Saturday September 8, 2001

The  48th Woodward Stakes
9th @ Belmont
All carry 126

 

1. Red Bullet...Stevens...From this vantage point it looks to be an awfully good move on Orseno's part by stopping on him last year after the Dwyer. Obviously, things weren't quite right. If the Saratoga allowance is any indication, he should be ready to pick up where he left off in the Preakness in 2000. Since he didn't race at 2, I expect BIG improvement in this spot today as essentially, with extended breaks, I consider him just a well developed 3 year-old at this point. There looks to be a lot of room to grow into. It's always possible he won't care for the track. If he throws in a clinker here, that would have to be the conclusion. Nice work here last Sunday though. 

2. Tiznow...McCarron...Last year's Horse Of The Year looking especially strong in the A.M. as of late. And though Robbins not particularly effective in layoffs stretching past 90 days, he did bring him in to capture the BIG cap off of 70+ days. How he handles this track will be interesting to note with Euro super-equine Galileo scheduled to jump the pond in 7 weeks to attempt to steal the Classic from the Yanks. We'll likely need all of the guns we can muster as that one looks extraordinary. If he scores here though, the question will be just how much rest will be required to be effective on BC weekend. Will that nix a JCGC appearance? That's why Robbins gets 10%, and I get to sit here talking to myself! Several nice works at DMR lately. McCarron joins the other 2 Masters Of The Game (Bailey and Stevens) in a monumental showdown.

3. Lido Palace...Bailey...Hard to tell, from a form standpoint, where he'll go next. On one hand, it doesn't look like he'll get the pace scenario that he did at Saratoga where even with seemingly declining form, he was able to knock off Albert The Great in the Whitney. On the other hand, maybe Bailey just got him to relax and was able to take advantage of a too-fast first mile on a track that was playing pretty fair throughout the meet, and possibly not one of Al's favs. Now he'll pick up 11 pounds, and head back to Albert's "hood" where he finished 2+ back in the Suburban. Frankel scary-good right now as seemingly nothing going wrong. Tough call!

4. Albert The Great...Chavez...This guy gets a lot of heat from the wise guys as they contend he can't run outside of Belmont, and really isn't that good. A closer look might change their mind. Though he might not care for the SPA strip, he has finished 2nd there in his last two, which also happened to be Grade 1 affairs. After last year's Travers, he went to Belmont and after setting a brutal half in the Jerome he faded to 4th at what is obviously not his optimal distance. Next in the JCGC he ran probably the best performance of the year by any horse while skipping away by 6 lengths in 1:59:1. An effort foretold by yours truly by the way, just in case you've forgotten, and improved upon only by the sweetness of being there in person to witness the annihilation. Next, in the BC Classic in Louisville, he did what he should have done after such an effort, he bounced. Still, he was able to finish 4th, beaten about 3 lengths by Tiznow, Giant's Causeway, and Captain Steve who was sitting on a spectacular Dubai effort. After the break, he finishes a useful 2nd in the Donn, beats basically the flamingos in the Widener, and wins the Brooklyn and Suburban, bringing us back to the 2nd in the Whitney. Zito slipped the "Jerome" work into him in the Saratoga mud last Saturday with a :59 flat breeze.

5. Country Be Gold...Davis...Hoping to swoop out of the clouds and pick up a piece. Last 3 graded efforts caught him 22+ lengths behind the winners. Winners, not nearly of this caliber.

     You've got to decide if Albert The Great is in decline, or lying in wait. I'll give the hard-knocking 4 year-old the benefit of the doubt.

     Tiznow might be short for this, though not real short I would imagine.

      

 

1. Albert The Great

2. Tiznow

 

© 2001 bBra

BACK