King Kreesa: Catch him if you can in Fourstardave
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Mshawish, Seek Again, and Jack Milton are all Grade 1 winners, but they appear to lack the one thing King Kreesa possesses: speed. That trio will attempt to run down King Kreesa in Saturday’s Grade 2, $500,000 Fourstardave Handicap, the one-mile turf feature at Saratoga.
In 2013, King Kreesa tried to steal the Fourstardave, and it took a Horse of the Year – Wise Dan – to run him down. Trained by David Donk, King Kreesa enters this year’s Fourstardave in every bit as good a form as two years ago, having taken the Grade 3 Poker and the Forbidden Apple at Belmont in his last two starts.
“The biggest challenge for a trainer is getting a horse at the top of his game and keeping him there,” said Donk, who named Jose Ortiz to ride King Kreesa. “He’s had a couple of easy breezes. Jose has been on him both times and has been very happy with him.”
King Kreesa won the Poker on the lead. In the Forbidden Apple, Ortiz let longshot Howe Great have the lead. He stalked that rival, then turned back a midstretch challenge from Reload before drawing clear to win by 2 1/2 lengths.
“He rated kindly, made a nice move, and when he was hooked, he responded like a good horse,” Donk said.
He will again to have to respond like a good horse to turn back Mshawish, Seek Again, and Jack Milton.
Mshawish won three stakes at Gulfstream during the winter, including the Grade 1 Gulfstream Park Turf Handicap, before going to Dubai, where he finished third in the Group 1 Dubai Turf. Jack Milton, third in this race last year, cuts back to a mile for the first time since winning the Grade 1 Maker’s 46 Mile at Keeneland in April. Seek Again, who won the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby in 2013, won this race last year.
KEY CONTENDERS
King Kreesa (Last 3 Beyers: 105-99-95)
◗ Looks like the controlling speed in this field unless Skyring, parked on the outside, is sent to the front by Cornelio Velasquez.
◗ Showed last time that he could be successful rating.
Mshawish (Last 3 Beyers: 99-100-97)
◗ Finished third to Solow, arguably the world’s best turf horse, in the Dubai Turf after enduring a foot issue that almost forced him out of the race.
◗ Went to the Fair Hill Training Center for about six weeks after the Dubai race before resuming training.
“He’s at his absolute best in a truly run mile race with some pace in it,” trainer Todd Pletcher said. “This race doesn’t have a whole lot of pace.”
Jack Milton (Last 3 Beyers: 97-100-98)
◗ Turns back to a mile after finishing third (placed second) in the Grade 1 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic at 1 1/8 miles at Churchill Downs and ninth in Grade 1 Manhattan at 1 1/4 miles at Belmont.
◗ Three of his five wins have come at a mile, and he finished third, beaten one length, in this race last year.
“He broke poorly and was a little back,” said Pletcher, who trains him. “The form held up really well. Solow is the best horse in Europe.”
Seek Again (Last 3 Beyers: 98-97-97)
◗ Overcame traffic to win this race last year in a course-record time of 1:33.25 but hasn’t won since.
◗ He is best on firm ground. Trainer Bill Mott shipped him to California for the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile in June, and he finished third.
“We went out there thinking it was firm, and it kind of looked like Belmont at the end of October,” Mott said. “It was kind of weird.”
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 2 Grand Arch. Trainer Brian Lynch is 11-3-1-2 with a $5.98 ROI over the past five years in turf route graded stakes on the NYRA circuit. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
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DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 3 Ironicus. Trainer Shug McGaughey is 28-6-4-3 with a $3.39 ROI over the past five years in graded stakes at Saratoga; 11-4-1-0, $7.33 ROI with last-out winners. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan