WORLD CHAMPION EMPRESSUM READY TO DEFEND GO MAN GO HANDICAP TITLE ON SUNDAY NIGHT
Led by AQHA World Champion Empressum, a star-studded field of six will headline the running of the Grade 1, $100,000 Go Man Go Handicap on Sunday night at Los Alamitos with a provisional berth on the line to the $750,000 Champion of Champion of Champions. In addition to Empressum, the impressive list of runners will also feature multiple stakes winner Scoops Dynasty, Restricted Grade 1 Spencer Childers Championship Handicap winner London Toby, multiple stakes winner Shott Gun, Grade 1 stakes finalist Eye On The Sky, and Slews Fortune, who posted a pair of solid victories earlier this season. The Go Man Go is one of three major events on the Sunday card with the Takin On The Cash Stakes and the Los Alamitos Claiming Futurity also on tap. With these three races highlighting the card, the Late Pick Four and the Pick Six should both see strong pools here on Sunday night.
Owned and bred by Steve Holt and Jeff Jones, Empressum will go after his third major stakes win of the season when he takes on this strong group of rivals on Sunday night. The son of Apollitical Jess outdueled Scoops Dynasty by a nose in the Bank of America California Challenge Championship on August 5 and before that he successfully defended his Vessels Maturity title by holding off Scoops Dynasty by a neck. Empressum will now look to make it back-to-back victories in the Go Man Go at 400 yards, a race he won last year by 2 ½ lengths. All in all, Empressum will be going after his ninth win in 11 starts at Los Alamitos. The winner of the Champion of Champions last year, Empressum will look to score his fifth Grade 1 victory here. Rodrigo Sigala Vallejo will ride Empressum for trainer Heath Taylor from post two.
Edward and Von Zae McNelis’ Scoops Dynasty has been terrific even though he has not visited the winner’s circle this year. The son of FDD Dynasty has been second or third in every one of his five starts this year, all of them coming against the likes of Empressum, Apollitical Pence and Shott Gun. He was third to Apollitical Pence in the Grade 1 Brad McKinzie Los Alamitos Winter Championship back in February and has challenged Empressum in a big way in both the Bank of America California Championship and the Vessels Maturity. Armando Cervantes will pilot Scoops Dynasty for trainer Monty Arrossa from post five.
Ed Allred’s London Toby was dazzling when winning the Spencer Childers with 1 ¼ lengths on July 29 and will now look to build on that momentum when he starts in the Go Man Go from post number six. The gelding by Favorite Cartel left the gate beautifully to take the lead in the Spencer Childers, continued strongly for the first half of the race and then found an even higher gear to pull away from his seven rivals in route to the richest victory of his career. Now a winner in five of 12 career starts, London Toby has earned $115,093 in his career. His winning time of :19.478 in the Spencer Childers was the fastest time in the race since 2011. London Toby’s last meeting against Empressum was a fourth-place finish in the Vessels Maturity on July 2. Jonathan Roman will be aboard London Toby for trainer Scott Willoughby.
The field from the rail out is as follows: Eye On The Sky, Empressum, Slews Fortune, Shott Gun, Scoops Dynasty, and London Toby.
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