Harness: T C I vs. Karl divisional battle and other thoughts

For some it "All came down to the Breeders Crown." For others there is still something left to race for, and while Crown champions Karl, Tactical Approach and Confederate are expected to be in action through the end of this month, only one will be fighting for something that the Crown was supposed to accomplish. Karl, the phenomenal son of Tactical Landing, continued his dominance over what appears to be outclassed rivals in capturing the Kindergarten last week and is now likely moving on to the Valley Victory at the Meadowlands.

Yes, Confederate and Tactical Approach still have plans as 3-year-olds to race just one time against older foes in the FanDuel Championships at the Meadowlands on November 25, but neither will be risking their titles in the process.

Karl, from my perspective, put in one of the best performances I've seen in Breeders Crown history (and I've seen them all) when he captured the juvenile colt and gelding title at Harrah's Hoosier Park. Unlike his elimination victory, in the Crown final both Gingras and Karl were sure of their approach and exuded power and effortless speed in rendering T C I helpless on this occasion. The stretch at Hoosier is long, and that played against Karl's competition as he seemed ready and willing to go even after the finish line had been eclipsed. Gingras confirmed last week that Karl was not at his smoothest in the Crown trial and that trainer Nancy Takter made some adjustments that could have been risky had they not worked out so perfectly in the final. Karl's lone defeat this year has come at the hooves of T C I in a race at The Red Mile where he lost an incredibly close photo finish. The colt took a few bad steps when under pressure in the stretch and perhaps that cost some momentum, but it would be unfair to sully T C I's dramatic victory that day by using that as an excuse for Karl.

While plans are for Karl to finish his 2-year-old season in hopefully winning style in the Valley Victory, it's my opinion that even if he's the better of the two horses from the results of the last meeting in the Breeders Crown, he is not the best 2-year-old in North America when the rest of the season is factored in. I will give trainer Nancy Takter all the credit in the world for managing the racing career of Karl to perfection. That said, Takter's management restricted the movement of Karl as the colt was planted in Kentucky, using the time to rack up wins without travel between races. T C I's travels are well documented, and they were extensive, reminding some of the old Grand Circuit days when horses traveled weekly to a new destination. While Karl was comfortable in Kentucky, T C I was winning titles in Pennsylvania, Ontario and Indiana, not to mention his win at Karl's expense when he added Kentucky to the list on his vigorous work schedule. Given T C I's schedule and time on the road it's conceivable that some of that could have added to the wear and tear and his defeat in the Breeders Crown, but that would simplify the result and take credit away from Karl, something I'm not willing to do.

The voters will decide the champion in this division and here's where the late-season campaign and expected dominance of Karl will come into play. He will likely remain with just one loss on his resume and tip the bank account to seven figures, enough to take some of the edge off T C I's record juvenile earnings.

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Second to Karl's brilliant performance in this year's Breeders Crown (and not by much) was Sylvia Hanover. The gallant sophomore pacing filly by Always B Miki is the definition of a racehorse, essentially meaning a horse that will do whatever is necessary to win a race and knows quite clearly she is in a race. The second Breeders Crown victory for Sylvia Hanover was better than the first, and not surprisingly it came with her spending a good portion of the race parked and without cover. Driver Bob McClure realized after the opening quarter that he couldn't allow Dexter Dunn and Twin B Joe Fresh the privilege of cutting the pace without a challenge otherwise risking having too much ground to make up in a final quarter sprint. When McClure came full throttle to challenge Twin B Joe Fresh for the lead at the half, Dunn seized the opportunity to put his filly in the highest gear and let McClure and Sylvia Hanover know that he wanted nothing to do with head-to-head combat.

Dunn's aggressiveness in the third quarter of the Breeders Crown drew some criticism as it was an unconventional approach to his other choices that could have simply seen him yield the front to the favored Sylvia Hanover and be content to sit second into the stretch. The latter approach may have secured a second-place finish, but it was clear on this night that Dunn wanted to pull out all stops in taking down Sylvia Hanover. The third quarter sprint kept Sylvia Hanover and the rest of the field at bay and looked like a winning move until Twin B Joe Fresh tired and was overtaken by Sylvia Hanover in the stretch.

In as much as Twin B Joe Fresh and Sylvia Hanover should have been exhausted from the middle-half sprinting, Sylvia Hanover still had some work to do to finish her mile, and when Charleston and Tim Tetrick appeared to her inside in the late stages and seemed to get an edge on Sylvia Hanover, the game filly stuck her head out and refused to be passed, asserting her incredible will to hold a fresh rival at bay.

Charleston's trainer Brett Pelling showed his true admiration for the winner. "You've got to surprise her. If she sees you, you're not going by," said Pelling of what it may take to defeat Sylvia Hanover.

Tactical Approach is scheduled to race older trotters in the FanDuel. The Hambletonian, Kentucky Futurity and Breeders Crown champion has done everything this year and winning against older horses would be a meaningful conclusion to his racing career. That Tactical Approach is as sharp in November as he was at the beginning of the season is another feather in Nancy Takter's cap and may be the deciding factor in the FanDuel as the older trotters have exhibited some wear and tear.

On the pacing front, the news this week that Confederate will continue his racing career through the Matron (November 9) and the FanDuel may have come as a surprise given his authoritative performance in the Breeders Crown. While Confederate has done more than enough to secure his Horse of the Year title, it would be difficult to send him off to stud duty without giving him a few more chances to shine on the racetrack. It will certainly be interesting to see what happens when he faces older horses on November 25 at the Meadowlands, a first for him.