2003 Cal-bred News

Gold Rush IV
Saturday April 26, 2003

Porter-bred Siblings Run at Gold Rush

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (Apr. 25, 2003) -- Instead of following his customary practice of naming his horses for characters in “The Godfather,” Ken Porter has elected to play grandfather.

Princess V., a 3-year-old filly named for Victoria, Porter’s 2-year-old granddaughter, is one of 12 scheduled to run in the $200,000 Melair Stakes in the California Gold Rush at Hollywood Park on Saturday.

One race before the 1 1/16-mile Melair, Vito Corleone, Princess V.’s 4-year-old full-brother, will have his hands full in the $150,000 Tiznow Stakes

The 7 ½-furlong Tiznow, named for the Cal-bred two-time Breeders’ Cup Classic champion, has attracted 10 entrants, including General Challenge, and might be the toughest race on the 10-event Gold Rush card.

Both Vito Corleone and Princess V. were bred by Porter and are by Memo out of Fort Silver, by Fort Calgary.

Porter, 53, who divides his time between homes in Scottsdale, Ariz., and Del Mar, Calif., sold Vito Corleone as a 2-year-old-in-training at the Barretts sale of 2001 for “something in the $30,000 range,” he recalled.

He kept Princess V., he pointed out, “not only because she’s a gorgeous individual, but because I want to have her as a broodmare when she’s done racing.”

Trained at San Luis Rey Downs by Neil French, Princess V. might not be a mother for some time. She is undefeated in two starts, breaking her maiden at Hollywood Park in November and winning a first-level allowance race at Santa Anita in March. The Melair will be her stakes debut.

“She has never trained at the track,” Porter said. “Neil likes to train at San Luis Rey because of the clean air and the fact there’s no hustle and bustle in the morning like there is at the track when horses go out to train.”

The Tiznow will be the first start since last July for Vito Corleone and first under the care of trainer John Sadler.

He was the third Memo-Fort Silver foal Porter named for a “Godfather” character. “It’s one of my favorite films,” he said.

All the foals were conceived and foaled at Pat Thompson’s Ridgeley Farm in Hemet.

The first “Godfather” foal was Enzo The Baker, a gelding born in 1996 who was second in the Real Good Deal Stakes at 3 and won five of 17 races overall while earning $124,988.

Moe Greene, born in 1997, was third in the Last Chance Derby, won four of 14 starts and earned $68,960.

Vito Corleone has earned $159,033 while winning four of his 14 races, including last year’s St. Paul Stakes at Canterbury Downs. As a 2-year-old, the colt ran third in the Barretts Juvenile Stakes at Fairplex Park and the Golden Bear Stakes at Golden Gate Fields.

Porter, who has bred Thoroughbreds for nearly 15 years, sold Fort Silver in foal two years ago.

Now he’s looking for racing success from Princess V. before she becomes a broodmare.

The real Princess V., Porter’s granddaughter, will be at Hollywood Park for the Melair, in the company of her parents, Tim and Christi Porter of Scottsdale.

The filly’s breeder will not be in attendance. He is in New York for two weeks of meetings pertaining to his real estate investments.

“I’ll see if I can find someplace Saturday to watch the race,” he said.
--Larry Bortstein