Knicks Go expected to be on lead in Lukas Classic

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – He’ll be impossible to miss. He’ll be the gray horse streaking away early from post 2, looking to flaunt a rare brand of early speed that has made him one of the favorites for the 2021 Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Knicks Go will be trying to build the kind of insurmountable advantage that already has taken him to three Grade 1 wins within the last year when he faces five other older horses Saturday in the eighth running of the Grade 3, $400,000 Lukas Classic at Churchill Downs. Trainer Brad Cox has selected the 1 1/8-mile Lukas over several other options as the final prep for the 5-year-old standout toward the BC Classic, to be run Nov. 6 at 1 1/4 miles at Del Mar.

“This race is a good spot for him leading into the Breeders’ Cup,” said Cox. “It’s two turns, the timing’s right, and we get to walk him out of his own stall. Hopefully he’ll run like he usually does and we’ll be all set up for California.”

Knicks Go exits a 4 1/2-length victory in the Grade 1 Whitney at Saratoga, an Aug. 7 race in which he earned a 111 Beyer Speed Figure. In eight races since Cox assumed his training in January 2020, Knicks Go has earned a triple-digit Beyer six times, all of them when speeding off to the lead. His career-high Beyer of 113 came two starts back when easily winning the July 2 Cornhusker at Prairie Meadows.

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Knicks Go, an earner of more than $5.3 million from 22 overall starts for the Korea Racing Authority, will have Joel Rosario back aboard as the apparent lone speed. He’s the 2-5 morning-line favorite off a brilliant record that also includes victories in the BC Dirt Mile last November at Keeneland and the Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park in January.

Knicks Go presents a familiar dilemma for any other jockey who might want to keep him from stealing off to an easy lead – if you run with him early, you’re likely to get cooked, and if you let him go, well . . .

“Knicks Go is tough to hook early,” said Joe Talamo, who’ll leave from post 6 riding Sprawl, perhaps the only other starter with the kind of early foot to stay close through the opening furlongs. “I like our post a lot. We’ll sit a good trip and hope to run him down late.”

Talamo rode Knicks Go on one prior occasion, easily winning a February 2020 allowance at Oaklawn Park when the horse was making his first-ever start for Cox.

“His cruising speed is incredible,” said Talamo. “He’ll go a half-mile in 46 seconds, and it actually feels like 48-and-change.”

Sprawl, trained by Tommy Drury, also had his last race Aug. 7, winning the West Virginia Governor’s Stakes at Mountaineer Park after forcing the pace throughout. He’s likely to give closest chase and looking to fend off the back runners, including Tacitus (post 3, Jose Lezcano), the 5-2 second choice who will be making his first start in more than seven months.

Tacitus, a gray 5-year-old horse bred and owned by Juddmonte Farms, has earned more than $3.7 million in 16 starts, with his only start at Churchill being the 2019 Kentucky Derby. He was fourth under the wire before being elevated to third on the disqualification of Maximum Security.

Tacitus arrived here Tuesday after completing all his major prep work at Saratoga for trainer Bill Mott. His most recent start resulted in a distant seventh-place finish in the Feb. 20 Saudi Cup, the same race in which Knicks Go faded to fourth following a sustained duel with the since-retired Charlatan.

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Rounding out the Lukas lineup are Chess Chief (post 1, James Graham), Shared Sense (post 4, Brian Hernandez Jr.), and Independence Hall (post 5, Javier Castellano).

Shared Sense, a second Cox trainee, has three stakes wins to his credit, including the Indiana Derby and Oklahoma Derby last year at 3. Independence Hall, winner of the Nashua at 2 and the Jerome early in his 3-year-old season, is a 4-year-old colt who recently shipped in from California for trainer Michael McCarthy.

The Lukas honors the still-active, 86-year-old Hall of Fame trainer based in Churchill Barn 44 since the late 1980s. Inaugurated in 2013 as the Homecoming Classic, its first winner was Fort Larned, who had captured the BC Classic the previous year. The Lukas was not run last year because of revised scheduling due to the pandemic.

The Lukas is the eighth of 11 races on the penultimate card of a 12-day, dirt-only September meet. It’s part of a late pick four that also includes the Grade 3 Ack Ack (race 10) and two allowances (races 9 and 11). First post is 12:45 p.m. Eastern, with the Lukas going at 4:22.

Mostly sunny skies and a high of 84 are in the local forecast for Saturday. Sunday is closing day of the meet. After four dark days on this circuit, Keeneland starts its 17-day fall meet Friday.