Wow!

I was very impressed by Grade 3 Affirmed Handicap winner Grazen. I think this one could be a star in the near future. He is trained by Mike Mitchell, and ridden by Rafael Bejarano. He is a son of the Alydar stallion Benchmark and out of a stakes placed daughter of Rubiano. Nick Alexander is the breeder/owner. The Affirmed was Alexander’s first stakes win.

The gray colt caught pressure the entire way through a half mile of :46.97, and 3/4 in 1:10.57. Despite this he drew off to an easy victory stopping the clock in 1:41.40 for the 8.5 furlong distance. Misremembered from owner/trainer Bob Baffert finished second. Quidici Man closed to finish third.

The Afirmed is the third win from four starts for Grazen. He was within himself for this win. I can only imagine how good he will be in a couple of races if he continues to improve. I’m curious as to where Mike Mitchell will go next. If he were mine I’d go for the Grade II Swaps. I feel like this is a horse who could win the Travers, but I don’t know if he will be the same on traditiona ldirt. What are your thoughts? Leave a comment and let me know.

Friday Night Lights

Friday June 19, 2009 will be the first time Churchill Downs will conduct races at night. First post is set for 6:00, and the last one is scheduled to go off at 11:11. Hopefully this will allow the track to attract customers who are unable to visit or wager during the day. Similar tactics have been tried at Hollywood Park. I don’t know how successful they were in terms of the handle, but the quality of horses on Friday nights at Hollywood were usually lower. I hope that isn’t the case at Churchill Downs.

Ocean Colors is entered in the fifth race on Friday. She is the last daughter of 1988 Kentucky Derby winner Winning Colors. She will be racing at five furlongs over the turf course for trainer Steve Asmussen and jockey Shaun Bridgmahon. She is the morning line favorite at 3-1.

Another interesting entry is Grade II Futurity and Grade II LeComte Stakes runner Flying Pegasus. He will be racing at seven furlongs over the dirt for Ralph Nicks and jockey Robby Albarado. He is the 6/5 favorite. While I haven’t seen the PPs for the race I believe he is entering the race on a lay off and may have trouble with the distance. I’d probably stay away from that one, but he is a nice horse nonetheless.

I wish they would’ve carded a minor stakes race for the occasion. It’s not often you see something new happen in the 100+ year history of Churchill Downs. I’ll probably tune in to watch Oceans Colors and Flying Pegasus run. I can’t wait!

The Wesley Ward and John Velazquez Show

I love it. After winning last out in maiden claiming company at Churchill Downs, Strike The Tiger won the $81,000 Windsor Castle Stakes over the grass course at Royal Ascot. The two-year-old son of Tiger Ridge became the first U.S. horse to win at Royal Ascot. He was shipped across the pond along with several other horses by ace trainer Wesley Ward. He was ridden to victory by John Velazquez.

If you didn’t know, Royal Ascot is one of the highest quality race meets in the entire world. It lasts five days and is one of the most important social events in England. It is so important that even the Queen is in attendance. There are over 15 Group Stakes (Graded Stakes) and at least one Group 1 race per day. Click here for more information about Royal Ascot.

As if winning a single race wasn’t enough, Ward and Velazquez took the five furlong Group 2 Queen Mary’s Stakes with Jealous Again the very next day. The daughter of Trippi won in wire to wire fashion and was never in danger of losing the race. She finished five lengths clear of the second place finisher. Her last start resulted in a second place finish in the Kentucky Juvenile Stakes at Churchill Downs. The winner of that race, Aegean, will also be racing at Royal Ascot.

Wesley Ward is among the best trainers in the United States with two-year-olds. John Velazquez is among my top five favorite jockeys and a great rider overall. I commend them for taking a chance racing overseas and winning. After we Americans got our asses handed to us in the Breeders Cup by the Europeans it sure feels nice to see one of ours win across the pond. Keep up the good work!

Dunkirk Done

After setting the pace and coming again to finish second in the Belmont Stakes, $3.2 million auction purchase Dunkirk will be sidelined until next year in all likelihood. I won’t pretend to know anything about the bone structure of horses, but X-rays show that he has a non-displaced condylar fracture in his left hind cannon bone. This is very disappointing, because he had Horse of the Year potential. Todd Pletcher is confident that the son of Unbridled’s Song will be able to achieve his full potential after returning next year.

Reports show that he underwent surgery on Tuesday and a screw was inserted to stabilize the injury. He will be spending some time at Ashford Stud while he recovers. Click here for more information.

Bird is the word

It came as no surprise when I saw Summer Bird charge to the lead in the 165th running of the Belmon Stakes. He was my second choice behind Charitable Man, and luckily I had a few saver bets on him that kept me from losing on the whole on Saturday. Most of my bets were variations of 6/2,4,7. Unfortunately I had the right horses, but in the wrong order.

Summer Bird showed us all that he had big things in his future when he finished a close third in the Arkansas Derby. He wasn’t quite ready for the Kentucky Derby, but still finished a hard charging sixth. Everything came together for him in the Belmont Stakes. I am happy to see a small trainer like Tim Ice win a classic race. I was also glad to see Kent Desormeaux get the Belmont “monkey” off his back. He has won the Kentucky Derby 3 times, the Preakness twice, and now the Belmont once.

Summer Bird is likely headed for either the Breeders Cup Classic or the Breeders Cup Turf. Trainer Tim Ice said the key will be to keep him fresh. I think either race will suit him well, but I’d like to find out how he handles synthetic dirt first if he opts for the Classic.

Dunkirk and Charitable Man finished second and fourth respectively. Both are targeting the Travers later this summer. From what I have gathered, Dunkirk is likely to head to the Jim Dandy first. Trainer Kiaran McLaughlin listed both the Jim Dandy and Hashell Invitational as possible next starts.

Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird will have two more starts before a run in the Breeders Cup Classic according to trainer Chip Woolley. He wants to keep him against three-year-olds until then. While this is a viable strategy I would try and get a race against older competition before throwing him in the deep end at Santa Anita. Regardless of what happens from here on out, he has already cemented his place in the history books. This years Triple Crown was unlike any in recent memory, and I can’t wait for next year. I’m already counting the days.