Contact: Joan Lawrence, (646) 335-6833, jlawrence@ntra.com
ARROGATE REMAINS IN FIRST, NTRA TOP THOROUGHBRED POLL
(Receives all 37 first-place votes)
Saratoga Springs, N.Y. (Monday, July 5, 2017) – The top ranked horses of all ages shows little movement in either direction in week 23 of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) Top Thoroughbred Poll, which results were released today.
Arrogate (37 first-place votes; 370 points) remains the unanimous top choice. The leading earner in North American racing history is trained by Bob Baffert for owner Juddmonte Farm. The Dubai World Cup winner and Eclipse Award winner is in training with the possibility of making his first start in the TVG San Diego Handicap. (G2) on July 22 at Del Mar or the G1 $1million TVG Pacific Classic on August 19 at Del Mar Race Course.
Gun Runner (320) ranked second since his win in the Stephen Foster Handicap (G1) at Churchill Downs for owners Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC and Three Chimneys Farm. The Stephen Foster is a Breeders’ Cup “Win & You’re In Classic Division” series, which awards winners of its races an automatic berth in Breeders’ Cup Classic on November 4 at Del Mar, California. Trained by Steve Asumussen, the Hall of Famer is considering the Whitney (G1) at Saratoga on Aug. 5 for the son of Candy Ride’s next possible start.
Two-time Eclipse Award winner Songbird (276) remains in third after her first start of the year in the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps “Win and You’re In Breeders’ Cup Distaff Division,” on June 10 at Belmont Park.
In fourth position is Shaman Ghost (239). Trained by Jimmy Jerkens for Stronach Stables, Shaman Ghost will look to garner his third straight stakes win in the Grade 2 Suburban Handicap as part of Saturday’s Stars & Stripes Racing Festival at Belmont Park.
The top-ten in descending order are: Arrogate ( 370 first place votes; 37 points); Gun Runner (320); Songbird (276 ); Shaman Ghost (239); Mor Spirit (197); Stellar Wind (149); Lady Eli (97); Lady Aurelia (75); Mind Your Biscuits (47 ); and Neolithic (44).
The NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll concludes November 6 after the running of the Breeders’ Cup.
The full results for the NTRA weekly Thoroughbred poll can be found on the NTRA website at:
http://ntra.kinsta.cloud/ntra-top-thoroughbred-poll-july-5-2017/
Preview of vote by voters can be viewed at:
http://ntra.kinsta.cloud/wp-content/uploads/Polls-week22-by_voter-2017.pdf
About the NTRA
The NTRA is a broad-based coalition of more than 100 horse racing interests and thousands of individual stakeholders consisting of horseplayers, racetrack operators, owners, breeders, trainers and affiliated horse racing associations, charged with increasing the popularity, welfare and integrity of Thoroughbred racing through consensus-based leadership, legislative advocacy, safety and integrity initiatives, fan engagement and corporate partner development. The NTRA, Based in Lexington, Ky., owns and manages the NTRA Safety & Integrity Alliance; NTRA.com; the NTRA Top Thoroughbred and NTRA Top 3-Year-Old weekly media polls; the Eclipse Awards; the National Handicapping Championship; NTRA Advantage, a corporate partner sales and sponsorship program; and Horse PAC, a federal political action committee. NTRA press releases appear on NTRA.com, Twitter (@ntra) and Facebook (facebook.com/1NTRA).
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