This bi-weekly column by Mike Curry of America’s Greatest Racing gives a short take a look at the three horses heating up on the Triple Crown course.
one. Tapit Trice
Common readers of this weblog know that I not often make the highest three for a virgin or pocket cash earner, however this week, I made an exception due to the dominant eight-length romp of the promising son of a number of distinguished fathers. tapit a mile allowance non-compulsory race on February 4 Gulfstream Park.
Actually, his missed win for Corridor of Fame coach Todd Pletcher, mixed with just a few crushing Kentucky Derby (G1) prep races, gave Tapit Trice the highest spot. Tapit Trice took the lead in his earlier race. Slip Mahoney From the neck within the first particular weight race on a muddy observe in December 2022 Aqueduct. It was a proud second when Slip Mahoney returned to earn his 3-year-old debut in January. Tapit Trice was second alternative within the pocket win on Feb. 4, however confirmed straightforward with a ultimate quarter mile: 24.53 and a powerful eight-eight mile: 12.30. He equaled a career-best 96 Equibase Velocity Determine for the win, however the Beyer Velocity Determine (92) was much more outstanding, breaking into the highest ten for a 3-year-old in 2023 at a tempo of a mile or extra.
Here is how Pletcher used the Gulfstream allowance path to his Kentucky Derby success: all the time dream It is in 2017 and Tapit Trice has a really sturdy pedigree for 1 1/4 miles. Produced by the lead grasp Tapit, by Tapit Trice. Dunkirk mare danzatrice , the winner of three bets in races longer than a mile. He appears to be like like an excellent Derby contender for the Triple Crown season, when only a few 3-year-olds actually dazzle.
2. Rocket Field
Once I described highschool sports activities years in the past, an athletic director would have used the phrase “six in a single and half a dozen within the different” so typically that it is develop into a hustle within the sports activities division, but it surely appears fairly applicable when taking the time without work. Win the successful Rocket Can and Hit Present for the quantity two slot right here. It is actually all about choice, however I gave Rocket Can a lightweight nod based mostly on one primary issue that I feel is essential when judging Derby candidates: how they end races. Rocket Can completed three-quarters of the best way via the $250,000 Holy Bull Stakes (G3) held at Gulfstream Park on Feb. 4, considerably higher than the Hit Present gained. Holy Bull’s 1:44.97 win time for 1 1/16 mph was somewhat sluggish, however this was largely because of the sluggish tempo, and Rocket Can completed quick with the final sixteenth of a mile and the final five-fifth of a mile in 6.43 seconds. – One sixteenth of simply over 31 seconds.
Whereas Holy Bull’s pace figures might sound fairly gentle (89 Equibase Velocity Determine, 82 Beyer Velocity Determine), I feel he might have a pleasant debut for Corridor of Fame coach Invoice Mott. Plus, he is bought an excellent pedigree to face out because the races get longer. By that chief into mischief from tapit mare Blood strain and her grandmother, a number of first-year winners Robust Treble’s Brother by two-time Breeders’ Cup Basic winner Tiznow .
3. Hit Present
Velocity determine makers apparently gained the Hit Present’s 5 1/2-length Withers Stakes (G2) at Aqueduct on Feb. 11, successful a career-best 93 Equibase Velocity Determine and a career-best 91 Beyer Velocity Determine. nicely rated. This sugar voyage colt improved his Equibase and Beyer figures at each begin in his four-race profession for 2020 and 2021 Eclipse Award-winning coach Brad Cox. Just like the Tapit Trice and Rocket Can, the Hit Present seems to have been bred to thrive on the Derby course because the races get longer—somebody who was crushed by the 2017 Black-Eyed Susan Stakes winner Sweet Trip at 1 1/4 mph. Actress by Tapit.
With three wins in 4 begins and an apparent excuse (a foul begin) for its single defeat, The Hit Present has tons of potential for owner-breeders Gary and Mary West. That mentioned, my solely quibble concerning the Withers win just isn’t trivial as he did not end the 1 1/8 mile race very well. Based on the Equibase chart, he accomplished the final three-eighths of a mile in roughly :41.08 and with a ultimate lengthy distance of :14.06. That is one thing to keep watch over within the ultimate prep race for the Kentucky Derby, which is able to doubtless be the $750,000, 2nd Wooden Memorial Stakes at Aqueduct on April 8.
#Heat #Triple #Crown
