Monday, August 11, 2014
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Saratoga Race Course Notes
· Field coming into focus for G1 Travers, likely headlined by Bayern, Mr Speaker, Tonalist and Wicked Strong
· Wilkes works Viva Majorca and Ulanbator in advance of Travers
· Kid Cruz works five furlongs over main track for Travers
· I Spent It, winner of the G2 Toyota Saratoga Special, helps fill void left by Big Trouble for Dutrow
· G2 Adirondack winner Cavorting emerges in fine fettle; trainer McLaughlin plotting fall campaign
· Gyarmati optimistic about Wonder Gal's future following tough luck third in Adirondack; Noble Moon works
· So Cal breaks maiden impressively at 28-1 on Sunday for Asmussen
Tightend Touchdown looks formidable in Wednesday's $100,000 Troy
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Grade 1 winners Bayern, Mr Speaker, Tonalist and Wicked Strong head a list of 15 horses nominated for the 145th running of the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers for 3-year-olds on August 23.
Tonalist captured the Grade 2 Peter Pan and Grade 1 Belmont Stakes before running second in the Grade 2 Jim Dandy at Saratoga to Wicked Strong, winner of the Grade 1 TwinSpires.com Wood Memorial.
Bayern is coming into the Travers off victories in the Grade 1 Haskell Invitational and Grade 2 Woody Stephens, while Mr Speaker won the Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational on grass at the Travers' 1 ¼-mile distance in his most recent start.
Also nominated are Wildcat Red, winner of the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth and Grade 3 Hutcheson and placed in both the Grade 1 Florida Derby and Grade 1 Haskell, and Canadian classic winner Coltimus Prime, who took the second leg of his country's Triple Crown, the Prince of Wales Stakes on July 29 at Fort Erie.
Rounding out the nominees are Grade 2 Jerome winner Noble Moon; Grade 3 Dwyer winner Kid Cruz; Long Branch winner Irish You Well; V.E. Day, Charge Now and Viva Majorca, first, second and fourth, respectively, in the Curlin at Saratoga on July 25; Kentucky Derby runner-up Commanding Curve; Ulbanbator, second in the Grade 3 Matt Winn; and maiden winner C J's Awesome.
* * *
Viva Majorca and Ulanbator, both being pointed to the Grade 1 Travers, had five-furlong works over the main track for trainer Ian Wilkes Monday morning.
Owned by Saratoga socialite Marylou Whitney, whose Birdstone won a memorable edition of the Travers 10 years ago, Viva Majorca went out just after the renovation break and was clocked in 1:00.67 under jockey Julien Leparoux, third-fastest of 22 horses at the distance.
"It was a great breeze," Wilkes said. "It was a very crisp work. I did a little longer work with him. I let him stride into the pole a little more today, and he still finished up strong and galloped out strong. It was just what I thought he needed. He's a good horse, and he's moving forward."
Monday's work was the second for the bay Tiago colt since closing to be fourth, beaten a length, in the 1 1/8-mile Curlin on July 25, where he lost inside position at the top of the stretch and had to steady before swinging wide for a belated run. V.E. Day won by a head over Charge Now, who was neck in front of Protonico. It was three-quarters of a length back to Viva Majorca.
"It was just a little bad racing luck there, but that's racing. He finished real strong," Wilkes said. "Distance isn't going to be an issue for this horse; he ran awfully well in the Curlin. He ran a tremendous race and got beat a length. He justified looking at [the Travers]. At the moment, I'm looking at that. We'll see how he trains and moves forward. If something's not quite right, we won't go.
"He just lacks a little seasoning, that's the biggest thing. He's had one stakes race, one two-turn race. Now I'm looking at stepping into the real deep end. I'm a little behind in seasoning, but sometimes talent overcomes that."
The Travers would be the fourth straight graded stakes for Ulanbator, most recently fifth in the Grade 2 Jim Dandy on July 26. He was also third in the Grade 3 Dwyer and second in the Grade 3 Matt Winn since breaking his maiden at Gulfstream Park in March.
A homebred of Vermont resident Mary Ann Charlston, Ulanbator went five furlongs in 1:03.39 at 6 a.m. It was his second work since the Jim Dandy, following a half-mile in 49.45 seconds on Aug. 5.
"I didn't feel like he needed a harder work today. He's run a little more than [Viva Majorca] and I just did a longer, lighter work with him today," Wilkes said. "We'll look at the Travers, as well, for him. If he's doing well, we might take a shot. He's got to step his game up. Both horses have to, to have any shot.
"With this horse, you're looking at a case where the owners are from around here, they have one horse and a chance to run in the Travers. You have to give them every opportunity. If the horse tells me he's not doing good and not training good, no, I won't go."
* * *
Grade 1 Travers prospect Kid Cruz worked five furlongs in 1:02.45 over the main track Monday, the 16th best of 23 works at the distance.
Trainer Linda Rice said the winner of the Grade 3 Dwyer on July 5 and third behind Wicked Strong and Tonalist in the Grade 2 Jim Dandy on July 26 was caught going a half-mile in 49 4/5 seconds and galloping out six furlongs in 1:15 2/5.
"Just comfortable," Rice said of the work.
The son of 1999 Travers winner Lemon Drop Kid has been on a heavy racing schedule, and Rice said there is not much more to do before the Travers. He had a race a month from March to July and then strung the Dwyer and Jim Dandy together on 19 days rest.
"I was pretty aggressive with him, going from the Preakness to the Easy Goer to a month later going to the Dwyer to three weeks later in the Jim Dandy," she said. "I don't think I'm going to give him a strong breeze schedule. I've run him enough. So, my choice before was to either not run in the Jim Dandy and train seven weeks into the Travers, and I chose to run. I think he's coming in quite well."
In his career, Kid Cruz has gained the reputation of a one-run closer; it started in his fourth race, the 1 1/8-mile Private Terms at Laurel Park, when he dropped back 18 lengths after six furlongs in 1:14.92 and gobbled up ground to win by four lengths.
In his past two starts, however, things have been changing with Kid Cruz. He ran just three lengths off the pace of Captain Serious in the Dwyer and then actually broke on top in the Jim Dandy before being surrounded by horses and backing off, only to rally well in the stretch.
Asked if breaking on top, dropping back and rallying was a designed strategy to prep for the Travers, Rice said, "Actually, I think that when [jockey] Irad [Ortiz Jr.] and I discussed the race, there wasn't a strong speed in the race, and we felt that Legend might jump away from there and go to the lead. I think that Irad felt he didn't want to let Legend get loose. So he jumped him away and was a little aggressive early with him to get him underway and was hoping to lap onto Legend and run him down in the stretch. I think that's what the goal was.
"He was being asked to be there, but he didn't want to be there," she said of Kid Cruz racing up with the leaders. "He just got sandwiched and pinched out of there. The next thing you know, he's off the bridle and scrambling. It looked ugly after that for a while, but he gathered himself back up and made a nice run at the end of it. In Irad's defense, he was taking the same approach that worked nicely in the Dwyer. It just turned out very ugly in the Jim Dandy."
Rice said her goal in the 1 ¼-mile Travers is to let the speed horses do their thing, and she believes it will be easier than in the Jim Dandy, now that gate-to-wire Grade 1 Haskell Invitational winner Bayern is expected to run and Wicked Strong will remain in blinkers.
"I'd rather have him relax and lay back and let them do all the work and capitalize on a fast pace," she said. "If that doesn't happen, he's shown he can be used differently. In the Dwyer, we had to use him very early in the race, and he still showed up with a finishing kick, and that's to his credit."
* * *
Less than a week ago, trainer Tony Dutrow was dealing with the loss of Big Trouble, promising winner of the Grade 2 Sanford on July 19, whose ended with a torn suspensory ligament.
Helping to fill the void is another up-and-coming 2-year-old in I Spent It, who showed guts, maturity, and talent in taking the Grade 2 Toyota Saratoga Special on Sunday.
"Trouble still hurts. He's such a nice horse, and such a nice horse to be around. He's our good friend," Dutrow said. "To be fortunate enough to have another one like I Spent It, we're just so blessed. We feel fortunate to be standing here today with a horse like that under our care."
In just his second start, I Spent It tracked strong early fractions set by Nonna's Boy, and responded when roused by jockey Javier Castellano to spurt through a narrow opening between the rail and the tiring pacesetter in mid-stretch to win by 2 ¾ lengths in 1:16.79 for 6 ½ furlongs.
"First of all, I was very happy with how the horse was in the gate because we had been working with him," Dutrow said. "He got away from there and it was obvious the horse had plenty of run in him and he was in a good position. At the top of the stretch I'm still not worried about anything because I know we've got lots of horse and just need a place to go. I was very confident in Javier. When I saw the rail, I knew it was tight, but I didn't know how tight without seeing the head-on. I was never really worried about any of it. I could see that he had plenty of horse and just needed a place to go."
Though he had been high on the horse, Dutrow was even more wowed by I Spent It's performance after watching the race replay several times.
"I had tried to be professional for the last couple months about this boy, but all of us around here that are working with him all felt really confident in him," he said. "I really wanted to tell everybody what a really good horse this is. None of what happened yesterday surprised any of us.
"When I saw the head-on, I was very impressed with how a horse with only one [previous] race could show the professionalism to go through such a small hole. There wasn't much room there. That was the most impressive thing, just how impressive the horse was to be comfortable, listen to his rider and when pointed, responded."
Dutrow did not rule out bringing Alex and JoAnn Lieblong's I Spent It back in the Grade 1, $350,000 Hopeful on closing day, September 1.
"I haven't discussed it with Mr. Lieblong and his wife. I really wouldn't have any advice to give them right now," he said. "I'd want to watch the horse to see what effect that race took on our horse, but right now [the Hopeful] would be a consideration. He seems excellent. There's no doubt we've got a pretty promising horse on our hands."
* * *
If Cavorting had something to prove following her facile debut win in a four-horse field on July 3 at Belmont Park, she doesn't now. The Kiaran McLaughlin-trained filly swept by a talented field in the Grade 2 Adirondack for 2-year-old fillies on Sunday at Saratoga Race Course and went on to post a decisive 1 ¾-length victory over Angela Renee, a full sister to 2012 Woodward winner To Honor and Serve.
In her debut, Cavorting had the luxury of an uncontested lead but was unable to make the pace in the Adirondack after Texas shipper Vivian Da Bling bolted to the front once the gates opened. The bay filly was just as effective from off the pace, however, as she cruised up to the front-runners around the turn and edged away in the stretch.
Despite a slower pace, the Adirondack was run in 1:16.49, three-tenths of a second faster than the Toyota Saratoga Special, the companion race for 2-year-olds at 6 ½ furlongs, won impressively by I Spent It.
"She came out of the race excellent; she's a talented filly," said McLaughlin, who trains Cavorting for Barbara Banke's Stonestreet Stables. "Yesterday, if you asked the seven trainers before the race, they all liked their filly, as we did. It was a very good race, but she showed a lot yesterday coming from off the pace with a big middle move. She's always trained that way and ran like that [in her debut]. We're excited about her, and we're honored that Stonestreet has sent us a filly like that."
McLaughlin says Cavorting is possible for the Grade 1 Spinaway on August 31 at Saratoga or the Grade 1 Frizette on October 4 at Belmont Park, with the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies being the ultimate objective.
"As far as the Spinaway goes, we'll see how she is," said McLaughlin. "Or, we'll look at the Frizette on October 4. The Breeders' Cup is the big goal. Being by Bernardini, she wants to go farther. It's ideal."
* * *
The aptly named Wonder Gal lost nothing in defeat when finishing third in the Adirondack behind the talented fillies Cavorting and Angela Renee.
Trained by Leah Gyarmati for Treadway Racing Stable, Wonder Gal won her debut in the six-furlong Lynbrook Stakes on July 6 at Belmont Park. The Tiz Wonderful filly lagged behind the early pace under apprentice jockey Taylor Rice and inhaled the field around the far turn, drawing off to win by 14 ½ lengths.
On Sunday, things didn't go as smoothly. After tracking the pace along the inside, the Gyarmati trainee loomed a threat entering the stretch, but failed to find adequate room to run. Once she was finally able to extricate herself, the top two were well clear, but Wonder Gal ran on gamely and was gaining on second-place finisher Angela Renee.
"The hole was opening and the hole was closing," said Gyarmati. "She's a big filly, so she's not going to just shoot right through there, and then she got slammed. When she got in [the hole], [Vivian Da Bling] came over on her and turned our filly sideways, and [Wonder Gal] hit the rail. She got a little schooling.
"It makes you wonder how she would have run with a clean trip. Those are two nice fillies that beat us, but it would have been nice to have clear sailing and see how close we get. She's such a big filly; she needs that room, and you can't really stop her and start her again."
Despite the rough trip, Gyarmati believes Rice did everything in her power to give Wonder Gal a winning ride.
"It would have been nice for Taylor to tip her to the outside for clear sailing, but watching the race, I didn't really see an opportunity for her to do that without looking really stupid," said the trainer. "The point at which she might have [gone outside], the hole opened up wide on the rail. When you watch the head-on, there's plenty of room, and it would have looked silly for her to ignore that hole and take her to the outside. It's the kind of move where if it works you look like a genius, if it doesn't you look stupid. [In the Saratoga Special], the horse that won sat in exactly the same place, got exactly the same trip, with an even smaller hole, and he just went right through and won easily."
Considering the circumstances, Gyarmati was very encouraged by Wonder Gal's third-place finish and believes it should set her up for some big races in the fall.
"It was a very nice group of horses," she said. "The first time she ran it was a very easy spot. This was a really nice group of horses, and she's certainly shown she's right there with them. We have a nice filly, and she's New York-bred to boot.
"I think she's going to want to go long. You look at her and she's not a sprinter. She's got a lot of options. We'll maybe wait it out for the Frizette [at Belmont], where you have a little more room to run down the backside. We'll see. If she's jumping out of her skin and the Spinaway comes up... but the Frizette would probably be a better spot for her."
Grade 2 Jerome winner Noble Moon hit the track on Monday morning for Gyarmati, working six furlongs in 1:15.34 in preparation for a possible start later in the meet.
"He worked good," said Gyarmati. "He worked three-quarters from the five-eighths pole and didn't really go on that last eighth. He got a little tired, or maybe he just wasn't wanting to go past the wire.
"[His next start] depends on when he's ready and what's there. He was ready, and then we lost about a week's worth of training right around the time I had him entered in the [Grade 2] Amsterdam [on July 26]. The [Grade 1, $500,000 Ketel One] King's Bishop [on August 23] is a possibility, other than that I don't see any options for him. There's [the Better Talk Now on August 20] on the turf that we could run in if it comes off, or maybe try him on the turf."
* * *
Trainer Steve Asmussen entered his unraced 2-year-old Flatter filly So Cal in the third race for maidens July 27. Given morning-line odds of 6-1, So Cal failed to draw into the field off the also-eligible list.
On Sunday, So Cal showed up in the seventh race for maiden fillies and was 10-1 on the morning line. The field, however, was loaded with expensive debut runners: $300,000 for a filly by Blame, $150,000 for a Street Sense, $250,000 for a Sky Mesa, $110,000 for a Warrior's Reward and $1.3 million for a Bernardini.
So Cal? She was a $17,000 sales purchase at Keeneland last September by owners Kirk and Judy Robison.
Let go from her rail post at odds of 28-1, So Cal dueled along the inside with Blame Dixie, inched away with a furlong to run and held on for a 1 ¼-length victory, getting the 5 ½ furlongs in 1:04.94.
She paid $59.50 for a $2 win bet.
"Isn't that weird?" said Asmussen on Monday morning, clearly delighted. "She paid $59 like it was some big secret. I think there were a lot of highly touted fillies in there. I think everybody kind of thought the same thing. You look back [at So Cal's work tab] and see a 59 2/5 [seconds] gate work. She can run, but there are other options [for bettors]. Then [us] drawing the fence; just little things that eliminate you."
Asmussen said if a horse breaks its maiden at Saratoga, it's likely a stakes horse because that's how difficult the competition is at the marquee meet.
"I remember last year Tapiture first time out runs second to Strong Mandate," he said. "Before I even run back, he wins a Grade 1. I mean, come on! We ran him in the [Grade 3] Iroquois at Churchill off [the race], and there's like a maiden in a stake. I said, 'He chased a Grade 1 winner in his only race; it isn't like it's going to get tougher!'"
Asmussen had nothing but praise for So Cal.
"We're very proud of it, you know what I mean?" he said. "She was a filly that started at my dad's place in Laredo, the one hole, a good group of fillies, big crowd, and she did everything right and won."
* * *
Dead-heat runner-up in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint last fall, Tightend Touchdown is the 7-5 program favorite for Wednesday's $100,000 Troy, a 5 ½-furlong sprint for 3-year-olds and up on the inner turf course.
Trained by Jason Servis for Mr. Amore Stable, the 5-year-old gelded son of Pure Precision has made three starts in 2014, most recently finishing a nose behind multiple stakes winning-sprinter Ben's Cat in the Grade 3 Parx Dash Handicap on July 12.
Tightend Touchdown has won 10 of 25 career races, including the past two editions of the Pennsylvania Governors' Cup Handicap at Penn National, and $694,045 in purses. He has run second in four graded stakes, as well as the 5 ½-furlong Fiddlers Patriot at Saratoga last summer.
Irad Ortiz, Jr. will ride from post 2 as co-highweight of 123 pounds in the Troy, which drew a field of eight including Grade 1 Carter Handicap winner Dads Caps, entered main track only.
Second choice on the morning line at 5-2, Spring to the Sky has won two straight starts in front-running fashion for trainer Bruce Brown and owner Anthony McCarthy, including the Lucky Coin at Saratoga on July 20. Both victories have come under meet-leading jockey Javier Castellano, who returns to ride from post 6.
A winner of three consecutive races and four of six this year, Golden Rifle (5-1) steps into stakes company for the first time in the Troy. In his most recent effort, the Ghostzapper colt won a second-level allowance at Belmont Park by 2 ¾ lengths on June 19. Joel Rosario replaces Castellano at 118 pounds from post 3.
Rounding out the Troy field are Bold Thunder (6-1), Choctaw Chuck (10-1), Sandy'z Slew (15-1) and Unseen (20-1).
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