Now permitted to run, Englehart brings back Cut the Cord
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OZONE PARK, N.Y. – After being forced to miss more than two weeks’ worth of runners on this circuit due to his barn being quarantined, trainer Jeremiah Englehart is back in action at Aqueduct for the final eight cards of the Belmont at the Big A meet.
Englehart had two runners entered on Thursday and on Friday has Cut the Cord in a second-level/optional $45,000 claiming event scheduled for 1 1/8 miles on the dirt.
Cut the Cord, away from the races since February, has won two of his last three starts in this condition, the last win being at this distance in August at Saratoga. Two starts before that, Cut the Cord won a one-mile race in this same condition at Aqueduct when offered for the $45,000 tag. The 6-year-old gelding is in for the claiming price again on Friday.
Cut the Cord has started twice this year. In January, he came off a five-month layoff to finish second in a first-level allowance. He then was third in an open optional claimer going 1 1/4 miles on Feb. 28.
Englehart said he had a race picked out for Cut the Cord during Belmont Stakes week, but was not permitted to run when his barn was placed under quarantine due to a case of strangles found in one of his 2-year-olds. Englehart said that horse, Tranquil Sea, is doing better and pending a re-test for strangles at the end of the month could return to his stable sometime this summer.
“I missed a few races I would have liked to have had during Belmont week but all the horses ended up being healthy that’s the main thing,” Englehart said.
Coincidentally, a new case of strangles was detected in a horse based at Belmont Park, which forced the quarantine of Barn 28 at the Elmont track. The majority of the horses in that barn are trained by George Weaver.
As far as Cut the Cord goes, Friday’s race looks like a better spot for the 6-year-old New York-bred gelding than the one Englehart had looked at for him at Saratoga.
“Distance-wise I think he should be fine,” Englehart said. “I thought it was a pretty competitive, well-balanced field. He’s an older horse, he maintains his fitness pretty well. We were able to put some good works into him coming into the race.”
Cut the Cord breaks from the rail under Jose Lezcano and will likely be stalking My Last Mission, who breaks from the outside post under Ruben Silvera.
Though My Last Mission is based at Parx, a track that is not accepting horses from Belmont Park, trainer Jamie Ness said he plans to run anyway and will leave that horse in New York until the quarantine period ends, presumably June 28.
My Last Mission won this condition going a mile in April when offered for the tag and was third in May. This will be his first try at 1 1/8 miles.
Palace Boss, a 4-year-old son of Laoban trained by Horacio De Paz, has won two straight including a statebred first-level allowance going this distance by 5 1/2 lengths against a pretty weak field on May 24.
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