths (pole), I had to wait, you know. I was stuck there," said Hernandez. "I tried to move out a little bit, and (Pay for Peace) wouldn't give up. … I've got a big horse—he's got a big heart. I thought I could move a little bit and it would be OK, but he never gave up and stayed there."
He's a Macho Man took second, followed by Avie's Flatter in third. Encierro, Lucas n' Lori, Rising Star, Pay for Peace, Seguimi, and Flashymeister completed the order of finish.
“It’s a good thing we have a long stretch,” said Hernandez. “All you have to do is be patient. I used my patience, and as soon as I put him clear, he did the rest."
The Breeders' Stakes was the second leg of the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Canadian Triple Crown to fall to Tone Broke. The Steve Asmussen trainee entered Saturday's race off an upset victory in the July 23 Prince of Wales Stakes over 1 3/16 miles on the dirt at Fort Erie. The 3-year-old competed in the June 29 Queen's Plate Stakes—the first leg of the trifecta—and finished third on the all-weather track at Woodbine behind One Bad Boy.
"It looked like it was going to be a replay of the Queen's Plate (when he broke inward) a little where he didn't want to relax early, and Raffi got him to relax and everything went smooth," said Darren Fleming, assistant trainer to Asmussen. "We had a little traffic trouble and my heart was pumping in the turn, but luckily Tone Broke was talented enough to overcome it."
Bred in Ontario by Sean Fitzhenry out of the grade 3-placed Smart Strike mare Mendocino Beano, Tone Broke improved his record to 4-1-1 from 11 starts, with earnings of $528,600. He was purchased by L and N Racing for $40,000 from Keith Lancaster's consignment to the 2017 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. Tone Broke is the third foal out of Mendocino Beano to race and is her second stakes winner, joining Exchange Rate mare Stallion Heiress, who earned black type as a 3-year-old.
Mendocino Beano produced a full sister to Tone Broke in 2017 named Sansa's Vow. The filly was a $210,000 purchase by Solis/Litt from Lancaster's Keeneland September consignment in 2018.