Proxy tries to punch ticket to BC Classic in Jockey Club Gold Cup

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – With Cody’s Wish having proven he’s better shorter than longer, Godolphin’s primary U.S.-based candidate for the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic is Proxy, who will look to solidify his credentials for that Nov. 4 race in Saturday’s Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup at Saratoga.

Proxy, a son of Tapit, has had a mixed bag of results this year but shows three good races to two bad ones. In March, he came within a neck of Stilleto Boy in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap at Santa Anita, where this year’s Breeders’ Cup will be held. He followed that with a narrow victory in the Oaklawn Handicap, where Stilleto Boy finished third.

After a last-place finish in the Grade 1 Stephen Foster at Ellis Park, Proxy won the Grade 3 Monmouth Cup on July 22 with an unusual front-running trip under Joel Rosario, who will be aboard again Saturday.

“There wasn’t a lot of speed in the race, we talked about it going into it that we didn’t want to take a shot of getting shuffled back,” trainer Michael Stidham said. “He was going to break and be forward. Never did I imagine him being on the lead.”

Stidham said that in the Foster, which was moved from Churchill Downs to Ellis Park, little went right.

:: DRF's 2023 Saratoga headquarters: Previews, past performances, picks, recaps, news, and more.

“It was a speed-favoring track, he got shuffled back and lost all chance,” Stidham said.

Coming out of the Monmouth Cup, Proxy has worked four times over the dirt surface at Fair Hill, with the latter two being bullet moves.

“He can be a little lazy in the mornings, his last couple of works have been above average,” Stidham said. “He’s coming into the race really well.”

Proxy figures to vie for favoritism in the Jockey Club Gold Cup with Rattle N Roll, who finished second in the Stephen Foster following Grade 3 stakes wins in the Ben Ali at Keeneland, Pimlico Special, and Blame at Churchill.

Others entered in the race include Bright Future, Clapton, Duke of Love, Tyson, Unbridled Bomber, and Warrior Johny.

The Jockey Club Gold Cup offers a fees-paid berth into the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.