Todd Pletcher | Horse Racing Free Tips

Pletcher Gets An Unexpected Third Candidate For Pegasus Turf In Colonel Liam

Todd Pletcher ended his holiday weekend in a unique situation, reports the Daily Racing Form (DRF). After Colonel Liam's win in the $75,000 Tropical Park Derby at Gulfstream Park, the trainer could be gearing up to run three horses in the Pegasus World Cup Turf on Jan. 25.

Colonel Liam made light work of his rivals with a 3 1/2-length victory on Saturday, recording a final time of 1:40.95 for 1 1/16 miles. This was the son of Liam's Map's second win from three starts on the turf, and his first start since a fourth-place finish in the Saratoga Derby on Aug. 15.

“I thought it was an impressive race – he had to make a bit of an early move and kept going,” Pletcher told DRF. “He's really taken to the turf. We saw that when he won the allowance race at Saratoga. He got into a little trouble in the stakes at Saratoga. We gave him a little freshening, he came back and trained great, and we're really happy to have him back. Hopefully this earns him a spot into the Pegasus Turf. It is an invitational, so I'll lobby for it.”

Pletcher's other two candidates for the Pegasus World Cup Turf are recent allowance winner Social Paranoia and Grade 2 Ft. Lauderdale Stakes victor Largent. The first list of invitees will be announced on Jan. 3.

Colonel Liam Looking For Pegasus World Cup Turf Invite Following Tropical Park Derby Win

Robert and Lawana Low's Colonel Liam overwhelmed nine rivals in Saturday's $75,000 Tropical Park Derby, making an emphatic case for being extended an invitation to the $1-million Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational (G1) Jan. 23 at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

The Tropical Park Derby, a 1 1/16-mile turf stakes for 3-year-olds, highlighted Saturday's 11-race program along with the $75,000 Tropical Park Oaks, a 1 1/16 turf stakes for 3-year-old fillies, and the $75,000 H. Allen Jerkens, a two-mile turf stakes for 3-year-olds and up.

Colonel Liam, the 6-5 favorite ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr., was making his first start since Aug. 20 but showed no rust at all while pulling away to a 3 ¼- length victory.

“He'd been training exceptionally well leading to this. We're happy to get him back,” trainer Todd Pletcher said. “Hopefully, that earns him a spot in the Pegasus Turf.”

The son of Liam's Map rated several lengths behind the early pace while clear on the outside. Don Juan Kitten cut fractions of 24.30 and 48.51 seconds for the first half mile under Edgard Zayas and continued to show the way heading into the turn for the homestretch, as Colonel Liam launched a breathtaking outside sweep that would carry him to the lead at the top of the stretch. The Kentucky-bred colt powered away from the field without much urging from Ortiz.

“I had a good trip, I broke out of there and tried to get a good position,” Ortiz Jr. said. “After the three eighths pole, I tried to move on because I have probably the best horse and let him pick it up and he responded very well. He's a very nice horse.”

Don Juan Kitten held second, a neck ahead of Summer to Remember.

Colonel Liam ran 1 1/16 miles in 1:40.05 to record his third victory in five career starts. The $1.2 million purchase at the 2019 OBS April sale graduated via the disqualification of the first-place finisher in his April 11 debut over Gulfstream's main track before finishing third in an optional claiming allowance at the Hallandale Beach track May 20. Two months later, Colonel Liam scored an impressive 2 ¾-length allowance victory in his turf debut at Saratoga, before enduring a nightmare trip in a fourth-place finish in the Saratoga Derby, in which he was beaten by less than a length by victorious Domestic Spending.

“He's really taken to the turf. We saw that in his allowance at Saratoga. He got in a little trouble in the Saratoga Derby,” Pletcher said. “He came back great. I thought it was an impressive race. He kind of made a little bit of an early move and kept on going.”

Colonel Liam gives Pletcher three prime candidates for the Pegasus Turf, joining Largent, who captured the Fort Lauderdale (G2) at Gulfstream Dec. 12, and Social Paranoia, a multiple graded-stakes winner and recent optional claiming allowance winner at Gulfstream.

“Obviously, anytime you can get your name thrown into the hat of any of those Pegasus races, you've got to get excited,” stable manager Jacob West said. “Todd had kind of hatched that plan weeks ago. He said if he runs well we might point to that. Obviously after today's performance we'll point to that.”

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Street Sense Juvenile Filly Zaajel Makes Eye-Catching Debut For Pletcher At Gulfstream

The parade of impressive Todd Pletcher-trained maiden special weight winners into Gulfstream Park's winner's circle continued Sunday following a sharp debut score by Shadwell Stable's Zaajel at the Hallandale Beach, Fla., track.

The homebred daughter of Street Sense ($8.20) drew off to a 7 ¼-length victory in Race 7, a seven-furlong sprint for 2-year-old fillies.

“She'd been training forwardly. She was a half-step slow from the gate the other morning – she tossed her head a little at the break. We stood her a few times and she was good, so we went ahead and ran her today, thinking she was ready to go,” Pletcher said. “Seven furlongs is a good starting point for her.”

Zaajel stalked the early pace set by Mail Order, a debuting son of Liam's Map for trainer Bill Mott, before making a move on the turn to take the lead at the top of the stretch and drawing away to a comfortable win under Luis Saez.

“We'll play it by ear. She's clearly a filly that wants more distance. That's always exciting when you have one break their maiden at a shorter distance,” Pletcher said.

Zaajel ran seven furlongs in 1:23.81 to prevail over Pletcher-trained Unbridled d'Oro, the 2-1 favorite who closed from 10^th to finish second under Irad Ortiz Jr.

Pletcher, who is seeking to capture his 17th Championship Meet title, has enjoyed early-season success with debut winners, including WinStar Farm LLC and CHC Inc.'s Prime Factor, a highly promising juvenile son of Quality Road who scored by 8 ¾ lengths Dec. 12, and Shadwell's Arham, a 3-year-old son of Union Rags who graduated by eight lengths on Wednesday. Pletcher also scored on Dec. 12 with Donegal Racing's Donegal Bay, a juvenile son of Uncle Mo who graduated by 4 ¼ lengths.

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Always Shopping Shows Her Versatility With Via Borghese Triumph

Repole Stable's Always Shopping, a graded-stakes winner on dirt last spring, continued her success story since being moved to the turf this summer by rolling to a second straight grass stakes victory in Saturday's $100,000 Via Borghese at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

The fifth running of the 1 3/16-mile Via Borghese for fillies and mares 3 and up served as a supporting stakes to the $100,000 Mr. Prospector (G3), where Sleepy Eyes Todd bested a field that included Grade 1 winners Firenze Fire and Mind Control and defending champion Diamond Oops.

Always Shopping ($7.40) was the third win of the day for jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. and first in the Via Borghese for both Ortiz and trainer Todd Pletcher. The winning time was 1:54.34 over a firm turf course.

Ortiz settled Always Shopping in third as Traipsing broke sharply and took the field through moderate fractions of 24.31 and 50.11 seconds, tracked by 99-1 long shot Lady Panda. Always Shopping tipped to the outside on the turn and took over the lead once straightened for home, powering through the stretch to win by three lengths.

“It worked out perfect,” Ortiz said. “I thought I was going to sit second but [Traipsing] broke sharp and I didn't want to use my horse to get position. So I stayed third. She was comfortable. I waited for the time to go and when I asked her she responded very well.”

Pletcher was impressed with the way Always Shopping finished up to earn her fourth career win and third in a stakes. She won the 1 1/8-mile Gazelle (G2) last April on dirt and the 1 1/16-mile Monroe Sept. 7 at Gulfstream in her second career try on turf.

“We anticipated [Traipsing] would be on the lead. I thought we might be laying second but Irad was in a comfortable spot and he said she was taking him wherever he wanted her to go throughout the race,” Pletcher said. “She really jumped in at the top of the stretch and kicked on hard. They weren't going very fast early, but they were late.”

Great Island outran Always Shopping's stablemate, Cap de Creus, to be second, but was disqualified for bearing out in the stretch and placed third behind Cap de Creus, ridden by Hall of Famer John Velazquez.

“I was delighted to get her stakes-placed. We've knocked on the door a few times, so that was big,” Pletcher said. “It looked like Johnny had to steady her pretty hard at one point but it was a good effort.”

Always Shopping, a daughter of Awesome Again out of multiple stakes winner Stopshoppingmaria, by More Than Ready, was bred by Repole. She now owns two wins from three tries over the Gulfstream turf and pushed her career bankroll over $400,000.

“She seems to like the course here,” Pletcher said. “There's a great program of stakes here so we'll look to keep her going in those.”

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