Campaign will have plenty of support in Marathon

ARCADIA, Calif. – Election Day is around the corner, and though he’s not running for office, trainer John Sadler hopes he can say Friday that he has run a successful Campaign.

Sadler will send out Campaign as the likely favorite in Friday’s Grade 2, $200,000 Marathon Stakes, the first race on the Breeders’ Cup card, which begins at 10:45 a.m. Pacific.

The Marathon, run at 1 3/4 miles, was expected to include Marconi, who beat Campaign in the Grade 2 Brooklyn at Belmont in June. But Marconi, trained by Todd Pletcher, did not come out of his most recent workout well and was not shipped to California.

Campaign, a 4-year-old son of Curlin, won the Grade 3 Cougar II Handicap at Del Mar in July and the Grade 3 Tokyo City by 3 1/4 lengths here in April.

“It’s ideal for him,” Sadler said of the 1 3/4 miles.

Campaign has lost his last two starts, but they were against much tougher company. He ran fifth in the Grade 1 Pacific Classic, a race Sadler won with Higher Power, and whose third-place finisher, Mongolian Groom, came back to win the Grade 1 Awesome Again. Both Higher Power and Mongolian Groom are running in Saturday’s $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Last out, Campaign finished third to Zulu Alpha in the Grade 3, $1 million Kentucky Turf Cup, at Kentucky Downs. Arklow, who finished second in that race, came back to win the Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at Belmont Park.

“It was all speed down there this year,” Sadler said of Kentucky Downs “He still was running at the end. He’s a real true, classic stayer.”

Joel Rosario rides Campaign from post 5 in the six-horse race.

Itsinthepost, a multiple graded stakes winner on turf for trainer Jeff Mullins, finished second to Campaign in the Cougar II at Del Mar, the 7-year-old gelding’s only start on a fast dirt track. He was three wide all the way around the track that day and finished 12 lengths clear of the rest of the field.

Itsinthepost will break from the rail under Drayden Van Dyke.

“Normally I don’t like the one post. I think in this instance it’s probably to our benefit. We can get covered up and hopefully he’ll switch off and gallop along,” Mullins said. “I think the horse is super, super fit right now. The key is not making the lead too soon.”

While Pletcher did not bring Marconi for the Marathon, he did send American Tattoo here. American Tattoo has not won beyond 1 1/16 miles, but Pletcher liked how the Argentine-bred son for Not for Sale breezed in company with Marconi last Saturday.

“I think he’s shown in his couple of wins here that he’s a fighter,” Pletcher said. “He gets into a good gallop. I don’t think he’ll be too aggressive.”

Zestful won the Los Alamitos Special Stakes going 1 1/4 miles on Sept. 15 for trainer Mark Glatt. He will look to take the field as far as he can on the lead under Joe Talamo.

Brave Nation, a Group 3 winner going 1 3/8 miles at Hastings Park, and Street to Indy complete the field.