Structor confirms turf ability with Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf win, and now will take talents to dirt

ARCADIA, Calif. – Structor came out of his Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf win on Friday in good physical condition and will ship from California to Florida to begin gearing up for a 3-year-old campaign expected to include a move from turf to dirt.

Structor scored a three-quarter-length victory over longshot Billy Batts, ran one mile on firm turf in 1:35.21, and got a 79 Beyer Speed Figure. In the last five renewals of the Juvenile Turf, Line of Duty got an 83 Beyer last year at Churchill, Mendelssohn an 86 in 2017 at Del Mar, Oscar Performance a 93 in 2016 at Santa Anita, Hit It a Bomb an 87 in 2015 at Keeneland, and Hootenanny an 81 in 2014 at Santa Anita.

Structor is from the first crop of foals sired by Palace Malice, a multiple Grade 1 winner on dirt who never tried turf. Structor’s female family also has plenty of dirt influences, and trainer Chad Brown says Structor trains encouragingly enough on dirt to get a look on that surface, though his 3-for-3 2-year-old campaign includes only grass starts. Structor is headed to Brown’s main winter base at the Palm Meadows training center next week, and though Brown said there’s no specific target race for Structor, the colt’s connections will test him on dirt early in 2020.

Billy Batts, 55-1 in the win pool, also exited the Juvenile Turf in good shape, trainer Peter Miller said, and will be aimed at the $100,000 Cecil B. DeMille Stakes over one mile on turf Dec. 1 at Del Mar. Miller removed the blinkers in which Billy Batts had been racing for Friday’s start, and said his horse relaxed better.

“I definitely felt like we could hit the board,” Miller said. “I just felt like he was coming up to a big race, that he was a better horse than what he’d shown.”

Gear Jockey remains a maiden after four starts, but added a second third-place graded-stakes finish to the Bourbon Stakes last month at Keeneland. Trainer Rusty Arnold said Gear Jockey appeared to have come out Friday’s start in good condition and would ship back to Kentucky next week. In his only main-track start, Gear Jockey finished eighth sprinting at Saratoga making his career debut, but Arnold said that showing didn’t reflect Gear Jockey’s dirt potential.

“The sprint at Saratoga just didn’t go well, but I think there’s every chance we’ll try him on dirt again early next year,” said Arnold, who trains Gear Jockey for Calumet Farm.

Gear Jockey is by Twirling Candy out of Switching Gears, by Tapit.

The fourth- and fifth-place Juvenile Turf finishers, second-choice Decorated Invader and favored Arizona, were the race’s tough-luck stories (Deviant was badly impeded in upper stretch, crossing the finish last, but was racing near the back of the field at the time). Both sat and suffered at the tail end of the field with no room to get into any kind of position down the backstretch to attack a pace that slowed considerably after the first quarter-mile. Irad Ortiz on Decorated Invader eventually gave in and went very wide on the far turn, and Decorated Invader closed fast for fourth. Ryan Moore aboard Arizona opted to stay closer to the rail, likely his best option at the time, and Arizona finished fastest through the final furlong and a half once he finally found room on the outside.