The Grey Wizard meets familiar rivals in Cape Henlopen

The Grey Wizard and English Conqueror could employ different tactics Wednesday when the marathon specialists meet in the $200,000 Cape Henlopen at Delaware Park.

The Grey Wizard should go favored as he defeated two of his five rivals – Limited Liability and Really Good – last out when he won the Grade 2 Belmont Gold Cup at Saratoga. And last year, he won an allowance over Woodbine-based shipper English Conqueror.

The horses are all capable in the Cape Henlopen, which is a 1 1/2-mile turf race for 3-year-olds and up.

The Grey Wizard closed from well off the pace for a head win in the Belmont Gold Cup over two miles June 6. He could employ similar tactics under John Velazquez, who was aboard for the Gold Cup.

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“You can’t take him out of what he does,” trainer Graham Motion said of The Grey Wizard. “He’s a galloper and that’s what he does. I’m so lucky Johnny is able to come ride him because he knows him and you can’t change him. You’ve just got to let the race unfold.

“I was intrigued. There’s several other horses coming out of that race that have kind of waited for this spot.”

The Grey Wizard has been prepping about 25 minutes from Delaware Park at his base of Fair Hill Training Center in Elkton, Md. Motion said the timing of Wednesday’s race was a big draw.

“We just felt this was a good stepping-stone to get him to [the Nashville Gold Cup], a two-mile race at Kentucky Downs,” Motion said. “It’s kind of the same timing as last time. We ran three weeks out from the Gold Cup, a prep, and this is kind of going by the same game plan, if you like.”

Kentucky Downs puts on the Nashville Gold Cup on Sept. 11.

English Conqueror was second to The Grey Wizard in a 1 1/2-mile allowance last spring at Keeneland. He will break from post 6 under Rafael Hernandez, who like Velazquez is traveling in to ride Wednesday. English Conqueror shipped in Sunday.

“He’s the type of horse that needs to be covered up, drop the bit, gallop until you get him out in the open and go again,” trainer Darwin Banach said. “He does like to be up closer. He can be back. He can be anywhere, really, just as long as he’s kind of covered up and relaxing. If you’re close, at least you don’t need to worry about traffic. We prefer him being closer.”

English Conqueror won a second-level allowance over 1 3/16 miles on turf June 16 at Aqueduct and last out was fifth in the Grade 2 Bowling Green on July 28 at Saratoga.

“He’s a type of horse that wants to go long like this on the turf and we haven’t had the opportunity to run at Woodbine in these kinds of races, so we have to go where we can go,” Banach said. “He’s a great shipper, handles everything so well that you just enjoy shipping these kind of horses.”

English Conqueror is seeking his first stakes win after having placed in three stakes in his career.

Limited Liability is also looking for his first stakes win after placing in seven graded stakes. He was third by a neck in the Belmont Gold Cup and will carry five fewer pounds than both The Grey Wizard and English Conqueror.

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