Whywhywhy wins Futurity

ELMONT, N.Y. - Barring snow, it'll be hard to believe there will be anything Whywhywhy won't be ready for when he runs in next month's Breeders' Cp Juvenile at Arlington Park.

For the third straight race, Whywhywhy overcame adverse conditions to win a stakes, Sunday taking the $200,000 Grade 1 by 1 3-4 lengths in a driving rainstorm at Belmont Park.

In June, Whywhywhy had to steady behind a spill, and he went on to post a 5 1-2-length victory in the Grade 3 Flash Stakes. In July, Whywhwwhy was pinched at the break and trailed the field by 13 lengths before rallying to a 2 3-4-length victory in the Grade 2 Sanford stakes.

Sunday, Mother Nature threw a fit, hurling heavy rain, lightning and thunder at Belmont Park while seven juveniles prepared for the Futurity. Whywhywhy handled it like a pro, cruising alongside pacesetter Truckle Feature around the turn, and drawing off for a good-looking victory in a solid time of 1:36.33 for a mile over a wet track labeled good. He returned $5.20 as the favorite.

``I think he was just dominating today,'' said trainer Patrick Biancone, who also owns part of Whywhywhy with longtime friend Fabien Ouaki. ``We may face better next time. With the exception of his first start, he's done everything perfectly and he's been through everything. He's a real fighter, he's got a big heart and I think the horse will win the Breeders' Cup.''

Biancone said Whywhywhy would go straight to the Breeders' Cup. He will ship to Arlington Park on Oct. 7, possibly with stablemate Zavata, who runs in the Champagne at Belmont on Oct. 5. Zavata, who won the Tremont and Saratoga Special, finished third as the favorite in the Hopeful last out.

``Zavata will win the Champagne, trust me,'' Biancone said.

It'll be hard to imagine him winning it any more impressively than Whywhywhy won the Futurity. After breaking sharply, jockey Edgar Prado got Whywhywhy to sit in fourth position while Truckle Feature, the Bob Baffert-trained shipper, set fractions of 22.54 seconds and 45.55 under Jerry Bailey. Whywhwwhy took the lead approaching the top of the stretch and held Pretty Wild at bay through the lane. It was 5 1-2 lengths back to Truckle Feature in third.

``A couple of horses wanted to go and I wanted to get him back a little bit, and he settled beautifully,'' said Prado, who won four races on the card. ``Around the turn I could not wait any longer, he was pulling me out of the tack. He started looking around, there was a light around the wire, so I wanted to be sure he kept his mind on business.''