Live Oak Plantation’s SOUPER SPECTACULAR (Giant’s Causeway), a half-brother
to Horse of the Year Zenyatta, returned to the worktab Wednesday morning at
Saratoga Race Course, his first breeze since April 17. Unraced since a close
fourth-place finish in the Fort Lauderdale S. (G3) on January 9 at Gulfstream
Park, the four-year-old was clocked in :38 2/5 for three furlongs over the good
Oklahoma training track.
“We were getting him ready over the winter and he needed some time after one
workout, we gave him that time and he’s coming back strong,” trainer Seth Benzel
explained. “He looks good. He actually ran in two stakes down in South Florida
against horses with much more experience than he had. You know, I don’t think he
was beaten any more than two lengths in either one and really showed that the
potential is there to belong with some of those hard-knocking horses.”
In the Fort Lauderdale, Souper Spectacular missed third by a head. In his
previous race, the Tropical Turf H. (G3) at Calder Race Course on December 4, he
was beaten three-quarters of a length for show and only 1 1/2 lengths separated
the top three finishers. A maiden winner at third asking on September 4 at
Saratoga last year, the colt smartly cleared his allowance conditions at
Keeneland in October and Aqueduct in November.
“We still have big plans for him,” Benzel admitted. “I think any time these
horses go through their conditions like he did, they’re going to face that point
where they’ve just advanced too quickly and will be in against horses with more
experience. I mean, he ran against Rahy’s Attorney (in the Tropical Turf) at a
point where Rahy’s Attorney had made well over a million dollars. Those types of
horses are tough.”
Overall, Benzel said he was pleased with Souper Spectacular’s progress thus
far and looking forward to watching him develop as the year goes on.
“Live Oak did a great job over the winter of getting him back to us and he
looks great,” Benzel said. “I think the jury’s still out on whether he wants to
go real far, or if a mile to a mile and a sixteenth is his best distance. He had
certain characteristics that I think that make that a little hard to tell.
“Maturity is also going to dictate what happens when he becomes a little bit
more relaxed and more professional about what he does. Right now, I think his
best distance has been a mile and a sixteenth and I can’t see any limitations as
to how far he can go. I think it’s just going to be a process getting there.”