Catching Up
– Bit of an omnibus post this morning as I attempt to catch up on recent Saratoga racing, to which I have been paying much attention, but about which I have written woefully little. I blame the Spa. As I was saying to someone the other day, Saratoga takes you back 100 years in more ways than one. Internet what? But where actually being at the racetrack and lacking wireless access inhibits, technology finds a way: I’m sending out Spa updates daily via Twitter. (The news that Curlin was going to the Woodward and that last Friday’s card was canceled was broken via tweet, and who else is dispensing this kind of handicapping advice?) You can follow along, by phone and web or by RSS.
– It’s a cloudy morning, but no rain yet, and there was only one light shower that passed through on Friday (and that was shortly before the eighth, which was run under a rainbow that arched over the grandstand and appeared to end at the tote board). Races might actually be on the turf this afternoon. [9:00 a.m. update: With rain forecast, races will be off the turf, except for the Lake Placid.]
– Music Note is entered in the Alabama, but still possible for the Travers, and the decision to keep the filly in or scratch her on Saturday might not come until the afternoon. Assistant trainer Rick Mettee said Godolphin was waiting to consider the weather and post draw before committing to either race. Trainer Larry Jones, meanwhile, is hoping for a rematch between the Mother Goose winner and Proud Spell, who finished second in that race, but is respectfully challenging. “We want another shot at Music Note since that Belmont [race] turned out so bad, but believe me, I’m not saying, ‘Bring her on,’” Jones told Sherry Ross. And just to clarify an earlier uncertainty, should Music Note win the Alabama, she will not win the Filly Triple Crown, despite what was reported in this Post Star article.
– In the ninth, trainer Bill Mott debuts Evolutionist, a half-brother to Hopeful winner Majestic Warrior. The El Prado colt (coupled with stablemate Herr Mozart and MTO-only Stormalory) shows a record of steady works, but Mott remains winless with first-time starters at Saratoga, so Evolutionist may be one for the watch list or exotics, not a straight win. Todd Pletcher sends out Hype, a More than Ready colt out of 2-year-old stakes winner Western Woman. I’d post updated stats for both these guys, but Web Formulator isn’t working for me today …
– “I had a great trip,” said Robby Albarado, explaining how he won the Special with buzz horse Run Away and Hide. Can’t quibble with the rider, who settled his colt behind a wicked fast early pace of :21.66 and :44.80, saved ground along the rail, then drew away mid-stretch to a 1 1/2 length win (final time of 1:15.67, BSF of 93). Run Away and Hide is now 3-for-3 and boasts two graded stakes scores. “He’s the pro tem Juvenile Champ, isn’t he?”, said one delighted connection in the winner’s circle. “I mean, who else has accomplished that?” Well, let’s not get ahead of things … the Breeders’ Cup is still nearly three months away.
– On Wednesday, 8-1 Mani Bhavan upset the Adirondack with a wire-to-wire run. The race, the same distance as the Special, returned a Beyer figure of 100 for a final time of 1:18.09. That’s the best BSF assigned a juvenile at the meet so far. “She’s a real horse,” said trainer Steve Klesaris.
– I wish I had written this. Brilliant, Foolish Pleasure! Or this (DRF+). Thanks for pointing out what Jackson got wrong about synthetics, Brad Free.
Saratoga, Part II
Funny Cide, the most famous stable pony in racing.
Mid-meet stats: Riders John Velazquez and Cornelio Velasquez are tied at 19 wins apiece, Eibar Coa follows with 14 wins. Edgar Prado has the distinction of being the rider with the most seconds, with 22 placings to 13 wins. On the trainer side, Todd Pletcher leads with 10 wins from 41 starters, Gary Contessa is second with 7 wins from 65 starters. By percentage, though, Tony Dutrow leads with his 87% ITM rate, thanks to a 16-6-3-5 record through the first three weeks, and Dave Duggan (as LATG pointed out) has four winners from nine starters plus a second and third. Onward, into the second half of the most glorious meet, to better weather and graded stakes galore.
Go, Jackson
Oh, impetuous Dutrow, you trash talked the wrong guy:
LEXINGTON, KY (August 13, 2008) – Jess Jackson, majority owner of Curlin, 2007 Horse of the Year, invites Big Brown to race Curlin in the Grade 1, $500,000 Woodward Stakes at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York on Saturday, August 30, 2008. Jackson has committed to donate $50,000 from the Jackson Curlin for Kids Fund to the non-profit Belmont Child Care Association, Anna House, if Big Brown, winner of the 2008 Kentucky Derby, Preakness, Haskell and Florida Derby, accepts the invitation.
“Big Brown’s camp recent remarks about Curlin inspired me to offer an incentive to get these two great horses to race at the legendary track at the Spa,” said Jackson. “Both horses are eligible for this race and both have plenty of time to prepare for what would be thoroughbred racing at its very best and in the name of a great cause.” …
“This type of competition between horses is exactly what thoroughbred racing needs — an event that introduces the excitement and competition of racing to a broader audience,” Jackson said. “Imagine Horse of the Year Curlin racing against Derby Winner Big Brown, on a legendary track. I would love it, the fans would love it, and the horses would love it.”
That would be fun (and a terrific way to close Saratoga), but don’t expect IEAH to announce any change in plans for Big Brown. Michael Iavarone has said they’re looking for a mid-September grass race (possibly an overnight stakes written by NYRA specifically for the Kentucky Derby winner, in which he would likely face a small field of overmatched allowance horses) and pointing to the Breeders’ Cup Classic afterwards.
Update: And in fact, the Classic figures in the IEAH reply:
When told of the offer, Mike Iavarone, co-president of IEAH Stables, replied, “I have a better offer. We’ll donate $250,000 to various charities if Curlin meets us in the Breeders’ Cup. These are the things we do anyway. We strongly feel that championships should be decided at the Breeders’ Cup and that in order to give both horses the proper time to prepare for each other, we believe the race we meet in should be on racing’s biggest stage.”
Unfortunately, Iavarone doesn’t stop talking there.
The bizarre back and forth continues: Now Jackson says, meet us in the Jockey Club Gold Cup.
Last word: No way, says Iavarone, jokingly proposing a 3-on-3 basketball game to settle the matter instead.
An Expansion
So often, when the subject of mainstream media and racing comes up, it’s because coverage is being cut at yet another newspaper. The Wall Street Journal is going in a different direction, at least for the Breeders’ Cup, reports AdAge:
The Wall Street Journal is developing a special ad section for the Breeders’ Cup this October, the paper’s first ad section about a sports property and the Cup’s first ad buy in the paper.
(The Breeders’ Cup has been advertising in the WSJ online.) It is an ad section; the focus is advertising the Breeders’ Cup and interested marketers, but expanded sports editorial gets a mention, so I think we can expect some actual Breeders’ Cup coverage alongside the display ads …
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Jessica Chapel writes and edits in Massachusetts. Railbird is a Thoroughbred horse racing blog published from June 2004 to July 2019. More / Contact
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