Volume 4, Issue 1, October 2014

Z Thoroughbred Racing Goes East to New Orleans

New ZTR Trainer Brad Cox is a Winner

ZTR’s unraced LA-bred 2 year-old filly Half Waypoint, by Half Ours, is shown galloping at Churchill Downs for trainer Brad Cox on July 31st.

Brad Cox grew up a few blocks from Churchill Downs and earned an advanced degree in racing under the famed Twin Spires. He started working for trainers Burt Kessinger and Jimmy Baker before landing a job as assistant to trainer Dallas Stewart. His five-year stint there indoctrinated him to the revolutionary training program pioneered by D. Wayne Lukas and passed down through former assistants like Todd Pletcher, Kiaran McLaughlin and Stewart. Brad set out on his own in 2005 at the age of 25. 

 

A few years later, Cox identified Oaklawn as a place to build momentum and get rolling with horses he picked out through claiming races. Since then he has been a solid force in the trainer standings, closing out the 2017 season third in the trainer standings with 26 wins.  At Fairgrounds in 2017 Brad won the training title with 46 wins.

 

He won the $100,000 Bayakoa (G3) and $350,000 Azeri (G2) with Call Pat, both the $100,000 Arkansas’ Breeders and Nodouble with Weast Hill and the $150,000 Instant Racing with Cash Back.   

 

In 2016 Brad, for the 3rd year in a row, set career highs with 151 wins and earnings of $6,288,972. The barn also hit career highs in stakes wins (27), and maintained a 28% win rate for the year, while facing competition at many of the top tracks around the country. Brad also followed up 5 graded stakes wins in 2015, with 7 in 2016. Among his best runners were multiple graded stakes winners, Chocolate Ride, Cash Control, and Spelling Again.

 

“It's a business, for sure,” said Cox, 37. “It really takes a lot of organization (to be a trainer); I have lists on top of lists and I have to be really on top of each and every horse in my stable. I've also learned to appreciate all the people who work so hard to keep this operation moving forward every single day.”

 

Organization is easily the most important lesson Cox picked up from Stewart, he explained, especially in terms of managing horses at four or five different racetracks.

 

The current stable star is Abdullah Saeed Almaddah's Green Mask, this month an impressive winner of the Troy Handicap at Saratoga and previously the Highlander Stakes (G2) at Woodbine.  Victory in the “win and you're in” race earned the 6-year-old Mizzen Mast gelding an all-entry fees paid, automatic berth to the G1 Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint at Del Mar in November, a race in which he finished fifth in 2016.

 

Cox's wife, equine veterinarian Livia Frazar, shares the trainer's passion for the sport as well as each animal in the barn. His two sons, 19-year-old Bryson and 16-year-old Blake, are also a major part of the business.

 

“I think the ultimate goal for a trainer is to be able to develop a 2-year-old into a really good racehorse—to take it from the beginning all the way to the top of the sport. We have a good group of babies this year, and we're hoping several of them will jump up and take us to the next level.”

Fair Grounds Race Course and Slots in New Orleans, Louisiana opens for racing on November 18th and will have ZTR 2 year-old filly Half Waypoint on-site to compete for a share of its lucrative stakes schedule:

https://www.fairgroundsracecourse.com/sites/default/files/u12985/2016_Thoroughbred_Schedule.pdf

This season Fairgrounds will stage multiple stakes races for 2 year-old fillies including the Louisiana-bred restricted races the $100,000 Louisiana Champions Day Lassie and the $100,000 Louisiana Futurity.  In 2018 Fairgrounds will hold the $150,000 Silverbulletday, the $200,000 Rachel Alexandra S. (G2) and the $400,000 Fairgrounds Oaks (G2), all for 3 year-old fillies as well as LA state-restricted races for 3 year-olds.

Fairgrounds is located only 20 minutes from Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport and only 2 miles from the famed French Quarter.

Half Waypoint is currently training under Brad Cox at Churchill Downs which is the main location of Brad’s operation as Louisville, KY is where he was born, raised, and keeps his current residence.  However, besides Fairgrounds, and Churchill, Brad’s horses race at Keeneland, Belmont, Saratoga, Indiana Grand, Ellis Park, and Oaklawn.

ZTR’s Half Waypoint will return to Churchill after Fairgrounds meeting is over and may race at Oaklawn Park in early 2018.  Located in Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas, Oaklawn Racing & Gaming has been one of the premiere Thoroughbred racetracks in the country since 1904, best known as home of the $1 million Arkansas Derby (G1). Today, Oaklawn also offers a newly expanded gaming area in early 2015, featuring Blackjack, Poker, the popular gaming terminals.  Purses at Oaklawn are augmented by gaming revenue and are among the highest in the country.

Z Thoroughbred Racing also races 5 year-old gelding My Discretion in training at Golden Gate Fields under trainer Blaine Wright.  ZTR horses at the farm include 2 year-old WA-bred filly Gemini Mind by Astrology and 4 year-old gelding Westbrook, by Congrats.  ZTR also owns the multiple stakes-placed broodmare Sunpenny who was nominated for 2013 2 year-old and 2014 3 year-old WA Champion filly while racing for ZTR and has a first foal on the ground, a weanling colt by Clubhouse Ride. My Discretion is slated for a turf route race at Golden Gate Fields on Sept. 3rd.

Half Waypoint is  available for partnership shares.

Half Ours stands at Clear Creek Stud in Folsom, Louisiana.  Half Ours is the #1 Sire by Louisiana-bred Earnings, Winners, Stakes-Winners, and Stakes Wins and has 13% 2 Year-old Stakes Horses in 2016.

New 2 Year-old Half Waypoint In Training with Brad Cox at Churchill Downs

Z Thoroughbred  Racing News

Volume 8, Issue 1, August 2017

5 yo KY-bred gelding My Discretion, by Discreetly Mine, was claimed from ZTR in June at Golden Gate but was claimed back by ZTR at Del Mar in July.  He is probable for a race at GGF on Sep 3rd.

Stallion Insight:    Half Ours - 12% Stakes Runners from Starters

Money Magazine Article featuring Steve Zerda and Z Thoroughbred Racing.

Z Thoroughbred Racing LLC was founded by managing partner

Brad Cox is training ZTR’s unraced 2 year-old Louisiana-bred filly Half Waypoint by Half Ours at Churchill Downs.  Brad plans to take Half Waypoint to Fairgrounds Racecourse and Slots in New Orleans to race in state-restricted races there.  Racing begins at Fairgrounds on Nov 18th.  It is possible that Half Waypoint could debut at Keeneland in October.

My Discretion at Golden Gate Fields

Half Waypoint Offering

In training  under Brad Cox

at Churchill Downs

 Partnerships Forming Now!

Half Ours, the stallion by Unbridled’s Song is the sire of ZTR’s new partnership offering Louisiana-bred 2 year-old filly Half Waypoint.  Unbridled’s Song is a winner of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) with $1.3M career earnings and the sire of Arrogate, currently the top ranked thoroughbred in the world.  Unbridled’s Song’s other sons as stallions include Midshipman (171 foals, 12 BTW, 1.58 AEI), First Defence (240 foals, 8 BTW, 1.58 AEI), Mission Impazable, Rockport Harbor, Zensational, and now Graydar and Cross Traffic, and Will Take Charge.

Half Ours has led the Southwest region sire list in earnings the last three years.  He has led the Louisiana sires list every year since 2014 when Songandaprayer led the state.   Half Ours is out of the Storm Cat mare Zing and won at 2,3 and 4 years-old winning the Three Chimneys Juvenile Stakes at Churchill Downs and the Richter Scale Sprint Championship Handicap (G3) at 4.  That year he came in second in the 8.5 furlong Alysheba Stakes (G3) again at Churchill.

Half Ours has sired 9 crops, 431 foals, 388 of racing age, 29 current 2 year-old foals, 42 current yearlings and has sired 1 Champion, 19 Stakes-winners (5% of foals of Racing Age).  His offspring have an average winning distance of 6.05 furlongs.

Half Ours most recent stakes winners include Louisiana-bred 5 yr-old mare Inveniam Viam trained by Brad Cox who won the Ellis Park Turf Stakes VIDEO in July at 1 1/16 miles on the grass earning a 90 Beyer and in her most recent outing finishing 3rd in the Louisiana Cup Distaff S.behind another Half Ours mare, Safari Calamari.  His 5 year-old gelding Jockamo’s Song just won the $50,000 Louisiana Cup Sprint S. at Louisiana Downs in August VIDEO and $100,000 Louisiana Legends Sprint Stakes at Evangeline Downs last month.  Partly Mocha, a $47,000 purchase at OBS March in 2011, just won a $90,000 Allowance race last month at Saratoga

Julien Couton

Russell Baze

for owners Ken and Sarah Ramsey and has earned $535,000 in his career including  winning the $75,000 Turf Sprint stakes at Houston on turf earlier in the year.  Winner of last December’s $100,000 Louisiana Futurity at Fairgrounds was Half Ours’ 2 year-old colt Jack Snipe’s.  On Louisiana Champions Day at Fairgrounds last December, three Half Ours’ progeny placed in $100,000 Lassie, Juvenile and Sprint Stakes by 2yo filly Our Millie, Jack Snipe’s, and Jockamo’s Song.

A pair of Half Ours’ 3 year-olds, My Queen Olivia and Rock N Sake won a pair of $75,000 stakes at Louisiana Downs last Fall, the Elge Rasberry S. and the A.L. (Red) Irwin, both at 1 mile on turf.  Maleluca won the $75,000 Brandywine Stakes at Indiana Grand last summer, sprinting 5 furlongs on the turf.

The multiple graded stakes-placed Gentlemen’s Bet is Half Ours’ most prolific earner gathering $744,155 in purse monies and placing 3rd in the $1.5M Xpressbet Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1) in 2013. Gentlemen’s Bet has 7 wins by a combined 20 lengths including the $125,000 Iowa Sprint H. (L), on-the board in 14 of 21 starts including Saratoga’s $400,000 Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt H., the 2015 $500,000 Grade 2 Churchill Downs S.

Gentlemen’s Bet has a career high 107 Beyer and 120 Equibase Speed Figure and is bred 3S x 3D with Storm Cat (ZTR’s Half Waypoint is bred similarly 3S x 4D) and he is still racing now at 8 years-old. 

Half Waypoint Offering

Half Ours - g./ro. 2003