Breakout Beyers: Determinedly accelerates like a turf horse – but on the dirt

Each week in this space, the top Beyer performances by maiden winners will be featured and analyzed. Click here for a complete archive.

DETERMINEDLY
Nov. 26, 6th race Churchill, MdSpWt120k
Beyer: 83
7 furlongs 1:22.81 – 1st by 7 1/4 lengths
gr. c. 2, Cairo Prince – Bailzee, by Grand Slam
Noteworthy siblings: None
Auctions: Keeneland September yearling 2021 – $80,000
Owner: John Oxley
Trainer: Mark Casse
Breeder: Bedouin Bloodstock

He did work out a perfect trip, but you have to like this performance, which might have been even better than the speed figure, which doesn’t account for the slow pace that led to the final time. That pace helped Determinedly, who sat third behind the two leaders, but no one else in the vanguard was anywhere near him after the eventual winner made his move at the five-sixteenths pole. It was an eye-catching move, too, the dark gray colt accelerating like a turf horse and quickly opening daylight on the field. He was ridden through the homestretch but not put to extreme pressure to get his final furlong in an impressive 12.06 seconds, after which he wasn’t asked for much on the gallop-out. The pedigree leans turf, and he got three chances in New York grass routes after a five-furlong dirt debut, but a move back to the main track has produced two superior performances. All this, and as good as Determinedly looked here, how talented is the Bob Baffert-trained colt Arabian Knight, who debuted with a seven-length win over Determinedly on Breeders’ Cup weekend?

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SPUN INTENDED
Nov. 26, 6th race Del Mar, MdSpWt72k
Beyer: 87
6 1/2 furlongs 1:15.83 – 1st by 6 1/2 lengths
ch. c. 2, by Hard Spun – Flora Dora, by First Dude
Noteworthy siblings: None
Auctions: Keeneland September yearling 2021 – $100,000; OBS March 2-year-old 2022 – $125,000
Owner: Edge Racing and Muir Hut Stables
Trainer: Mark Glatt
Breeder: Coffeepot Stables

Like so many Southern California dirt races, this was all about radical late deceleration off a fast pace, but we won’t hold that against Spun Intended, a second-time starter who had run well in his debut defeat. He’s obviously very fast but in neither start did he break well. Mike Smith in this race patiently and incrementally eased him to the lead from a position along the inside with three rivals stacked alongside him. The colt was much fastest from the half-mile marker to the quarter pole, and while he required 31.63 to get his last 2 1/2 furlongs, that still was the fastest come-home clocking in a nine-runner field. He’s the first foal to race from a dam who developed early and was a good 2-year-old dirt route horse, winning a rich Florida sire stakes and racing competitively in open company.

RUTHLESS RUA
Nov. 24, 5th race Churchill, MdSpWt120k
Beyer: 87
6 furlongs 1:09.33 – 1st by 5 3/4 lengths
ch. f. 2, Distorted Humor – Can’t Use Nellie, by Mineshaft
Noteworthy siblings: None
Auctions: None
Owner: Jim and Susan Hill
Trainer: Rusty Arnold
Breeder: Jim and Susan Hill

This race was a reminder of how deep and tiring the Keeneland track was during October, and how many horses simply failed to handle it – like this filly. She’d been a fading and well-beaten sixth in her debut at Keeneland but there was no fade to her second time out, with Ruthless Rua getting her final furlong in a respectable 12.43, considering she set splits of 21.56 and 44.96, a rugged pace. Body-wise, she’s made pretty wide up front and if you were forced to categorize her, you’d probably say she looks more like a one-turn horse. That said, she finished well enough and has a pedigree to suggest she can go farther; her dam, a minor Canadian stakes horse on dirt, toggled between sprints and routes during her career.

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NEW YORK THUNDER
Nov. 27, 5th race Gulfstream, MdSpWt42k
Beyer: 92
5 furlongs Tapeta 55.77 – 1st by 6 1/2 lengths
b. c. 2, Nyquist – Start Over, by Midshipman
Noteworthy siblings: None
Auctions: Keeneland September yearling 2021 – $125,000
Owner: AMO Racing USA
Trainer: Jorge Delgado
Breeder: Gatewood Bell and Forgotten Land

It’s a late-season race at five furlongs on a synthetic surface – obviously we shouldn’t make too much of it. That said, the Beyer came back legitimately fast, and the performance was visually impressive. New York Thunder does not appear to be a very big colt but for his size he sure has a big, reaching stride. Was asked a bit early after breaking just so-so from an inside draw, relaxed after making the lead, and really quickened when asked for more run in upper stretch, getting his final furlong in a rapid 11.71 seconds. He’s the first foal to race from a dam who never started. Given the synthetic debut, his way of going, and the pedigree, one would have to think turf racing could be part of his future.

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