American Turf draws field of 14 – and anything can happen
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The field for the Grade 2, $500,000 American Turf seemingly stretches from the Churchill infield to the parking lot.
Fourteen are entered in this 1 1/16-mile turf contest for 3-year-olds, and if there’s more than a handful of lengths separating them, it’s not readily apparent on paper.
Annex is listed as the 7-2 morning-line favorite (he’ll probably be a little higher), which makes some sense since this is a Bill Mott-trained, Irad Ortiz Jr.-ridden colt with wins in all three of his races. The last two of those were stakes, the first of them a key race from which American Turf entrant Scarlett Sky emerged to capture the Transylvania at Keeneland. Undefeated, yes, but far from untested, Annex won his debut in a maiden race by one length, the Palm Beach Stakes by a head, the Cutler Bay by a neck.
“He’s kind of hyper colt, always moving around,” Mott said.
Improved focus and psychological growth might aid Annex, a son of Constitution. He has a nose for the wire and an off-the-pace running style that could suit this race flow.
Winfromwithin is listed at 8-1 on the morning line although he should be lower by post time. Trained by Todd Pletcher, he’s 2 for 2 on grass, winning a Gulfstream maiden race and the Columbia at Tampa Bay. He beat competition in those races at least as good as Annex faced. Second in that maiden race was the Mott-trained Floriform, an eye-catching Keeneland turf allowance winner in April. Winfromwithin, by Into Mischief, led in his two grass starts but doesn’t have to race from the front.
“He’s kind of a free-running horse, but I don’t think he’s a must-have-the-lead-horse,” said Pletcher, who has worked Winfromwithin at Churchill in company with older Grade 1 winner Colonel Liam.
The early leader might be breaking from the rail – a Chad Brown-trained Not This Time colt named Excellent Timing who has dusted New York-bred dirt sprinters in his last two starts. The sires in Excellent Timing’s maternal line are Pioneerof the Nile, Nureyev, and Secretariat, a pedigree suggesting turf as an option.
A different vector comes from Louisiana and Texas, horses that raced on grass at Fair Grounds and Sam Houston, a group that includes Royal Prince, Palazzi, and Dyn O Mite. They might not be quite at the level of the Florida horses, though Palazzi, a stakes winner at Houston, finished a solid second behind Scarlett Sky in the Transylvania. Unfortunately, he’s marooned out in post 14, and none of the 15 starters since 2000 racing 1 1/16 miles over the Churchill grass after breaking from posts 13 or 14 were able to win.
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Even Bob Baffert, a six-time Derby-winning trainer but a rare participant in turf stakes, chimes in. He saddles Du Jour, who brings a two-race turf win streak from California to Churchill. Du Jour has won comfortably, earned competitive speed figures, but got perfect trips in both his wins and faced but four foes last time. Now there are 14, and a perfect trip will be tough to find.