Csaba repeats in Hooper

Csaba had to share the spoils in a dead-heat last year, but won outright this time (Coady Photography) Bruce Hollander and Cary Shapoff’s Csaba captured the Grade 3, $100,000 Fred W. Hooper H. for the second consecutive year on Saturday, satisfying a legion of supporters as the even-money favorite at Calder. Luis Saez guided the four-year-old colt. A dead-heat winner with Ducduc in the 1 1/8-mile race last year, the Phil Gleaves-trained Csaba won outright the second time around, and showed good determination edging away from runner-up Valid in deep stretch. That rival took the lead with an eye-catching move on the far turn and battled gamely all the way to the wire. The pace was solid on the fast track, with I’m Steppin’ It Up establishing early splits of :23 1/5 and :47 3/5 with Sr. Quisqueyano chasing him in second. Valid and Csaba stalked just behind the early leaders until advancing on the far turn. Valid struck first and passed the three-quarters mark in 1:12 a half-length in front, but Csaba offered a strong turn of foot into the stretch and had collared the leader by midstretch. He grinded out a 1 1/4-length decision and stopped the teletimer in 1:52 4/5. Csaba paid $4.20 to win while pocketing his seventh overall stakes victory. “We had one big advantage,” Hollander said, “besides my trainer, besides everything else and the track: Luis Saez. “When you put Luis on him, it’s gold. Luis gets right down there with him.”

“I tried to go in front,” Saez said, “but there was too much speed in the
race so I had to grab hold of my horse and get a good position and wait. When we
came to the half-mile I had two horses in front of me so I had to find some room
outside because the front horse quit. When I put him out he responded to me well
and he won the race.”

“Luis and I discussed it in the paddock — we thought there would be some
speed,” Gleaves said. “But he broke well and kept his position. He’s a grinder,
he just grinds away.”

Valid, the 9-2 fourth choice among 10 wagering interests, held the place by
nearly a length over the fast-finishing On the Loose Again. It was another 4
3/4-length gap back to Joshua’s Comprise in fourth.

Twin, Sr. Quisqueyano, I’m Steppin’ It Up, Macho Bull, Notimetokill and
Ducduc rounded out the order of finish.

By top sire Kitten’s Joy, Csaba has now earned $551,480 from a 25-11-2-4
record. The bay earned his first stakes placing when third in the Grade 3 Palm
Beach on turf in March 2012 and his first stakes victory came four months later
in the El Kaiser at Calder. He also captured the Harlan’s Holiday and Tropical
Park Derby last season and posted a nose second in the Grade 2 Hall of Fame.

Csaba opened 2013 with a victory in the Grade 3 Hal’s Hope and also won the
Memorial in May at Calder. He finished second in the October 5 Quality Road at
Gulfstream two starts previously and entered Saturday’s title defense off of a
runaway allowance score at Calder on November 16.

“He loves Calder. He’s been here since he was a baby,” Gleaves said. “We
brought him here as a two-year-old. He’s an iron horse and he’s a monster here.”

“This is home for Csaba,” Hollander added. “He’s nine-for-12. He loves it
here. I’ll run here any time I can. This is my baby.”

Bred in Kentucky by Ken and Sarah Ramsey, Csaba is the second registered
foal, and only stakes winner, out of the winning War Chant mare High Chant. His
second dam is Grade 3-placed stakes heroine Highfalutin. This is female family
of multiple Grade 1 queen Very Subtle, who beat the boys in the 1987 Breeders’
Cup Sprint, and Grade 1 diva Pool Land.

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