Pletcher holds all the cards in With Anticipation
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SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Trainer Todd Pletcher holds such a strong hand in Saturday’s Grade 3, $225,000 With Anticipation Stakes at Saratoga that he could scratch the morning-line favorite and still have the two top choices in the 1 1/16-mile turf stakes for 2-year-old males.
Pletcher has three of the five entrants in the With Anticipation, a race he has won seven times from the first 21 runnings. High Official, a son of Not This Time out of the multiple stakes-winning turf mare Sweet Melania, would likely go favored if he runs. However, Pletcher has entered him back in Sunday’s Grade 1 Hopeful on dirt and is strongly considering running him in that seven-furlong race.
“The horse has been training really well on the dirt,” Pletcher said. “It makes us think about it.”
High Official came from off the pace to win his debut by two lengths, a race from which the fourth-place finisher Kipros came back to win his next start. Flavien Prat is named to ride High Official.
If High Official scratches, favoritism could fall to either of the other two Pletcher trainees in the field, Liam’s Law or Bold Leadership.
Liam’s Law, a son of Colonel Liam, finished fourth in an off-the-turf sprint in his debut. Liam’s Law came back on July 12 to go gate to wire to win a 1 1/16-mile turf maiden. The runner-up, And the Runner Is, got beat a head in his next start. Bert’s Stitch, third in the July 12 race, came back to win a maiden race here on Wednesday.
Speaking about Liam’s Law’s maiden win, Pletcher said, “he had a start under his belt in an off-the-turf race, we figured that wasn’t going to be his specialty. We were hoping it would set us up for one here, which it turned out it did. The horse has been pretty solid for us, trained well.”
Liam’s Law could be the main speed under Ricardo Santana Jr.
A maiden has won the With Anticipation eight times, two of those wins came by Pletcher-trained runners. Bold Leadership was beaten a nose by Oscar here on Aug. 8, a race in which the winner rallied inside and Bold Leadership was four to five wide.
“The winner had a rail-saving trip all the way around there, we did not,” Pletcher said. “If he had won by a nose, we’d be running in here,” Pletcher said.
Manny Franco has the call on Bold Leadership.
Howard’s Hope, a New York-bred son of Karakontie, rallied from well off the pace to win a statebred maiden on Aug. 6 by one length. Trainer Horacio De Paz said there wasn’t another great option for Howard’s Hope and when told the race was coming up light, he spoke with owner Barry Schwartz who green-lighted the idea of running.
“We don’t know what we beat first time, but he did it well,” De Paz said. “Obviously, there’s no pace in the race and he closed into a slow pace and he really enjoyed what he’s doing out there so Barry said why not take a shot.”
Perfect Dream, a second-out winner at Monmouth Park, is cross-entered in Monday’s Kitten’s Joy Stakes at Colonial Downs, but will run here, trainer Jorge Delgado said.
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