With Volatile out of race, Terranova has two entered in Vosburgh

ELMONT, N.Y. – As expected, Saturday’s Grade 2, $150,000 Vosburgh Stakes took on a dramatically different look following the announcement Monday that Volatile, the premier sprinter in the country, was retired due to a hairline fracture of his right front cannon bone.

Instead of a four-horse field topped by the heavily favored Volatile, the Vosburgh drew six entries, including Funny Guy and Stan the Man from the barn of John Terranova and supplemental entries Engage (Steve Asmussen) and True Timber (Jack Sisterson). Firenze Fire and Share the Ride – both expected to run even if Volatile was in the race – were entered as well.

Prior to Volatile’s defection, Terranova was leaning toward running Funny Guy in the Grade 2, $150,000 Kelso Handicap going a mile on Oct. 3 at Belmont and perhaps sending Stan the Man to Laurel for next week’s Grade 3, $200,000 Frank De Francis Memorial Dash at Pimlico.

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Shortly after making his entries Wednesday, Terranova said he still isn’t sure if he’ll run both in the Vosburgh.

“Both of them are funny because they’re versatile types,” Terranova said. “They’ve been successful long, successful short. This just seems like a great spot.”

The Vosburgh is run at six furlongs and offers a fees-paid berth into the Breeders’ Cup Sprint on Nov. 7 at Keeneland.

Funny Guy, a New York-bred son of Big Brown, has never run six furlongs. In three starts this year, he won the Commentator going a mile on June 12 and the John Morrissey going seven furlongs on July 30 at Saratoga. Both of those races were against New York-breds. He was sent off the 3-1 favorite in the Grade 1 Forego at Saratoga and finished fourth behind Win Win Win in a race run over a sloppy track and in a driving rainstorm.

Funny Guy got caught down inside where “it was like running in a river,” Terranova said, adding that jockey Joel Rosario said “nobody could see where they were going.”

“He checked him down in there, he had to slightly check again,” Terranova said. “How are you going to make a couple of runs on a track like that? It was a lot to overcome for any horse.”

Funny Guy drew post 2 for the Vosburgh.

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Stan the Man is coming off a win in the six-furlong Tale of the Cat Stakes at Saratoga. That followed a runner-up finish to Firenze Fire in the Grade 2 True North. John Velazquez is named to ride from post 3.

True Timber was supplemented to the race by Calumet Farm. He is coming off a third-place finish in the Forego.

Engage also was supplemented to the Vosburgh. He hasn’t run this year after being forced to miss the Saudi Sprint in February because of an unspecified setback. Jose Ortiz, who would have ridden Volatile, rides Engage from post 6.

Firenze Fire was beaten a nose by Imperial Hint in a stirring renewal of the Vosburgh last fall. He is 1 for 4 since being moved to Kelly Breen, the one win coming in the Grade 2 True North here.