Pyro |
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| Barbara D. Livingston |
2008 Prep Recap
| Date | Trk | Race | Chart | Distance | Time | BSF | Video |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2/9 | FG | Risen Star Stakes (G3) | Chart | 1 1/16m | 1:44.3 | 90 |  |
| 3/8 | FG | Louisiana Derby (G2) | Chart | 1 1/16m | 1:44.2 | 95 | |
| 4/12 | KEE | Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G1) | Chart | 1 1/8 m | 1:49 | 73 | |
Analysis (by Paul Malecki)
Strengths: Churchill Downs debut graduate Pyro has proven he’s one of the best of his generation. He was a triple-digit Beyer-Figure runner-up to then-undefeated champion War Pass in both the Grade 1 Champagne and BC Juvenile. A son of Grade winner Pulpit, he overcame slow paces to win two graded Louisiana stakes, so he could still rally strongly if the fractions aren’t quick. He has known no rider except Shaun Bridgmohan and is handled by perennial top trainer Steve Asmussen, fresh off top-three finishes with Horse of the Year Curlin in the 2007 Triple Crown. Polytrack could be a valid excuse for his Blue Grass flop, the first off-the-board finish of his career.
Weaknesses: No trainer wants his horse entering the Derby off his worst performance, but that’s what Asmussen faces after Pyro’s 10th-place finish in the Blue Grass. Pyro lacks a nine-furlong victory and has yet to return to the Beyer heights he reached as a juvenile. This trainer/jockey combo wound up 12th with Zanjero in last year’s Derby and 15th with Private Vow in 2006.
Strategy: Pyro is likely to drop back 10 or 12 lengths off the pace under Bridgmohan before attempting to launch his patented late bid. Like all closers, especially in a 20-horse field, Pyro needs racing luck but should be moving well in the stretch if on his A game.
Value: To the dismay of those holding future pool tickets at 5-1 or less, Pyro should go be 6-1 or slightly higher. The emergence of Big Brown, and to a lesser degree Colonel John, likely relegates him to third choice. Believers in the rebound-minded late-runner will gladly take a swing at that price.
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Owners: Winchell Thoroughbreds |
Pedigree Profile (by Lauren Stich)
Sire Line: Pulpit ran a courageous fourth in the 1997 Kentucky Derby, considering he suffered a career-ending injury in the race. Pulpit gets quality stakes winners on all surfaces, such as Corinthian, Bsharpsonata, Tapit, Rutherienne, Sky Mesa, and Wend. A.P. Indy won the Belmont Stakes and was named Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old when he beat older runners in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Seattle Slew, one of the great names in racing, won the 1977 Triple Crown winner and was a Horse of the Year and champion at 2, 3, and as an older horse. Seattle Slew sired the 1984 Derby winner, Swale, and champion 3-year-old and older horse, Slew o’ Gold.
Female Family: Wild Vision is a full sister to Wild Wonder, a stakes winner at 3, 4 and 5. Second dam is a half-sister to stakes winners, Olympio, Call Now and Your Call, and the unraced Dana Nicole, the dam of million dollar stakes winner, Bien Nicole.
Pedigree Pattern: Pulpit won easily at nine furlongs, and only an injury prevented him from doing more. Wild Again won the Breeders’ Cup Classic, so this cross, combined with his style of running, suggests Pyro should be among the late runners in deep stretch.