2011 BC Rundown

                                Drosselmeyer

This years Breeders' Cup brought excitement, upsets and continued chaos in the run for Horse of the Year as well as three-year-old champion. The stage was set for Havre De Grace, Flat Out and Game On Dude to take down this years Classic as well as leave Churchill with a lock on the Eclipse Award. All three left with disappointment instead as 14-1 Drosselmeyer came charging down the stretch to edge Game On Dude and capture his first graded stakes win since last years Belmont Stakes. It is now anyone's guess who will claim the award this year.

With Horse of the Year honors up in the air, the three-year-old division isn't any closer to naming a champion after they were outclassed by their older competition in the Classic. If Stay Thirsty, Ruler On Ice or Uncle Mo could have pulled out a victory, they certainly would be be crowned three-year-old champ. Now, Animal Kingdom is back in the picture and could take home the award since none of his foes stepped up and separated themselves in his absence.

The two-year-old champ is down to Hansen and Union Rags, with Hansen most likely leading the race by a nose after that exciting Juvenile race.

As the 2011 racing season comes to a close we are left with more questions than answers. What if Uncle Mo would have had a healthy three-year-old campaign? What if Animal Kingdom wouldn't have gotten clipped at the start of the Belmont? It is going to be interesting to see who claims Horse of the Year honors and who will emerge as three-year-old champion.

Marathon - Afleet Again


*Had Birdrun and Giant Oak as both finished in the money. A.U. Miner pulled up and Meeznah did not take to the dirt well at all. 


Sprint - Amazombie


*Had Amazombie and Jackson Bend as they went 1-3. Euroears and Giant Ryan just didn't fire. 


Dirt Mile - Caleb's Posse


*Hit the exacta with Caleb's Posse and Shackleford. Just missed the Tri as Trappe Shot came in fourth.


Juvenile - Hansen


*Hit the Trifecta with Hansen, Union Rags and Creative Cause. 


Turf Mile - Court Vision


*Had Turallure, Gio Ponti and Goldikova as they all finished 2-3-4. Court Vision spoiled the ex and tri.


Classic - Drosselmeyer


*Had Drosselmeyer. Havre De Grace and Flat Out came up short finishing 4-5. Stay Thirsty couldn't compete.

Super Saturday

                                           Stay Thirsty: Top Three-Year-Old

This Saturday might as well be considered the playoffs for the Breeders Cup. We are only one month away from the "Super Bowl of Horse Racing" and this coming weekend brings us some exciting graded stakes races that should give a good preview of what is in store come the first weekend in November. Belmont has a loaded card on Saturday, as well as Santa Anita, as it opens for its fall meet. There are ten graded stakes races that are considered "win and you're in" for the Breeders Cup, if that tells you anything about Saturday's line-up.

The most anticipated race is probably the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup. The mile and a quarter race is the biggest prep for the Breeders Cup Classic. Although it will be a rather small field it is loaded with talent. Stay Thirsty gets his first crack at the older horses and is eager to show he belongs. While it will be a tough race for him, he certainly doesn't have to worry about losing any ground to any of the rivals in his division.

The rest of the three-year-old class has chosen to go in different directions to prepare for the Breeders Cup. Uncle Mo, who is still coming back from injury has chosen to run in the Mile, G2 Kelso, also at Belmont. Shackelford, will be competing in the G2 Indiana Derby at Hoosier Park. Coil, after his disappointment in the Travers, is heading back to the West Coast for the G1 Goodwood at Santa Anita. Ruler On Ice finished second last weekend in the G2 Pennsylvania Derby to one of the early Derby favorites, To Honor and Serve. It is going to be interesting to see how each of these horses fare and who will eventually meet up in the Breeders Cup Classic.

While the three-year-olds are winding down their season, a new crop of two, soon to be three-year-olds have already begun preparing for their Triple Crown Run. At Santa Anita the G1 Norfolk is another one of those "win and you're in" races for the Breeders Cup Juvenile. These two-year-olds will be tested as they look to go around two turns for the first time. Look for Drill and Creative Cause to give each other a run for their money again as they went 1-2 in the Del Mar Futurity back in September.

*More on the two-year-olds next week as Keeneland opens its fall meet and other top two-year-olds load the gate in the Dixiana Breeders' Futurity.

Exotics:


Jockey Club Gold Cup

1/1a) Flatout/Birdrun 7-5:

Finished 2nd in both the G1 Whitney and Woodward, but was coming on down the stretch. If you have to find a concern about this horse it would be that this is his first race at 1 1/4 mile.

Has traded jabs with Drosselmeyer recently and shown that the distance is certainly not an issue here. With Flatout and Birdrun being paired in the betting, can't go wrong with these two at the window.

5) Drosselmeyer 6-1:
After two disapointing starts following his 2010 Belmont Stakes win, has come back strong trading 1st and 2nd with Birdrun. The win was at 1 1/4 mile.

4) Stay Thirsty 8-5:
On fire the last three races, finishing 2-1-1. Can he continue his torrid pace in his first attempt against the older and more experienced horses.

6) A.U. Miner 10-1:
Using this race as a prep for the Breeders Cup Marathon. Long shot that would not surprise if he snuck in the money. Beat Birdrun last race out in July at 1 1/2 mile.

Goodwood Stakes

8) Game On Dude 5-2
7) Awesome Gem 3-1
2) Coil 4-1

NY Stays True to Stay Thirsty

Travers Stakes - Stay Thirsty

Stay Thirsty continued his dominance at the New York tracks in the Travers Stakes on Saturday. Winning for his fourth time in four tries on New York tracks, Stay Thirsty now has a Grade 1 win to add to his resume. Whether it's running in the state of NY or just being a late bloomer on the track, the three-year-olds finally have a leader of their division that has put some distance between himself and the rest of the field. By no means is he a lock for the Eclipse Award, but he definitely is the heavy favorite heading into the fall.

Summer is all but over and fall is right around the corner. The races for just the three-year-olds are dwindling down and the Breeders' Cup is almost two months away. October 1st is the next anticipated stakes race and it should be very intriguing indeed. Stay Thirsty and the rest of his age group will be running against the four, five and six-year-olds for the first time in their careers in the Jockey Club Gold Cup. He also will look to go an impressive five for five on New York tracks as the next race is back at Belmont.

*Stay Thirsty was the only horse that finished in the money who was pegged for the exotics. Ruler On Ice would have completed the super, finishing fourth. Shackelford faded earlier than expected, all the way back to eighth. Coil never fired, finishing a disappointing last. 

Midsummer Classic

                                                      Travers Stakes

Summer is slowly starting to wind down, but before it bids farewell, Saratoga brings us the famed Midsummer Classic this weekend. Ten horses enter the gate this coming Saturday and one will either emerge as the leader of the three-year-old class or make this unpredictable class even that more unpredictable.

Coil, Ruler On Ice, Shackelford and Stay Thirsty have the stage set for one of them to come out on top heading into the fall. This might be the last prime opportunity for one of them to put some distance between them and the rest of the class, because the next time you see these horses take to the track, it will most likely be against older, more experienced horses. It definitely sets up be an exciting race and lets hope one of these colts finally steps up and takes the lead in this deadlock division.

Exotics:

Coil 3-1:

Late bloomer showing he can run with the best after running down Shackelford in the Haskell. Bred for the distance, so 1 1/4 mile shouldn't be a problem. 

Ruler On Ice 6-1:
Proved he can handle the distance with a win in the Belmont. Got beat in the Haskell, but might prefer the longer distance.

Stay Thirsty 5-2:
After lackluster performances in the Florida and Kentucky Derby, has come back to impress in the Belmont and Jim Dandy. Tough horse to peg other than he loves to run in NY. If he continues the trend, will be tough horse in this race.

Shackelford 9-2:
This horse keeps hanging around and will just not go away. Heart of a champion that gives it his all every race. This distance is stretching his limits, but definitely not writing him off.

Up Next: The Travers

Haskell Stakes

Move Stay Thirsty and Coil to the top of the list. The winners of both the Jim Dandy and Haskell Stakes races this past weekend, showed that they are serious contenders in this years three-year-old crop. Both colts took home their second stakes win of the year and look to separate themselves from the rest of the pack here in a few weeks as they square off in the Travers Stakes.

With many of the top colts out this summer due to injury, it allows the likes of Stay Thirsty, Ruler on Ice and Coil to capitalize on their opportunity. A win in the Travers by any of these three colts would certainly put them in the lead for the Eclipse Award that will be given out at the end of the year.

- Picks in the Jim Dandy did not pan out as we went against the favorite Stay Thirsty.

- Had Shackelford in the Haskell, but he couldn't hold off Coil down the stretch.

Summer Classics

                                                                          heatwave.jpg

It has now been over a month since the shocking results at Belmont Park. The heat wave is sweeping across the east coast and summer is in full force. Not only have some two-year-olds already begun their quest on the long, unprecedented Derby trail, but the three-year-olds are ready to take to the track again. Unfortunately, the latest news from the track is that long shot Derby winner, Animal Kingdom has been ruled out for the year due to his disastrous start at last month's Belmont. So, if the race for three-year-old of the year was not wide open before I don't know what you want to call it now.

This coming weekend brings two anticipated stakes races to set us up for the Midsummer Classic or as most know as the Travers Stakes at the end of August. Saratoga will host the G2 Jim Dandy Stakes on Saturday followed by the G1 Haskell at Monmouth Park on Sunday.

This year it seams like each horse that is ready to step into the gate and take the reins of the rest of the field, something goes wrong. Will Ruler On Ice prove that he was no fluke on the muddy track at Belmont, is Alternation ready to step up in class and contend with the best of the best, or will one of the early contenders be able to come back and reclaim this unpredictable class of three-year-olds? It is anyone's guess as of what will happen between now and that cool night in November under the lights.

*Check back mid-week and I will have my picks for the two stakes races this weekend.

Post New York Monster

Looks like the race for top three-year-old just got blown wide open after that race yesterday. The favorites entered the ring and looked like they couldn't even compete with the New York Monster. The anticipated heavyweight fight between Shackleford and Animal Kingdom looked more like a featherweight fight as Animal Kingdom never had a shot after stumbling out of the gate and Shackleford faded down the stretch once again. It was the 24-1 shot, Ruler On Ice who came out on top, being only the second gelding since 1985 to take the Belmont Stakes.


Emoticons

So, here we are the day after the race, puzzled, confused, mystified, or you can just fill in the blank with your own adjective. Looking back at the past performances, I'm left scratching my head as to how the top two finishers (abysmal speed ratings heading into this race) overcame the monster and the rest of the field.

Does past experience on a sloppy track really come into play that much (if yesterday taught us anything then definitely)? If Animal Kingdom had not of stumbled out of the gate and almost thrown his rider would he have taken the race with ease (probably so)? You can play the what if game all you want and question your picks till you drive yourself crazy. All you can do is try to learn from the race, forget about your loses and move on to the next one. Like I told my friend who was heckling me for my blown picks this past race, "You can't win 'em all or I wouldn't be having to go into work on Monday morning."

The Triple Crown races are over, which will give me and my wallet a breather for a month or so. There is still an exciting summer ahead as most of these three-year-olds prepare themselves for the $1 million Travers Stakes, also known as the famed Midsummer Classic at the end of August. Not to mention, NBC teams up with Saratoga starting at the end of July to televise seven weekends of horse racing coverage all the way through Labor Day. Check back in July and I will have my picks for some stakes races this summer leading up to the Travers.