By Bill Finley
While they ran three significant preps for the GI Kentucky Derby yesterday, by now you've probably forgotten who won the GIII Gotham and GII Tampa Bay Derby. The GII San Felipe was that memorable, an exciting, enthralling battle between two very good horses, plus it had the added twist of a controversy.
'TDN Rising Star' McKinzie (Street Sense) appeared to have outbattled Bolt d'Oro (Medagla d'Oro) after a prolonged street fight that began when the two hooked up near the top of the stretch. But…hold all tickets. After an inquiry and an objection lodged by Bolt d'Oro's rider Javier Castellano, the order was reversed 12 minutes after the pair crossed the wire. The stewards ruled unanimously that McKinzie came out in the stretch, bumping Bolt d'Oro. More on that later.
Mick Ruis, Sr., the owner and trainer of Bolt d'Oro, of course had every reason to be happy. Not only did his horse run an outstanding race, but he was awarded the win in a $400,000 race via disqualification. But trainer Bob Baffert and owners Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman should not be shedding any tears. Their horse crossed the wire first and ran his eyeballs out against a very talented Bolt d'Oro. And the third-place finisher had barely passed Clocker's Corner by the time the top two passed the wire.
Plus, maybe the Racing Gods were just trying to get even with McKinzie and his connections after he was placed first through disqualification in the GI Los Alamitos Futurity in a controversial call. How many horses have both been awarded and lost a Grade I through disqualification? Can't be many.
Baffert has plenty of 3-year-olds with Derby aspirations so he can pick and choose who he runs where, but it would make sense that he brings McKinzie back in the GI Santa Anita Derby. And Ruis has said the Santa Anita Derby is next on Bolt d'Oro's schedule. This could be Ali-Frazier II.
Who's the better of the two? You have to go with Bolt d'Oro. This was his first start of the year and he lost some time due to a minor setback that cost him a scheduled appearance in the GI San Vicente S. It may have just been trainer speak, but Ruis said afterward that he had Bolt d'Oro at only 80% for this race. That's a scary thought.
With 2-year-old champion Good Magic (Curlin) finishing third in his 2018 debut in the GII Fountain of Youth S., Bolt d'Oro has risen to the top of the class, and McKinzie isn't far behind him. Yes, there's a long way to go, but these two look like the best two 3-year-olds in the country right now.
Second-guessing the stewards is a favored past time of many an owner, trainer and horseplayer, but the Santa Anita judges clearly got this one right. When a race is this close, the type of bumping that occurred definitely merited a disqualification.
Bolt d'Oro looked like he was going to blow by McKinzie at the top of the stretch, when the two bumped for the first time. The bumping appeared to cause Bolt d'Oro to loose his footing for a moment and his momentum. The two then bumped again for a few strides before the wire.
Afterward, the stewards, through announcer Michael Wrona, explained their decision. (Why doesn't every track do that?) It was reported that the reason they took McKinzie down was for the bumping in the stretch, while they felt it was unclear who caused the bumping at the quarter-pole. I didn't see it that way. I thought McKinzie whacked Bolt d'Oro at the top of the stretch and that that was the far more serious offense. No matter, the stewards got the end result right.
For the record, the Tampa Bay Derby was won by 'TDN Rising Star' Quip (Distorted Humor). He was making his first start since finishing seventh in the GII Kentucky Jockey Club S. back in November. He beat GIII Sam F. Davis S. winner Flameaway (Scat Daddy) by a length. The second-choice, the Todd Pletcher-trained Vino Rosso (Curlin) was a lackluster fourth and may well have run himself out of the Kentucky Derby picture.
It was a big moment for Quip's young trainer Rodolphe Brisset, who had the horse ready to run. Brisset has been on his own less than a year after serving as an assistant to Hall of Famer Bill Mott. It was only his 10th career winner and his first stakes victory. Quip is owned by the trio of WinStar Farm, China Horse Club and SF Racing, which is loaded. The owners are also involved with Audible (Into Mischief), the likely favorite in the GI Florida Derby, and the talented but untested 'TDN Rising Star' Justify (Scat Daddy), who goes in an allowance race at Santa Anita today.
At Aqueduct, Enticed (Medaglia d'Oro) was a clear winner of the one-turn mile for trainer Kiaran McLaughlin and Godolphin Racing. Like Quip, he also raced in the Kentucky Jockey Club, a race he won before finishing fourth in the GII Holy Bull S. The Kentucky Club also produced Promises Fulfilled (Shackleford), who won the GII Fountain of Youth S.
It was a good day for Enticed and Quip, but a better day for Bolt d'Oro. He doesn't have to win the Kentucky Derby, but he sure does look like the horse to beat at this point.
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