©2019 Calvin L.
Carter. All rights reserved.
The
Road to the Kentucky Derby features two marquee races this Saturday
with the Remsen Stakes (G2) at Aqueduct Racetrack and
the Los Alamitos Futurity Stakes (G2) at Los Alamitos Race Course.
Let’s
look at the 104th running of the $250,000 Remsen Stakes (G2) where FORZA DI ORO will go
to the starting gate as the 3-1 morning line favorite. Post time is 3:43 p.m. ET.
Forza
Di Oro comes into this race with a 1-1-0 record in two starts for trainer Bill
Mott including a nice maiden win last out at Belmont Park. Here’s the video
and chart
call of that race:
FORZA
DI ORO inside early on, settled under rating just off the inside just off the
early duel, remained patiently handled as a trio vied directly in front through
the turn, came under light coaxing near the quarter pole, swung four wide into
upper stretch in behind rivals, tipped out to the six path straightened away
placed to a light drive and rallied to issue a challenge through the final
furlong taking command inside the sixteenth marker and inched away lightly
ridden out to the finish.
Although
he only won by three quarters of a length, Forza Di Oro was never shown the
whip, racing in hand the entire race, and looked good swinging to the outside
in the stretch to get up for the win in the final yards.
The final time of 1:42.72 is what I like to see young colts run on the Derby
Trail.
Speightstown,
the sire of Forza Di Oro, was a champion sprinter that compiled a 10-2-2 record
in 16 starts with $1,258,256 in career earnings.
Speightstown made only one off-the-board
start as a two-year-old. But at the age of three, he made seven starts and
compiled a 4-1-1 record with a second-place finish in the Amsterdam Stakes
(G2).
At four, he was unraced. As a
five-year-old, he compiled a 1-1-0 record in two starts with a second-place
finish in the Jaipur Handicap.
As a six-year-old, Speightstown
was 5-0-1 in six starts with wins in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1), Churchill
Downs Handicap (G2), True North Breeders’ Cup Handicap (G2), Alfred G.
Vanderbilt Handicap (G2) and Artax Handicap. He finished third in the Vosburgh Stakes
(G1).
As a stallion, Speightstown has
sired several graded stakes winners and his top ten leading lifetime performers
include: Reynaldothewizard, Tamarkuz, Golden Ticket, Force the
Pass,
Haynesfield, Dance to
Bristol,
Seek
Again,
Lord
Shanakill,
Jersey
Town,
and Rock
Fall.
Classic
Champion Thoroughbreds, LLC did not attend the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga
August Sale of Selected Yearlings but Forza Di Oro (Hip 215) was
one of 31 yearlings (29 colts, 2 fillies) we profiled from the catalog and he
has a B Classic Champion Thoroughbred
Profile®.
Forza
Di Oro has room to improve in his third start of the season and a recent bullet
work out could have him primed to take another step forward.
CLEON JONES (6-1) comes into this race with
a 2-2-0 record in five starts for trainer Jeremiah Englehart including a
second-place finish in the Sleepy Hollow Stakes at Belmont Park. Here’s the video
and chart
call of that race:
CLEON
JONES along the outside throughout, was in path two in pursuit of the front
runners on the turn, commenced the stretch one path farther off the rail, gained
ground steadily, but fell short.
Cleon
Jones tracked the leaders to the far turn and showed a lot of grit in the
stretch drive with Captain Bombastic but fell short of victory by a head
Tale of the
Cat, the sire of Cleon Jones, was a
graded stakes winner that compiled a 5-1-2 record in nine starts with $360,900
in career earnings.
As a three-year-old, Tale of the
Cat won the seven-furlong Kings Bishop Stakes (G2) and finished third in the
Vosburgh Stakes (G1). At the age of four, Tale of Silence finished second in
the nine-furlong Whitney Handicap (G1) and he was third in the Vosburgh Stakes
(G1).
As a stallion, Tale of the Cat’s
top performers include: Stopcharingmaria, She’s a Tiger, Lion Heart, Gio Ponti, Cat Moves, My Trusty Cat, Tale of Ekati, Appealing
Tale
and Favorite
Tale
to name a few.
Cleon
Jones has a C Classic Champion Thoroughbred Profile® and that makes him competitive
in this race.
A
long shot I like is PRINCE
JAMES (15-1) who comes into this race with a 1-1-0 record in two starts
for trainer Kelsey Danner including a second-place last out at Churchill Downs.
Here’s the chart
call:
PRINCE
JAMES chased the pace early, shifted into the four path in the far turn,
rallied for place stretch, was no match for the winner but second best.
Tiznow, the sire of Prince James, was a
multiple graded-stakes winner and an outstanding router who compiled an 8-4-2
record in 15 starts with $6,427,830 in career earnings.
Tiznow did not race until he was
three years old, making nine starts and compiling 5-3-0 record with $3,445,950
in earnings. His stakes wins include the Affirmed Handicap (G3), Goodwood
Breeders’ Cup Handicap (G2), the Super Derby (G1) by six lengths and he
finished the season with a win in the most 2000 Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1)
where he defeated the European champion Giant’s
Causeway
by a neck.
As a four-year-old, Tiznow was
3-1-2 in six starts and $2,981,880 in earnings with stakes wins in the San
Fernando Breeders’ Cup Stakes (G2), the Santa Anita Handicap (G1) and he
successfully defended his title of champion in Breeders’ Cup Classic when he
defeated the European invader and formidable winner of the Prix de l’Arc de
Triomphe, Sakhee, by a nose.
As a stallion, his leading
lifetime runners include: Well Armed, Tourist, Colonel John, Tizway, Morning Line, Tiz Miz Sue, Folklore, Bullsbay, Tough Tiz’s
Sis,
Gemologist, Da’ Tara and Strong
Mandate.
Prince James has an E Classic
Champion Thoroughbred Profile® but his Behavior
Index makes him competitive in this
race.
AJAAWEED (9-2) comes into this race with a 1-0-0 record in
three starts for trainer Kiaran McLaughlin including a fourth-place finish in
the Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity Stakes (G1) at Keeneland Racecourse. Here’s
the video
and chart
call of that race:
AJAAWEED
was unhurried early on, fanned into the five path in the far turn and moved up
in the stretch drive.
Ajaaweed
raced toward the back of the herd to the far turn when he made his move and got
up to finish fourth.
Curlin, the sire of Ajaaweed, was an outstanding racehorse
that compiled an 11-2-2 record in 16 career starts with $10,501,800 in career
earnings.
Curlin did not
start as a two-year-old. But, at the age of three, Curlin was 6-1-2 in nine
starts with $5,102,800 in earnings including wins in the Rebel Stakes (G3) and
Arkansas Derby (G2) en route to a third-place finish in the 2007 Kentucky Derby
(G1). He went on to win the Preakness Stakes (G1) and he finished second in the
Belmont Stakes (G1).
Other important
stakes wins include the Breeders'
Cup Classic (G1), Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1), twice, Dubai World Cup (G1),
Stephen Foster Handicap (G1), Woodward Stakes (G1), and the UAE Jaguar Trophy
Handicap.
In
eight crops as a stallion (2010-2017), Curlin has sired the 2013 Belmont Stakes
(G1) winner Palace Malice and the 2016 Preakness Stakes
(G1) winner Exaggerator. In addition, Curlin produced
the classic-placed runners Good Magic (second, 2018 Kentucky Derby), Tenfold (third, 2018 Preakness), Ride On Curlin (second, 2014 Preakness), Keen Ice (third, 2015 Belmont) and Irish
War Cry
(second, 2017 Belmont).
Ajaaweed
has a B Classic Champion Thoroughbred Profile® and that makes him competitive
in this race. His last work out was the best yet and if jockey Joel Rosario has
him positioned closer early on he has the breeding to be competitive.
*****
Only four horses have been entered in
the Los Alamitos Futurity Stakes (G2) and the one I’m most interested in is ANNEAU D’OR (9-5).
He was my long shot pick
in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Stakes (G1) and with an A+ Classic Champion
Thoroughbred Profile® and he has the breeding to win this race.
*****
A
total of 35 races comprise the Road to the Kentucky Derby. In addition, there
are seven races on the European road to the Kentucky Derby and there three
races on the Japan road to Derby glory.
2019/2020 KENTUCKY DERBY
LEADERBOARD
Ranking, total points, Trainer, Non-Restricted Stakes Earnings
1. Storm the Court, 22, Peter Eurton, $1,136,351
2. Tiz the Law, 12, Barclay Tagg,
$304,100
3. Maxfield, 10, Brendan Walsh, $300,000
4. Eight Rings, 10, Bob Baffert, $200,351
5. Silver Prospector, 10, Steve Asmussen, $197,351
6. Dennis’ Moment, 10, Dale Romans, $137,800
7. Anneau d’Or, 8, Blaine Wright, $340,000
8. +Scabbard, 6, Eddie Kenneally, $178,000
9. Wrecking Crew, 4, Peter Miller, $280,000
10. Green Light Go, 4, Jimmy Jerkens, $210,000
11. Gouverneur Morris, 4, Todd Pletcher, $100,000
12. American Theorem, 4, George Papaprodromou, $60,000
13. Finnick the Fierce, 4, Rey Hernandez, $58,200
14. +Enforceable, 3, Mark
Casse, $64,500
15. Big City Bob, 2, Jorge Duarte, Jr., $120,000
16. Lebda, 2, Claudio Gonzalez, $19,000
17. Gozilla, 1, Steve Asmussen, $72,000
18. Letmeno, 1, Ian Wilkes, $29,200
19. Ajaaweed, 1, Kiaran McLaughlin, $25,000
20. +Express Train, 1, John Shirreffs, $18,000
+ = Scabbard
(Hip
802), Enforceable (Hip 76) and Express Train (Hip 1016) were colts
we profiled at the 2018 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
EUROPEAN
ROAD LEADERBOARD
Ranking,
total points, Trainer, Non-Restricted Stakes Earnings
1.
Kameko, 14, Andrew Balding, $192,894
2.
Innisfree (IRE), 14, Aidan O’Brien, $127,856
3.
Victor Ludorum, 10, Andre Fabre, $250,958
4.
Royal Donarch (IRE), 10, Aidan O’Brien, $115,813
5.
Alson (GER), 4, J.P. Carvalho, $135,572
6.
Shekhem (IRE), 4, Dermot Weld, $24,068
7.
Year of the Tiger (IRE), 3, Aidan O’Brien $36,086
8.
Armory (IRE), 2, Aidan O’Brien, $258,793
9.
Iberia (IRE), 2, Aidan O’Brien, $25,389
10.
Gold Maze (GB), 2, Jessica Harrington, $12,034
11.
Mogul (GB), 1, Aidan O’Brien, $111,879
12.
Ecrivain (FR), 1, Carlos Laffon-Parias, $69.202
13.
Camorra (IRE), 1, Ger Lyons, $3,610
JAPAN ROAD LEADERBOARD
Ranking, total points, Trainer, Non-Restricted
Stakes Earnings
1.
Dieu du Vin (JPN), 10, Yukihiro Kato, $159,609
2.
Shonan Mario (JPN), 4, Shizuya Kato, $96,526
3.
Daimei Corrida (JPN), 2, Naoyuki Morita, $107,736
4.
Aurora Tesoro, 1, Yoshihiro Hatakeyama, $99,395
