Snapper Sinclair, In Love Take TVG Stakes Divisions

Bloom Racing Stable's Snapper Sinclair  and Bonne Chance Farm's In Love  scored restricted stakes victories at Kentucky Downs Sept. 8, with the former capturing the TVG Stakes and the latter the TVG2 Stakes a race earlier.

Though both races had the potential to be worth $400,000, $100,000 of each purse was available only to Kentucky-bred runners, leaving the TVG2 race with an official purse of $330,160 after Brazilian-bred In Love was triumphant. The two races, split into divisions at entry time, were limited to horses that had not won a sweepstakes in 2021.

Snapper Sinclair, the 2-1 favorite, took charge from the start under Julien Leparoux with easy splits of :23.38, :47.65, and 1:12.57 and had enough to repel a stalking Bob and Jackie  by three-quarters of a length. Midnight Tea Time  was another three-quarters of a length back in third.

"When the horse loves the track, it's a big help and he obviously does," Leparoux said. "He travels good on it. Going downhill or uphill he is very comfortable with it. It's a big effort for us and I'm glad he won it today."

Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen trains the winner, who paid $6 to win. Snapper Sinclair was clocked in 1:40.24 for a mile and 70 yards on firm turf.

"This is exactly where he needed to be," Asmussen said. "He got a little bit of a break. I'm glad he was ready for Kentucky Downs. He definitely made us proud. He definitely shines here at Kentucky Downs. He's been a very special horse, that's even after making the trip over to (Dubai) this year. Just very proud for the Blooms and the Allens (Chuck and Lori). Snapper has been very good to us for a long time."

Snapper Sinclair has now made more than $1 million at Kentucky Downs from only four starts. He first won the Fasig-Tipton Turf Showcase Juvenile Stakes at the track as a 2-year-old, captured the Tourist Mile Stakes there two years later, and then was second in last year's Tourist Mile (now the WinStar Mint Million). The 6-year-old son of City Zip is also the first horse to win three stakes at Kentucky Downs.

He has a 7-8-4 overall record from 33 starts and a career bankroll of $1,793,340.

"He definitely has an affinity for Kentucky Downs," said Jeff Bloom of Bloom Racing. "Clearly, this is a track that 'Snapper' is very fond of and 'Snapper' is a horse we're all fond of. He's the coolest horse there is. He's just the best."

Bloom purchased the white-faced bay from consignor Randy Miles, spending $180,000 at the 2017 Ocala Breeders' Sales Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training. Snapper Sinclair was originally purchased for $30,000 by Cool Hill Farm at the 2016 Keeneland September Yearling Sale when consigned by Lane's End.

K & G Stables bred Snapper Sinclair in Kentucky out of the grade 2-placed Yes It's True  mare True Addiction , who is also the dam of stakes-placed Cat Addiction  (by Tale of the Cat). 

Video: TVG S. (BT)

About a half-hour before Snapper Sinclair competed, In Love rallied from fourth under Alex Achard to score by 2 1/4 lengths over favored Kentucky Ghost , who outfinished longshot pacesetter Brown Storm  by a head.

"I knew that there was enough speed in the race, which is good for us because he can be a little bit tough sometimes," Achard said. "We got the pace and were just behind chilling. When I asked him to go, he just went."

The winning 5-year-old Agnes Gold  gelding completed a mile and 70 yards in 1:38.55 following splits of :22.64, :45.58, and 1:10.28. Trained by Paulo Lobo, he paid $19.40.

Bred by Fazenda Mondesir/Stud Rio Dois Irmaos, In Love is out of the group 2-winning Know Heights  mare Last Bet , who also produced Brazilian group 1 winner Last Kiss .

In Love scored the first stakes victory of his career, coming in his first start with blinkers. He had twice won allowance races in the United States after being imported from South America, where he was third in a group 2 race in Argentina.

"We bred him in Brazil, and we send our best stock to race in Argentina," said Bonne Chance CEO Alberto Figueiredo. "This horse is no exception. When all the COVID started to stop all the races over there, we put him on a plane with two others. It was well worth the bet we made on him.

"This horse never disappoints us. And to be frankly honest, I always expected a little bit more from him. Even in his time in Argentina. He was always a horse that worked so well. Sometimes he did not do the same in the afternoon. But with time and more experience, and now maybe with the blinkers, I think we'll figure out more of him."

From 12 career starts, In Love holds a 4-2-2 record and has earned $279,700.

Video: TVG S. (BT)