Horse of the Year Havre de Grace, who captured the Grade 1 Apple Blossom
Handicap early in her championship campaign, is unlikely to attempt a title
defense at Oaklawn Park April 13, owner Rick Porter said on his
Fox Hill Farm
website Monday.
Although the Larry Jones trainee is widely expected to launch her 2012 season
at her Fair Grounds base, Porter wasn’t ready to confirm any specific target
just yet.
“Havre de Grace is doing great and Larry is letting her go a strong eighth
down the lane this morning,” Porter wrote. “She is progressing well.
“We have not decided on her first race, but we have to keep in mind what kind
of weight we will have to spot some good horses in the handicap races.
“That is why we are probably not going to run in the Apple Blossom this year.
First, Larry is not at Oaklawn and we would have to ship.
“There are a number of first race options at several tracks, and then we
always have the option of running against males with no weight issues. The good
thing is Larry is thrilled the way she is training.”
Jones had previously mentioned the March 17 New Orleans Ladies, or the Grade
2 New Orleans Handicap against males on April 1, as possible comeback spots.
Last year, Havre de Grace wintered at Oaklawn, where she kicked off 2011 with
a handy victory over archrival Blind Luck in the Grade 3 Azeri, and followed up
promptly in the Apple Blossom. She then shifted tack to Jones’ summer
headquarters at Delaware Park. After warming up with an effortless win in the
Grade 3 Obeah, she lost a thriller to Blind Luck in the Grade 2 Delaware
Handicap.
Havre de Grace rebounded to defeat males in the Grade 1 Woodward at Saratoga,
and turned the Grade 1 Beldame Invitational into a laugher, routing eventual
champion three-year-old filly Royal Delta. Having clinched the champion older
female title, Havre de Grace tackled males in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, but had
to settle for fourth.
In the wake of Drosselmeyer’s Classic upset, and scrambled older male and
three-year-old male divisions, Havre de Grace was the runaway choice for Horse
of the Year. The daughter of 2005 Horse of the Year Saint Liam has compiled a
record of 15-8-4-2 while bankrolling $2,496,175.