Over the past 24 hours, various media outlets led by the
Daily Telegraph and
Sydney Morning Herald have dedicated plenty of column space to stories about
Dynamic Syndications, Richard Freedman trained promising 3yo staying prospect
LOVE TAP as our
unbeaten galloper rises in class to take on Group 3 company over 1800m at Rosehill on Saturday.
Whilst our team of Owners and connections are under no illusions of the mammoth task awaiting Love Tap as he rises in trip and class, punters have rallied with several highly regarded ratings experts having an odds-on hope on his efforts to date.
We can confirm that Love Tap has done nicely and improved further this week and we are confident he will run as well as he can, however it's a big test, but we know he is ready to deliver his best.
The thing we consider he will be most challenged by, will be the sustained pressure these horses will be able to absorb.
The horses he has been beating cannot apply sustained pressure - but these boys will and we have a very healthy respect for several of his peers in this race.
Our plan will be to use our inside gate as best we can. Then it's just a matter for Nash to position him and time his run. We just need to travel comfortably.
He is still 12 months away from being fully mature, but he has earned his shot at this level this prep.
Below we have extracted a few of the stories and posted them here this story to make it easy for our followers to find the relevant articles.
We trust you’ll enjoy reading these news stories:
Love Tap on same path as Savabeel
SHAYNE O’CASS - Daily Telegraph Friday, 25th September 2020
UNBEATEN grey gelding Love Tap is being set on the same path as Savabeel, which could see the three-year-old end up contesting the Cox Plate and VRC Derby.
Savabeel was beaten in the Gloaming Stakes but won the Spring Champion and Cox Plate at his next two starts, finishing his epic 2004 spring as runner-up in the VRC Derby.
Dynamic Syndications founder Dean Watt saw it all unfold up-close with Savabeel and is eager to give Love Tap his chance of emulating at least some of what the now six- times champion NZ sire did.
That all starts tomorrow at Rosehill Gardens where Love Tap is a short-priced favourite to win the Group 3 ATC Gloaming Stakes (1900m) and is already the clear top pick with TAB to add the Spring Champion Stakes at Randwick.
‘’How exciting is he?’’ Watt said.
“I’ll put it to you this way, Nash Rawiller had never ridden at Goulburn before, but he went down to ride Love Tap last start and they broke the track record.
And Nash said that he had to give him one (tap with the whip) at the 200m to remind him it wasn’t trackwork!
“This is a big step up in class, but we planned this route all the way along. It’s not a throw at the stumps. We thought we had a horse capable of running in the Spring Champion before he had his first start at Nowra.
“I think he is a superstar, but he has got to go through and do what he needs to do.’’
Love Tap is a gelding so winning a VRC Derby won’t have any bearing on his value other than to the owners and a deep unrequited quest on Watt’s behalf.
‘’It’s always still been my dream after all these years in this game,’’ Watt said.
“I’ve never won a Derby. I’d had two seconds, a third and a fourth but I have never won one and that’s a burning desire within my soul.’’
Love Tap’s November schedule will come at the same time as his American half-sister Fighting Mad chases Breeders’ Cup glory after she earned an automatic entry for the Distaff after winning a Grade 1 at Del Mar recently.
“He has always had something’: LOVE TAP ready for his Gloaming test
CHRIS ROOTS - Sydney Morning Herald Friday, 25th September 2020
The indications have always been that Love Tap might be a little special. Syndicator Dean Watt, trainer Richard Freedman, jockey Nash Rawiller and ratings expert Daniel O'Sullivan have marked the Tapit three-year-old highly, but he has to prove it in tomorrow's Gloaming Stakes at Rosehill.
Love Tap arrives in the Group 3 unbeaten and the $3.50 favourite for next month's Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes after wins at Nowra and Goulburn (twice), the latest in track record time.
"I don't think I have had a favourite for a group 1 that hasn't run in the city before," Freedman said.
"He has always had something, and he is a striking looking horse. You will see that on Saturday, but you will also see he is still a bit of a kid. He is only going to be better in 12 months.
"He was one of those [horses] that only did enough on the track, so when he went to Nowra I thought 'if he is what I think he is he will just win' and he did.
"He had another couple of runs but he is getting to his trip now and it's time to prove it."
Love Tap carries the Dynamic Syndications silks and was chosen out of the Magic Millions Sale by Dean Watt because of his family.
"He just ticked all of dad's pedigree factors and was one horse we wanted to take home," Adam Watt said.
"It was actually the first horse we did with Richard as the people's trainer and he sold so quickly.
"He was done in a week. It has been great what he has done since. He is from a good family and his half-sister won a Group 1 in the States recently, so he just keeps getting better on and off the track."
Freedman believes Love Tap will handle his biggest step-up in grade and is buoyed by Rawiller and O'Sullivan's feedback.
"I thought the Nowra win was good and then Daniel O'Sullivan told me it was up with the best two-year-old debuts last season" Freedman said.
"I said 'really, at Nowra?' Nash came and rode him in a couple of trials and just came back and said he is a nice horse and he never raps them.
"You saw what he thought of him in that he went down to Goulburn for the one ride last start.
"There is just something about him that everyone likes. But that won't mean much if he doesn't run well on Saturday.
"I think he will relax and be able to reel off the same sectionals he did last time and that would make him hard to beat."
Spring Champion Favourite To Make City Debut
Breeding&Racing: Friday, 25th September 2020
Gr1 Spring Champion favourite Love Tap (Tapit-Smokey's Love, by Forestry) will make his city debut in the Gr3 Gloaming Stakes over 1800m at Rosehill on Saturday, reports racingnsw.com.au.
"I don't know if it's a reflection of the horses he's in against but he's obviously a progressive type," co-trainer Michael Freedman said.
"It's a huge jump in class but he couldn't have done much more than what he's been asked to do so far. We decided to take a conservative route with him, take him through the country. He's a horse that seems to have a bit of talent and we thought we'd take the softer route until we get to a distance that he's bred to get to."
Winner of all his three starts to date, Love Tap won on debut at Nowra as a June 2YO, then twice at Goulburn so far this season.
A $110,000 Magic Millions yearling graduate, sold by Coolmore Stud to
Dynamic Syndications, Love Tap is an Australian born gelding by USA Champion Sire Tapit (Pulpit-Tap Your Heels, by Unbridled) and is a half-brother to USA Gr1 winner Fighting Mad (New Year's Day). His dam is a winning half-sister to Listed winner Monsoon Rain (Old Trieste).
Rosehill Winners – Saturday 26th September
Tips and race by race preview by Brad Gray for Rosehill on Saturday.
The rail is in the True and the form has been done for a Good track.
BRAD GRAY – Form Expert Racing NSW Friday 25th September 2020
Race 4 - 2:15PM PRECISE AIR GLOAMING STAKES (1800 METRES)
3. Love Tap has won three country races but he couldn’t have been any more impressive. The visual brilliance of the grey gelding’s wins have been backed up on the clock with the son of American sire Tapit smashing the clock with his closing splits. Add into the mix an effortless action and he has the makings of a very smart galloper. His last two wins have been at Goulburn, winning by 4.2L over 1200m before saluting by a similar margin in Class 2 company out to 1500m four weeks later. That was at $1.07, so he was entitled to gap those rivals. Co-trainers Michael and Richard Freedman have cuddled Love Tap up until this point, with the Spring Champion Stakes always the target. He’ll measure up and cement his spot at the top of betting for that Group One feature in a fortnight.
Dangers: 6. Lion’s Roar looked to be under siege half way down the straight at Kembla Grange last start but the son of Contributer was going away on the line, relishing the mile. He’ll eat the 1800m trip here. Prior to that he ran second to Mo’unga. On Mo’unga, only he had a quicker last 200m than 2. Easy Campese in the Dulcify. Like how John Sargent’s colt ran through the line after being forced to duck and dive for a clear run late. Have mapped him to find the front in this. 7. Street Dancer got complete control at Newcastle last start to beat odds on favourite Reaching but like how he quickened and has the 1850m run under his belt. 4. Bucharest next best.
How to play it: Love Tap WIN ($2.25 TAB Fixed Odds) Odds & Evens: SPLIT
Promising Grey Tapped For Spring Audition
RAY HICKSON – Racing NSW Thursday 24 September 2020
It’s not lost on co-trainer Michael Freedman how strange it is to have a horse coming through three country wins up to Class 2 level be a dominant favourite for a Group 3 let alone a major Group 1 later in the spring.
But that’s the situation exciting three-year-old Love Tap is in as he makes his city debut, with plenty expected of him, in the Group 3 $200,000 Precise Air Gloaming Stakes (1800m) at Rosehill on Saturday.
The attractive grey is the $2.25 favourite with TAB on the back of his three dominant wins at Nowra and Goulburn and with the defection of Mo’unga from next month’s Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes he also tops that market at $3.50.
Two of the past three Gloaming winners have claimed the Spring Champion - Ace High in 2017 and Shadow Hero last year - so it's an important stepping stone for Love Tap.
“I don’t know if it’s a reflection of the horses he’s in against but he’s obviously a progressive type,’’ Freedman said.
“It’s a huge jump in class but he couldn’t have done much more than what he’s been asked to do so far. We decided to take a conservative route with him, take him through the country.
“He’s a horse that seems to have a bit of talent and we thought we’d take the softer route until we get to a distance that he’s bred to get to.”
Love Tap made his debut in a 1200m Nowra maiden in June and finished strongly from the second half of the field to score, his two Goulburn victories at 1200m and 1500m were virtual exhibition gallops.
In the latest he started what they’d describe as
‘Winx odds’, $1.07, in what was an armchair ride for Nash Rawiller in his first raceday experience on the gelding.
In that 1500m race Love Tap recorded the meeting's fourth fastest last 200m of 11.48 (Punter's Intelligence) - the three faster sectionals all came in races at 1000m.
Whether you take Rawiller going to Goulburn on a Friday to ride a horse as a pointer to the jockey’s impression of Love Tap, Freedman said it was handy for the hoop to get to know him better.
“Nash trialled him at Rosehill prior to the race at Goulburn and when the decision was made to take him there instead of the Dulcify he was happy to go down and ride because he wanted to get a feel under race conditions,’’ he said.
“It was good for the horse to travel down there, it’s a nice big track and one of those tracks that in the past great trainers like Guy Walter used a lot to get young horses going.’’
Freedman sees Love Tap settling handy from the inside alley given he’s a horse that
"can put himself anywhere’’ and is leaving it up to Rawiller to sum the race up early.
Love Tap faces acid test in the Group Three Gloaming Stakes
JustHorseRacing.com.au Thursday 24 September 2020.
The Richard and Michael Freedman stable is hoping to share the love around when two of its promising three-year-olds head to Rosehill on Saturday.
The pair will be represented by exciting gelding
Love Tap, who makes his first foray into metropolitan racing and
Forbidden Love, who is coming off a last-start placing behind star filly Dame Giselle.
The unbeaten Love Tap faces his acid test in the Group Three Gloaming Stakes (1800m) after three dominant wins on country tracks, including an imperious four-length victory at Goulburn earlier this month when he gave weight to older horses and smashed the 1500m track record.
“He’s promising but he has to put his hand up and beat some decent horses now,” Richard Freedman said.
“He’s earned his shot but he has to do it.”
On the strength of his country exploits, the grey with an American pedigree has the unusual distinction of being posted as an early favourite for the Group One Spring Champion Stakes (2000m) at Randwick on October 10.
“He’s obviously got talent but he’s a bit gangly and still a bit of a kid,” Freedman said.
“He’s probably twelve months away from being what he’ll be but seems to be on the way up.”
American Hall Of Fame trainer Bob Baffert has a half-sister to Love Tap called Fighting Mad who recently won a Group One race at Del Mar in California
Nash Rawiller, who rode Love Tap at Goulburn, retains the mount.
Speedy filly Forbidden Love will line up in the Heritage Stakes (1100m) after a courageous third to Dame Giselle in the Group Two Furious Stakes (1200m) earlier this month.
Unbeaten galloper short odds in the Gloaming Stakes
JustHorseRacing.com.au – Thursday 24 September 2020
Punters only want one horse when it comes to early betting of the Gloaming Stakes (1800m) this Saturday at Rosehill.
The market was going to be dominated by Mo’Unga, but with confirmation he’s going to the Caulfield Guineas, the market header is the unbeaten Love Tap, who is $2.25 and has been well backed after opening $2.40.
Two runners share the second line of betting at $7, the Chris Waller trained Cadenabbia and Lion’s Roar, with the former easing a half point while the latter has come in a half point.