Millionaire Snapper Sinclair is scheduled to make his 2021 debut in Thursday's seventh race at Oaklawn, a 1-mile allowance for older horses.
Snapper Sinclair hasn't started since finishing second in the $250,000 Cigar Mile Handicap (G1) Dec. 5 at Aqueduct for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen and owner Jeff Bloom, who also campaigned champion and multiple Oaklawn stakes winner Midnight Bisou.
Snapper Sinclair has only won five times in a 29-race career, but the 6-year-old son of City Zip has bankrolled $1,438,260. The horse has several near misses on his stakes-heavy resume, including runner-up finishes in the $750,000 Tourist Mile (beaten three-quarters of a length) Sept. 7 at Kentucky Downs, the first division of the $100,000 Fifth Season Stakes (beaten a neck) last year at Oaklawn and the $350,000 Essex Handicap (beaten a head) in 2019 at Oaklawn. Snapper Sinclair also was beaten a nose in the $400,000 Risen Star Stakes (G2) for 3-year-olds in 2018 at Fair Grounds.
Snapper Sinclair recorded his biggest career victory to date in the 2019 Tourist Mile over Kentucky Downs' European-style turf course. Bloom said “a little bit of everything” has kept Snapper Sinclair in training. The flashy bay has been based at Oaklawn since mid-December.
“He's healthy, he's sound,” Bloom said. “I feel like we're just inches away from a viable stallion career. He finished second in the Grade 1 Cigar. If he wins that race, it's a game changer for him. He's just such a fun horse to have and we like to race a lot. To be able to race with a horse as honest as Snapper Sinclair, it's part of why you keep coming back for more with this kind of thing. Snapper will always be one of my all-time favorite horses. He's a barn favorite for Steve and his crew. At the end of the day, it comes down to as long as Snapper wants to continue doing what he does and he stays sound and healthy, then so be it. Let's do it.”
Snapper Sinclair was an allowance winner at the 2019 Oaklawn meeting. He has had only two starts in allowance company since the summer of 2019, the last a third-place finish in a 1-mile grass event Nov. 5 at Churchill Downs. Seven-time Oaklawn riding champion Ricardo Santana Jr. is named to ride Snapper Sinclair, the 6-5 program favorite, Thursday. The race also attracted Grade 3 winner Plainsman, the early 5-2 second choice.
“In talking to Steve about it, it's kind of like Snapper sort of deserves a spot like this to kind of kick things off,” Bloom said. “He's shown up to every tough spot out there over the course of his career … none of these races are gimmies, but it's softer competition and, hopefully, we get that win for him. He's always knocking on the door. It would be nice to get him another confidence booster, get him a win, walk him into the winner's circle and then start planning his course of action following this spot.”
Probable post time for Thursday's seventh race is 4:09 p.m. (Central).
The post One Of Bloom’s ‘All-Time Favorite Horses,’ Millionaire Snapper Sinclair Readies For 2021 Debut appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
