As a longtime racing fan and Thoroughbred owner, Al Gold dreamed of having a horse good enough to compete in the Kentucky Derby. After making his dream a reality last year with multiple Grade 1-winner Cyberknife, who finished 18th, Gold will hope to go back to Louisville for seconds when Slip Mahoney tries to earn his way into the Derby starting gate in Saturday's 98th running of the Grade 2, $750,000 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct Racetrack.
The Brad Cox-trained Slip Mahoney, who picked up 20 points for his last-out runner-up effort in the Grade 3 Gotham here, is 30th on the Kentucky Derby leaderboard entering Saturday's nine-furlong test which offers 100-40-30-20-10 qualifying points to the top-five finishers.
Gold, a native of New Jersey and resident of Saratoga Springs, New York, has been a horseplayer and fan for over 50 years and has owned thoroughbreds since 2004. Last year, Cyberknife provided Gold with his first Grade 1 triumph when the son of Gun Runner won the Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park.
Although Gold did not get the result he wanted in the “Run for the Roses,” he said he thoroughly enjoyed the moment.
“We didn't fare very well, but it was a great experience to enjoy it with my friends and family. It was great to do the walkover with my wife and kids,” Gold said. “A couple friends walked over with us too, which was very nice. We spent three or four days with them in Louisville going to different restaurants, going to the races. It was everything you would expect from an experience like that, and hopefully we can do it again this year.”
Gold also campaigns the Cox-trained Instant Coffee, who won the Grade 3 Lecomte in January at Fair Grounds Race Course before finishing a disappointing sixth in the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby two weeks ago at Fair Grounds.
To qualify for the Derby, Slip Mahoney will need to hit the board in a talented field led by stablemate Hit Show, the 5-2 morning-line favorite, who enters from a 5 1/2-length romp in the Grade 3 Withers on February 11 at the Big A.
“This year, we had a couple quality 3-year-olds. One of them didn't run very well in New Orleans, but we're looking forward to Slip hopefully running well in New York,” Gold said. “We have a lot of tough horses coming into this race, some that had bad trips in the Gotham. Hit Show will be back in there and he'll probably be the favorite. I'm confident but hopefully we'll do well. I'm looking forward to the race.”
Slip Mahoney, who has made all four of his starts at the Big A, displayed tactical speed in his two outings entering the Gotham. Following a runner up to Kentucky Derby hopeful Tapit Trice going a one-turn mile on December 17, he battled gamely down the lane to defeat fellow Wood Memorial contestant Crupi in a January 21 maiden event. But he was taken out of his element in the Gotham after stumbling out of the gate and was forced to make up nearly a dozen lengths from 13th-of-14 down the backstretch.
Despite the rough start, Slip Mahoney advanced with a wide run and went from eighth-to-second in the last two points of call to finish 7 1/2 lengths behind the victorious Raise Cain.
“We weren't expecting him to break that badly and be so far behind the field,” Gold recalled. “Hopefully, this time we break sharper and stay with the field and he makes a good account for himself. He did run well and pass all except the winner from the top of the lane home. He's training well and we expect good things from him.”
Boasting regal bloodlines, Slip Mahoney is by 2016 Champion 3-Year-Old Colt Arrogate and out of the Grade 1-winning A.P. Indy mare Got Lucky. He is a close relative to 2010 Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver as well as Grade 1-winner Girolamo and graded stakes winner and producer Daydreaming. He is a direct descendant of the prolific broodmare Numbered Account as well as influential matriarch La Troienne.
But despite his blue blooded status, Gold only had to spend $150,000 to purchase Slip Mahoney at the 2021 Keeneland Yearling Sale.
“At the time, Arrogate was not much of a sire. He may have had one winner. That aspect helped us,” Gold said. “His dam was a Grade 1 winner, who made nearly a million dollars, so it was a little less than we thought we would pay. The horse was a bit on the small side and Arrogate was cold at the time. Those were the reasons we got the horse relatively cheap. A month later, he probably would have gone for three times the price when Arrogate's offspring started winning races.”
Joe Hardoon, Gold's bloodstock and racing manager, signed the ticket for Slip Mahoney and said he was particularly impressed by how well Slip Mahoney handled himself after being shown so many times.
“It was late in the afternoon when we looked at him and he was still showing himself really well. If you go too late in the day a lot of times, they're tired and exhausted from being shown all day,” said Hardoon. “We went back and saw him the next morning and he was still showing himself great.”
Hardoon reflected on Slip Mahoney's Gotham run and said having to overcome adversity sets him up well for the Wood Memorial.
“He took a little while to come along mentally. Every time he walked over to the races, he got more professional,” Hardoon said. “Last time, he missed the break and in his two maiden races before that he broke sharp, so that was a little bit of a surprise. It didn't look like he had any problem passing horses and he made a wide move. He probably ran about a mile and an eighth that day with all the ground he lost.”
Gold said Instant Coffee, who could turn his focus to the Grade 1 Preakness Stakes on May 20 at Pimlico Race Course, might race next in the Grade 3 Lexington on April 15 at Keeneland. A viable backup plan would be the nine-furlong Grade 3, $200,000 Peter Pan on May 13 at Belmont Park.
“The Preakness is probably the first choice, but nothing is set in stone. There's the Preakness, the Peter Pan, or the Lexington as well,” Gold said.
Gold said the newly-retired Cyberknife, who took up stallion duty at Spendthrift Farm in Lexington, Kentucky and stands for a $30,000 stud fee, is off to a good start.
“He's got a full book and he's been having fun every day,” Gold said. “The reports are that a couple mares he's covered are in foal. We're looking forward to seeing the babies next spring. We're very excited about that. We're excited to see his offspring. We had a great time in his two years of racing. Now we're looking forward to seeing some of the 2-year-olds we have coming up and hope that these 3-year-olds have a good year.”
The post ‘Hopefully We Can Do It Again This Year’: Al Gold Back For More Derby Dreams With Slip Mahoney appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
