Travers result keeps 3-year-old picture in tight focus

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – It was somewhat fitting that after the dust settled from the celebration of Code of Honor’s victory in Saturday’s Grade 1, $1.25 million Runhappy Travers Stakes, Jason Servis was standing in the winner’s circle at Saratoga.

Servis, who won the race after the Travers with the New York-bred Dowse’s Beach, is the trainer of Maximum Security, who despite not running in the Travers had his credentials for a possible 3-year-old championship bolstered by the results of the race.

Maximum Security beat Code of Honor in the Grade 1 Florida Derby and finished ahead of him in the Kentucky Derby before he was disqualified from first and placed 17th for interfering with other horses at the top of the stretch. Maximum Security also beat Travers third-place finisher Mucho Gusto in the Grade 1 Haskell last month at Monmouth Park.

Thus, Maximum Security still remains at the head of the 3-year-old division heading into the fall. Servis kept him out of the Travers because he didn’t feel Maximum Security had fully recovered from his Haskell victory on July 20. He is in training at Monmouth Park and is targeting the Grade 1, $1 million Pennsylvania Derby at Parx on Sept. 21.

“I wasn’t really thinking too much about if it flattered my horse or not,” Servis said of the Travers result. “I’m going to have a fresh horse even if [Code of Honor] goes to Parx. I’m going to have some spacing now, so I would think my horse would run his race.”

Code of Honor ran his best race in the Travers, displaying a strong late kick under John Velazquez to win by three lengths over favored Tacitus. The victory gave McGaughey his fourth Travers, equaling the number of wins by Elliott Burch, and one behind the record holder Winbert F. “Bert” Mulholland.

Code of Honor added the Travers to wins earlier in the year in the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth at Gulfstream Park and Grade 3 Dwyer at Belmont.

Code of Honor came out of his Travers victory in good shape, McGaughey said Sunday morning. He is more likely to run back in the Grade 1, $750,000 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park on Sept. 28, a 1 1/4 mile race where he’ll face older horses, than he is the Pennsylvania Derby.

“It’s a good race, a mile and a quarter at Belmont, he’s done well there,” said McGaughey, who plans to ship Code of Honor to Belmont next weekend. “That would be the biggest part of the decision.”

While Maximum Security could use the Pennsylvania Derby as a springboard to the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 2 at Santa Anita, Code of Honor is far from a certainty to run in the Breeders’ Cup. Following the Travers victory, William Farish, owner of Code of Honor, didn’t give an endorsement to shipping cross country.

“We’ll leave all those options open, but I’m an East Coast guy, a Southwest guy, I’m not too crazy about California,” Farish said. “They’re having enough trouble out there as it is. We have a wonderful horse that we can probably run for a couple of years and I’ll be very careful about that one.”

Farish of course was referring to the 30 equine fatalities at Santa Anita during the winter/spring meet. While McGaughey did not rule out the Breeders’ Cup, he said the problems Santa Anita had during its last meet “will have nothing to do with my decision,” McGaughey said. “I think they’re on top of that.”

Trainer Bill Mott said that Tacitus, the Travers runner-up, came out of his race fine. Equipped with blinkers for the first time, Tacitus was part of the early pace, but couldn’t sustain his run, while finishing a half-length in front of Mucho Gusto.

Mott eliminated the Pennsylvania Derby from consideration owing to uncertainty how his horse would handle that surface. While Mott said he hasn’t talked to the management team at Juddmonte Farms, which owns Tacitus, he mentioned the Jockey Club Gold Cup as a race he would give “a lot of consideration” to run Tacitus in next.

Mucho Gusto, third in the Travers, was scheduled to return to California on Monday. Trainer Bob Baffert said he would consider shipping back east for the Pennsylvania Derby.

“A mile and an eighth is a better distance,” Baffert said.

On Sunday, Preakness winner War of Will worked a strong half-mile in 47.09 seconds over Saratoga’s main track, galloping out five furlongs in 1:00.09 and six furlongs in 1:13.56. Tyler Gaffalione was aboard for the work. War of Will is pointing to the Pennsylvania Derby.

Trainer Mark Casse said he made an equipment change on War of Will, using a rubber figure-eight bridle.

“He gets his mouth wide open and we wanted to close his mouth,” Casse said. “Tyler was very happy with him. He said he held his head differently, he said he really liked the new equipment. When I told him what he went in he said ‘There’s no way.’”

Sir Winston, the Belmont Stakes winner, was scheduled to start back under tack on Monday, Casse said. Sir Winston has been swimming at Casse's farm in Ocala, Fla., and will likely ship to Belmont in mid-October. He could have one race late this year while targeting the Pegasus in January at Gulfstream and new the $20 million Saudi Cup on Feb. 29, 2020, Casse said.

Casse believes the 3-year-old championship remains wide open.

“If they voted today, Maximum Security would win, but they don’t vote today,” Casse said.

Omaha Beach, the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby winner who scratched from the Kentucky Derby due to a throat problem, is targeting the Ack Ack Stakes at Churchill Downs on Sept. 28, owner Rick Porter said. A good performance there could earn him a shot at the Breeders’ Cup Classic, Porter said.