Wit's next start likely in Hopeful, Pletcher says

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Todd Pletcher has won the Grade 3 Sanford Stakes eight times, with none of those victories more impressive or emphatic than Wit’s popular eight-length triumph here Saturday.

Unfortunately for the soon-to-be-inducted Hall of Fame trainer, he wasn’t on hand to enjoy the performance in person.

While Wit was widening his margin of victory with every stride through the final furlong of the Sanford, Pletcher was watching the race on his cell phone at Monmouth Park, where minutes later his Following Sea would finish second, via the disqualification of Hot Rod Charlie, in the Grade 1 Haskell.

Wit overcame a slow start to win his career debut by six lengths five weeks earlier. He left the gate a bit better, but still near the rear of the field, in the Sanford, settling in midpack in the run down the backstretch before making an explosive middle move under Irad Ortiz Jr. to join and ultimately run well clear of the leaders down the stretch. Wit earned a 90 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort.

“I watched the race on my phone, then watched the replay several times later on,” Pletcher said from his office in his barn at the Oklahoma training track the following morning. “I figured he wouldn’t break quickly, but I figured he’d break better than he did in his debut, which he did. He was able to put himself in a good position, Irad made a decisive move on the turn, and he displayed an explosive turn of foot. After that he (Ortiz) just kept him to task down the lane. Because he’d made such a big move on the turn, Irad said he just wanted to make sure he didn’t idle and that he kept his attention.”

Wit joined a pretty impressive list of past Sanford winners from the Pletcher barn.

“We’ve been fortunate enough to win that race eight times, with some good horses like More Than Ready and Scat Daddy, both of whom went on to become great stallions, but I don’t think we’ve ever won it by eight lengths,” Pletcher said. “I thought visually it was very impressive, especially how quickly he caught the leaders on the turn.”

Pletcher said Wit “looked great” on Sunday morning and that the Grade 1 Hopeful here on closing day, September 6, would be his next target.

Although his trip to Monmouth Park kept Pletcher from witnessing Wit’s big performance in person, it did prove a very worthwhile venture as the barn won two Grade 3 stakes, with Dr Post in the Monmouth Cup and regally bred Graceful Princess in the Molly Pitcher, prior to Following Sea’s second-place finish in the Haskell. Both stakes winners were ridden to victory by Joel Rosario.

Dr Post rallied to a 1 1/4-length decision over Night Ops in the Monmouth Cup while equipped with blinkers for the first time Saturday.

“He got a really good trip and I think the blinkers had him a lot more focused,” Pletcher said of Dr Post. “Not necessarily closer, but more focused. I thought it was a big effort from him.”

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Graceful Princess, a Whisper Hill Farm homebred by Tapit out of Havre de Grace, overcame a wide trip to win the Molly Pitcher by three parts of a length for her first graded stakes win.

“It was a huge win for the filly, she’s got such a good pedigree, to win a graded stakes was very big for the whole Whisper Hill team,” Pletcher noted. “They own the mare and the sister. I thought it was her best performance yet. She kind of put it all together.”

Pletcher said Dr Post would likely run next in either the Pacific Classic or the Jockey Club Gold Cup. He said he has no specific plans at the moment for Graceful Princess.