Breeders' Cup Juvenile: Shanghai Bobby gets post 4 in first two-turn start

Barbara D. Livingston

Shanghai Bobby was scheduled to ship in to Santa Anita from New York on Wednesday.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Shanghai Bobby has a spot in the starting gate for Saturday’ $2 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. Now he just needs to get here from New York.

Shanghai Bobby drew post 4 in a nine-horse field set to run 1 1/16 miles in Saturday’s Juvenile. Shanghai Bobby was scheduled to ship out Tuesday from New York, but Hurricane Sandy postponed that flight by a day, and it is now scheduled to leave Newburgh, N.Y., at 8:15 a.m. Wednesday.

Jack Wolf, part of the Starlight Stable partnership that owns Shanghai Bobby, did not seem too worried about his horse making it here.

“He’ll get here,” Wolf said. “If he doesn’t, he doesn’t. There’s always the Remsen.”

Wolf was referring to the Grade 2, $200,000 Remsen at Aqueduct on Nov. 24.

Shanghai Bobby is undefeated in four starts, including victories in the Grade 2 Hopeful at Saratoga and Grade 1 Champagne Stakes at Belmont Park.

The Juvenile, run at 1 1/16 miles, will be Shanghai Bobby’s first start around two turns.

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Mike McCarthy, assistant to trainer Todd Pletcher, didn’t seem too bothered by the post, though he would have preferred being a little farther outside.

“If he had a two-turn race under his belt it wouldn’t matter what post he had,” McCarthy said. “First time, I think the farther out the better you are, but it’s not terrible. The horse is tactical.”

Pletcher said he is hopeful of getting himself here sometime Wednesday.

Trainer Bob Baffert entered two in the Juvenile with recent maiden winner Title Contender drawing the rail and Grade 1 FrontRunner winner Power Broker being assigned post 9.

Inside of the Baffert runners were Speak Logistics, He’s Had Enough, Shanghai Bobby, Monument, Dynamic Sky, Capo Bastone, and Fortify.