Warrior's Club has huge family behind him in Met Mile

Should Justify complete a Triple Crown sweep Saturday, the Belmont Park winner’s circle will be filled to overflowing with members of his various ownership groups, media, and other entities.

But a similarly raucous winner’s circle celebration could take place some hours earlier, should the Churchill Downs Racing Club’s Warrior’s Club continue a solid season with a victory in the Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap, which would be a blockbuster score for a colt from humble beginnings.

Warrior’s Club has 200 owners who put up $500 apiece when Churchill Downs launched the club in spring 2016 to provide a low-cost entry into Thoroughbred ownership. Trainer Wayne Lukas privately purchased Warrior’s Club, now a 4-year-old son of Warrior’s Reward, on behalf of the group after he was a $47,000 buyback at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co.’s April sale of 2-year-olds in training.

A restricted stakes winner and Grade 3-placed as a juvenile, and stakes-placed last year, Warrior’s Club comes into the Met Mile in career form, having pushed his earnings past a half-million with a victory in the Grade 3 Commonwealth at Keeneland and a runner-up effort in the Grade 2 Churchill Downs Stakes on Derby Day.

More than 30 members of the Churchill Downs Racing Club are expected to be on hand as their colt takes on Grade 1 company on Saturday.

“The name describes him about as well as anything – he’s a warrior, I tell you,” Lukas said. “He’s just a wonderful little horse to train. I always kid people that a used car salesman could train him; he’s not hard to train at all. He gives you every effort, every time. And to make 200 people happy is really special.”

The Churchill Downs Racing Club colors have also been carried by the winner Party Club and maiden Card Club with Lukas; the maiden Gia Victoria with Dallas Stewart; the winner Dial Me for Tom Drury; and the maiden Rare Form with Dale Romans.

The group’s offerings continue to expand. The Club purchased an Algorithms colt, already named Distant Shore, for $50,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale of 2-year-olds in training. The colt will be trained by Tom Amoss.

At least 48 Churchill Downs Racing Club members have also decided to deepen their involvement in the sport, joining up with other Thoroughbred ownership groups, according to club representative Gary Palmisano.