Havreing Horse of the Year Aspirations

Trainer Larry Jones is quite forthcoming about the motivation behind entering Havre de Grace in Saturday’s grade 1 Woodward Stakes against the boys. “We’re trying to do something to move her closer to a championship,” Jones told the Saratoga media department. “If she does beat the boys, it puts us back in front of the pack [among older fillies and mares] and into the hunt for Horse of the Year. But we have a lot to do before the end of the year.”

That work begins in the $750,000, nine furlong Woodward, a race established in 1954 and won by only one female. “I don’t usually keep up with those kinds of things,” Jones said when asked about the history of fillies versus colts and geldings in the Woodward. “But I do remember what other filly [won the Woodward] though, I was up here [at Saratoga] and watched it,” referring to Rachel Alexandra winning the 2009 Woodward.

To further illustrate how unique it is for a filly or mare to defeat males in a major race in the Summer or Fall, consider that only five fillies or mares have won Saratoga’s other grade 1 route race on dirt, the Whitney Handicap, in the 82-year history of that race. Black Marie and the great daughter of Man o’ War, Bateau, won the first two Whitneys in 1928 and ‘29 respectively while Gallorette won the 1948 version. Two of the great mares of their generation, Lady’s Secret (’86) and Personal Ensign (’88) were also Whitney winners.

The Jockey Club Gold Cup (gr. I), run since 1919, has been won by only two females; Shuvee won the Gold Cup twice in 1970 and’71; and My Play won in 1924.

Further West, only three fillies have won the prestigious Hollywood Gold Cup (gr. I): Happy Issue (1944), Two Lea (’52) and Princessnesian (’68) and no fillies or mares have won the Pacific Classic (gr. I) at Del Mar nor the Goodwood Stakes (gr. I) at Santa Anita. For all of her greatness, Zenyatta only defeated the males once. That came on the West coast when she became the only filly or mare to win the Breeders’ Cup Classic (gr.I).

Should Havre de Grace make the run for Horse of the Year that Jones and owner Rick Porter are publicly hoping for, the Woodward may be just the first step, but it would at least be instant justification for the title. By no means does that mean a Woodward victory would solidify the Horse of the Year honor, but would very much qualify her for the discussion.

At this point, if Havre de Grace has any hope for Horse of the Year, a Woodward victory would help, but not guarantee. Remember Havre de Grace lost to nemisis Blind Luck by a nose in their last match-up in the Delaware Handicap (gr. I). It may come down to a possible match between the two at Churchill Downs in the Breeders’ Cup the first week of November assuming Blind Luck also wins her next race which may be the Lady’s Secret (gr. I) at Santa Anita Oct. 1.

Despite the last loss to Blind Luck, some may still debate that Havre de Grace has a better resume thus far in 2011. In three other starts this year, the daughter of 2005 Horse of the Year St. Liam has won the grade 3 Azeri and grade 1 Apple Blossom at Oaklawn Park; and the Obeah (gr. III) at Delaware Park. Blind Luck started the year with three seconds, including one to Havre de Grace in the Azeri, before winning the grade II La Troienne at Churchill and the grade I Vanity Handicap at Hollywood Park before the matchup in Delaware.



When debating Horse of the Year, it is also important not to forget Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom, Travers winner Stay Thirsty, Preakness winner Shackleford, not to mention the upcoming winners of the Woodward (assuming Havre de Grace does not win), Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park, Goodwood Stakes at Santa Anita and of course, the Breeders’ Cup Classic.


No doubt there are plenty of barriers between Havre de Grace and the Horse of the Year title. The most immediate of which are three colts, two horses and a gelding that will be waiting for Havre de Grace in the Saratoga paddock just prior to the Woodward. Those seven are also in a position to keep the 4-year-old filly from joining the list of legendary females that includes Rachel Alexandra, Zenyatta, Personal Ensign, Lady’s Secret and the like by keeping her out of the winner’s circle following the Woodward.

However bold or bragadocious it may be to set a goal on Labor Day weekend for Horse of the Year on Labor Day weekend, the point remains it is realistic.

What To Do With Mine That Bird

As the career of 2009 Kentucky Derby (gr. 1) presented by Yum! Brands winner Mine That Bird continues to plunge further downward with his last-place finish in the grade 1 Woodward, one has to wonder several things about the diminutive gelding. Was his Kentucky Derby a fluke? If he wasn’t a fluke, what has gone wrong with Mine That Bird since winning the Kentucky Derby? And what can be done, if anything, to get him back on track?

The answer as to the validity of Mine That Bird’s victory in Kentucky is obviously influenced by the fact that he has not won in eight starts since. Not only has he not won, but in his three starts this year in the Firecracker (gr. 2) at Churchill Downs and the Whitney (gr. 1) and Woodward at Saratoga, he has been beaten more than 41 lengths.

To be fair to the horse, that eight-race losing streak is riddled with legitimate excuses. In the eight races since the Derby, Mine That Bird has had five jockey changes, a trainer change, traffic in the Preakness and a bad ride in the Belmont. Two starts came at Santa Anita over a synthetic surface he obviously did not like and his first start this year was a last-second entry into the Firecracker Handicap on turf. In the Woodward he again ran with a new jockey, and blinkers for the first time, and a failed attempt at a new, closer-to-the-pace running style.

Regardless, the fluke label and been attached to Mine That Bird and the armor has worn thin among his defenders. After all, 0-for-8 is 0-for-8.

Now on to the third question: What can be done, if anything, to get him back on track? It is difficult to imagine that he would need another lay-off with only three starts year after his eight month vacation between the Breeders’ Cup Classic (gr. 1) in November and the Firecracker in July. It would appear that the Jockey Club Gold Cup, Breeders’ Cup Classic or any other grade 1 race are no longer short term options for Mine That Bird.

Perhaps the grade 2 Hawthorne Gold Cup is a viable option. The 10-furlong distance is suitable to Mine That Bird’s come-from-behind running style and the Oct. 2 date may also fit. The Monmouth Cup Stakes (gr. 2) at 1-1/8 miles Oct. 9 or the $100,000 Spend A Buck Handicap (gr. 3) at Calder the following week are other options.

But make no mistake. Mine That Bird may be just one loss away from retirement. Some might say he should be on his way back to Roswell, New Mexico now. But that is a difficult decision to make on a grade 1 winning, 4-year-old gelding. It is difficult to watch the Kentucky Derby winner flounder around Saratoga in embarrassment, but there has to be more left in the tank and some hope that what may be left isn’t sour.

That might take some wins at a lower level for a few races to help Mine That Bird regain his confidence and his competitiveness. Neither of which he currently seems to have. In no way are we suggesting Mine That Bird ever be dropped below allowance level racing. That seems obvious to racing fans but sometimes escapes certain trainers or owners.

But if all else fails and trainer D. Wayne Lukas can’t find the correct buttons to push on Mine That Bird, a swift retirement decision must be order. And Mine That Bird can live the rest of his days enjoying the dry, sunny afternoons and the funny lights in the night skies above Roswell.

Editors Note: This blog post is part of the Thoroughbred Bloggers’ Alliance Winning Topic Friday. This week various TBA bloggers are addressing Retirement: Where is the line for retirement vs competing, but not winning, for a horse that once won at a high level? As fans we want our stars to hang around and race as much as possible, but all horses lose form, some permanently some for a period of time. As fans we can't have it both ways wanting more racing, but we don't want to see our stars sullied.

You can read more TBA Blogs at the TBA home page.

Quality Road Hoping For History and Time Karma For Breeders' Cup Classic

Quality Road won the grade 1 Woodward Stakes Saturday in a gallop. A perfect preparation for the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic (gr. 1) at Chuchill Downs Nov. 6 according to trainer Todd Pletcher.

“I think if he gets the 1 ¼ miles he can do it with the time in between,” Pletcher said in NYRA press notes. “For me statistically, we’ve always done well with that kind of time frame, so we’d like to come into the biggest and most important race with what we do best. Our horses tend to run their best races with that kind of spacing between them.”

But does that time frame do well statistically in the history of those that have won the Woodward and the Breeders’ Cup Classic in the same year?

For the record, six horses have won both the Woodward Stakes at Breeders’ Cup Classic. However, two of those Woodward/Classic double winners were not able to pull it off in the same year. Skip Away won the 1998 Woodward after winning the 1997 Breeders’ Cup Classic and Cigar followed a similar path winning the 2007 Classic and 2008 Woodward.

Relative to Quality Road trying to jump from the Woodward winner’s circle to winning the Breeders’ Cup Classic in the same year, four are among that group: Alysheba (1988), Cigar (’95), Ghostzapper (2004) and St. Liam (’05).

However, both Alysheba and Cigar made starts between their Woodward wins and the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Alysheba won the grade 1 Meadowlands Cup at 1-1/4 miles in 1:58.80 to become the only horse in the modern era at that time to break the 2-minute barrier at 10 furlongs three times in the same year. Alysheba, jockey Chris McCarron and trainer Jack Van Berg then solidified the Horse of the Year golden trophy with a Breeders’ Cup Classic win over Seeking the Gold on a dark and rainy early evening at Churchill Downs.

In 1995, Cigar had just defeated Best Pal, Tinner’s Way, Concern and Urgent Request in the Hollywood Gold Cup (gr. 1) in southern California before trainer Bill Mott returned him to New York for the Woodward in preparation for the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Cigar was looking for his eighth win in eight starts for the year and his 10th consecutive career win. He would win the Woodward, the Jockey Club Gold and the Breeders’ Cup Classic to extend his winning streak to 12.

The only two horses to have won the Breeders’ Cup Classic directly out of the Woodward were Ghostzapper in 2004 and St. Liam the next year.

Interestingly, St. Liam had an eerily similar year in 2005 to Quality Road’s 2010 campaign. Both won the Donn Handicap (gr. 1) at Gulfstream Park. Both then won grade 1 stakes before finishing second in the Whitney Handicap (gr. 1) at Saratoga. Quality Road was runner-up to Blame while St. Liam was second to Commentator in the Whitney. In 2005 St. Liam went on to win the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Belmont Park. The question remains for Quality Road.

Looking at Quality Road’s year, however, seems to add credence to the strategy of taking 63 days between the Woodward and the Classic. The son of Elusive Quality seems to enjoy time between races. It was 113 days between his win in the Donn and the Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont Park. It was then 67 days before his loss by a head to Blame while carrying five additional pounds in the Whitney. If anything, 63 days may even a bit short in terms of vacation time between races.

“I think there was a lot more in the tank based on the way he came back [after the Woodward]; he was hardly even blowing,” Pletcher said.

That is a tank that will have to be primed against the likes of possibly Blame, Zenyatta and Looking at Lucky in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Quality Road, Mine That Bird Taking Different Strategies Into Woodward

One horse in Saturday’s grade 1 Woodward Stakes at Saratoga is hoping to continue his quest for Horse of the Year. Another is in pursuit of lost respect.

The former is Quality Road, winner of three of four races this year, including grade 1 wins in the Donn Handicap at Gulfstream Park in February and the Metropolitan Mile Handicap at Belmont Park in late May.

The later is Mine That Bird, who is winless in seven starts since winning the Kentucky Derby (gr. 1) presented by Yum! Brands some 16 months ago.

Carrying five pounds more than Blame under the handicap conditions of the Whitney (gr. 1) earlier in the Saratoga meeting, Quality Road suffered his only defeat of the year by a just a head. Blame is being pointed toward the Jockey Club Gold Cup (gr. 1) at Belmont Park Oct. 2 to prepare for a probable rematch with Quality Road in the Breeders’ Cup Classic Nov. 6. That leaves Quality Road as the 1-4 morning line favorite in the Woodward against lesser competition that has recent optional claiming winner Convocation as the second choice at 6-1 odds. Mine That Bird is the third choice at 10-1.

While a victory in the Breeders’ Cup Classic may be necessary for either Blame, Quality Road or other candidates to clinch the golden Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year, trainer Todd Pletcher (photo above) seems to have as much confidence as the Saratoga line maker according to his quotes in Daily Racing Form. “That’s the way we’d like to see the race unfold, for someone to show enough initiative that we can put him in a situation where he can follow someone,” Pletcher told DRF. “I think that’s his best running style.”

The most likely to accommodate Pletcher is the speedy Arcodoro, a speedy victor against non-winners of two races allowance company at Saratoga in his last start.

A fast earlyt pace may be just what D. Wayne Lukas (photo left), trainer of Mine That Bird, has ordered for the Woodward as well. The come from behind gelding is has run two very marginal races this year, finishing eighth on grass at Churchill Downs in the Firecracker Handicap (gr. 2) and fifth again Quality Road and Blame in the Whitney. While Lukas will not be able control the pace in the Woodward, he has already made a significant change with Mine That Bird, firing jockey Calvin Borel and replacing him with Rajiv Maragh.

Lukas is also changing the pace strategy for Mine That Bird in the Whitney telling DRF that “We got to give him a chance at the top of the stretch to close. We could be five or six lengths [back] but we can’t be 16 or 17 lengths back and run down the top handicap horses.” Mine That Bird will also be running in blinkers for the first time in an effort to help him stay closer to the pace setters early.

Now the Mine That Bird bandwagon is about a crowded as a Death Valley tour bus in August, but he continues to be a charming sort for some racing fans. A Kentucky Derby winner always carries some degree of popularity - even if he accomplished the historical feat at 20-1 odds - but Mine That Bird’s smallish stature and reproductive status seem to add to his charm.

But charm doesn’t win grade 1 races at Saratoga. And based on his recent races, changes in strategy and jockeys may not be enough to help Mine That Bird get to the Woodward winner’s circle either. It doesn’t help that Lukas won his only Woodward 28 years ago with Island Whirl. But Saratoga is the “Graveyard of Favorites” so they have that go for them. Which is nice.

Ditto: Matt Carothers On Rachel Alexandra
I am completely on board with TVG host Matt Carothers and his editorial comment regarding the next start for 2009 Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra. Like Carothers, and echoed on Friday's telecast of Blinkers Off by co-host Dan Illman of Daily Racing Form, wouldn't we all like to see Rachel Alexandra make her next start against Zenyatta in the Lady's Secret Stakes (gr. 1) at Hollywood Park during the Oak Tree meeting Oct. 2.

Of course, the race will never happen. Carothers, Illman and I recognize that. Jess Jackson, principal owner of Rachel Alexandra, has sworn he would never start Rachel Alexandra on a artificial surface. Hollywood Park has a Cushion Track main track. That makes the shipping across the country from New York to California almost inconsequential.

But the Lady's Secret does make sense on many other points as Carothers and Illman both pointed out. The Lady's Secret is 1-1/8 miles, right at Rachel's best distance and an 1/8th of a mile shorter than Zenyatta's distance.

Despite Jackson's convictions, nobody knows how Rachel Alexandra will respond to the artifical surface. And what better time to try than now, when Rachel Alexandra has so little to lose after losing to Persistently as the odds-on favorite in the Personal Ensign last week. But even with the three defeats this year, Rachel's Beyer Speed Figures compare favorably to Zenyatta. Rachel Alexandra may not be the great filly she was last year, but based on Beyer numbers alone, she appears, at the very least, in good enough form to muster a significant challenge if not an all out upset.

But the race would not need a Rachel upset to be one of the great races (if not in most demand) of our era. To see Rachel Alexandra on the lead down the stretch at Hollywood Park, with Zenyatta in methodical and determined pursuit is all we really want.

The problem is: realistically it may be just be too much to ask for.