Next takes them all the way in Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance Stakes
LEXINGTON, KY. - It took a relatively short time for trainer William Cowans’s decision to turn Next into a long-distance specialist to reap big rewards. Next left little doubt the farther the better for him after drawing off to an 6 ¼-length victory over Heywoods Beach and eight other overmatched rivals in Friday’s $350,000 Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance Stakes at Keeneland.
Cowans said he earmarked the one-mile and five-furlong TAA Stakes, formerly known as the Breeders’ Cup Marathon, for Next shortly after the 4-year-old son of Not This Time registered an 18 ¼-length triumph going a mile and one-half in the Cape Henlopen Stakes at Delaware Park on Sept. 8. That race was decided over a wet-fast main track after originally being carded for the turf.
As expected, Next quickly sprinted clear under jockey Luan Machado in the TAA Stakes and was allowed to set reasonable fractions over the fast track. He went in 1:14.31 for the opening six furlongs and 1:39.54 for a mile with Bal Harbour and Heywoods Beach in closest attendance. Next readily disposed of his early challengers when roused upon settling into the stretch, steadily increasing his advantage while kept under a drive to the end.
Heywoods Beach raced well placed while saving ground and edged clear of a tiring Bal Harbour to be second. Rattle N Roll was last during the early stages, offered a mild bid to reach closer contention on the final turn, but could not sustain the bid, finishing a distant fourth as the 9-5 favorite.
Next completed the distance in 2:42.59 and paid $12.50.
“I’ve been doing this 28 years and there is no feeling better than this,” said Cowans, who haltered Next for $62,500 for owner Michael Foster here in April. “It’s what you dream of, winning a big race on a big day like this,”
Cowans said the decision to try Next at a mile and one-half or longer had been thought out for a long time. Next had run primarily at distances of a mile or less earlier in his career.
“Shortly after claiming the horse, we could see he had an uncanny way of galloping out just effortlessly all the time after his breezes,” Cowans explained. “So I told the guys let’s try him at a mile and one-half. You never know if it will work, but it’s worked like a charm. The strategy today was to take it to them, slow it down as best we could and try to carry them all the way. And it worked out perfectly. ”
Cowans said he plans to give Next some time off following his big effort in the TAA Stakes.
“Races like these aren’t the easiest to find,” he said. “He could come back at Oaklawn Park in the Temperance Hill.”
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