Happily Unbridled

Although Curlin made his debut at Saratoga a winning one, it wasn’t as visually impressive as many of his races have been and it seemed to take all he had to get past the long shot front runner, Past the Point.

Past the Point, a 40-1 shot, set quick fractions in the 1 1/8 mile race and led into the upper stretch with Curlin “uncoiling” behind him. It looked like Curlin would run right by and win going away but once he drew even with the pacesetter, he seemed to tire and labored during the final 1/8 of a mile to finally prevail by 1 1/4 lengths. The plucky Past the Point was making his grade 1 debut for trainer Eoin Harty and proved the best of the rest by finishing 1 1/2 lengths ahead of Wanderin Boy with A P Arrow finishing fourth.

This was Curlin’s first start in seven weeks and the connections appear to be pointing him towards the 10-furlong Jockey Club Gold Cup (gr 1) at Belmont Park on September 27. There is apparently no decision to enter Curlin in the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Santa Anita in October; it is more likely that Curlin will ship overseas for the Japan Cup.

Even though the great Curlin appeared to be a bit less than his best yesterday, his determination and willingness to win prevailed and he was back in the winners circle where he belongs. This is possibly Curlin’s final year of racing so we need to enjoy every moment of his last few races … no matter what happens in the next few weeks, we know we’ve seen a champion that is one of the best horses racing fans have seen in the past 15 years.

Thanks for the thrills, Curlin!

If you haven’t heard, Curlin, reigning horse of the year, is back in action today at Saratoga in the Woodward Stakes. This superstar owned by Stonestreet Stable and trained by Steve Asmussen, has never run at Saratoga before but was installed as the 3-5 morning line favorite. He’ll be ridden again by Robbie Alberado and breaks from post 5.

Seven other horses are entered in the 1 1/8 mile race which is run on the dirt. Curlin’s last race was on turf in which he finished second to Red Rocks; his connections were considering a try at an international campaign on the turf prior to this second place finish but have apparently decided to keep Curlin on the dirt. This may also be the reason that Curlin may not run in the Breeders’ Cup Classic this year in Santa Anita since that track is no longer a dirt track but has been changed to a synthetic surface to comply with the State of California mandate. Turf horses seem to perform better on the synthetic surface than dirt horses do so the synthetic may not be to Curlin’s liking.

Curlin had a busy year in 2007 by winning the Rebel Stakes, the Arkansas Derby, the Preakness, the Jockey Club Gold Cup, and the Breeders’ Cup Classic which was run (in the mud) at Monmouth Park in New Jersey. This year he traveled to Dubai to win the World Cup by a record 7 3/4 lengths and then returned to the US and won the Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs in June.

Curlin is routinely outstanding in most of his races and the fans expect nothing less today … of course, this is still a horse race and anything can happen.

These are the horses in post position order, followed by trainer, jockey and morning line odds:
1. A.P. Arrow, Todd Pletcher, Cornelio Velasquez, 20-1
2. Loose Leaf, Ken McPeek, Eibar Coa, 15-1
3. Past the Point, Eoin Harty, Edgar Prado, 15-1
4. Divine Park, Kiaran McLaughlin, Alan Garcia, 3-1
5. Curlin, Steve Asmussen, Robby Albarado, 3-5
6. Dr. D.F.C., Rodrigo Ubillo, Aldo Arboleda, 50-1
7. Out of Control, Bobby Frankel, John Velazquez, 12-1
8. Wanderin Boy, Nick Zito, Julien Leparoux, 8-1
Each assigned 126 pounds

Go Baby (Curlin) Go!

He’s a millionaire, he’s a Grade 1 winner, he’s one of America’s best sprinters, and now he’s being retired. Benny the Bull, currently being trained by Richard Dutrow Jr, has been diagnosed with an ankle chip ending the racing career of this talented sprinter.

The five-year-old son of Lucky Lionel has won his last five races which includes the Gulf News Dubai Golden Shaheen (UAE-1) in March of this year. In what would be his final race, the Sunshine Millions Sprint Stakes at Gulfstream Park, he recorded a Beyer speed figure of 115. His highest Beyer was 119 as a runner-up to champion sprinter Midnite Lute in the Forego Stakes at Saratoga in 2007. He was training toward this year’s Forego to be run on August 30 with the ultimate goal of the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Santa Anita in October.

With the retirement of Benny the Bull and the poor showing by Midnite Lute in his race last weekend, the Sprint division may now be wide open. One horse certainly to watch is Fabulous Strike. This is a gelded son of Smart Strike who is the sire of Culin and English Channel along with other outstanding runners; it’s always wise to keep an eye on the offspring of this sire. Also keep an eye on J be K who didn’t run to his potential in the King’s Bishop last weekend but cannot be dismissed. Others that may coming to the head of this class are Street Boss, Bustin Stones, and Lucky Island. Street Boss has proven that he likes the synthetic surface and that’s a definite advantage in the upcoming Breeders’ Cup race.

We wish Benny the Bull much luck in his retirement from the track and his second career as a sire. We’ll look forward to seeing his runners hit the race tracks in a few years … Go Baby Go!

Casino Drive, half-brother to Belmont Stakes winners, Jazil and Rags to Riches, is set to return to the US from Japan in mid-September to prep for the Breeders’ Cup Classic on October 25 at Santa Anita. Casino Drive is undefeated in two starts … the last one being an impressive victory in the grade II Peter Pan Stakes. He was entered to run in the Belmont Stakes last June, attempting to become the third consecutive Belmont winner out of Better Than Honour, but these plans were abandoned when he sustained a foot bruise the morning before the Belmont.

This impressive son of Mineshaft will run in The Goodwood Breeders’ Cup Stakes on September 27 on his way to the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

With Big Brown heading for the Classic, a race in which Curlin is unlikely to run, the addition of Casino Drive will make this a highly-anticipated match between two very talented individuals. If both horses stay healthy and injury-free we can already start to look forward to a very exciting Classic race at Santa Anita.

Go Baby Go!

Maybe not. As much as horse racing fans would love to see these two giants of the horse racing world meet up in a race, it seems the connections are not following the same paths to their final races so a race in which both Big Brown and Curlin are entered as competitors is not very likely. Curlin’s connections just turned down an offer from IEAH Stables, Big Brown’s owners, for a match race. Big Brown is scheduled to run on the grass in the Monmouth Stakes on September 13 and then is headed for the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Santa Anita on October 25. Alternatively, Michael Iaverone, co-president of IEAH, said he would like to meet Curlin in the $500,000 Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs on November 28.

Curlin is entered to run in the Woodward Stakes at Saratoga on August 30 and there are apparently no definitive plans after that. It is unlikely that Curlin will run on the synthetic surface at Santa Anita in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. There has been no response as of this writing to Iaverone’s suggestion that the two horses meet in Louisville in the Clark in November.

So we’ll have to wait and see what the future holds for both these outstanding individuals. Whether or not they ever meet up to race head to head, they’ve both given us a multitude of thrills this past year and we’re grateful that we’ve gotten to see their incredible talent.

Go Baby Go!

Holy Moly … what an exciting weekend this was for horse racing fans! From long shot winners (BIG payouts) in allowance races to Colonel John winning the Travers by a flaring nostril over Mambo in Seattle … quite reminiscent of Victory Gallop’s win over Real Quiet in that famous Belmont Stakes in 1998. What a thrill to watch these two courageous and determined horses fighting to reach the wire first. Robby Alberado, Mambo in Seattle’s rider, was certain he’d won the race and raised his whip in victory; however, when the tote board lit up, it was Colonel John’s number that came up the winner. Garrett Gomez on Colonel John rode a masterful race to get his horse in the ideal position so his nose was perfectly on the wire for a win that was literally won by an inch.

Hystericalady, a 5 year old daughter of Distorted Humor, came through with a romp by eight lengths in the Molly Pitcher, a race she also won last year by 6 1/4 lengths. This was the Jerry Hollendorfer’s trainee third consecutive win in Grade II competition.

Midnite Lute, the 4-5 favorite in the Pat O’Brien at Del Mar failed to fire and had no impact on the race that was won by Lewis Michael while setting a 7 furlong track record over the Polytrack in a final time of 1:21.17.

In The Ballerina Stakes at Saratoga on August 24, Intangaroo came from far out of it to cruise past the front runners and won going away. This was a “Win and You’re In” race which means an automatic post in the $1 million Sentient Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint on October 24 at Santa Anita. Miraculous Miss also rallied from off the pace to get second. She was three-quarters of a length ahead of the 2-1 betting favorite, Sugar Swirl, who settled for third.

Also on August 24 at Del Mar, Garrett Gomez — yes, the same Garrett Gomez who had just won the thriller at Saratoga on the other coast — guided Go Between to a head victory over Well Armed in the $1 million Pacific Classic. This was also a “Win and You’re In” race for the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Santa Anita in October so this emerging star, a 5 year old son of the great Point Given and a horse who obviously loves the synthetic surfaces, will no doubt be a favorite in that race.

The Del Mar Mile Handicap, contested on the Del Mar turf course, was won by Whatsthescript, ridden by — who else — Garrett Gomez, by three-quarters of a length. This too was a “Win and You’re In” race so the Irish-bred Whatsthescript earned a spot in the Breeders’ Cup Mile. However, this horse is not eligible and would need to be supplemented. Stay tuned to see if the connections take that leap of faith in this talented colt by Royal Applause.

Those are just a few of the plethora of exciting races that took place last weekend on both sides of the US. But now let’s take a look at some unbelievable payouts for some of the undercard races. First, the 4th race at Saratoga on August 23rd … an allowance race contested at 1 1/16 miles on the firm inner turf course. Missinglisalewis, ridden by Alan Garcia, got the win and paid $62 for that win. Cardiff Road came in second paying $21.40 for the place and the trifecta was rounded out by Beneath the Crown who paid $8 to show. Victory Assured got the 4th spot … a $2 Exacta wager paid $1293, $2 Trifecta paid $19,482, and a $2 Superfecta paid $89,625. That’s just a pretty darn good day at the track.

But wait, there’s more … just 3 races later, the 7th at Saratoga, again at 1 1/16 on the firm inner turf course, Slambino, ridden by Channing Hill, slammed the competition to pay $179 for the win. Second was Blazing Dynamo who paid $21.60 to place and Key Event showed up third and paid $16 for the show. Holiday Trip came in fourth. The payouts for this $80,000 race were off the charts. $2 Exacta paid $2565, $2 Trifecta paid $105,914, and — you need to sit down for this one — the $2 Superfecta paid $1,523,188. I haven’t heard if anyone hit that life-changing score but if someone did, please call me … I need a mentor!

With the Breeders’ Cup less than two months away, there’ll be more of these heart-stopping wins and devastating losses … it’s a very exciting time for us horse racing fans … Go Baby Go!