STREET SENSE HIGH WEIGHT ON EXPERIMENTAL FREE HANDICAP

Street Sense, 10-length winner of the Bessemer Trust Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, received the high weight assignment of 127 pounds on the 2006 Experimental Free Handicap, released today by The Jockey Club and available through http://www.jockeyclub.com.

The filly division is headed by undefeated Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Dreaming of Anna at 123 pounds.

The Experimental Free Handicap, published annually by The Jockey Club since 1935, is a weight-based assessment of the previous year’s leading two-year-olds, with the weights compiled for a hypothetical race at 1 1/16 miles on dirt. This year’s weighting committee of racing secretaries was composed of Ben Huffman of Churchill Downs, P.J. Campo of the New York Racing Association and Thomas S. Robbins of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club.

The committee weighted a total of 92 males and 85 fillies. Eligible for weighting were all two-year-olds of 2006 that finished among the top four in graded or other unrestricted races with an added value of at least $75,000, run in the continental United States.

James B. Tafel LLC’s Street Sense (Street Cry (IRE) – Bedazzle, by Dixieland Band) won two of his five starts last year for earnings of $1,178,200. In addition to his romp in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, he placed third in both the Breeders’ Futurity and the Arlington Washington Breeders’ Cup Futurity. He was bred in Kentucky by James Tafel.

The 127 pounds assigned to Street Sense is 1 pound above the assignment on last year’s high weight, Stevie Wonderboy, and is the highest assignment for a colt since Favorite Trick received 128 pounds on the 1997 Experimental Free Handicap.

Street Sense is weighted 4 pounds higher than James T. Scatuorchio and Michael B. Tabor’s Scat Daddy (Johannesburg – Love Style, by Mr. Prospector), a winner of three of his five starts and $507,800 last year. Scat Daddy was victorious in the Champagne Stakes and Sanford Stakes, and placed second in the Hopeful Stakes.

Sharing third high weight at 122 pounds are Circular Quay, Great Hunter and Nobiz Like Shobiz.

Michael B. and Doreen Tabor’s Circular Quay (Thunder Gulch – Circle of Life, by Belong to Me) won his first three starts, including the Bashford Manor Stakes and Hopeful Stakes, before placing second in both the Breeders’ Futurity and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. He finished the year with three wins from five starts and earnings of $781,434.

J. Paul Reddam’s Great Hunter (Aptitude – Zenith, by Roy) won the Breeders’ Futurity and placed second in the Hollywood Juvenile Championship, Best Pal Stakes and Del Mar Futurity. He capped his two-year-old season with a third place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile to finish the year with two wins from seven starts and earnings of $630,000.

Elizabeth J. Valando’s Nobiz Like Shobiz (Albert the Great – Nightstorm, by Storm Cat) won two of his three starts last year and earned $226,400. He was a 6 ½-length winner of the Remsen Stakes and placed second in the Champagne Stakes.

In the filly division, the 123 pounds assigned to Dreaming of Anna (Rahy – Justenuffheart, by Broad Brush) is the standard impost for top Experimental fillies and is equivalent to the assignment on last year’s high weight, Folklore.

Bred in Kentucky by her owner Frank C. Calabrese, Dreaming of Anna went undefeated in four starts at two. In addition to her 1 ½-length victory in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, Dreaming of Anna also won the Tippett Stakes and the Summer Stakes for earnings of $1,266,240.

Dreaming of Anna is weighted 3 pounds higher than Octave (Unbridled’s Song – Belle Nuit, by Dr. Carter). Owned by Starlight Stable, Donald J. Lucarelli and Jack Wolf, Octave won two of her five starts last year, including the Adirondack Breeders’ Cup Stakes. She placed second in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, Matron Stakes and Astoria Stakes. She earned $610,700.

At 119 pounds is J. Paul Reddam’s Cash Included (Include – Henderson Band, by Chimes Band), winner of the Oak Leaf Breeders’ Cup Stakes. Cash Included won two of her four starts in 2006 and earned $234,980.

Among sires of Experimental horses, Johannesburg and Tale of the Cat top the colts and geldings’ list with four representatives each. Include, Lemon Drop Kid, More Than Ready, Smart Strike, Successful Appeal and Yes It’s True head the fillies’ list with three representatives each. Combining the two lists, Johannesburg, Smart Strike, Tale of the Cat and Yes It’s True are the leading sires with five representatives each. Of the 177 juveniles weighted, 104 were bred in Kentucky, 33 in Florida and nine in California.

The Jockey Club, founded in 1894 and dedicated to the improvement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing, is the breed registry for North American Thoroughbreds. The Jockey Club fulfills that longstanding commitment by serving the industry through its family of companies and by providing support and leadership on a wide range of important industry initiatives.