Caddo River gets career restarted in allowance
Caddo River established himself as one of the top 3-year-olds at the Oaklawn Park meet last season by winning the Smarty Jones and running second in the Arkansas Derby.
He’s back in town for Sunday’s eighth race, which will mark his first out since June.
Caddo River is part of a field of eight in the one-mile conditioned allowance for 3-year-olds and up, which carries a claiming option of $50,000. Others set to start include the stakes-placed runners Irish Unity and Atoka.
Caddo River last raced June 5 and finished an uncharacteristic sixth in the Grade 1 Woody Stephens over seven furlongs at Belmont Park. Prior to that race, he had been debated for a start in the Kentucky Derby.
“He’s doing really well,” said Brad Cox, who trains Caddo River for the Arkansas-based Shortleaf Stable. “He had the points to get in the Derby. We thought the mile and a quarter was maybe a little bit far for him. We regrouped and tried the seven-eighths, and it just didn’t go our way at Belmont. We thought we would give him a break, and he’s been back in training for a while. This race popped up, and we thought it was an excellent spot to get him started back.”
Caddo River has registered both of his wins in one-mile races, with one of those victories at one turn in a maiden special weight at Churchill Downs and the other at two turns in the Smarty Jones in January at Oaklawn. In both races, Caddo River set the pace, and he figures to again be prominent from his rail post Sunday.
“He’s fast,” Cox said. “I would say he’ll break running. I don’t want to take anything away that comes easy. He’s got a big stride. When he gets into it, he’s able to establish position early.
“He likes Oaklawn. He ran well throughout the 3-year-old series for the most part, had a good victory in the Smarty Jones and a good second in the Arkansas Derby. Now he’s facing older horses. He’s a horse bred to get better with age.”
In addition to being Caddo River’s first start against older horses, the race Sunday will be his first on Lasix.
Florent Geroux has the mount on Caddo River, a son of Hard Spun and the stakes-winning mare Pangburn.
Pangburn has another runner on the card in Como Square, who like her older half-brother is a homebred for Shortleaf Stable.
The chief threats to Caddo River could be fellow 3-year-olds Irish Unity and Atoka. Both are looking for their first win at two turns. Irish Unity was second at the configuration in the $250,000 St. Louis Derby and Atoka was third going a one-turn mile against older rivals in the Grade 3 Ack Ack at Churchill in October.
Irish Unity will break from post 4 and could get an ideal tracking trip off Caddo River. Trainer Steve Asmussen has given the mount to David Cabrera, who on Friday won his fourth consecutive riding title at Remington Park.
Luis Contreras will be aboard Atoka from post 7 for trainer D. Wayne Lukas.
The race Sunday will end at the sixteenth pole, as with all one-mile races at Oaklawn.
Earlier on the card, Como Square will meet Marr Time in a first-level allowance for 2-year-old fillies at six furlongs. The field also includes the promising Parlance, a recent maiden winner at Churchill with a Beyer Speed Figure of 81, and Lady Scarlet, who in July was second to eventual Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Echo Zulu.
Como Sqaure is a daughter of Into Mischief who won her debut from off the pace Nov. 11 at Indiana. She will break from post 6 under Martin Garcia.
Cox also will send out Marr Time, who was the 3-5 favorite winning a maiden special weight wire to wire at Keeneland in her only start. The daughter of Not This Time is out of the stakes-winning mare Leslie’s Lady, who is the dam of champion Beholder and Grade 1 winners Into Mischief and Mendelssohn.
Marr Time will break from post 2 under Geroux.
The card Sunday is the last one before Oaklawn goes on Christmas break. Racing will resume Dec. 31.