Bobby's Wicked One primed for Thanksgiving Classic

On Friday, trainer Al Stall has a date at Churchill Downs, where stable star Tom’s d’Etat will be favored to win his first Grade 1 race in the Clark Stakes. Thursday, Stall has business in his native New Orleans – Thanksgiving with his family and a start for Bobby’s Wicked One in the $100,000 Thanksgiving Classic, the featured race on opening day at Fair Grounds.

Bobby’s Wicked One drew the outside post and faces just four foes in the six-furlong Thanksgiving. Those horses, from the rail out, are Whereshetoldmetogo, Tringale, Sonic Mule, and Wilbo.

Stall won the 2016 and 2017 Thanksgiving with Yockey’s Warrior and has a good chance to make it three wins in four years, despite a poor comeback race from Bobby’s Wicked One on Nov. 2 at Churchill. There, racing for the first time since June 1, Bobby’s Wicked One took a couple early stumbles, ambled up to contest a sizzling pace, and faded to finish eighth, beaten 18 lengths, in the Bet On Sunshine Stakes.

That performance wasn’t in the same area code as the performance level Bobby’s Wicked One hit at this 2019 peak, reeling off eye-catching Fair Grounds allowance-race wins before capturing the Commonwealth Stakes at Keeneland and finishing a competitive second behind the awesome Mitole in the Grade 1 Churchill Downs Stakes.

Stall said Bobby’s Wicked One got the summer off not because of any acute physical problems but just to give him a break following a string of races spanning October through June. Bobby’s Wicked One doesn’t love hot-weather racing, either, and Stall expects vast improvement Thursday.

“Maybe I’m wrong, but in hindsight that last race might’ve been a blessing in disguise,” Stall said. “If he’d broken sharp and run second or third in such a fast race, he might be feeling it now. I’m going to talk myself into thinking he’s ready to rock and roll Thursday. He’s acting like that. The time off did him good – he looks like a full-fledged sprinter right now. He drew well, and I think he’ll run like a fresh horse.”

Tringale looks like he’s in deep here, while Sonic Mule hasn’t raced since March 2018 and makes his first start for trainer Jack Sisterson. Wilbo finished third in the Bet On Sunshine and could marginally improve Thursday, but he’s a 7-year-old whose form is wholly exposed.

That leaves Whereshetoldmetogo as the biggest threat to Bobby’s Wicked One. Trainer Brad Cox said Whereshetoldmetogo came into his barn last year at Fair Grounds, but owing to injury the 4-year-old colt didn’t make his first start for Cox until September, returning from almost a year away to finish fifth in a Parx Racing stakes. Cox said Whereshetoldmetogo needed that race, and the colt since has come back with a solid second and a sloppy-track allowance race win going seven furlongs at Churchill. Thursday’s six-furlong trip probably is a shade shorter than ideal, but Cox said that “with the long Fair Grounds stretch he should be okay.”

Still, Bobby’s Wicked One stands a good chance of making this another happy Thanksgiving for Stall.