Channel Maker finds winning combo in Sword Dancer

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Soft turf and a lonely lead proved a winning combination for Channel Maker, who on Saturday scored a surprisingly easy 5 3/4-length victory in the Grade 1, $500,000 Sword Dancer Stakes at Saratoga.

Sent to the lead by Manny Franco, Channel Maker was unchallenged through fractions of 25.10 seconds for the quarter, 51.14 for the half, 1:17.27 for six furlongs and a mile in 1:42.33 over the rain-soaked soft inner turf course.

Channel Maker was chased early by Marzo and Corelli, but was going much easier of the trio. Turning for home, Channel Maker opened up a sizeable advantage and slogged his way to the sixth victory of his career from 35 starts. He increased his career purse earnings to $2,494,051.

Three of those six wins have come in Grade 1 stakes. In 2018, he won the Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic over soft ground at Belmont Park. Last year, he won the Grade 1 Man O’ War over turf labeled firm at Belmont Park. That victory, on May 11, 2019, proved to be his last victory until Saturday. He had lost 10 consecutive starts including a fourth-place finish in the 2019 Sword Dancer. He ran second in this race in 2018.

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“He doesn’t put them back to back,” said winning trainer Bill Mott, who won his fourth Sword Dancer, his first victory coming in 1987 with Theatrical.

“He’s run a few races back to back, [but] the wins have been spread out a little bit. He got the right situation today and he made the most of it.”

Mott thought Channel Maker would be laying second to Marzo, who had set an ambitious pace in the Bowling Green on Aug. 1. Channel Maker sat third in the Bowling Green and crossed the wire fourth, but was elevated to third with the disqualification from first of Sadler’s Joy, who had impeded Channel Maker in the stretch.

Mott was not displeased to see Franco grab the early lead on Saturday.

“The opportunity presented itself for him to be on the lead and the jock accepted the opportunity and it worked out very well,” Mott said. “Sometimes you make the right decision and he certainly did today.”

Franco said the key for Channel Maker getting to the break was a clean break from the gate.

“The plan always with this horse is to get him to break because sometimes he breaks slow,” Franco said. “Today he broke good, I took a chance to go on with him and it worked out great.”

Channel Maker, owned by Gary Barber, Randy Hill, Dean and Patti Reeves, and Adam Wachtel, covered the 1 1/2 miles over the soft ground in 2:34.86 and returned $18 as the 8-1 sixth choice in the field of seven.

Cross Border, the slight 3-1 favorite for his previous 5-for-5 record at Saratoga, rallied for second, 3 1/2 lengths clear of Aquaphobia, both trained by Mike Maker. Sadler’s Joy was fourth, followed by Corelli, Pedro Cara, and Marzo.

The victory earned Channel Maker a fees-paid berth into the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Turf on Nov. 7 at Keeneland. Channel Maker finished last in the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Turf at Santa Anita and 11th of 13 in the 2018 Breeders’ Cup at Churchill Downs.

“That water gets very deep,” Mott said. “We tried it a couple of times and it hasn’t worked out for him. You get a different group of horses. Who knows? There was a year at Keeneland where it was bottomless ground. If that situation came up, maybe he’d be one that would benefit from it.”