Warrior's Club can spark wild celebration with win in Smarty Jones

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – The process of sorting out the 3-year-olds based at Oaklawn Park gets under way Monday with the running of the $150,000 Smarty Jones. Warrior’s Club, Uncontested, and Petrov are among the top contenders in the first of three local steppingstones to the Grade 1, $1 million Arkansas Derby on April 15.

The one-mile Smarty Jones ends at the sixteenth pole, as do all races at that distance at Oaklawn. The stakes also doles out Kentucky Derby eligibility points, with the race’s 17 to be divided among the first four finishers on a scale of 10-4-2-1.

Warrior’s Club is the most accomplished member of the eight-horse field, and if he were to get the job done, the scene in the winner’s circle could be a sight to behold. D. Wayne Lukas trains the horse for 200 owners – the new Churchill Downs Racing Club – and said about 85 are due in town Monday. The group had a memorable celebration on the track after Warrior’s Club won his maiden in the $150,000 Spendthrift Stallion Stakes on Oct. 30 at Churchill.

“After the stake, about 150, 180 of them poured out there, and they were dancing around out on the track and hugging,” Lukas said. “I just stood in amazement. I mean, I won four Kentucky Derbies and never had that reaction. It was unbelievable, the reception as he came back to the winner’s circle. It’s been very, very gratifying to see that many people enjoy our sport like that.”

Smarty Jones (Race 8)

KEY CONTENDERS

Warrior’s Club, by Warrior’s Reward

Last 3 Beyers: 78-77-77

◗ He stretched out to two turns following the Spendthrift Stallion Stakes over seven furlongs and ran third in the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes on Nov. 26 at Churchill. It was the first two-turn start for the horse, who is from the Citidancer mare Thirty Eighth St.

“I think two turns is well within his scope,” Lukas said. “I don’t think it’s any problem at all. He’s got good tactical speed. He’s a complete professional. Part of his arsenal is that he absolutely is mistake-free.”

◗ Warrior’s Club, who could set the pace or track Uncontested, will break from post 2 under Robby Albarado.

Uncontested, by Tiz Wonderful

Beyers: 78-89

◗ He also exits the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes, having finished fourth after breaking from post 12. It was the second start of his career, following a six-length romp in a maiden special weight sprint at Keeneland on Oct. 19.

“We talked before we left Kentucky about going the Fair Grounds route or the Oaklawn route, and of course, this being our home, we decided to go here,” said Arkansas resident Harry Rosenblum, who co-owns Uncontested with Robert LaPenta.

◗ Wayne Catalano trains the horse, who has the speed to take the Smarty Jones wire-to-wire under regular rider Channing Hill. Uncontested also could track Warrior’s Club.

“He’s got an exceptional mind,” Rosenblum said. “He’s a super-kind horse, will do anything you want him to do. And this horse, he’s got a 25 1/2-foot stride. That’s real significant. It was measured by a company.”

Petrov, by Flatter

Beyers: 81-76

◗ He is making his two-turn debut after running second in the King’s Swan on Dec. 2 at Aqueduct. Petrov’s dam, the Bertrando mare Saracina, was a dirt-route winner.

◗ Jose Ortiz has the mount from the rail for trainer Ron Moquett.

Romeo O Romeo, by Macho Uno

Last 3 Beyers: 45-74-68

◗ He has been a consistent sort, having placed in three stakes in his young career, including the Grade 3 Arlington-Washington Futurity, in which he ran second Sept. 10.

◗ Romeo O Romeo was entered in a Saturday allowance at Oaklawn but was a scratch.