Richard Rigney will be betting an exacta box on the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1).
Jonathan's Way and Chancer McPatrick.
"That's my bet," he said.
Rigney is in the very enviable spot of owning grade 3 winner Jonathan's Way, the 9-2 third choice in the $2 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile, and breeding Flanagan Racing's multiple grade 1 victor Chancer McPatrick, the 3-1 second choice in the 1 1/16-mile test for 2-year-olds.
"It's a very special position to be in," Rigney said.
Especially since Rigney's business model is to sell all of the foals from his 23 mares and he still owns Chancer McPatrick's dam, Bernadreamy.
"We have the mare and the success Chancer McPatrick has will have a ripple effect on us," said Phil Bauer, who trains Jonathan's Way. "We'll be cheering for him to finish second."
Jonathan's Way, an Ohio-bred son of first-year sire Vekoma , surely has the credentials to top the exacta in the Nov. 1 Juvenile at Del Mar off two vastly different races with the same impressive result.
In his Aug. 17 career debut for Rigney Racing at Saratoga Race Course, Jonathan's Way was sent off at 2-1 odds but was seventh at the first call in the six-furlong race after being pinched back at the start. Yet those early woes did not present a huge obstacle for Jonathan's Way.
Closing with gusto, he grabbed the lead before the eighth pole and drew off to score by 4 1/4 lengths.
He returned a month later in the Sept. 14 Iroquois Stakes (G3) at Churchill Downs and this time, he grabbed the lead at the start and never gave it up, winning the one-turn mile race by 2 3/4 lengths and even earning 10 qualifying points for the 2025 Kentucky Derby (G1).
"There was no intention of being in the back in his maiden race. He was pinched back and it developed from there," Bauer said. "He learned a lot from that race and showed it in his morning training afterwards and that resulted in a sharper break in the Iroquois. I was confident throughout that race seeing how he was doing it easily."
As for whether we'll see Jonathan's Way the closer or Jonathan's Way the front-runner in a 41st edition of the Juvenile loaded with speed, Bauer would love an encore of the Iroquois.
"I would say he prefers to show some pace, but if not, he's kind enough to rate," Bauer said. "We're going in with confidence and hoping for some racing luck."
For Bauer, this is his third trip to the World Championships, each time with a Rigney runner, and he's hopeful of improving on his best showing of a sixth by Buchu in last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1T).
"It's special to be here. You try to savor every minute of it," Bauer said. "I think we learned from our last couple of trips that it's a feat just to be here. Don't take it for granted and enjoy the occasion.
"We're happy with the draw (post 5 in a field of 10) and we'll put him in there Friday and see who is best. He shipped good, shows good energy, and I think two turns will be well within his wheelhouse. He's a naturally high-cruising type of horse who has a good turn of foot when you need it. He has the attributes to be a good racehorse and when you stack him up against these type of horses, we'll see how good he is."
For Rigney, who owns Clarendon Flavors and started his stable in 2013, this will also be his third trip to the Breeders' Cup and first in the capacity of a dual participant.
"We're in the game for the long run and we're trying to be in tune with every part of it," Rigney said.
Working with Bauer and bloodstock agent John Moynihan, Rigney has built a solid racing and breeding operation.
"John changed our program and moved us forward," Rigney said about Moynihan, who is best known for his work with Stonestreet Stables. "He'll tell me if we should sell a horse and I'm going to listen to him. We started buying weanlings with him and that's how we have Jonathan's Way."
Jonathan's Way, bred in Ohio by Susan L. Anderson Racing out of the Indian Charlie mare Female Drama, was purchased for $290,000 out of the Brookdale Sales consignment at the 2022 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.
"We're not just looking to buy Kentucky-breds," Rigney said.
Since Rigney sells all of his foals, there is no regret about not having a second entry as owner in the Juvenile.
Chancer McPatrick was originally sold through Craig Bandoroff's Denali Stud for $260,000 at the 2023 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Select Yearling Sale. He was later sold for $725,000 at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training.
"When he was pinhooked, Craig called me and said he had some bad news," Rigney said. "I told him it was good news. It shows we're in the game and we're trying to be excellent breeders."
On the plus side, he has a yearling colt by Liam's Map out of Bernadreamy.
He might also have a nice exacta to cash in the Juvenile.
