COMMENTARY
AUGUST 29, 2013
Rousing performances
by James Scully
Excitement runs high for the impending football season, but this is also one
Game On Dude and Royal Delta put their best foot forward last Sunday,
After finishing fourth in the 2011Pacific Classic and second last year, Game
Game On Dude put himself in position to earn Horse of the Year the past two
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This could finally be his year. ‘Dude’ compiled major wins along the way to
his previous Classic engagements, but he’s never arrived unscathed, sustaining
multiple losses in both 2011 and 2012. The dark bay son of Awesome Again will
bring a different swagger into the 2013 championship event, training up to the
Classic with a perfect five-for-five mark in tow, and became only the second
horse to capture the Santa Anita Handicap, Hollywood Gold Cup and Pacific
Classic in the same year. All were authoritative wins at the 1 1/4-mile
distance.
Royal Delta romped to a 4 1/2-length decision in the Personal Ensign at
Saratoga and appears at the top of her game presently. She’s three-for-five in
2013, winning those starts by a combined 20 1/4 lengths, and her only U.S.
setback came after a well-beaten 10th in the Dubai World Cup on Tapeta, which
was no surprise given that she finished up the track in the same overseas race
last year.
The landscape gets interesting if Royal Delta takes the September 28 Beldame
as expected. The five-year-old mare has captured the last two runnings of the
Breeders’ Cup Distaff and the lack of depth in her division is striking — there
will be no rivals of Royal Delta’s caliber in this year’s Distaff field. Even
the top three-year-old filly, Princess of Sylmar, will bypass the race in favor
of a four-year-old campaign.
Owner Benjamin Leon has shown the courage to face males twice before and I
think she ultimately winds up in the Classic field. Victories in the Beldame and
Classic would put Royal Delta squarely in the mix for Horse of the Year honors.
Two weeks ago, on August 17, Princess of Sylmar lived up to her growing
reputation with a dominant 2 1/2-length score in the Alabama, her third straight
Grade 1 tally. The impressive victory virtually guaranteed her the Eclipse Award
for champion three-year-old filly and the daughter of Majestic Warrior has come
a long way since capturing Busanda and Busher Stakes on Aqueduct’s inner track
during the cold days of winter.
Her ascension began after a non-threatening second to Close Hatches in her
graded stakes debut, the April 6 Gazelle. Princess of Sylmar overcame a troubled
start to win the Kentucky Oaks going away by a half-length at 38-1 odds and
followed with an emphatic six-length triumph in the Coaching Club American Oaks
nearly two months later. Both efforts earned a 104 BRIS Speed rating, a
significant improvement over her previous numbers, and Princess of Sylmar
continued to shine in the Alabama, registering a sparkling 107 Speed figure.
Given that she raced through the winter, without any breaks since October, it
makes sense to skip the Breeders’ Cup — her connections can point her toward
the 2014 event. Trainer Todd Pletcher has not tipped his hand regarding Princess
of Sylmar’s final start of the season, listing both the September 21 Cotillion
(against three-year-old fillies) and the Beldame as options. I would love to see
her give Royal Delta a run for the money in the latter.
August 17 also featured an unprecedented hat trick of sorts as Ken and Sarah
Ramsey owned and bred three Grade 1 winners, all sired by the Ramsey homebred
stallion Kitten’s Joy. Real Solution capped the big day in the Arlington
Million, winning via disqualification after being interfered with in deep
stretch, and he’s a candidate to see him build upon the encouraging performance
for Chad Brown. The five-year-old was making only his third U.S. attempt and
eighth overall start of his career.
Going back three weeks, Wise Dan did not disappoint in the August 10
Fourstardave, delivering another world-class effort to win going away while
completing a mile in a sizzling 1:34 on “good” turf. His connections decided not
to take any chances this summer/fall with the versatile gelding, keeping the
reigning Horse of the Year in one-mile turf events, and he’s the best U.S.
performer under such conditions since Hall of Famer Lure.
His win streak has reached eight but even if Wise Dan wins out this year,
with a second straight victory in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, he will need some help
to defend his Horse of the Year title. Game On Dude and Royal Delta would steal
the spotlight with a Classic win, and even Wise Dan’s older half-brother,
Successful Dan, can make a strong case if he strings together victories in the
Woodward, Jockey Club Gold Cup and Classic. There’s even the remote possibility
that a three-year-old like Orb, Palace Malice or Will Take Charge could string
together a Jockey Club Gold Cup-Classic double this fall.
The Classic is a crucial race in the Horse of the Year chase
and Wise Dan factored into the equation last year by virtue of Fort Larned’s
upset victory. He needs similar circumstances again in early November.
The Woodward takes center stage this Saturday and the 1 1/8-mile event at
Saratoga lost a major player on Wednesday when Pletcher opted to train Whitney
winner Cross Traffic up to the September 28 Jockey Club Gold Cup. It will still
feature a nice seven-horse field, with Paynter shipping in from the West Coast
to challenge Flat Out, Fort Larned, Mucho Macho Man and Successful Dan.
The sentimental side may lean toward Paynter — what a great story for horse
racing — but I think Successful Dan will prove best.