Little Mike gets season started in Flying Pidgeon

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Little Mike, who has made more news off the track than on the track over the last several weeks, will finally make his 2014 debut Saturday at Gulfstream Park in the $75,000 Flying Pidgeon Stakes. The 1 1/16-mile Flying Pidgeon drew a field of 10, plus four also-eligibles, and includes Grade 3 Miami Mile winner Grand Tito.

Little Mike was scheduled to launch his season in the Grade 1 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic on Kentucky Derby Day at Churchill Downs, a race he won two years earlier for owner Priscilla Vaccarezza and former trainer Dale Romans. Little Mike is currently trained by his breeder, Carlo Vaccarezza, the husband of Priscilla. Carlo Vaccarezza took out his own trainer’s license this year.

Vaccarezza had to deal with licensing issues in Kentucky prior to the Woodford Reserve. He also objected to the method used to draw blood from Little Mike for the out-of-competition testing at Churchill Downs prior to the race. As a result, Vaccarezza decided to ship Little Mike home and await the Flying Pidgeon, a race he intends to use as a prep for his first major goal this season, the Grade 1 Manhattan at Belmont Park on June 7.

“I’m 100 percent on board with out-of-competition testing,” said Vaccarezza, who was granted his owner’s license by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission shortly after he decided to ship Little Mike back to Florida. “I wasn’t against the blood draw or afraid of him being tested. I was upset about the way it was done. The results of his test came back negative. But I just felt everything being considered, it was best to get him out of there and wait for the race here Saturday instead.”

Little Mike has not started since finishing ninth, beaten four lengths, in the Grade 1 Hong Kong Cup on Dec. 8. He had finished seventh in defense of his title in the Breeders’ Cup Turf five weeks earlier at Santa Anita. Little Mike is a four-time Grade 1 winner with earnings of almost $3.5 million. He won once in seven starts last season when with Romans, defeating Big Blue Kitten by a nose in the Grade 1 Turf Classic Invitational at Belmont Park.

“Maybe this whole thing worked out for the best,” Vaccarezza said. “This way, he won’t have to go all out against a horse like Wise Dan – as we would have in the Woodford Reserve – in his first start back. He’s training great, he’s fit enough to win, and I don’t see any other Grade 1 winners in this field. This horse is a warrior, and he loves the turf here, so it looks like a real nice spot to get him started.”

Elvis Trujillo will be aboard Little Mike in the Flying Pidgeon, although Vaccarezza said regular rider Mike Smith will be aboard in New York for the Manhattan.

The versatile Grand Tito prompted the pace before holding on gamely for a three-quarter-length victory over Midnight Cello in the Miami Mile at Calder on April 19, a race moved from the turf to a “good” main track due to rain. A three-time winner on grass, Grand Tito finished third, beaten a neck by Amen Kitten, in the Grade 3 Tropical Turf Handicap last fall at Calder.

Other key contenders in the Flying Pidgeon include recent allowance winners Hakama and Dashing David, along with Argentine Tango, who has been working spectacularly over the main track at Gulfstream in preparation for his first start in almost a year.

The remainder of the field consists of Padilla, Balino, Rerun, Dangerous Lady, and Mellow Fellow. Casaba, Kings Over, Bingo Bango Bongo, and Symphony Forty One are on the also-eligible list.