Furious Cat shows hints of stardom
ARCADIA, Calif. - For most of the racing season, Ten Most Wanted was the fair-haired star at the Wally Dollase barn. But when Ten Most Wanted, winner of the Travers and Super Derby, returns from a 30-day vacation next month, he will discover the stable has become a little more crowded.
Furious Cat and A P Adventure are mere rookies, but they also scored two of the most impressive maiden wins of the Oak Tree meet for Dollase. Furious Cat, a 3-year-old colt, won a mile race geared down Oct. 5, and he meets allowance foes for the first time Thursday in a one-other-than allowance route at Santa Anita.
The 2-year-old filly A P Adventure, by A.P. Indy, sent Dollase positive signals before she ran. "I told [owner] Bob Lewis two months ago that he's got an Oaks filly," Dollase said.
A P Adventure still has a long road ahead, but her first step was in the right direction - a five-length debut victory in a two-turn maiden race Oct. 30.
Dollase will consider running the filly Dec. 21 in the Grade 1 Hollywood Starlet if he can find an allowance for her in the interim. And though she earned a modest 79 Beyer Figure,
A P Adventure's long, effortless stride suggests she could be something special.
Likewise Furious Cat, a 3-year-old by Tabasco Cat with whom Dollase took his time after spending $220,000 on the colt at a 2-year-olds in training sale last year.
"He had some problems," said Dollase, citing fast workouts at the sale as a reason for those problems.
It was more than a year before he started, on July 27 at Del Mar. Racing six furlongs, he flew late to finish fifth and gallop out powerfully past the finish. Dollase typically does not race often at Del Mar, and Furious Cat did not return until Oct. 5 at Oak Tree. He broke open the mile race on the far turn, opened up a three-length lead under Mike Smith, and won geared down.
"I was surprised he won so easy," Dollase said. "He's got natural speed; he just floats across the ground."
The trainer said he expects Furious Cat to make a terrific miler, whereas Ten Most Wanted will focus on handicap division races when he returns next year.
Furious Cat earned a 92 Beyer, a race that was validated when runner-up Mud Shark returned to win his next start. Furious Cat's rivals in the $44,000 allowance at 1 1/16 miles include T S Eliot, Smart Again, Pavlovsk, Rock the Stone, Webster's Gold, Sapore De Mare, George Bailey, and Hell Cat.