Olympiad goes for the gold when he faces Life Is Good, Hot Rod Charlie in Whitney
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Olympiad has steadily risen through the ranks of the older male dirt division, and Saturday has a chance to climb atop the podium when he takes on Life Is Good, Hot Rod Charlie, and three others in the Grade 1, $1 million Whitney Stakes at Saratoga.
Olympiad, trained by Bill Mott, is 5 for 5 this year with victories in three Grade 2 stakes and one Grade 3. Most recently, he won the Stephen Foster a month ago at Churchill Downs with a 111 Beyer Speed Figure. He has more than earned a shot at taking on Life Is Good, and Mott is eager for the opportunity.
“All the owners, the partners that are in on him are anxious to run and see what happens, and I’m along with them,” said Mott, still seeking his first Whitney victory.
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Olympiad, a son of Speightstown owned by a partnership that includes Grandview Equine, LNJ Foxwoods, and Cheyenne Stable, has won all five of his starts from a stalking second position. He figures to get a similar trip with Life Is Good and perhaps Hot Rod Charlie in front of him early in the 1 1/8-mile race.
“I think he’s shown a lot of grit,” Mott said. “He’s shown good natural speed, maybe not as much early speed as Life Is Good has, but he’s got enough speed to stay in the race. Every two-turn race, he’s always been forwardly placed. He puts himself in position to win.”
Junior Alvarado rides Olympiad from post 4.
Life Is Good along with the Southern California-based Flightline are arguably the two most exciting horses in training. Life Is Good, a son of Into Mischief owned by WinStar Farm and China Horse Club, is 7 for 9 with victories this year in the Grade 1 Pegasus Invitational at Gulfstream Park and the Grade 2 John Nerud at Belmont Park. In between, Life Is Good finished fourth in the Dubai World Cup, a 1 1/4-mile race over what his trainer, Todd Pletcher, described as an extremely deep track.
When he faced the speedy Knicks Go – last year’s Whitney winner and Horse of the Year – in the Pegasus, Life Is Good opened up two lengths in the blink of an eye.
“He has a high cruising speed and the ability to keep going,” said Pletcher, a three-time Whitney winner. “To me, he’s one of those rare horses that you could point to three different races on the Breeders’ Cup card” – the Sprint, Dirt Mile and Classic – “and he’d likely be the horse to beat in any of the three.”
When it was suggested to Pletcher that Hot Rod Charlie might try to run with or outrun Life Is Good early, Pletcher shrugged.
“I think that would be a dangerous strategy for someone to try and go with him,” Pletcher said.
Irad Ortiz Jr. rides Life Is Good from post 6.
Pletcher has also entered Americanrevolution and Happy Saver in the Whitney. Americanrevolution, a Grade 1 winner who finished second to Olympiad in the Stephen Foster, might not run. His connections want to evaluate the race before deciding whether to run in here or await the Jockey Club Gold Cup on Sept. 3.
Happy Saver, second to Flightline in the Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap, is back to two turns and 1 1/8 miles, a race configurations at which he’s run well. As a 3-year-old, he won the Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup when it was run at Belmont.
Both Americanrevolution and Happy Saver would likely need the pace to collapse to have their best chance.
Hot Rod Charlie finished second in the Dubai World Cup, a half-length in front of Life Is Good. Hot Rod Charlie came from fifth in the World Cup, taking a ton of kickback early.
His connections are hinting at being more forward in the Whitney. They are adding blinkers to his equipment, and on Thursday he blew out a quarter-mile in 26.81 seconds through the lane of the Oklahoma training track.
Leandro Mora, assistant to trainer Doug O’Neill, called that “his normal training.” When the exercise rider turned him around, Hot Rod Charlie swiftly jogged off the track.
“Good sign,” Mora said.
Part-owner Bill Strauss has suggested that Flavien Prat “would send a little bit” on Hot Rod Charlie from post 2.
“You don’t want to see Life Is Good get a nice, easy half or three-quarters,” he said.
In last year’s Belmont Stakes, Hot Rod Charlie was part of a fast early pace and did well to finish second behind Essential Quality.
Zoomer, most recently claimed for $50,000 by Mark Casse for Gary Barber, completes the field. Zoomer won that $50,000 claimer by seven lengths, earning a 97 Beyer Speed Figure, though this would seem to be an ambitious placement.
Joel Rosario rides Zoomer from post 3.
The Whitney is the centerpiece of a blockbuster 12-race card (12:35 p.m. first post) that includes the Grade 1 Test for 3-year-old fillies, the Grade 1 Saratoga Derby for 3-year-old turf horses, the Grade 2 Glens Falls for female marathon turf horses, and the restricted Lure Stakes for middle-distance turfers.
The Whitney, which offers a fees-paid berth into the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 5 at Keeneland. and the Test will be broadcast live during a one-hour broadcast on NBC from 5-6 p.m. Eastern.
The weather forecast calls for temperatures in the high 80s with a 30 percent chance of afternoon thunderstorms.