Da Big Hoss faces easier task in W.L. McKnight Handicap
Two months ago, Da Big Hoss went for the big money in the $2.7 million Breeders’ Cup Turf, and although never a threat to win, he closed late to finish sixth of 11, beaten 6 1/2 lengths by Found, in a race that also included Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner and Turf runner-up Golden Horn.
Returning in the W.L. McKnight Handicap – one of two Grade 3 turf-marathon stakes Saturday at Gulfstream Park with 12 entrants, along with the La Prevoyante for fillies and mares – Da Big Hoss runs for a significantly lower purse, $100,000, and naturally faces lesser competition.
The only horse in the race dropping out of the Breeders’ Cup, Da Big Hoss ranks as the in-form, current class of the 1 1/2-mile W.L. McKnight and seemingly is ready to add to his 2015 bankroll of $532,370 with leading rider Javier Castellano aboard.
“Da Big Hoss has been my dream horse for years – other than the Kentucky Derby dream,” said Jim Shircliff, one of the principals in Skychai Racing, a partnership that claimed him for $50,000 in June at Churchill Downs.
A 4-year-old son of Lemon Drop Kid trained by Mike Maker, Da Big Hoss won three consecutive races immediately following the claim and before the Breeders’ Cup, including the $100,000 John’s Call at Saratoga and the $600,000 Kentucky Turf Cup at Kentucky Downs.
Though the McKnight doesn’t have the talent of the Breeders’ Cup Turf, the race is no gimme for Da Big Hoss, with 11 rivals, including such solid grass stakes horses as War Dancer, Charming Kitten, and Kaigun.c
W.L. MCKNIGHT (RACE 9)
KEY CONTENDERS
Kaigun (Last 3 Beyers: 98-101-102)
◗ Winless in six starts in 2015, he has been running well in defeat lately, with close fourth-place finishes in the Woodbine Mile and Canadian International and a runner-up finish last out in the Grade 3 Red Smith on Nov. 14.
War Dancer (Last 3 Beyers: 97-98-92)
◗ He also is winless this year but has been battle-tested against top company. He ran second in both the Grade 1 Man o’ War and Grade 2 Bowling Green in the spring and early summer before going unplaced in three graded stakes in the late summer and fall.
Charming Kitten (Last 3 Beyers: 93-93-81)
◗ He never challenged when sixth in the Red Smith but previously ran second in the Grade 3 Sycamore at Keeneland on Oct. 15.
◗ He is 2 for 6 on the Gulfstream grass, including a victory in the 2013 Kitten’s Joy.
Da Big Hoss (Last 3 Beyers: 99-98-96)
◗ He has yet to get tired in a turf race, passing horses or maintaining a lead over the final furlong in every one of his 10 turf races.
LA PREVOYANTE (RACE 11)
If an East Coast track runs a graded race on turf for fillies, chances are that trainers Chad Brown and Christophe Clement will be well represented. That’s what happened Nov. 7 in the Grade 3 Long Island at Aqueduct, where the two trainers ran three mares each. And in Saturday’s $100,000 La Prevoyante, they’re at it again. Brown has the trio of Cay Dancer, Rosalind, and likely favorite Goldy Espony, and Clement goes with Maximova, Walk Close, and Trophee.
KEY CONTENDERS
Rosalind (Last 3 Beyers: 91-99-92)
◗ She was dull in running ninth in the Long Island but now returns to Gulfstream, where she was a close second to Sandiva in her first race of 2015.
◗ In a rare feat of versatility, she has either won or placed in Grade 1 races on turf, dirt, and synthetic.
Goldy Espony (Last 3 Beyers: 98-73-99)
◗ She is a winner of 4 of 5 starts this year, including three stakes, proving difficult to catch when allowed to race alone on the lead.
Gotachancetodance (Last 3 Beyers: 97-91-86)
◗ Once a maiden $35,000 claimer, she has rapidly improved over the second half of 2015, with a third-place finish in the Long Island being her most recent and best race.
Walk Close (Last 3 Beyers: 93-96-91)
◗ She won the Grade 3 Modesty at Arlington on July 11 before returning from a nearly four-month layoff and finishing sixth in the Long Island.