Juvenile Fillies: Tapping Into Untapable

Most Breeders' Cup races are predicated on an East Coast versus West Coast debate, with a sprinkling of European horses mixed in to keep things spiced up. In this year's $2 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (gr. I) Nov. 2 at Santa Anita Park, the East Coast pair of Artemis Agrotera and Sweet Reason, the 1-2 finishers in the Oct. 5 Frizette Stakes (gr. I), square off against the cream of the West Coast crop in Chandelier Stakes (gr. I) winner Secret Compass, runner-up She's a Tiger, and Sorrento Stakes (gr. II) winner Concave.

However, don't dismiss Winchell Thoroughbreds' Untapable, the Tapit   filly who has had her way in both of her starts at Churchill Downs.



The homebred bay filly always wanted things her own way since she was a foal, according to David Fiske, manager of Ron Winchell's Oak Wind Farm north of Lexington.



"She was always a little bit temperamental; she never wanted to get caught in the stalls or outside. She wanted things her own way," he said.



Untapable got on the fast track while in training with Steve Asmussen at Churchill Downs in Kentucky, breaking her maiden in her debut going wire to wire at 5 1/2 furlongs under Rosie Napravnik.



"I don't think anybody was expecting that," Fiske said. "The plan was to run her at Churchill and then take her up to Saratoga to break her maiden."



With the win in her hip pocket, she traveled to Saratoga, but didn't get a chance to run at the Spa. Fiske said Untapable was entered in the Aug. 11 Adirondack Stakes (gr. II) but was scratched after being a little colicky the day before. She made up for it a month later when she returned to Churchill and won the Sept. 7 Pocahontas Stakes (gr. II). Rating off the pace under Napravnik, Untapable got up late in 1:44.38 while traveling the Juvenile Fillies distance of 1 1/16 miles.



Winchell Thoroughbreds raced Tapit and own a sizable portion of the Gainesway Farm sire who is tied with Awesome Again   and Smart Strike   as leading active sires of Breeders' Cup winners (with four). Tapit is the sire of Stardom Bound, winner of the Juvenile Fillies in 2008 and Tapitsfly, winner of the Juvenile Fillies Turf the following year. Tapit is also the sire of Tapizar  , winner of last year's Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (gr. I). Three of Tapit's four Breeders' Cup winners have won at Santa Anita. He has five pre-entered runners for 2013.



The Pocahontas winner is out of the grade II-winning Fun House, whose second foal, Paddy O'Prado   (by El Prado) won the 10-furlong Secretariat Stakes (gr. IT) and four other graded stakes and ran third in the 2010 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I).



Untapable traces back to the taproot mare for the Winchell operation in Carols Christmas. The daughter of Whitesburg is the dam of three stakes winners for the farm in grade I winner and Arkansas Derby (gr. II) winner Olympio; grade II winner Call Now, the second dam of Tapizar; and Your Call, the second dam of grade II winner Wild Wonderand Wild Vision, the dam of Forego Stakes (gr. I) winner and sire Pyro. Carols Christmas is also the second dam of grade I winner Cuvee and multiple graded winner Bien Nicole.



Tapizar was shipped to California early for the World Championships a year ago and Fiske noted Untapable has followed a similar route. Untapable already has a pair of works over the Santa Anita surface, the latest a 1:00 4/5 move Oct. 20.



Anyone wanting to move in on the family need look only to the Keeneland November sale, where Untapable's full sister, Double Tapped, will be on offer.