Perfect Hopp-Ortunity in Gold Cup

Pegram, Watson and Weitman’s Hoppertunity (Any Given Saturday) looks to return to the winner’s circle Saturday evening in the GI Gold Cup at Santa Anita, a ‘Win and You’re In’ for the GI Breeders’ Cup Classic. The bay wrapped up his sophomore season with a win in Churchill’s GI Clark H. Nov. 28 and annexed the GII San Paqual S. Jan. 10. He’s finished third in his last two starts–the GII Santa Antonio Invitational Feb. 7 and the GI Stephen Foster H. This will be his first attempt at the 1 1/14-mile distance.

Southern Equine Stable’s Moreno (Ghostzapper) will attempt to take this one on the front end. The bay has already made four solid starts this year. He was second to Shared Belief (Candy Ride {Arg}) in the GI Santa Anita H. Mar. 7; third in the Fair Grounds’ GII New Orleans H. Mar. 28; took the GII Charles Town Classic Apr. 18; and was second behind Catch a Flight (Arg) (Giant’s Causeway) in the GII Californian S. May 30. 

Catch a Flight, third in the Big ‘Cap, rolls into this one off consecutive tallies. He annexed the May 2 GIII Precisionist S. over Motown Men (Decarchy) before taking the Californian over a field that also included Hard Aces (Hard Spun), Lideris (Mizzen Mast) and Big Cazanova (Arg) (Giant’s Causeway). 

Turf specialist Finnegans Wake (Powerscourt {GB}) will make another dirt attempt–he’s been unsuccessful in three starts over the surface and hasn’t tried it since last year when he was sixth in the GI Clark H. So far this season, Finnegans Wake has tallied wins in the GII San Gabriel S. Jan. 3, GII San Marcos S. Feb. 7 and the GI Woodford Reserve Turf Classic May 2. He rallied to finish fourth in Belmont’s GI Manhattan S. June 6.