Magnitude in fine shape after Risen Star shocker

Not only did Magnitude run fast, but he recovered fast as well.

Magnitude, performing more like a 4-5 shot than the 43-1 chance that he was, blitzed the Risen Star Stakes early Saturday evening at Fair Grounds, scoring a front-running, 9 3/4-length victory while clocking 1:48.85. It was the fastest among seven Risen Stars since the race was extended from 1 1/16 miles to 1 1/8 miles in 2020, when the race attracted so many entries it was split into two divisions.

The Fair Grounds surface played quick Saturday, but not quick enough to tamp down Magnitude’s Beyer Speed Figure, which came back at 108, the highest figure among this crop of 3-year-olds.

Magnitude was making his third start of the Fair Grounds meeting and seventh of his career, a strong foundation that could minimize the effect of running so fast.

“He’s got all that work in him, and he’s put in the work for a long time,” trainer Steve Asmussen said Sunday morning. “He cleaned up [his feed] last night and looks good today.”

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All being well, Magnitude will run back March 22 in the Louisiana Derby. The 50 Kentucky Derby qualifying points he earned winning the Risen Star will get him into the 20-runner Derby field. Winchell Thoroughbreds, Magnitude’s owner, and Asmussen won the 2022 Risen Star with Epicenter, who narrowly missed capturing the Kentucky Derby.

None of Asmussen's first seven starters came close to hitting the board at Fair Grounds on Saturday. Finally, in the ninth race, the Asmussen-trained Yinzer made a beeline for the early lead, set a strong pace, and won by two lengths in a maiden route. Yinzer earned an 85 Beyer and could well be stakes-bound now, but the way that race unfolded convinced Asmussen that a horse had to be near the pace and, preferably, on the rail to capitalize on track conditions Saturday.

He communicated this to Ben Curtis, who rode Magnitude for the first time and broke from post 12.

“I really felt there was a bias, and I’m feeling the [rail] is where to be," Asmussen said. "I told Ben, ‘There are two ways to get over, front or back, but you can’t be wide."

Curtis heeded those words. Magnitude broke sharply, Curtis urged him forward, and when the field passed the finish line for the first time, Magnitude already had a clear lead while racing along the rail.

Magnitude came into the Risen Star with two wins from six starts and had not come close to seriously contending in three stakes tries. That frustrated the barn, which held this colt in high regard last year.

“He always trained like he was brilliant. This is what it looks like when you’re working him. We now know what he’s capable of under the right circumstances,” Asmussen said.

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