Caribou Club defeats Stormy Liberal in Hernandez
ARCADIA, Calif. -- In turf sprints, and around two turns, Caribou Club has been unbeatable in stakes in recent starts.
Caribou Club won the Grade 2 Seabiscuit Handicap at 1 1/16 miles on turf at Del Mar on Nov. 24. Tuesday at Santa Anita, Caribou Club won the Grade 3 Joe Hernandez Stakes at about 6 1/2 furlongs on the hillside turf course, beating a field that included two-time Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint winner Stormy Liberal.
Caribou Club ($8.60) finished 1 1/4 lengths in front of Stormy Liberal, who had not raced since winning the BC Turf Sprint at Churchill Downs on Nov. 3. Caribou Club was timed in 1:11.66 and earned a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 105.
Ridden by Joe Talamo, Caribou Club closed into a torrid pace to take the lead in the final furlong.
“They went quick so he was a little farther back,” Talamo said. “He’s a cool horse to ride.”
Conquest Tsunami (7-2) led narrowly over 30-1 Cistron through an opening quarter-mile in 20.92 seconds and extended the lead to a length after a half-mile in 42.10 seconds. Conquest Tsunami led by a length with a furlong remaining, but could not hold off Caribou Club, who closed to his inside, or Stormy Liberal, who closed to the outside.
Stormy Liberal, the 6-5 favorite, finished a half-length in front of Conquest Tsunami. Through the first half-mile, Stormy Liberal was third, trailing by about two lengths, before reaching contention in the stretch.
Trainer Peter Miller said before the Hernandez that Tuesday’s race was a prep for the Group 1 Al Quoz Sprint in Dubai on March 30. He emphasized that point after the Hernandez
“I think he was a little closer to the fast pace,” Miller said. “I didn’t have him totally cranked up for this. It served its purpose.”
Cistron finished fourth, followed by Law Abidin Citizen, Calculator, Pubilius Syrus, and Afleet Ascent.
Caribou Club, a 5-year-old gelding by City Zip, races for Glen Hill Farm and trainer Tom Proctor. Caribou Club has won 7 of 17 starts and earned $504,744. The Hernandez was his fifth stakes win, all of which have been on turf at distances ranging from 5 1/2 furlongs to 1 1/16 miles.
The first three finishers of the Hernandez are familiar rivals. In the Grade 3 Eddie D Stakes on the hillside turf course on Sept. 30, the first three finishers were Stormy Liberal, Conquest Tsunami, and Conquest Club, separated by a half-length.