by Jennifer Caldwell
After a busy 2011 spring campaign that saw Mucho Macho Man one of only four
On Saturday at Gulfstream Park, the massive son of Macho Uno made his
“It was the absolute perfect trip. We were right outside the speed.
Turbo Compressor was quickest from the gate in the feature event of the
|
Mucho Macho Man was the 2-1 second choice in his second start off the
five-month break, and returned $6.20, $3.80 and $3 to his faithful backers. Ron
the Greek came with a furious late rally, overtaking Turbo Compressor in the
shadow of the wire, but could not reach the winner. It was another seven lengths
back to Duke of Mischief, who was followed by 8-5 favorite Adios Charlie, Decaf
Again and Dream Maestro.
“We really sat the perfect trip. We were right in behind the leaders and he
just didn’t fire,” said jockey Javier Castellano aboard Adios Charlie. “He felt
really good in the post parade, but today just wasn’t his day. He just didn’t
fire.”
Mucho Macho Man ran 1 1/8 miles on the fast dirt in 1:47 4/5 to improve his
career mark to 13-4-3-3. The four-year-old has thus far banked $883,643,
beginning with a pair of placings against maiden special weight rivals at Calder
and Saratoga. He finally broke his maiden for Tim Ritvo, scoring at Monmouth
Park in September 2010 by four lengths, but has been saddled by trainer Kathy
Ritvo ever since.
His new conditioner would send Mucho Macho Man out to finish second in the
Nashua and Remsen Stakes, a pair of Grade 2 events at Aqueduct, but the bay colt
made his sophomore bow a fourth-placing in the Grade 3 Holy Bull Stakes last
January. He returned to capture his first stakes victory when taking the Grade 2
Risen Star Stakes, then went on to be third in the Grade 2 Louisiana Stakes and
Kentucky Derby before off-the-board placings in the Preakness and Belmont
Stakes.
Given the next five months off, Mucho Macho Man returned in November to
easily take an optional claimer, and is now on track for a big year in the
handicap ranks.
“Ramon did a great job,” Ritvo said. “Everything has gone well since we
started back with him. The race at Aqueduct was at the right time to get him
going again and everything has gone right since then. When he came up to that
other horse (Turbo Compressor) I was confident he would go on from there.”
Dominguez, who rode Mucho Macho Man for the first time in the Belmont, was
impressed with the colt’s development.
“You can really tell how much he’s grown up since I rode him in the Belmont.
Back then, he was just a big skinny horse that had a lot of maturing to do,”
Dominguez said. “Now he looks like he’s grown up and has everything figured
out.”
Ritvo has no set plan for Mucho Macho Man’s next race.
“We’ll see how he comes out of it and then start to look for another race for
him,” she said.
Bred in Florida by John D. and Carole A. Rio, Mucho Macho Man is campaigned
by Reeves Thoroughbred Racing and Dream Team One Racing Stable. He is out of the
stakes-winning Ponche mare Ponche de Leona and comes from the same family as
Grade 1 heroine Dream Empress.
Earlier on the card, Stronach Stables’ Awesome Feather continued her stellar run with
“She trained great for the race, but you just don’t know until you can run
Awesome Feather hooked up with Tiz the Argument for the opening half-mile,
“I have so much confidence in her,” said Sanchez, who has been aboard Awesome
|
“I was a little concerned when I saw the fast fractions, but Jeffrey is part
of the team and executed perfectly,” Brown remarked. “She just hit another gear
and it was over. I’m not sure we’ve ever seen every gear she’s got.”
Sent off the 4-5 favorite, Awesome Feather was worth $3.60, $2.60 and $2.10.
Delightful Mary was game in defeat, grabbing the place spot by 1 1/4 lengths
over Sweet Repent. My Pal Christy followed in fourth, with Tiz the Argument and
Perfect Embrace completing the order under the wire.
“I committed to make the lead and the winner was pressing me hard. When I
looked over she was just very handy,” said Dominguez, who had piloting
duties aboard Tiz the Argument. “We couldn’t match strides with her. She’s
really like her name says.”
The Florida-bred Awesome Feather competed for breeder Jacks or Better Farm in
the first six starts of her career. Trainer Stanley Gold saddled the daughter of
Awesome of Course to a sweep of the Florida Stallion Stakes series at Calder,
then sent her out to a 2 1/4-length triumph in the 2010 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile
Fillies. That was enough for the lass to be honored with an Eclipse Award as
champion two-year-old filly.
Awesome Feather found herself in Brown’s shedrow barn not long after the Breeders’ Cup,
though, as she sold for $2.3 million to her current connections just days after the event.
Tendon issues cropped up before the filly really began training for her
three-year-old season, and she recuperated for much of last year.
The bay miss returned on October 5 at Belmont Park to add a victory in the Le Slew
Stakes to her resume, then jumped right back into top-level competition when
romping by 5 1/4 lengths in the Grade 1 Gazelle Stakes on November 26 at
Aqueduct.
Out of multiple Grade 3-placed stakes winner Precious Feather, who is by
Gone West, Awesome Feather’s third dam is 1958 champion two-year-old filly
Quill. Starting her four-year-old campaign off with a bang in this one, she has
now banked $1,861,746.
“We don’t have anything in particular in mind for her,” Brown added. “The
biggest thing with her is to see how she comes back. We’ll talk to the Stronachs
and see where we go. With her, it’s one race at a time.”