Jolly Samurai should handle extra furlong in Clever Trevor

Jolly Samurai escaped the summer’s devastating New Mexico floods to establish himself as a 2-year-old of significance this meet at Remington Park, where he starts as the probable favorite in Friday night’s $75,000 Clever Trevor.

The seven-furlong race is the final local stepping-stone to the $300,000 Springboard Mile, a Kentucky Derby points race Dec. 13. The Clever Trevor has drawn a field of nine, including the graded stakes-placed Three Echoes and the impressive debut winner Dominant Spirit.

Jolly Samurai has won both of his starts to date, both at Remington. He captured a maiden special weight with a flourish Aug. 17 and backed up the performance by closing for a neck win in the $75,000 Kip Deville on Sept. 29. For his most recent start, he earned a career-high Beyer Speed Figure of 84.

“I like to see repetition and so I saw another strong finish,” trainer Danny Pish said of the Kip Deville. “I learned he can finish strong against better horses, not just maidens.

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“He’s been a real nice fellow to be around. He kind of goes about his work unassuming, but he shows up on race day in big fashion. He had kind of tipped his hand a little bit in his workouts, but galloping and what not, he’s just an easy-going fellow.”

Jake Brown owns Jolly Samurai and sent the son of First Samurai to Pish’s training center in Texas earlier this year when floods hit Ruidoso Downs. A Texas-bred, Jolly Samurai was bought as a yearling at auction at Lone Star Park near Dallas.

“He left the yearling sale, went to New Mexico, and they had him in training out there,” Pish said Tuesday. “I think they were thinking about giving him his first race out there and then all those floods hit at Ruidoso and so him and several others came over here, just basically to kind of get somewhere to be safe until they figured out where they were going.”

Pish said Brown ended up leaving Jolly Samurai and another filly in training with him as a show of gratitude for the shelter and because both might eventually have some opportunities in their home state of Texas.

Jolly Samurai on Friday will break from post 5 under Rene Diaz. The horse will be racing beyond six furlongs for the first time.

“Seven-eighths, it sure looks like it would be right up his alley,” Pish said. “A late-running sprinter is what he’s kind of put out there for us two in a row, and late-running sprinters usually love seven-eighths. He’ll still have to go earn it. They’ll be nobody giving it to him. He’ll have to earn every bit of it if he can, but conventional logic says that seven-eighths should be okay for him.”

Three Echoes was third in the Kip Deville in his first local start. Earlier in the year, he was third in the Grade 3 Sanford at Saratoga. Keith Asmussen has the mount for L and N Racing and trainer Steve Asmussen.

Dominant Spirit fought on the front end and went on to a 4 3/4-length debut win in a maiden special weight over five furlongs Sept. 12 at Remington. Jose Alvarez has the mount on the son of Mohaymen for trainer Bret Calhoun.

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