Governor Malibu gets class relief in allowance for statebreds

ELMONT, N.Y. – The fortunes of Get Jets and Governor Malibu have changed significantly since they finished first and third in last October’s Sleepy Hollow Stakes at Belmont Park.

Coincidentally, however, both remain eligible for their second-level New York-bred allowance conditions, and both will be participating in such races Friday at Belmont Park.

Governor Malibu, who has participated in five consecutive graded stakes, has found significant class relief in Friday’s third race – which has three runners offered for the optional claiming tag of $40,000 – scheduled for 1 1/16 miles on dirt.

Get Jets, who has only raced twice, without success, since the Sleepy Hollow, is scheduled to try a new surface in the eighth, at seven furlongs on turf.

In his last four starts, Governor Malibu has competed against the best 3-year-olds in training. He was second in the Peter Pan, fourth in the Belmont Stakes, and second in the Jim Dandy before finishing fifth in the Travers behind runaway winner Arrogate. Connect, the sixth-place finisher in the Travers, just came back to win the Grade 2, $1.25 million Pennsylvania Derby.

Christophe Clement, the trainer of Governor Malibu, is just trying to get his charge to win a race.

“The bottom line is since the Peter Pan, that horse has run in really tough races against the leading 3-year-olds in the country,” Clement said. “He deserves to run in an easier spot and give him a chance. He likes Belmont very much, I wanted the race to be at Belmont. I just think it was nice to regroup and see where we are.”

As a New York-bred, Governor Malibu could use this race as a stepping-stone to the $300,000 Empire Classic here on Oct. 22.

There is the potential for a wet track on Friday, which shouldn’t hinder Governor Malibu too much. He won the Gander Stakes over a “good” Aqueduct inner track and finished first, but was disqualified to second, over a “good” Laurel track in the Federico Tesio Stakes in April.

Clifton Pleasure, who had a win and a second in this same condition at Saratoga, looms as the main threat to Governor Malibu.

Trainer Tony Dutrow would not like to see rain force Friday’s eighth race off the turf. He is hoping to run Get Jets on grass for the first time in his career after the Scat Daddy colt made his first five starts on dirt.

“He’s bred for the turf; I felt like I got to get the horse on the turf and see what that becomes because I do believe the horse is a good horse,” Dutrow said.

At 2, Get Jets won 2 of 3 starts, with his loss coming by a neck. He made his 3-year-old debut at Oaklawn in open company, finished fifth, and came out of the race with a physical issue. He returned to the races in this same statebred condition and finished fifth, beaten 5 3/4 lengths.

“I know he had a problem in his winter start, and the other day when he ran here, I can buy that he got tired the last sixteenth of a mile,” Dutrow said.

There is plenty of speed in this seven-furlong event, and Get Jets would appear to have the right stalking style. If it remains on turf, Whiskey Seven would be the horse to beat. A gelding by War Chant, Whiskey Seven won his first two starts before finishing third in this condition while returning from a brief layoff in September.

If the race moves to dirt, Wildniteattheopera likely becomes the horse to beat.