Male sprinters take their shot at Grade I glory on both coasts Saturday with the GI Alfred G. Vanderbilt S. at Saratoga and the GI Bing Crosby S. at Del Mar, which is a “Win and You're In” for the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint.
Champion Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) is four-for-four at Saratoga and three-for-three this year. The GII True North S. romper is the heavy favorite at 1-5 on the morning-line against five quite overmatched foes. The next closest on the morning-line is 6-1 shot Ny Traffic (Cross Traffic), who enters off a win in the Chocolate Town S. at Penn National June 17.
“You can't talk about Jackie's Warrior without thanking Kirk and Judy Robison for putting him back in training,” said Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen. “It's so rare in this day and age for a champion colt to have another year at the racetrack and for him to have another chance at Saratoga.”
Meanwhile, on the West Coast, a more evenly matched field of 10 seek a spot in the Breeders' Cup starting gate in the Bing Crosby. Three-time Crosby winner Bob Baffert saddles the lightly-raced Shaaz (Uncle Mo) Saturday. Two-for-four thus far, the $1.1-million EASMAY acquisition enters off a third in the GIII Steve Sexton Mile May 30 while under the temporary care of conditioner Sean McCarthy.
Last term's GI Woody Stephens S. winner Drain the Clock (Maclean's Music) avoids rival Jackie's Warrior by making his first start on the West Coast Saturday.
The top three finishers from Santa Anita's GII Triple Bend S. also resurface here: American Theorem (American Pharoah), Principe Carlo (Coil) and Get Her Number (Dialed In).
While this race has been won by some very talented horses, it has not produced a Breeders' Cup winner since Kona Gold in 2000. The last Alfred Vanderbilt winner to score at the World Championships was Speightstown in 2004.
Short, But Sweet Field Set For Jim Dandy
There may only be five colts set to line up for Saturday's GII Jim Dandy S., the local prep for next month's GI Runhappy Travers S., but it's quite a talented quintet.
The field is led by Epicenter (Not This Time), who went off as the Derby favorite after dominating the Fair Grounds preps. He was a valiant second beneath the Twin Spires after being run down late by longshot Rich Strike (Keen Ice) and rallied to fill the same spot last out in the GI Preakness S. May 21.
“He's training as well, or better, as he did throughout the Triple Crown races, so we'll see,” said Winchell Thoroughbreds manager David Fiske said. “It seems like everyone is getting better this time of year, and I don't know that he could be doing any better. Steve is pleased with him. He's a pretty straight forward horse. I think during the Triple Crown I characterized him as almost machine like. He just does what you want him to do, goes back to his stall and lays down.”
Preakness winner Early Voting (Gun Runner) also returns here, hoping to give his sensational young sire his second Grade I winner in as many Saturdays following Cyberknife's Haskell score. He is joined by stablemate and GI Toyota Blue Grass S. winner Zandon (Upstart), who completed the Derby trifecta.
“I really believe that they both have established themselves for quite some time now to be two of the top-five 3-year-old dirt colts in the country pretty consistently throughout most of the year,” trainer Chad Brown said. “The order might change around those top five and the fifth horse that's in that group might change a little bit, but they're consistently in that group. We're at the midway marker, so there's a lot more racing to take place and these horses are going to have to continue to maintain strong campaigns to stay in that group.”
Country Grammer Returns in the San Diego
Country Grammer (Tonalist) makes his first start since upsetting the G1 Dubai World Cup Mar. 26 Saturday in Del Mar's GII San Diego H. The 1 1/16-mile test is often used as a prep for the GI Pacific Classic, which is the next target for undefeated MGISW Flightline (Tapit).
John Velazquez ships in from Saratoga to ride for Hall of Famer Bob Baffert. It is Country Grammer's first start on American soil this year, having kicked off the season with a second in the G1 Saudi Cup Feb. 26.
“It's going to be tight, you know, he's more of a mile and a quarter type of horse,” Baffert said, “but it's nice to have a race into him. We sent him to the farm for a couple of months, Winstar Farm, and they sent him back looking great.”
Baffert pursued a similar path with Dubai World Cup winner Arrogate (Unbridled's Song), who also made his first start after Meydan in the San Diego. He finished fourth that day and went on to be second in the Pac Classic before losing his title defense in the GI Breeders' Cup Classic.
Mandaloun (Into Mischief), named GI Kentucky Derby and GI Haskell S. winner last year via DQ, ships west to run in this spot rather than facing the aforementioned Life Is Good in the GI Whitney S. next weekend. He enters off a well-beaten fourth in the GII Stephen Foster S. July 2.
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