Trainer George Weaver has long believed that Vekoma is capable of big things on the racetrack. The 4-year-old son of Candy Ride has delivered on that faith in a major way this season, earning back-to-back Grade 1 victories in the seven-furlong Carter Handicap and last Saturday's Runhappy Metropolitan Mile Handicap.
Vekoma defeated Network Effect and Code of Honor by 1 ¼ lengths in the Met Mile, leading throughout the one-mile contest.
“I actually did think he could be on the lead,” Weaver said after the race. “I thought we had the most natural speed of the horses in the race. I knew the outside horses liked to show speed, but at the end of the day I thought if we broke well, they might just be caught chasing. When I talked to Javier in the paddock, he was non-committal, and I said the whole time that I know Javier understands this horse and feels what he can and can't do, and I left it in his hands.
“At the quarter pole, it seemed like all comers were coming and I thought 'Man, does he have anything left in the tank or not?' When they got to the eighth pole and I saw him rebreak and keep going, I got excited. It was fun.”
The big wins have increased Vekoma's career earnings to $1,245,525, making him Weaver's highest earner since the trainer took out his license in 2002.
“I was so proud of him,” said Weaver. “Physically he's matured and filled out, and I really couldn't be any happier with him.”
The Met Mile was Weaver's fourth top-level win as a trainer, following Saratoga County's win in the Group 1 Dubai Golden Shaheen in 2005 and Lighthouse Bay's win in the Grade 1 Prioress in 2013.
Still, the Louisville native grew up with dreams of the Kentucky Derby. He made his inaugural Run for the Roses in 2015 with Tencendur, but that horse faded to finish 17th.
Early last year, Weaver had gotten excited that Vekoma might give him a stronger chance in a second trip to the Derby. The colt won the G2 Nashua as a juvenile, and made his 3-year-old debut a third-place finish in the G2 Fountain of Youth Stakes. In April, Vekoma dominated the G2 Blue Grass Stakes by 3 ½ lengths, securing his spot in the starting gate for the Kentucky Derby.
Unfortunately, Vekoma disappointed on the day, up close early and fading to finish 12th, and the colt was sent to the farm for a break that lasted the remainder of 2019.
“He did not perform well on Derby day, and I don't know if it was the (sloppy) track or if it just wasn't his day,” Weaver said. “He's a terrifically talented racehorse, and I've always thought he was a star. Obviously, we were hoping to do better in the Derby, but history shows that a lot of really nice horses don't run well on the first Saturday in May.”
Bringing the colt back to the races involved a lot of dedication from both Weaver and his wife and business partner, Cindy Hutter. The couple first met in 1991 when they were employed by D. Wayne Lukas, but didn't date until they both made the move to trainer Todd Pletcher's team.
Pletcher, also employed by Lukas early in his career, left the Hall of Famer to go out on his own in 1996, and Hutter went along as his assistant. Weaver made the move to Pletcher's barn in 1997, but as assistant trainers, he and Hutter had to work at separate locations for much of the year.
In 2002, the couple made the decision to stick together and work for themselves.
“We decided to make a go of it and do everything all at once,” Weaver explained. “We went into business for ourselves, we bought a house, had a kid; we didn't hold back and did it all at once.”
Today, 18 years later, Hutter is very hands-on with the horses while Weaver is able to handle many of the business aspects like communicating with owners and planning races.
When it came time to bring Vekoma back to the races early in 2020, Hutter was on the talented colt's back nearly every morning.
“She's gotten on him most of his career,” Weaver said. “I have confidence when she tells me they're doing well. She's a great horseperson and knows our horses very well.”
In late March, Vekoma made his first start off a nine-month layoff a winning one in Gulfstream's listed Sir Shackleton Stakes, dominating the seven furlong-contest by 3 ¾ lengths. Though his next start was delayed a bit by the coronavirus pandemic, Vekoma didn't miss a beat and celebrated his first Grade 1 win with an impressive romp in the Carter Handicap, a Win and You're In Challenge Series race for the Breeders' Cup.
With a 7 ¼-length win and a final time of 1:21.02 for seven furlongs, Vekoma earned an automatic entry into the Breeders' Cup Sprint. The Met Mile win earned the colt a slot in the Dirt Mile, so there are plenty of options leading up to this year's World Championships.
“Nothing's written in stone, but we'll probably focus on a mile or under going forward,” Weaver said. “We're going to nominate to the Whitney for sure, but he's run two huge races back-to-back. The most likely scenario, to me, is that he would come back in a race like the Forego. We want to plot a campaign to get us to the Breeders' Cup, so we'll take a look at the calendar and go from there.”
“I think he's the best older horse in the country,” co-owner Randy Hill told NYRA publicity. “The horse will tell us. He's such a warrior.”
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