Denis of Cork |
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| Barbara D. Livingston | |
2008 Prep Recap
| Date | Trk | Race | Chart | Distance | Time | BSF | Video |
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| 1/19 | FG | Alw 40500n2l | Chart | 1m 40y | 1:42:4 | 82 | |
| 2/18 | OP | Southwest (G3) | Chart | 1m | 1:37:4 | 96 |  |
| 4/5 | HAW | Illinois Derby (G2) | Chart | 1 1/8 m | 1:49 | 88 | |
| 5/3 | CD | Kentucky Derby (G1) | Chart | 1 1/4m | 2:01 | 97 | |
Pedigree Profile (by Frank Mitchell)
Pedigree: A great-grandson of Storm Cat through grandsire Harlan and sire Harlan’s Holiday, Denis of Cork and Into Mischief (Hollywood Futurity) are the two best colts from the first crop of their sire.
Winner of the Florida Derby and Blue Grass Stakes, Harlan’s Holiday was one of the favorites for the Kentucky Derby in 2002. Although seventh that day, Harlan’s Holiday returned to show good form at distances up to 10 furlongs, and his offspring have good potential for racing at middle distances.
One of the reasons for this is the broodmare sire of Harlan’s Holiday, Triple Crown winner Affirmed.
Racing Type: Denis of Cork ran on well in the Kentucky Derby to take third, and he is a colt whose classic campaign has been built around the expectation that the colt will handle distances well, as the racing data available suggests he will. At the Barretts March sale of select 2-year-olds in training, Denis of Cork had a BreezeFig of 70, with a stride length of 26.2 feet, which was a foot and a half above average that day. He matches Big Brown’s profile as a colt who covers distance well and has stamina capacity
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Owners: M r. & Mrs. Wm. Warren Jr. |
Analysis (by Randy Goulding)
Strengths: After skipping the Preakness, Denis of Cork is a relatively fresh horse, and from the looks of his sharp interim works he seems to have come out of the Derby in excellent shape. The taxing distance also doesn't figure to be a big problem for him. His dam is by Unbridled, who won the 1990 Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup Classic. Interestingly, Unbridled sired Empire Make,r who spoiled Funny Cide's bid for the Triple Crown in the 2003 Belmont. Denis of Cork certainly acts like he will relish the distance, and trainer David Carroll appears to have him primed for a big effort.
Weaknesses: His lack of speed means he is going to need an honest pace to close into and there's a good possibility they won't be going all that fast early in the Belmont. Also, Big Brown is just a much better horse.
Strategy: He doesn't appear to have any kind of tactical speed, so jockey Robby Albarado will likely let him settle early and hope that some of the stalkers move prematurely.
Value: Big Brown looks like a complete standout, but so did Spectacular Bid and remember what happened when something supposedly bothered his feet in this race. Quarter cracks could be Big Brown's undoing, and if you think that could happen, then use Casino Drive and Denis of Cork in the exacta at what should be a nice price. I'll be using them in the exotics underneath a horse that looks as good as any that I have seen in a long time.