POST PARADE
SEPTEMBER 28, 2011
Serve to Thirsty: Not so fast
by
Vance Hanson
Travers S. (G1)
winner STAY THIRSTY (Bernardini) lost a worthy opponent with the recent
defection of TIZWAY (Tiznow) from Saturday’s Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) due to
illness. While that 1 1/4-mile test, his first against older horses, has gotten
easier, Stay Thirsty had best keep an eye on who’s creeping up behind him in the
divisional race.
Following his Travers
victory a month ago, Stay Thirsty’s path to a three-year-old title appeared
relatively clear. With the winners of the spring classics either on the
sidelines or fallen on hard times, Stay Thirsty’s consistent summertime form had
catapulted him to the top of the heap. All that remained was to perform
respectably against older rivals in the Jockey Club Gold Cup and Breeders’ Cup
Classic (G1).
Unless something unforeseen occurs, Stay Thirsty probably doesn’t have to worry
much about holding his own in a depleted Gold Cup. The Breeders’ Cup Classic,
however, is a race where simply hitting the board potentially might not be good
enough.
TO HONOR AND SERVE (Bernardini), who many considered a prime classics prospect
at the start of the year, proved to be no such thing after a highly ineffective
prep campaign at Gulfstream. His distant third-place effort in the Fountain of
Youth S. (G2) was far from an inspiring piece of work, and when he finished
similarly in the Florida Derby (G1), it was apparent this was not the To Honor
and Serve we recognized from his juvenile form at Aqueduct.
At least there was an explanation forthcoming about the Florida Derby
disappointment. Trainer Bill Mott revealed that To Honor and Serve had sustained
a sprain to the suspensory ligament in his left front leg, which would keep him
out of the classics and out of action until later in the year.
To Honor and Serve was ready to suit up again when Saratoga rolled around, but
the spot chosen for his return, the 6 1/2-furlong Amsterdam S. (G2), seemed a
bit odd by today’s standards. In an era when most high-profile horsemen are
unwilling to sacrifice their star horses’ reputations by putting them in races
where they might possibly lose, it took an old-school Hall of Famer like Mott to
show that it’s still okay to prep your router in a sprint.
And the Amsterdam definitely proved to be a means to an end. To Honor and Serve
was fresh to an extreme leaving the starting gate, dueled for the lead for more
than five furlongs, then ran out of gas and wound up sixth against rivals that
had largely kept busy over the summer.
Going straight to the Travers off that one race was a non-starter (remember how
well that worked out for Quality Road?). Instead, To Honor and Serve dipped back
into the allowance pool on Travers eve and blasted older foes by 8 1/4 lengths
going nine furlongs. In the race for best performance by a three-year-old at
Saratoga on Travers weekend, it was neck and neck.
The moment To Honor and Serve’s fan club had waited 10 months for finally
occurred in last Saturday’s Pennsylvania Derby (G2). Against a field that
included the Travers superfecta minus Stay Thirsty, To Honor and Serve won with
complete authority and appeared to leave plenty in the tank in advance of his $5
million engagement at Churchill Downs on November 5.
The three-year-old title is still Stay Thirsty’s to lose, especially if he were
to pad his record with a victory in the Gold Cup. But let’s face it, it would be
hard to mark the ballot with his name should To Honor and Serve come back and
win the Breeders’ Cup Classic.
Note the verb “win.” To Honor and Serve does actually need to have his picture
taken in the winner’s circle at the conclusion of the Classic to be considered
three-year-old champion. Finishing ahead of Stay Thirsty for a second time this
season, while also losing again, isn’t going to cut it.
A three-year-old champion with a mere two stakes wins? It’s been done before,
albeit by dual classic winners. But in the strangest year of three-year-old
male competition in memory, we have to accept the realities.