Ben's Cat, 11, ready for yet another racing season

Ben’s Cat tailed off in the final three races of his 10-year-old campaign. But with spring comes hope, and Hall of Fame trainer King Leatherbury, who bred and owns him, has brought the 32-time winner and earner of $2.6 million back for another go-round.

Ben’s Cat, a legend in Mid-Atlantic racing circles, will face six rivals Sunday at Laurel Park in a $50,000, no-conditions turf sprint at 5 1/2 furlongs.

Leatherbury was disappointed with Ben’s Cat’s final few races of 2016. The horse was physically fine and training to Leatherbury’s satisfaction but was weakening in the latter part of his races.

When Leatherbury turned him out on a Maryland farm for the winter, he was not sure if Ben’s Cat would race at age 11. But the horse did well and has been back in training since late February. He has worked during each of the last five weeks.

“This is a horse that’s always done everything right,” Leatherbury said. “I’m very pleased with him.”

Leatherbury is aware that a number of people think Ben’s Cat should be retired, but he sees the situation differently.

“Here’s the thing: These horses don’t retire just because they get old,” he said. “They are bred to race and run. They retire just like major leaguers do – because they hurt a knee or have a sore arm. They retire due to physical problems. Ben is sound, and he’s a happy horse.”

Leatherbury, 86, has 6,481 career wins, the fifth-most in North American racing history. He recalled a horse named Port Conway Lane whom he trained through age 9 and then lost and claimed back three times. Port Conway Lane, a foal of 1969, finished his career with 52 wins from 242 starts.

Leatherbury won two races with Port Conway Lane at age 13, and trainer Marvin Kuhn, who also claimed him several times, won twice with him as a 14-year-old.

“My owner just stuck his hand up at the sale and bought him because he was gray,” Leatherbury said. “I had him since he was a yearling. He loved to race.”

On April 1, Leatherbury won a $7,500 claiming sprint at Laurel with Classic Wildcat, whom he claimed for $4,500 in April 2013. Like Ben’s Cat, Classic Wildcat is 11.

Ben’s Cat will break from post 1 under leading rider Trevor McCarthy.

“A win would make me very happy,” Leatherbury said. “I don’t like the post, but he has to come from off the pace anyhow, and McCarthy is an excellent rider. It’s time for Ben to do something. We’ll see how he does and decide how long we’ll go on with him.”

If Ben’s Cat runs well Sunday, Leatherbury will point him to the $100,000 Jim McKay Turf Sprint on Preakness Day at Pimlico. Ben’s Cat has won the McKay four times in a row and in five of the last six years.

Four of Ben’s Cat’s six rivals Sunday will be making their first start since last fall. The horse to beat is Sonny Inspired, who has regained his best form for trainer Phil Schoenthal.

Sonny Inspired raced this winter and has a fitness edge over the competition. Although he has seldom run on turf in recent years, he handled the surface fine early in his career.

Elusive Joni, trained by Gary Capuano, returned from a winter freshening to finish sixth, beaten three lengths, in the Captiva Island Stakes at Gulfstream Park in March. He concluded his 2016 campaign with a third-level optional-claiming win at Laurel.