Although no stranger to winning on big stages, Ron the Greek’s victory in
Saturday’s Grade 1, $1 million
Jockey Club
Gold Cup at Belmont Park was nonetheless a major upset.
The six-year-old, sent off at 21-1, skimmed the rail for most of the 1
1/4-mile journey, rallied up the inside to take the lead before the quarter
pole, and proceeded to humiliate several of the nation’s leading older horses
and three-year-olds.
Winner last season of the Santa Anita Handicap and Stephen Foster Handicap,
Ron the Greek was understandably overlooked in a race where stablemate Flat Out
was seeking a third straight win in the Gold Cup, and classic winners Orb and
Palace Malice were battling for leadership in the three-year-old division.
Much of the blame lies with Ron the Greek himself. His only stakes win since
the Foster came in last January’s Florida Sunshine Millions Classic, a race
restricted to Florida-breds. He entered the Gold Cup having placed just twice in
his last five starts.
Tracking a close third as Alpha carved out fractions of :23 4/5, :47 1/5, and
1:10 3/5, Ron the Greek was driven up inside that rival by Jose Lezcano
approaching the final turn, opened up two lengths while passing the mile marker
in 1:35, and drew off to an emphatic 6 3/4-length decision in a time of 1:59 3/5
for 1 1/4 miles on a fast track.
“This is the Ron the Greek today,” winning trainer Bill Mott
said. “This is the same type of race he ran in the Sunshine Millions, the same
type of race he ran in California when he won the Santa Anita Handicap. Every
once in a while, he’ll throw one of these. I can’t determine when, but he did it
today.
“I had a flashback to the race in Florida this winter when he won the
Sunshine Millions. I said, ‘Man, oh, man. He’s up there close to the pace
today.’ We didn’t try to plan that. I just told Jose to let him place himself,
the way we always do. He’s old enough — he knows how he wants to run, and he
wanted to run big today.”
Ron the Greek, owned by Brous Stable, Wachtel Stable, Jack Hammer, and Gary
Barber, paid $44 to win.
Palace Malice, the Belmont Stakes winner, tracked in second behind Alpha,
surged ahead of that rival when Ron the Greek did, but was no match for his
older rival.
“I thought (Palace Malice) ran great, you know,” trainer Todd Pletcher said.
“He showed his three-year-old form was legit. He ran well against older horses;
he beat a lot of nice older horses today. Ron the Greek is one of those horses
that on occasion runs a monster race, and today he did.”
Palace Malice finished 1 3/4 lengths ahead of Flat Out, who was seeking to
become only the second horse to win more than two Jockey Club Gold Cups (Kelso
won five in the 1960s).
“I was where I wanted to be the whole way, tracking behind the speed, just
waiting for my moment,” jockey Junior Alvarado said. “I was outside; that’s
where he likes to be. When I asked him he gave it to me. He gave me a nice kick
and he was running hard at the end.”
Next under the wire were longshots Vitoria Olimpica, Last Gunfighter, and
Alpha. The two biggest disappointments of the race, Whitney Handicap winner
Cross Traffic and Kentucky Derby hero Orb, completed the order of finish.
Cross Traffic, who normally races on the lead, stumbled badly leaving the
gate, trailed most of the way, and only passed Orb in the stretch.
“He just didn’t break, and that was it. The race was lost right there,”
jockey John Velazquez said. “It wasn’t his style. We tried to make a run, but it
was too much to make up.”
It was the worst performance of the year from Orb, whose chances at a
divisional crown were severely damaged. The Shug McGaughey trainee is now
winless in four starts since taking the Run for the Roses.
“The only thing I can tell you about the horse is that on the backside, I
didn’t have any horse early in the race. He come up flat and empty today,”
jockey Javier Castellano said. “I never rode him before but he was in great
position today. He was in hand and just galloping along, but he didn’t fire
today.”
In addition to his aforementioned wins in the Big ‘Cap, Stephen Foster, and
Sunshine Millions, Ron the Greek also delivered in the 2010 Lecomte at Fair
Grounds, and in a pair of overnight stakes at Aqueduct in 2011. He has placed in
four other graded stakes: the 2012 editions of the Whitney Handicap and Oaklawn
Handicap, and the Charles Town Classic and Stephen Foster earlier this season.
His career mark now stands at 29-9-5-3, $2,704,691.
Bred in Florida by co-owner Hammer, Ron the Greek is by Full Mandate and out
of the winning Fortunate Prospect mare Flambe’, who is a full sister to the dam
of Grade 2 victor and dual classic-placed Musket Man. This is also the family of
1969 juvenile champion Silent Screen as well as English highweight and Group 1
winner Mujahid.
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