The Triple Crown's in the bag, with the cats

It’s always more fun and rewarding to view the cat still in the bag, before the escape, before it gets out and exposes its talent to the scrutiny and the attention of the world.

Still in the bag, Old Fashioned offered a glimpse Nov. 3, when he won by 15 1/2 lengths at Delaware. But Saturday, he jumped out, danced the Boogaloo and sang the largo al factotum aria from “The Barber of Seville,” winning the Remsen at Aqueduct by more than seven lengths.

“It sure looked like it wasn’t a strenuous effort for him,” his trainer, Larry Jones, said today, “and he came back to the barn like it wasn’t a big deal.”

But that, of course, was a big deal. A handsome gray colt who moves over the ground like a breeze, Old Fashioned jumped to the top of a list of Triple Crown prospects. -- or rather he jumped out to a longer lead among a group of personal favorites, for indeed he was already at the top.

In winning the Remsen, he completed the nine furlongs in 1:50.33, a solid clocking on a day when the Aqueduct surface wasn’t especially fast. Springside won the Demoiselle in 1:51.71. But the most impressive thing about Old Fashioned’s victory was the its style, the stunning combination of ease and domination. While steadily drawing away from the field, and with little encouragement, Old Fashioned ran the final three-eighths of a mile in 36.15 seconds.

Old Fashioned will soon join the Jones horses at Fair Grounds in New Orleans. And it’s “more than likely,” the trainer said, that Old Fashioned will make his 2009 debut Feb. 7 in the Fair Grounds’ Risen Star Stakes. But Jones has other promising youngsters in his barn, including Friesan Fire, an A. P. Indy colt who ran fourth in the Nashua, and It Happened Again, a flashy maiden winner at Philly Park, and in an effort to keep them apart, the trainer will keep some, he said, in New Orleans and run some at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark.

Old Fashioned wasn’t the only cat to escape this weekend at Aqueduct. Quality Road, a bay colt who has speed and athleticism and who looks like he’s flowing as much as running, won his debut by nearly three lengths in a very good maiden field. A son of Elusive Quality, Quality Road ran the 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:16.11, a fast time for the day.

And at Churchill, Silver City won an allowance race in such a way as to suggest he could develop into somebody special. With jockey Miguel Mena looking over his shoulder, Silver City ran the 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:15.98. The only other race at the distance Saturday was run in 1:17.44. Silver City is another who’s going to New Orleans and will probably make his next start in the Sugar Bowl Stakes or the LeComte.

The featured race at Churchill was, of course, the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes, where Beethoven won. But, frankly, I was much more impressed with Giant Oak, who rallied five-wide and finished second, only a neck behind the winner, who had a perfect rail trip. 

And so while faithful to the position that cats are best viewed in a bag, I’ll offer these Ten for the Triple Crown. It’s a highly personal list, and I’m not suggesting these are the top ten prospects – I intentionally exclude those such as Midshipman and Vineyard Haven who will take the Dubai road to the Triple Crown --  nor do I suggest they’re still in the bag since Break Water Edison and Hello Broadway are well known and since I’ve already written about some of them at length, such as Old Fashioned and Indygo Mountain. But these are 10 that have grabbed my interest, shaken it by the lapels and screamed, “You haven’t seen anything yet.” (When quoting horses, I take the liberty of cleaning up their grammar. They actually said, “You ain’t seen nothing yet.”)

1. Old Fashioned
2. Break Water Edison
3. Hello Broadway
4. Indygo Mountain
5. Pioneerof The Nile
6. Quality Road
7. Well Positioned
8. Giant Oak
9. Trinity Magic
10. Silver City

Comments

[herbert c]

you need to take a long look at charitable man!

[Gary West]

I'm a great admirer of Charitable Man, HC, and he would have been very high on this list, either first or second, if not for that injury. As I recall, after a workout in early October, when he was preparing for the Breeders' Cup, a saucer fracture was discovered in his left foreleg. If all works out, he should return to training next month. That'll put him behind, but he's extremely talented, and if he returns from his injury to fulfill his potential, he should make some noise next year. And I like Girolamo, another in the Kiaran McLaughlin stable.

[LH]

Old Fashioned would certainly top my own list and the others above are all worthy, though I'm not sold on Pioneerof the Nile.

However, I couldn't leave Beethoven out of a top 10, even though his speed figs haven't been quite as lofty as some of the others. He did earn a 96 BRIS speed rating in his Churchill win last weekend and that exceeds the 95 number I want to see from a 2yo. He has a solid foundation with 5 starts and I love the fact that he has two 1 1/16m victories at Churchill, as well as his willingness to battle to the wire. If he makes the KY Derby field - and he's well on his way in terms of graded stakes earnings now - I don't see 10 horses finishing in front of him.

Imperial Council, a Shug McGaughey trainee by Empire Maker, is another who interests me. He gave Hello Broadway all he could handle in his debut and I expect him to improve.

Charitable Man, who was mentioned by the poster above, is sidelined with a stress fracture. He's very talented, but it's tough to include him in a top 10 until we see if he can return to form following the injury.

[Gary West]

I was going to include Imperial Council, but 11 for the Triple Crown didn't have the same panache as 10, and I wanted to get Silver City in there since he just ran and I talked about his potential. Anyway, Imperial Council is by Empire Maker, as I recall, and after his tussle with Hello Broadway, he won in rather impressive fashion. I expect him to return at Gulfstream Park early in the season and follow the Florida road to Kentucky. As you point out, he's in masterful hands.

[JOE CACCIOLFI]

I'LL BET THAT OLD FASHIONED MAKES LARRY JONES FORGET ABOUT EARLY RETIREMENT.WE DON'T WANT TO SEE AN EXCELLENT HORSEMAN LIKE HIM GO ANYWAY.