Shared Belief faces older rivals in sophomore debut

Undefeated Eclipse Award winner Shared Belief makes his 3-year-old debut Monday at Golden Gate Fields against a tough group of older runners in a six-furlong sprint.

Shared Belief won his debut at Golden Gate Fields by seven lengths last fall and was privately purchased after the race by Jim Rome’s Jungle Racing, Alex Solis II, KMN Racing, Jason Litt, George Todaro, and trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. He won his three starts last year by a combined 20 1/2 lengths, including easy scores in the Grade 3 Hollywood Prevue and the Grade 1 CashCall Futurity, and earned the Eclipse Award as the nation’s top 2-year-old male of 2013.

Nominated to the Triple Crown and considered a leading Kentucky Derby contender, Shared Belief went to the sidelines with a foot problem that prevented him from working from Jan. 3 to April 15.

He’s worked steadily since, and Hollendorfer decided to use Monday’s $35,000 open allowance race against older horses for his comeback. Shared Belief has had seven works, including a five-furlong, 1:00.80 bullet from the gate May 9 followed by a 1:00.40 bullet May 15. He finished preparations with a 1:14.80, six-furlong drill Wednesday.

“We need to do something now if he is to be effective later in the summer,” Hollendorfer said by phone from Santa Anita.

Hollendorfer said there was a nonwinners-of-three race in the condition book at Santa Anita that he considered. He opted to run at Golden Gate Fields because the Candy Ride gelding has been working here and seems to like the track’s Tapeta surface more than the dirt track at Santa Anita.

“I didn’t want to ship,” Hollendorfer said. “We want to see if he shows the same run.”

Shared Belief showed improvement in each race as he stretched out last year. While he likely will meet stronger fields in future races, Hollendorfer calls the comeback spot a “good challenge.”

Shared Belief, to be ridden by Russell Baze, will face the stakes winner Ourwestcoastghost, who has won two of his past three starts; multiple stakes-placed stablemate Moonshine Bay; multiple stakes-placed Valiant Flame; and Zehner’s Zenna, who has earned $213,576 sprinting.

“I don’t think this is any easier or harder than anything else we would have tried,” Hollendorfer said. “All the ones in there can run, and Golden Gate horses don’t get enough credit for how good they are.”