DeRosa's Blog

DEROSA'S BLOG

APRIL 11, 2013

Bruno With the Works: Rydilluc in Focus

by Bruno de Julio

The 20 horses who will line up in the starting gate to run for the roses this

year are horses like any of the other 28,000 Thoroughbreds born in 2010.

Some are homebreds: born and raised by the same owners in whose silks they run.

Others are purchased through the auction ring, sometimes multiple times: I'll

Have Another sold for $11k at the 2010 Keeneland September Yearling Sale and was "pinhooked"

as a two-year-old in Ocala for $35k. That's a nifty profit in just seven months.

Few horses are purchased for vast sums at auction and go on to true greatness:

$4-million yearling and eventual Kentucky Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus is one

of the rare exceptions. Several top horses actually didn't sell or had to be

withdrawn: Sunday Silence was a $32k buy-back (or "RNA" for Reserve Not

Attained); Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom, who raced as a homebred for

Team Valor, was a $100k RNA at the 2009 Keeneland September sale.

Bodemeister was withdrawn from the 2011 Fasig Tipton Florida sale because the

connections "knew he had the potential of being a star, but he simply wasn't

going to bring the kind of money you wouldn't want to turn down," owner Ahmed

Zayat told us.

This year, it's Rydilluc who has the interesting sales history: the beautiful

bay son of Medaglia d'Oro was chased over a six month span by one very

determined man who saw his potential.

Bred in Kentucky by Hill 'n' Dale Equine Holdings & Gaines-Gentry Thoroughbreds,

Rydilluc was purchased out of the 2011 Keeneland September Yearlings Sale for $55k by

Straightaway Farms.

After learning the ropes in Ocala, the colt showed up in the Secure Investments

consignment at the Palm Meadows Florida sale in March 2012. Racingwithbruno

spent that winter in Florida and watched the future Rydilluc's pre-sale breeze

in :10.3, and out :23 for a quarter. When it came to preview day, though, the

colt didn't quite fire and worked in :11.1, :22.3, and galloped out in :35.4. Not a

bad work by any means, but it wasn't enough for him to fetch his $90k reserve.

The colt would show up at the Fasig-Tipton Timonium sale several months later

around Preakness weekend. He previewed much better over the tighter turns of the

old racetrack in :10.3, :22, and galloping out in :36.4. Still not the prettiest of

movers, the colt covered ground like a horse who would appreciate added real

estate. Horses like him fool buyers because they take the whole quarter-mile

preview to get fully into stride.

One man who wasn't fooled was Gary Contessa.

In his words, "I loved him and bid

on him down in Florida," but decided to let him go when the price got too steep.

The veteran trainer got a shot at redemption when he saw the Timonium catalog.

"I was absolutely certain that I was the only one on him at $150k,'' Contessa

said. "I had to have him. I emailed everyone and told them this was their

Derby horse." It's evident that telling Rydilluc's story

has become this trainer's new favorite pastime.

Contessa is an excellent conditioner known for training the

likes of Runway Rosie, Sweet Vendetta and Papi Chullo. He also campaigned Do It

With Style, who famously won Keeneland's Grade 1 Ashland Stakes without a whip.

Contessa is recognized as a major player at the two-year-old sales: a recent

Blood Horse MarketWatch article ranked him second among Thoroughbred trainers

over the past 15 years based on purchase price v. earnings.

It's not all about winning for Gary: his enthusiasm for the game is contagious.

"I love having my family, my clients, the owners come out and see their horses

train," he told us at Saratoga last year. "They get to see what their horses are

up to and I love the company."

Contessa was the initial trainer of Peace Rules after buying the son of Jules

for $35k, but he sold him to Bobby Frankel/Edmund Gann for "the high six

figures." Peace Rules went on to win the Blue Grass Stakes and finish third in

the Kentucky Derby. Now Contessa has Rydullic for this week's Blue Grass, and he

would be his first Derby starter.

After a less than stellar debut on dirt, it was Rydullic's second start on

the Aqueduct turf in November 2012 that Contessa knew he had something: the

horse had shown speed and was getting stronger under a mild hand ride late by

Edgar Prado at odds of nearly 18-1.

When asked about trying the dirt again, Contessa said, "I understand that we are

following a dream. If it turns out I am wrong, we may still have the best grass

three-year-old out there. I can accept that!" Since shipping to Keeneland a week

ago, Rydilluc has flourished and his trainer believes he still has more maturing

to do.

The colt had a seven-furlong work over the Polytrack where he finished in :24.2

for the final quarter and wanted to do more. What's even more impressive than

his physical size and presence is his attention span.

"He loves to stand on the track and just watch horses train," Contessa

explained. This is a quality very few

horses have and, those that do are some of racing's greats, among them Tiznow

and Zenyatta.

We watched Rydilluc for 30 minutes on Wednesday: he doesn't get ruffled, doesn't

get hot or antsy. When fellow Blue Grass rival Balance the Books came out of the

paddock within feet of Rydilluc, the dark bay just looked over and nodded his

head. He didn't flinch. The ability to have an intense nature but not get caught

up in what's going around you is the trait of many a great horse, and certainly

a horse who can keep focus for a mile and a quarter.

If the big bay colt wins the Blue Grass Stakes on Saturday, he has a spot in the

starting gate on the first Saturday in May. Just as Babe Ruth pointed to the sky

before hitting it out of the ballpark, Contessa could be doing the same with

Rydilluc: he bought an unproved two-year-old at auction and swung for the

fences.

***Guest blogger Bruno de Julio produces

Bruno With The Works, Brisnet.com's

latest product offering a workout

service for the top races throughout the country, including Keeneland,

Oaks-Derby week at Churchill Downs, Triple Crown events, Saratoga, Del Mar and

the Breeders' Cup World Championships. In addition to fantastic workout analysis

coast to coast de Julio and his team provide perspective on watching horses

train. For a complete list of handicapping

reports for Keeneland, including

Bruno With The Works,

click here.