Mt Veeder has speed to lead Contender
LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. – The inaugural Contender Stakes on Sunday at Los Alamitos would have been perfect for Mt Veeder if the conditions of the race had been left alone.
The Contender originally was a one-mile stakes with a $100,000 purse.
Mt Veeder “looks like he’s made for two turns,” trainer Bob Baffert said. “I think he’s going to be better going two turns on the lead.”
Two turns will have to wait. After concerns from Del Mar and Santa Anita that a non-graded route stakes somehow would interfere with the Grade 1, seven-furlong Del Mar Futurity on Sept. 7 and the Grade 1, 1 1/16-mile FrontRunner on Sept. 26 at Santa Anita, the Contender was shortened and its purse trimmed.
The race is now six furlongs, its purse is $75,000, but Mt Veeder is still the one to catch. A colt by Ghostzapper, he scored a sharp debut win Aug. 15 at Del Mar and enters as the speed of the field.
His rivals include Bully Pulpit, a cantankerous gelding claimed for $50,000 from his second win Aug. 26. The others are the improving maiden Bistraya, Panther Creek, Paynes Prairie, and Phantom Heat.
Bully Pulpit is the main threat. He was claimed by Craig Lewis last out, a race he won by 1 1/2 lengths. Lewis claimed him from Steve Miyadi despite stories that the gelding was one tough customer. The stories were true.
“He’s a big, tough horse,” Lewis said. “He’s very aggressive, very tough. He’s a bully. They named him right.”
KEY CONTENDERS
Mt Veeder
(Beyer: 73)
◗ Mt Veeder trained fast into his debut and ran accordingly. He pressed the pace and won by 2 1/4 lengths. The race lit a fire in him. Baffert said: “After the race, he got a little wound up, so we gave him extra time. Now, he’s relaxed.”
◗ Baffert entered Mt Veeder in the Del Mar Futurity, run last Monday, but scratched him. “I just didn’t think he was up for that level of competition yet,” Baffert said.
◗ Martin Garcia rides Mt Veeder, owned by Stonestreet Stables and George Bolton.
Bully Pulpit
(Last 3 Beyers: 73-61-46)
◗ Bully Pulpit was claimed by Lewis and Six-S Racing Stable based on an upward pattern in his first three starts, including a gritty maiden win.
“His previous three races were all good races, and the day he broke his maiden he showed a lot of tenacity,” Lewis said.
◗ Bully Pulpit won the race from which he was claimed, and Lewis soon discovered that the stories about his bad behavior were accurate.
“He likes to do things the way he likes to do things,” Lewis said. “My only issue is what it’s going to be like shipping over, into unfamiliar surroundings.”
◗ Tiago Pereira retains the mount.
Bistraya
(Beyers: 65-33)
◗ Ricky Agarie trains Bistraya, who enters with an odd pattern. He is a two-start maiden dropping in class into a stakes race. That is a rarity.
Bistraya finished fifth in his debut against maidens and then jumped into the Grade 2 Best Pal. He ran well, dueling for the lead and tiring to fourth. On Sunday, he drops into a non-graded stakes with enough speed to keep the favorite in his sights.
◗ Santiago Gonzalez will ride.