Forte leaves Gulfport reeling in Hopeful upset

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - A beaten favorite in the Grade 3 Sanford to begin the meet, Forte made amends as a surprising 6-1 shot to end it, splashing his way to a three-length victory over favored Gulfport in Monday’s Grade 1, $300,000 Hopeful at soggy Saratoga.

It was nine lengths back to Blazing Sevens in third. Mo Strike, the Sanford winner on July 16, finished fourth, followed by Bourbon Bash and Western Ghent.

The win capped a terrific meet for both jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. and trainer Todd Pletcher. Ortiz finished the meet as the leading rider with 55 wins, and tied a Saratoga single-meet record for most stakes with 15. John Velazquez set the record in 2005, and Joel Rosario also equaled the mark at this meet.

Though Pletcher finished the meet second in wins to Chad Brown (42-38), the Hopeful was Pletcher’s meet-best fifth Grade 1 victory. Pletcher also won the Whitney (Life Is Good), Alabama and Coaching Club American Oaks (Nest), and Personal Ensign (Malathaat).

“We had an awesome meet,” Pletcher said. “Our team did a tremendous job and worked super hard from day one to the last day. To win the races that we won that’s awesome.”

Pletcher had hoped to begin the meet winning the Sanford with Forte, but the horse had a less than ideal trip over a deep, demanding surface, and he finished fourth, 5 3/4 lengths behind Mo Strike.

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“Last time he was just never able to get extracted out into the clear until really, really late and when he did he showed some interest,” said Pletcher, who won three races on Monday’s closing-day card. “He came back and trained really well, trained with some older horses, his last breeze was in company with Bal Harbour, who won earlier on the card.”

Day-long rains turned Saratoga’s main track into a sloppy mess, but Pletcher was confident the son of Violence would handle it.

Breaking from post 2, Forte was fifth early on, four lengths off the pace set by Gulfport, who, under Flavien Prat, ran a quarter in 22.74 seconds and a half-mile in 45.57 while chased by Western Ghent and Mo Strike.

While Prat had Gulfport in the five-path down the backside - the outside seemingly was the better place to be - Ortiz didn’t have much choice but stay inside, though he was a few paths off the fence.

Around the turn, Ortiz went around a tiring Western Ghent, then inside a struggling Mo Strike.

Turning for home, Gulfport went out even further while Forte was rallying in the three path. Forte took the lead just outside the eighth pole and drew away for the final margin.

“I don’t have that kind of speed early so I just tried to keep him busy, keep him in the race, which is what the trainer told me,” Ortiz said. “Our plan was to go outside, but when the gates opened things changed, I had to go inside. I had plenty of room inside, I hit him a couple of times and he responded well.”

Forte, owned by Mike Repole and Vinnie Viola, covered the seven furlongs in 1:22.58 and returned $15.80 to win as the fourth choice.

Pletcher said his first inclination is to point Forte to the Grade 1 Champagne, which will be run Oct. 1 at Aqueduct.

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Gulfport, looking to bounce back from his defeat at as the 2-5 favorite in Saratoga Special on Aug. 13, had to settle for second again in the Hopeful after seemingly getting out around the turn under Prat.

“He broke well, I got myself in a good spot,” Prat said. “When I got to the five-sixteenths pole, he kind of went out and as soon as he saw [Forte] coming through the inside, he kind of went out more.”

In what was an otherwise strong meet for Asmussen, Gulfport’s two runs here were unsatisfying.

“Very disappointing that I didn’t get a good race out of that horse in two tries here,” Asmussen said. “Watching the race from the outside, it looked like that’s where he was trying to put him. I think he was just trying to find the right spot on the track.”