Ag Bullet On Track for Breeders’ Cup Bid Before Fasig-Tipton Stage

[Wandering Eyes]

Calvin Nguyen always figured that he and his brother Joey Tran had found their once-in-a-lifetime horse right out of the gate. In 1999, they claimed their very first runner for $32,000. Freedom Crest turned that gamble into a 13-race in-the-money streak, climbing his way into graded company and making it to the 2001 Breeders' Cup Classic.

But two decades later, a filly who was never supposed to run in their silks has proven that she is worth her weight in silver—literally. The grey Twirling Candy filly named Ag Bullet has become Nguyen and Tran's brightest success story yet.

Trained by Richard Baltas, turf star Ag Bullet has collected seven stakes wins, including the GI Jaipur Stakes and back-to-back renewals of the GII Ladies Turf Sprint Stakes at Kentucky Downs.

“She's taken us on quite a ride,” said Nguyen. “When she gets the trip, she's proven herself. I think it's just her fight. When she sees other horses around her, she has that killer instinct where she doesn't want to be passed. I'm just so fortunate to have a horse like her.”

 

 

In top form this year at 5, Ag Bullet is now gearing up for one last dance with her connections in the GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint before heading through the ring at Fasig-Tipton's 'Night of the Stars' Sale.

Over the past two decades, Nguyen and Tran have been involved in the game at various levels, from breeding to claiming to buying. Stable standouts include GISW Idol (Curlin) and GSWs Bob and Jackie (Twirling Candy) and Balladeer (Distorted Humor). The brothers maintain a small broodmare band and have about 10 horses in training.

In 2021, they purchased Ag Bullet for $220,000 with plans of pinhooking her as a 2-year-old. From Ocala, consignor Robbie Harris reported that the filly was the fastest horse he had ever trained. When an ankle chip kept her from making it to the sale, Nguyen and Tran decided to keep her to themselves.

“It turned out to be a great thing,” recalled Nguyen. “Since Robbie always said how fast she was, that's how we came up with the name. She's like a bullet and with her being silver, we gave her the name Ag Bullet.”

A stakes winner at three, Ag Bullet earned her first graded score last year as a 4-year-old in the GIII Monrovia Stakes. Her breakout victory came later in the GII Ladies Turf Sprint Stakes, when she set a course record with her 5 1/4-length win, stopping the clock at 1:14.19 for six and a half furlongs.

“To me that was her most impressive race,” trainer Richard Baltas reflected. “But she always shows up. Sometimes she'll be difficult to saddle because she's got a lot of fire. There are certain things she likes and certain things she doesn't like, but maybe that's why she's so good.”

In last year's Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint, Ag Bullet came just a neck short of the win, settling for third behind Starlust (GB) (Zoustar {Aus}) and Motorious (GB) (Muhaarar {GB}).

After finishing third in the GI Matriarch Stakes, her connections sketched out a plan to get Ag Bullet a Grade I in 2025. With limited opportunities available for turf sprinters, they set their sights on the GI Jaipur Stakes at Saratoga.

The dream came to fruition when Ag Bullet beat the boys by two lengths, but as luck would have it, it was the only race that Nguyen couldn't attend.

Ag Bullet gets the win in the 2025 GI Jaipur Stakes | Sarah Andrew

“My daughter graduated from high school that same day,” Nguyen said with a laugh. “But I watched it live on TV  and I screamed so loud. It was unbelievable. I got goosebumps just with the fact that she was a female beating the boys in a Grade I-caliber race and she did it so dominantly.”

After a second win in the GII Ladies Turf Sprint, where she came just 0.19 seconds shy of her previous record, Ag Bullet returned to her base at Santa Anita. She recently worked a bullet five furlongs in :58.20 on Oct. 5 in preparation for her Breeders' Cup bid.

“My rider who has been on her for two or three years said she's better than ever,” Baltas reported. “She has been lightly raced this year and she's had a good rest with no issues, so we're going to keep our fingers crossed.”

Team Ag Bullet is counting down the days until their trip to Del Mar.

“I think she's coming into the race amazingly well,” said Baltas. “I'm not afraid of anybody and I know she's not. She's just 100% racehorse. I know that when she's right, it doesn't matter who she's running against.”

“Every week she works and you're getting more nervous as she's ramping up for that performance,” said Nguyen. “I think Richie has done an amazing job getting her there. He gets them to build up that momentum and hopefully hit that crescendo on Breeders' Cup day. Every time she runs, we think we have a big shot so it makes it really exciting.”

After the Breeders' Cup, Ag Bullet will set off to Kentucky to go through the ring at the Fasig-Tipton November Sale. Cataloged as Hip 183 and offered as a racing or broodmare prospect, she will be consigned by Mill Ridge Farm.

Consignor Price Bell said he sees a promising blueprint for Ag Bullet's future in fillies like Lady Shipman (Midshipman), the runner-up in the 2015 Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint who is the dam of Coolmore sire Golden Pal, winner of the 2020 GII Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint and 2021 GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint.

“To me, Ag Bullet has one of the most internationally appealing pages,” said Bell. “For most of the world that races on turf, America is where they come looking for speed. As Lady Shipman showed, our turf sprinters can not only win at the top level, but produce offspring who do the same. We're in the business of speed and Ag Bullet is exceptionally fast.”

Ag Bullet and Richard Baltas | Katie Petrunyak

“Ag Bullet is a very unique offering–a mare of this quality who has sustained her brilliance over a long period,” said Fasig-Tipton's Boyd Browning. “She consistently demonstrated that speed and turn of foot. Ag Bullet has earned over $2.7 million to date and she's Twirling Candy's leading money earner. It's quite an accomplishment when you think of all the fantastic horses, colts and fillies, that Twirling Candy has sired.”

“To see the impact that she's had on the lives of her owners Calvin and Joey, how much she means to them, it's the dream,” he continued. “That's why everybody gets in this business.”

Nguyen admitted that letting go of their stable star won't be easy.

“She's once in a lifetime for us,” he explained. “If we could keep her, we would, but I think the value is just so high that we would love for somebody to carry on with her. She's brought me so many wonderful memories that it's going to be very bittersweet.”

Nguyen said one of his favorite parts of the journey has been traveling to the races with his brother.

“We got to spend so much time together because of her and just enjoyed every moment,” he said.

Ag Bullet is Baltas's leading earner–and perhaps one of his all-time biggest personalities as well. Managing her queen bee-like tendencies hasn't always been easy, but Baltas said the dapple gray mare will be impossible to replace.

For now, he's focused on ending their chapter together on a high note.

“She's meant a lot to me,” he said. “She's given me a couple of really big wins. In this business it's not easy so when you get a top horse that can run in the Breeders' Cup, you get a lot of satisfaction out of it. She will be missed, but I just want her to have a great life. That's what it's all about.”

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