Nobiz Like Shobiz delivers show-stopping performance in
Remsen
Elizabeth J. Valando’s homebred NOBIZ LIKE SHOBIZ (Albert the Great) entered
Saturday’s $200,000
Remsen S.
(G2) as a promising colt with loads of potential. After his devastating 6
1/2-length victory in a sharp final time of 1:48 4/5 for nine furlongs, the
Barclay Tagg trainee left no doubt that he’s rapidly progressing into a serious
Kentucky Derby (G1) threat. In the process, he etched his name on the honor roll
of Remsen winners alongside such greats as Damascus, Northern Dancer and
Johnstown.
With Cornelio Velasquez in the irons, Nobiz Like Shobiz stalked the pace set
by Timber Reserve (Forest Camp) through fractions of :23 4/5, :47 3/5 and 1:11
4/5 on the fast track. On the far turn, the eventual winner loomed up menacingly
on the outside and quickly took command in the stretch. Nobiz Like Shobiz was
not content with that easy a lead, however, as he then produced a dazzling turn
of foot, increasing his margin to seven lengths at the eighth-pole while getting
the mile in 1:36. The 2-5 favorite waltzed the rest of the way home in a tour de
force performance.
“The last part of the race, he won easily,” Velasquez said. “I just had a lot
of horse. I think he is the best two-year-old now. He was a little green the
first couple of times, but he is getting more better, more better. He likes
company and competition.”
“I thought he ran very professionally,” Tagg observed. “That’s what I was
hoping for all along. That’s why I gave him that extra month or five weeks or
whatever,” he added, referring to his decision to skip the Breeders’ Cup
Juvenile (G1).
Zanjero (Cherokee Run) rallied from last to garner runner-up honors, 1 3/4
lengths ahead of Kong the King (Storm Boot). Timber Reserve faded to fourth,
while Sightseeing (Pulpit) wound up a troubled fifth after steadying on the
turn. Pink Viper (Smoke Glacken), Summer Doldrums (Street Cry [Ire]) and Marina
Market (A.P. Indy) rounded out the order under the wire.
Nobiz Like Shobiz returned $2.90, $2.20 and $2.10 while keying the $15.60
exacta and $107 trifecta (2-7-3). The 9-1 Zanjero gave back $5.20 and $4.20, and
the unheralded Kong the King yielded $5.50 to show at odds of 20-1.
The Remsen winner advanced his record to 3-2-1-0 and more than doubled his
bankroll to $226,400. The bay first created a stir when breaking his maiden by
10 3/4 lengths in his debut going a mile at Belmont Park. The usually
conservative Tagg then pitched Nobiz Like Shobiz into the Champagne S. (G1), in
which he had trouble at the break but still finished a close second to the more
experienced Scat Daddy (Johannesburg).
Out of the winning Storm Cat mare Nightstorm, Nobiz Like Shobiz is a
half-brother to an unnamed yearling filly by Changeintheweather and a weanling
colt by Broken Vow. Hailing from the family of Grade 1-winning sire Cormorant
(His Majesty), 1973 Kentucky Oaks (G2) queen Bag of Tunes (*Herbager) and Grade
2 victress Swingtime (Buckpasser), the exciting juvenile is inbred 5 X 4 to the
influential producer Swoon’s Tune (Swoon’s Son).
According to Tagg, Nobiz Like Shobiz made a terrific impression from the
start.
“This is the truth,” Tagg said. “I went to look at him at Ocala Stud. They
brought him out to the track and he jogged off. Before he jogged three steps, I
called (Mrs. Valando) and said, ‘This is the most gorgeous horse I’ve ever
seen.’ I’ve never done that before.”
As the Remsen proved, Nobiz Like Shobiz is running up to his looks.