The following appeared at bloodhorse.com on 12/9/2020. Million dollar earning horse Mr. Buff is by Friend or Foe, who stands at Robin Mellen’s Smallwood Farm in Crozet. Mr. Buff is 3-for-7 this year and has earned $287,500. His stakes wins in 2020 include the Empire Classic Handicap at Belmont, and the Haynesfield and Jazil, both at Aqueduct. In 41 career starts, he has 15 wins and earnings of $1,220,786.
Provided he does well in the coming days, Mr. Buff could return to Aqueduct Racetrack to head the $100,000 Alex M. Robb Stakes vs. New York-bred rivals Dec. 12.
The veteran speedster ran fifth in the Cigar Mile Handicap (G1) Dec. 5 contested on a sloppy track at Aqueduct after scoring against state-bred rivals in the Empire Classic Handicap Oct. 24 at Belmont Park. Those efforts leave him as the classiest entry for the 1 1/8-mile race Saturday, but trainer John Kimmel wants to monitor him before committing to the rapid turnaround.
“His energy level was quite high. He actually seems quite full of himself,” Kimmel said. “I’m not committed to running. We’ll get a couple more gallop days into him. The exercise rider (Jorge Munoz) that has been on him says he feels extremely energetic. He seems to be doing fine.”
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Should Mr. Buff scratch out of the Alex M. Robb, Kimmel said the Queens County Stakes Dec. 19 at Aqueduct against open company would be another option.
Owned and bred by Chester and Mary Broman, Mr. Buff has won the past two runnings of the Alex M. Robb. He notched the first of his nine stakes victories in the 2018 edition by a nose over Twisted Tom. Last year, he was an emphatic 7 1/2-length victor over Dynamax Prime.
Mr. Buff has amassed the most earnings in the field, banking $1,220,786 with a record of 41-15-7-4. He captured the Jazil Stakes in back-to-back years and won the 2020 Haynesfield Stakes by 20 lengths.
Kendrick Carmouche has been named to ride Mr. Buff.
Mr. Buff is shown winning the Empire Classic for the second straight year. photo courtesy of Adam Coglianese.
- STK
- 1 1/8m
- Dirt
- $100,000
- 3 yo’s & up
- 3:45 PM (local)
| PP | Horse | Jockey | Wgt | Trainer | M/L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sea Foam (NY) | Joel Rosario | 121 | Christophe Clement | – |
| 2 | Yankee Division (NY) | Jorge A. Vargas, Jr. | 121 | Rudy R. Rodriguez | – |
| 3 | City Man (NY) | Manuel Franco | 123 | Christophe Clement | – |
| 4 | Mr. Buff (NY) | Kendrick Carmouche | 126 | John C. Kimmel | – |
| 5 | Danny California (NY) | Luis A. Rodriguez Castro | 126 | Orlando Noda | – |
| 6 | Bankit (NY) | Jose Lezcano | 121 | Steven M. Asmussen | – |