Roy H dominates Palos Verdes Stakes
ARCADIA, Calif. – Roy H wears his crown well. The king of the sprint division in 2017 picked up right where he left off in his 2018 debut Saturday at Santa Anita, cruising to an easy victory over three overmatched rivals in the Grade 2, $196,000 Palos Verdes Stakes.
Roy H has faced tougher tasks in the past, and he’ll have tougher tasks in the future, but this was an ideal way to kick off the year in his first start since winning the Breeders’ Cup Sprint and subsequently being named the Eclipse Award-winning male sprinter.
The margin of victory was 3 1/2 lengths, but it could have been at least twice that, as jockey Kent Desormeaux looked like he was putting Roy H through an effortless morning workout. Desormeaux deftly allowed Roy H to settle from his rail draw and let the other three tear off, angled him comfortably to the outside midway down the backstretch, then let Roy H easily motor past his rivals.
“Great ride. Just what I wanted him to do,” said Peter Miller, who trains Roy H for the partnership of Gary Hartunian’s Rockingham Ranch and David Bernsen. “We thought about taking it to them, felt he was the best horse, but decided it’s his first start of the year, and we didn’t want to change his style. A $200,000 is a big race, but it’s not the biggest he’ll run in this year. He’s got a winning style. Why change it?”
Miller said Roy H likely would make his next start in five weeks in the Grade 1 Triple Bend at Santa Anita, then head off to Dubai for the Golden Shaheen on March 31.
The victory was his sixth in his last seven starts, that streak broken only because he was interfered with by the loose Drefong when finishing second to Ransom the Moon in the Grade 1 Bing Crosby at Del Mar last summer.
“I don’t think I’ve ever had a horse who’s run like that in seven top races in a row,” Miller said.
Roy H ($2.40), the heavy favorite, completed six furlongs on the fast main track in 1:09.68 and earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 105. Americanize was second, 1 1/4 lengths in front of Red Lightning. Mongolian Saturday finished last in the field of four. Bobby Abu Dhabi, also trained by Miller and owned by Hartunian, was scratched Saturday morning, resulting in a four-horse field.
Roy H, 6, has won seven times in 18 starts, but his career trajectory changed markedly after he was gelded in July 2016. He was 1 for 10 before then. He’s 6 for 8 since.
The $120,000 winner’s share increased his career bankroll to $1,479,765.
