Still More Happy
Another Vindication baby winner for trainer Bob Baffert at Saratoga: Just like stablemate Maimonides last week in his dazzling debut, favored More Happy went to the lead early and widened her advantage to more than four lengths at the top of the stretch in today’s Adirondack Stakes. Unlike Maimonides, she then tired pretty badly (check out the replay and watch for the tail pop indicating she’s almost done), staggering to the wire barely three-quarters of a length ahead of A to the Croft to win. Todd Pletcher’s Passion finished third after encountering some traffic trouble. Final time for the race was 1:17.51, with the final sixteenth run in a slower-than-Polytrack :7.39; More Happy’s Beyer figure came back an 80. Baffert said after he wasn’t sure where the filly would start next. “I would love to start her at two turns. I really don’t know what we’re going to do. We’ll have to play it by ear” (Blood-Horse).
The Adirondack was marred by another gate incident: After determining the filly didn’t get a fair start, the stewards declared second favorite Phantom Income a non-starter and NYRA refunded $594,995 in wagers. “I don’t think either the horse or the [assistant starter] was ready for us to go, and they pulled the trigger anyway,” said jockey Eibar Coa (DRF). Phantom Income had been acting up in the gate and broke in the air, spotting the rest of the field several lengths that she never came close to making up.
