Experienced figures in marathon despite lengthy layoff

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – The Augustin Stable homebred named Experienced is a 5-year-old with four career starts. That really wouldn’t qualify him as experienced, although those four races have showcased an unmistakable upside.

“He’s hinted at talent, for sure,” said his trainer, Jonathan Thomas, referring to Experienced twice being favored in stakes in the summer of 2021.

More than 14 months since last he raced, Experienced returns to action Friday at Gulfstream Park in the eighth of nine races, a $72,000, first-level allowance going 1 1/2 miles on turf.

“He had some mild cannon-bone bruising, which isn’t a horrible thing but does take quite a bit of time to recover from,” Thomas said when accounting for the bulk of the lengthy layoff. “It has a cumulative effect. They don’t stride out quite as well as they typically would.”

Duly regrouped with 13 timed workouts since early November at the Palm Meadows training center, Experienced could come favored again in an oversubscribed field of older horses. Eleven are entered, but only as many as 10 can start.

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A Kentucky-bred gelding by Temple City, Experienced won at first asking for Thomas when up by a nose in a maiden-special at Delaware Park in June 2021. He then was second at odds-on in the Bald Eagle Derby at Pimlico and fifth as the 2-1 choice in the Grade 3 Virginia Derby at Colonial Downs before running fourth in an Aqueduct turf allowance on Nov. 14, 2021.

Jose Ortiz has the call on Experienced, who was assigned post 4 in the three-turn feature. His chief threats figure to include Inflation Adjusted (post 8, Tyler Gaffalione) and Six Minus (post 9, Irad Ortiz Jr.), the respective two-three finishers in this same kind of race Jan. 1.

The listed purse for this race is $86,000, although that includes $14,000 in Florida-bred bonuses for which none of the 11 are eligible.

First post Friday is 12:10 p.m. Eastern. Part of the undercard is a $54,000, first-level allowance (race 5) restricted to Florida-bred fillies and mares. Irad Ortiz Jr. has the call in the 1 1/16-mile turf race on Riveting Spirit, one of the five of 10 starters in for an optional $20,000 claiming tag. Riveting Spirit likely needed her most recent race on the Tapeta after winning her two prior starts on grass.

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Thomas, 42, is a former steeplechase jockey and Todd Pletcher assistant who opened his own stable in earnest in 2015, enjoying great success in 2017-18 with multiple Grade 1 winner Catholic Boy. For years, he operated primarily out of Bridlewood Farm in Ocala, but this winter he is based entirely at Palm Meadows with a string of about 35 horses. Last Saturday on the Pegasus World Cup undercard, Thomas sent out Wolfie’s Dynaghost to an emphatic victory in the $100,000 Carousel Club on Tapeta.

“I think the next logical move with him would be to run him in the Kentucky Cup Classic,” he said, referring to a $300,000 Tapeta race on the Jeff Ruby undercard on March 25 at Turfway Park.

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