Our Bucky Charm ends layoff with third career start
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Inexperienced 6-year-olds are a rarity in American racing. By that age, many are well into their career or off the track.
Our Bucky Charm, who starts in an allowance race for California-breds at Santa Anita on Saturday, is an exception. A winner of his first two starts, Our Bucky Charm returns from a layoff of nearly eight months in the day’s sixth race for his third race.
“He’s a talented horse,” trainer Mike Puype said on Thursday. “He’s had minor issues that kept him from getting to the races.”
Puype said that Our Bucky Charm was sidelined earlier in his career with a shoulder problem, and that the gelding has had foot issues, a source of delays.
“His feet have been the biggest problem,” Puype said. “He doesn’t grow a lot of foot.”
Owned by Slugo Racing and Paymaster Racing, Our Bucky Charm, who is by Munnings, won a maiden race against California-breds at 5 1/2 furlongs on dirt in his debut last April. A month later, he won an allowance race for statebreds on the hillside turf course in what turned out to be his final start of 2024.
“He’s a runner,” Puype said. “He switched surfaces and he showed he doesn’t need a surface to run. The Munnings are like that. They have versatility.”
For his comeback, Our Bucky Charm has had 12 consecutive workouts on the synthetic infield training track at Santa Anita since late October. He has not worked on dirt since last July prior to a brief rest in late summer.
Our Bucky Charm has repeatedly produced quick workout times, which Puype said can be deceptive.
“It’s something I’ve never tried before, using the training track all the way to the races,” Puype said. “They all breeze faster and better than the main track. They’re two different tracks.”
Puype said he “could have” worked Our Bucky Charm in the buildup to Saturday’s race, but opted not to.
“I had him going well,” he said.
In Saturday’s race, Our Bucky Charm will be ridden by Juan Hernandez, who through Sunday led all riders at the winter-spring meeting with 12 wins.
Our Bucky Charm is part of a field of eight. The race was scheduled for Jan. 11, but that program was canceled because of the effects of wildfires in the Los Angeles area. On Jan. 11, the allowance race had 11 runners, but four runners from that field were not entered again for Saturday’s running. The race did gain the longshot Mr. Disrespectful.
Aside from Our Bucky Charm, the race is led by Lonesome Stew, a 5-year-old gelding trained by Mark Glatt who was unbeaten in two starts last year – starter allowance races at the autumn meeting at Del Mar.
“He’s got to go through Glatt’s horse,” Puype said of Our Bucky Charm. “Glatt’s horse has good form.”
If Our Bucky Charm can stay healthy, Puype plans a series of starts in allowance races to take advantage of expanded opportunities for California-breds in such races.
Puype had no interest in testing Our Bucky Charm in the $125,000 California Cup Sprint on Saturday, which is led by Big City Lights.
“Did I want to go against Big City Lights? No chance,” he said.
“There’s no reason to get near stakes. We’ll keep the allowance thing going. We’ll worry about Saturday and move on from there.”
Puype has three runners on Saturday’s 11-race program, including Fix It Quick in a maiden race at six furlongs on turf, and Takes Three in the $175,000 California Cup Classic at 1 1/8 miles on turf.
Fix It Quick, a 3-year-old colt by Flatter, was purchased for $200,000 at the 2023 Fasig-Tipton California Yearling Sale, the third most expensive hip of the auction. Fix It Quick finished a well-beaten fourth in his debut in a maiden race at five furlongs on turf at Del Mar in November.
“He was running at the end,” Puype said. “He may need more distance than I’m giving him.”
Takes Three has won his last two starts in one-mile allowance races for California-breds on turf at Del Mar and at Los Alamitos on dirt last month. The California Cup Classic will be Takes Three’s first start in a stakes since he finished sixth by 1 1/2 lengths at 23-1 in the Snow Chief Stakes for statebred 3-year-olds at 1 1/8 miles on turf at Santa Anita last May.
“He has to run with older horses,” Puype said of Saturday’s race. “I think he’ll adore a mile and an eighth.”
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