Oaks winner Abel Tasman cuts back to mile for Acorn

ELMONT, N.Y. – Abel Tasman will attempt to prove that her last-to-first victory in the Kentucky Oaks was no fluke when she ventures out of Southern California for a second time to take on seven rivals in Saturday’s Grade 1, $700,000 Acorn at Belmont Park.

Abel Tasman, wearing blinkers for the first time in the Oaks, overcame post 13 and a little early trouble to sweep by the field with a quick move around the second turn before holding safe Daddys Lil Darling to register a 1 1/4-length win under jockey Mike Smith. She benefitted from a hotly contested pace and perhaps a sloppy racetrack as well.

Abel Tasman will turn back from nine furlongs to a mile in the Acorn, but Bob Baffert, who trains the 3-year-old daughter of Quality Road for the partnership of the China Horse Club International and Clearsky Farms, does not foresee the shorter distance as an obstacle for his improving filly.

“She came out of the Oaks in great shape, is working well, and she deserves a chance in a race like the Acorn,” said Baffert. “And I haven’t seen anything that would suggest she won’t handle a mile.”

Baffert said he would have preferred Abel Tasman to have drawn farther outside for the Acorn. She will begin from post 3 with Smith aboard once again.

“She’s still a little green, and I was hoping she was drawn on the outside,” said Baffert. “When Mike had her on the inside on the first turn in the Oaks, she kind of bobbled a little bit. He said she might have stepped on a soft spot on the track. But as soon as he got her out, that’s when she started running.”

Baffert also said the addition of blinkers was a big help on Oaks Day.

“The blinkers keep her from looking around a lot, as she had a tendency to do in her previous races,” said Baffert.

Salty and Tequilita, fifth and seventh behind Abel Tasman in the Oaks, will get a second chance at the likely favorite in the Acorn. They’ll be joined in the starting gate by recent graded-stakes winners Sweet Loretta and Benner Island, along with Union Strike, Nikki My Darling, and Florida Fabulous.

Trainer Mark Casse is eager to take on Abel Tasman again with Salty, who had an eventful trip from post 14 under Joel Rosario in the Oaks before rallying belatedly to finish four lengths behind the winner. The lightly raced Salty captured the Grade 2 Gulfstream Park Oaks in her previous start.

“She didn’t have the greatest of posts in the Oaks, and we kind of decided to try to drop back to last and come with one big run,” said Casse. “But she broke running enough to get herself in trouble, get herself a little wide. Down the backside, Joel got down to the rail, then got shut off a couple of times. We think she’s a really good filly and certainly didn’t lose any respect for her off that performance.”

Sweet Loretta comes off far and away her best effort yet when launching her 3-year-old campaign with an impressive three-length victory going seven furlongs in the Grade 3 Beaumont at Keeneland. Sweet Loretta is already a Grade 1 winner, having dead-heated for first with Pretty City Dancer in the Spinaway last summer at Saratoga.

Benner Island overcame a bit of a tardy start from the rail and an extended pace duel to register a well-deserved head decision over Union Strike in the seven-furlong Eight Belles on the Kentucky Oaks undercard and is much improved since trainer Brad Cox first equipped her with blinkers earlier this season.

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Acorn, Race 4

KEY CONTENDERS

Abel Tasman, by Quality Road

Last 3 Beyers: 92-88-94

◗ She turned in a pair of swift works at Santa Anita, including a bullet six furlongs in 1:11 on May 28 in company with the veteran stakes winner Cat Burglar, in preparation for the Acorn.

Salty, by Quality Road

Last 3 Beyers: 85-88-90

◗ Casse said he loves that his filly will break from the outside in post 8 as well as the one-mile distance for Salty, whom he expects to settle back near the rear of the field and “hopefully mow down the leaders at the end.”