Having shown he hadn’t completely lost the touch when upsetting Saratoga’s
Grade 1 A.P. Smithwick Memorial three weeks ago, Spy in the Sky will attempt to
make it a sweep of the Spa’s two major hurdles in Thursday’s Grade 1, $100,000
New
York Turf Writers Cup over 2 3/8 miles.
There was plenty of justification for Spy in the Sky’s 25-1 post-time odds in
the Smithwick. Since triumphing by five lengths in the Grade 2 Carolina Cup in
March 2010, the eight-year-old had started 10 times with three thirds, four
fourths and three instances where he failed to finish. After opening up 1 1/2
lengths in the stretch, Spy in the Sky clung to victory by a nostril over
returning foe Left Unsaid. Spy in the Sky is one of two past winners in this
year’s Turf Writers Cup having captured the 2009 renewal.
Left Unsaid’s performance in the Smithwick was a bold one given it was the
Dynaformer gelding’s first race in nearly 15 months. The oft-sidelined veteran
has accumulated a stellar record over hurdles (9-3-5-0) when he’s been right,
and among his two wins over the jumps was the Michael G. Walsh for novices at
the 2009 Saratoga meet and the $100,000 Foxbrook Champion Hurdle at Far Hills
later that season.
Four others from the Smithwick are in the Turf Writers Cup cast. Third-place
finisher All Together finished 1 1/2 lengths behind Spy in the Sky and Left
Unsaid for his third graded placing of the season, while Grade 2 winner Decoy
Daddy’s fourth was a much improved effort over his previous two outings. Divine
Fortune, the 3-2 favorite, made only a mild rally to be fifth in his title
defense of the Smithwick, while Dynaski trailed the field of 10. The latter is
seemingly capable of better as his third in the 2011 Turf Writers Cup suggests.
Completing the 10-horse line up are Sermon of Love, winless since taking the
2010 New York Turf Writers Cup; Demonstrative, who steps up in class off a
two-length score in the Jonathan Kiser for novices on July 26; Nationbuilder, a
distant third in the Grade 1 Iroquois last time; and English import Charminster.
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