And Now for Something Completely Different …

The Top 10 Performances of the weekend. Let’s count it down. 10) Tie - Varenar and Interpatation both pulled off shocking upsets over a couple of the best turf horses in the world yesterday. Varenar upset Goldikova in the Prix de la Foret at Longchamp and Interpatation outlasted Gio Ponti in the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic. Probably the biggest win that either horse will attain but worth a mention for the best of the weekend. 9) Kodiak Kowboy is one tough sprinter when he runs his best and yesterday in the slop of the Vosburgh he ran his best. With the timing of a fine Swiss watch, Kodiak Kowboy unleashed his powerful rally late to run by one of the best sprinters of recent years, Fabulous Strike, for a gritty victory. 8) Mastercraftsman did not beat much in his runaway victory in the Diamond Stakes Friday night in Ireland, but what he did do, was prep effectively for the Breeders' Cup. In his first try on a synthetic surface, Mastercraftsman said “yes” to his connections for a shot at the Classic 7) Awesome Gem was due. If ever a good horse was due for a stakes win, this was the horse. Awesome Gem had run so many good races with no ultimate reward, that you just had to root for him to finally break through for his first stakes win in more than two and a half years. I say good for the old boy, congratulations on your Hawthorne Gold Cup score. 6) Music Note did what she needed to do in a Grade 1 race that was decimated by defections. Her win in the Beldame against an overmatched field, was effortless and it sets her up perfectly for another try in the BC Ladies Classic. 5) Gone Astray is a horse I have been watching for some time and I am confident he is better than most people realize. Yesterday in the Ohio Derby, he met few horses of consequence, but he won authoritatively after chasing down a leader loose on the lead. Big things are in this colt’s future. 4) Pure Clan is pure class. After a tough pace scenario in her last start, the Beverly D, she was primed for her best effort and it was produced over the boggish turf course yesterday at Belmont in the Flower Bowl. She will see different turf conditions in the Breeders’ Cup, but she will be a major factor. 3) Careless Jewel was fantastic yet again as she absolutely toyed with her filly counterparts in the rich Cotillion Stakes at Philadelphia Park. She is now ready to step up and take on the big girls next because she is making a mockery of these 3-year-old races. 2) Summer Bird has taken a stranglehold on the 3-year-old male eclipse award with another huge win in the state of New York. His Jockey Club Gold Cup win was a workmanlike display of consistency and class as he methodically wore down Quality Road. This win places him firmly in the upper echelon of American horses in only his first year of racing. Drum roll please…and the number 1 performance of the weekend was… 1) Sea the Stars was absolutely spect-Arc-ular in winning the world’s most important race on the grass. He traveled to France and met his largest and toughest field yet, but it made little matter as he verified his greatness with an electrifying two length victory. Stuck down on the rail and a little keen early on, Sea the Stars easily shifted out to get a clear run and then turned on the afterburners to easily dispatch the world class field. If this proves to be his final career race, he certainly leaves the world of racing on a tremendous note.

Belmont’s Grade 1 Day

Now if we could just have Grade 1 weather. Yes, I wake up a little disappointed this morning as much like Travers Day, it looks like another big day for NYRA is going to be wet. You never know with the weather, but right now Belmont looks likely to have a sloppy day. This changes things of course for the horses, jockeys, fans, and from my standpoint on the handicapping front. The horses that would have won on a fast track and a firm turf, may very well not win in the wet conditions. It is not often that one racetrack has five Grade 1 races in succession, so let’s still enjoy the quality horses running in big races, but…was a nice sunny day too much to ask? Oh well, at least Woodward Day was a beauty. The Grade 1 Beldame - Music Note on dirt. Music Note on mud. Music Note in the slop. No odds here, so let’s single her in the Pick-3 and if you are really feeling ambitious, the Pick-6. I do not see her losing this one. The Grade 1 Vosburgh - I was all set to try to beat favorite Fabulous Strike with the Belmont loving Munnings, but I have lost confidence in his chances of running down the favorite on a wet track. Fabulous Strike is a monster at 6 furlongs and likes a wet track. He should be able to handle Go Go Shoot, who might not like the slop, pretty early and will be long gone. More chalk, so I am relying heavily on the exotics and getting off to a good start in the Pick-4. The Grade 1 Flower Bowl - I think Pure Clan is the best horse in the race, but I think her advantage actually moves down on a soft turf. Her main rival Dynaforce certainly appreciates plenty of cut to the turf as evidenced by last year’s Flower Bowl and now becomes an even bigger threat. Because of this, I expect bettors to make Dynaforce the favorite and while I fear her, I am sticking with Pure Clan. She is all class, can handle a wet turf and is unlucky to not have an even better record on the grass. All she needs is a reasonable pace, which I think will happen today, to roll in the lane. Today is her day. The Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic - Gio Ponti is well on his way to being named the turf champion. He can run on any type of grass condition, is very consistent, and appears to like the Belmont turf course. Having said this, I do feel like he is vulnerable today. This is the farthest he has ever run and he has to face defending champ Grand Couturier, on a course condition and a distance that he absolutely loves. I will be rooting for Gio Ponti to continue his winning ways as a fan, but on my multi-race tickets, I will include both him and Grand Couturier. The Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup - I was really liking the chances of Quality Road on a fast track. A little more question is now in my mind as his top two rivals (Summer Bird and Macho Again) have more quality off-track form than he does. I still do see the race unfolding with Quality Road getting the perfect stalking trip and pouncing on the turn. Maybe the slop will spread out the horses even more and he will be even more likely to run away from them in the stretch. Today is his day to move to the head of the class of 3-year-old males. No matter the condition of the track, I am going to stick with Quality Road as the final horse on my all Grade 1 Pick-4. Rain or no rain, I am going to enjoy Belmont’s Grade 1 day. I hope you do the same.

Travers Day … Here is What I Saw

A sea of slop and a soft turf course were the stage yesterday for some of the best horses in America. Travers Day is an important one, not only for the 3-year-olds, but also for many other divisions as well. I had my thumb at the ready to dish out some approval or some disappointment to the performers. Here is what I saw. Thumbs up to Summer Bird. He is now the master of his domain (3-year-old colts) with his second impressive win in a classic race. Summer Bird was much the best yesterday and proved his Belmont Stakes win was far from a fluke. In my eyes, he is now the clear leader in the division, and only a win by one of the other 3-year-olds in the Breeder’s Cup Classic would deny him an eclipse award. Congratulations to his young conditioner Tim Ice, who is barely one year into being on his own as a trainer. Thumbs up to Music Note. She was inches from being the 3-year-old filly champion last year, but her one race so far this year left much doubt as to her 4-year-old campaign. That doubt was erased with an overpowering performance in the Ballerina. Music Note is back, and I move her all the way up to the second position on my list of top older mares behind only Zenyatta. Thumbs up to Vineyard Haven. I knew he was a top 2-year-old last year, but to think he would run this well against such a great field yesterday caught me by surprise. His talent is undeniable as it almost overcame just one race in twelve months and that being during an unproductive Winter in Dubai. If he improves at all off of the King’s Bishop, he will be a force to be reckoned with this Fall. Thumbs up to Sara Louise. Another one who I thought might not be ready for her best yet, but she just outclassed her rivals in the Victory Ride. It will be very interesting to see where she goes from here, but she may be a very good one. Thumbs up to Salve Germania. I bet on her, so that is enough for me. The European certainly relished the boggy turf course and ran the race of her life. She might never beat this kind again, but hey, once is pretty good. Thumbs up to Rachel Alexandra. The empress of American racing was once again flattered by her former competition. Notably Summer Bird and Sara Louise. Every time her former rivals come back and win big races impressively, it makes me think that she is even better than the extremely high opinion I already had. Thumbs down to the Jim Dandy horses. Kensei sixth, Warrior’s Reward fifth, and Charitable Man fourth, all had little to say when the real running of the Travers went down. For a bunch that looked like they all had a shot going in, it was a dismal finish, proving that this year’s Jim Dandy was inferior in quality to its normal high standard. Thumbs down to Indian Blessing. Indian Blessing was a star at 2. Indian Blessing was a star at 3. Indian Blessing is not a star at 4. I don’t know if she is not the same since her Dubai sojourn, or if she has just lost a step, but she is not the same horse this year. Thumbs down to Big Drama and Munnings. I expected a lot more of these two highly regarded 3-year-old colts. Full of class and dropping down in distance. Both bred to enjoy slop, they simply did not have it yesterday and were no match for Vineyard Haven and Capt. Candyman Can. They will need to step up their games if they want to be factors in either the BC Sprint or Dirt Mile.