Pre-entries for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile were announced Wednesday with the fastest horse in the division, theoretically speaking, the undefeated and untested Rated by Merit, as expected, not on that list.
Rated by Merit was awarded a 99 Beyer Speed Figure for his easy victory here last Saturday in the seven-furlong Affirmed Stakes. That is the highest number posted by any 2-year-old in 2024. But the connections of Rated by Merit, trainer Michael Yates and owners Vinnie and Teresa Viola, said in the aftermath of that performance they would stick to their earlier decision and bypass the Juvenile with their exciting prospect to await the 1 1/16-mile In Reality Stakes at Gulfstream Park on Nov. 30.
“Obviously it was a difficult and to some unpopular choice to make. A lot of people would certainly have loved to have seen him in the Breeders’ Cup,” Yates said on Wednesday. “But it was a mutual decision among our group, and one that was pretty far-sighted and made with the best interests of the horse in mind. And hopefully we will be rewarded for it down the road.”
Yates said Rated by Merit came out of the Affirmed in good shape and was eager to return to the track after doing little more than grazing and walking the past several mornings.
“He’s doing really well,” said Yates. “He worked hard to do what he did on Saturday but the morning after he was plenty bright, had good energy, and by the third day after the race he was on his back legs ready to get back to the track.”
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Rated by Merit will attempt to become the 11th horse to sweep all three legs of the open division of the Florida Sire Series when he runs in the In Reality, which will be decided on the third day of the 2024-25 Championship meet.
Rajiv Maragh back riding
Jockey Rajiv Maragh returned to the saddle following a 2 1/2-year absence here Sunday, finishing ninth after contesting the early pace aboard the Colin Maragh-trained Gabagool in the fifth race.
“It felt amazing,” Maragh said after the race. “It’s a victory on its own just riding again. The couple of years I was off I took riding off the plate. At one point, being 140 pounds in the summer, it looked far-fetched from reality.”
Maragh’s wife, Angelina, gave birth to the couple’s second child, Lila, last Friday. They also have a 4-year-old son, Luka. The 39-year-old journeyman’s desire to spend more time at home in South Florida with his family was a major motivation for his decision to ride locally.
Maragh began his career in this area, having ridden his first race at Calder Race Course on Dec. 29, 2003. His first winner came a month later at Tampa Bay Downs.
Maragh has 1,939 victories on his résumé with the goal of reaching the 2,000-win milestone playing a major role in his decision to launch a comeback. The two most notable of his wins came aboard Groupie Doll in the 2012 and 2013 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint.
“I have some unfinished business,” said Maragh. “I never fully retired. I always kept a toe in the water, that’s why I never officially released a statement that I was retired. And now is a great opportunity to come back.”
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◗ A field of eight Florida-bred fillies and mares will contest Friday’s $48,000 main event at 5 1/2 furlongs over the Tapeta track under allowance and optional-claiming conditions.
Foggy Note, who has finished worse than third but once in eight previous starts on the synthetic track, figures to vie for favoritism with Bodacious Bren when facing statebreds for just the second time in her career. Bodacious Bren is coming off her best performance from a Beyer standpoint, earning an 80 speed figure when finishing a fast-closing second, beaten a neck, under similar conditions over the Tapeta four weeks ago.
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