Sky of Hook is Tapiture's First Black-Type Winner

Darby Dan Farm's multiple graded stakes winner Tapiture  was represented by his first black-type winner July 17 when his son Sky of Hook won the inaugural $97,000 Rick Violette Stakes in a downpour at Saratoga Race Course.

A homebred racing for Esteban Vargas' E.V. Racing Stable and trained by Rudy Rodriguez, Sky of Hook is undefeated in two starts. The colt broke his maiden May 10 at Belmont Park, closing strongly in the five-furlong test to win by a head. In the Rick Violette, Sky of Hook stalked the pace as he did in his debut before grinding down pacesetter Listentoyourheart in the last stride to win by a nose. The final time in the six-furlong stakes on a sloppy (sealed) track was 1:13.17.

"The track conditions weren't ideal, but he broke sharply and handled it well," said Sky of Hook's rider, Luis Saez. "When we came towards the stretch, I really knew he was game. He was trying his best. I knew I had enough to get there, and thankfully we did before the wire." 

Sky of Hook is the first winner and first stakes winner for his dam, Ambitious Dancer, a winning daughter of Latent Heat out of winner Isbell Ambiel (by Strodes Creek). 

Vargas acquired Ambitious Dancer through the 2016 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale for $5,000 in foal to Tapiture. Trainer Naipaul Chatterpaul signed the ticket on the mare bought out of Brookdale Sales' consignment and is listed as the co-breeder of the colt. Vargas, however, is now the mare's sole owner, according to Torie Gladwell, whose Top Line Sales operation broke and trained Sky of Hook. The colt's early training was overseen by Omar Ramirez, who manages the farm and also handles Vargas' account.

"We had entered Sky of Hook in the OBS March sale, but E.V. decided after a couple of breezes to keep him and send him to Rudy," Gladwell said. "This is a nice colt, and E.V. loves the Saratoga meet and thought he fit up there. … That was a gutsy win."

Rodriguez said Sky of Hook's first two races have opened up options for the colt going forward.

"We tried to get him ready and get him along without hurrying him. It worked out good," Rodriguez said. "I thought he was in trouble because he was lagging a little bit. But to run like this in the slop, everything worked out perfect.

"He can handle the sloppy track, but he's been working pretty good on the grass, too. We'll see what we have to do there."

Though Sky of Hook was foaled in New York, the mare is at Ponder Hill Farm near Ocala, Fla., where she foaled a full brother to Sky of Hook in February. The mare was bred back to first-year sire Girvin .

Tapiture ranks fourth on BloodHorse.com's leading first-crop sire list with total progeny earnings of $259,481. He has seven winners to date from 20 starters. He stood this year for $7,500.

Previously run five times as the Rockville Centre Stakes and contested at Belmont Park, the race was renamed for the late trainer Rick Violette Jr., former New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association president and founding board member of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance.

"It's great to win a race like this that's named after Rick for all the good things he's done for the sport. We really miss him," Rodriguez said.