Illinois Derby: Cross the Line shows good potential on dirt
STICKNEY, Ill. – It was the race in which Cross the Line finished worst that showed he might be a really good colt.
Two wins, two seconds, and a third, a stakes victory in his first start outside of the maiden ranks, and a troubled second in the Grade 3 El Camino Real Derby – that was Cross the Line’s résumé, all compiled over a Tapeta surface, when he shipped south and raced two weekends ago to make his dirt debut in the Santa Anita Derby.
There, he battled three wide outside of Dortmund and One Lucky Dane through a strong pace, hanging around gamely to finish fifth, beaten almost seven lengths by Dortmund but only about two by One Lucky Dane while photographing for third with the well-regarded pair of Bolo and Prospect Park.
“We think he’s going to be really good on dirt,” said trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. “Considering he ran against Dortmund and those monsters down there, that was a really good race.”
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Suffice it to say there will be no Dortmunds in the starting gate Saturday at Hawthorne Race Course when Cross the Line lines up in post 3 for the Grade 3, $400,000 Illinois Derby. He faces eight rivals, none of whom has shown the talent that Cross the Line has evidenced, and ought to be more heavily favored than his 3-1 morning line under jockey Florent Geroux.
The Illinois Derby, positioned as a potential springboard to the Preakness Stakes, goes as race 9 of 10 on Saturday’s card, with first post 1:50 p.m. Central and the local derby scheduled to go at 5:40. The program’s supporting feature, the Grade 3, $150,000 Sixty Sails (race 5) drew just five entrants, with Awesome Flower the likely favorite.
California feels like the epicenter of 3-year-old talent this year, and two other Californians, Whiskey Ticket and Verraco, joined Cross the Line on a flight from Los Angeles to Kentucky, followed by a van ride north to Hawthorne late this week.
Four of the other six in the nine-furlong race exit a start at Oaklawn Park, where the quality of the 3-year-old division was called into serious question when American Pharoah ate them for lunch in the Rebel Stakes and Arkansas Derby.
The race-day forecast looks ideal, calling for sunshine and a high temperature around 70.
Illinois Derby, race 9
KEY CONTENDERS
Cross the Line (Last 3 Beyers: 95-82-79)
◗ Lost his first two starts, but those sprints probably were intended just to build a foundation, and in both of them, Cross the Line finished strongly, galloping out in front.
◗ Won his first two route starts, a maiden race and the California Derby, before finishing second to the talented Metaboss in the El Camino Real, where Cross the Line had to check into the first turn, raced in traffic most of the trip, and only got clear – too late – at the furlong pole.
◗ Cross the Line is by Line of David, the sire of Kentucky Derby hope Firing Line, and is a half-brother to 2013 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Ria Antonia.
◗ Hollendorfer said he decided to go for this race when Cross the Line came out of the Santa Anita Derby so well.
Formulator Fact: Hollendorfer has a record over the last five years of 5-2-4 from 13 starters, with a return on investment of $2.70, racing on 10-15 days’ rest in dirt stakes.
Whiskey Ticket (Last Beyer: 90)
◗ Trainer Bob Baffert often wins with first-time starters. He does not often win with first-timers who are 15-1, like Whiskey Ticket was March 19 at Santa Anita. “When he came out of Los Alamitos, he really wasn’t showing a lot, and we had another horse in that race, Air Pocket, who had been outworking him,” Baffert said. Jockey Martin Garcia “got him out of the gate, and he kept going and going. He really surprised me.”
◗ A stretch-out sprinter named Lewys Vaporizer figures to take the lead Saturday. Whiskey Ticket probably won’t be far off the lead. “It depends how he breaks. He’s not a super speed freak,” said Baffert.