BC Dirt Mile (Grade 1)- $1,000.000 Purse
KEE- For Three Year Olds and Upward
One Mile on the Dirt
November 5, 2022
The first BC race of the day on Saturday will be the running of the BC Dirt Mile, and a great field has assembled to ensure that the day starts off right. This race was not included in some of the earlier editions of the BC, and first appeared on the schedule in 2007. That year, the race was won by a horse named Grady. We don’t hear him ever get mentioned anymore, but he had a great 44-race career with seventeen wins. Since Grady, others that have tasted victory in this race include Madhouse, Whats Up, Hardline and Moment Of Madness. Trainer wise, Australia Wide and Mb Stables are the only ones who have won this stake multiple times, each doing so twice. The 2021 version was won by Arindel, and his horse Broken Tap. For that one, it looked like the BC Dirt Mile was his last hurrah. Arindel has two going to post in this race as he looks to become the third trainer to win this race twice. Let’s meet his entries and the rest of the field now!
#1- Gran Z (Maxmillion Farm, ridden by Ru Gonzalez)- Two years ago, Gran Z took part in the BC Classic and ended up finishing third. Last year, he was back in that race but did not cash a check. After a 2022 season that saw him win three of his starts, he is heading back to the BC, but will run just a mile. His distance was cut back to this starting in February, where he won an allowance, then in early May, he won the seven furlong Grade 1 CD after a couple close calls at a mile. May proved to be a great month, as he also won the Grade 3 Sexton Mile at LS at the end of it. His last two races will not excite, but he does come into this one with plenty of rest, having last been seen on the track in late August.
#2- Eclipse My Knowledge (Nakamura Stables, ridden by D E Centeno)- Here is one of those horses that seems like he has been around forever. The BC Dirt Mile will be the 51st race for the seven year old gelding, and the second time that he has run in this very race. Last year, he just missed out on a check by finishing fifth and has gone on to win three times in 2022 over his eight starts. After winning an open allowance in March, he would capture the Grade 3 OP Mile, beating some very good company that day. In July, he got his third win of the year in the Grade 3 MTH Cup, and he also looked very strong in his last go-round, placing second in the Grade 1 Woodward. So, this veteran is still able to perform at a very high level and he is ready to prove that to some of the best in the division.
#3- White Sunshine (Smokey Stover, ridden by A Cedillo)- Next to Eclipse My Knowledge, this three year old will look like a baby. He did not race much as a two year old, so ten of his twelve starts have come this year. He’s won three of them, though only one of them was against stake company, taking the Grade 3 Ack Ack at CD to get him into this race. Being a three year old will get him a three pound weight allowance over his elders. While there is plenty of reason to be excited about this horse, it will take a career best to win here, though do not rule that out.
#4- He Needsa Manzillian (Mo Mentum Farm, ridden by R M Hernandez)- Over his 39 career races, this six year old horse has past through several stables. On Christmas, he was a nice present for Mo Mentum Farm, as he picked him up for $100.000 and the horse responded very well to him. He had flirted with being a stakes horse at times with other trainers, but earned two stake wins this year with Mo Mentum Farm. The most exciting of those was the Grade 3 WV Governors Stakes in August. A potential red flag on this one is that he has run very well on off tracks this year, something he has seen his fair share of, but on fast tracks, it has been a different story.
#5- Mintmach (Nakamura Stables, ridden by S Elliott)- Nakamura picked up this one in a claimer for $35.000 after it seems like Nolespan Racing gave up on him after turning his career on. Nakamura has been treated to three wins in nine starts in 2022, but they all came at the beginning of the year. His recent form is very concerning, with finishes in the double digits in three of his last four races, losing by a combined 25 lengths in those races. In the middle of that stretch, there’s a second place finish, in a photo, in the Grade 1 Whitney at SAR. That version of Mintmach must show up, but I don’t know if I can count on it.
#6- Sexy Back (Night Rider Stables, ridden by A Achard)- Overall, this five year old gelding has had a steady season even with only one win on the year. That victory came back in March in the Grade 2 GP Mile with a strong come from behind effort. As the year went on, he would struggle in Whitney but bounced back very nicely, and comes into the BC Dirt Mile off a third place effort in the Pacific Classic, and then a second place effort in the Awesome Again, the latter of which saw him narrowly miss in a photo. If he can carry that momentum, he will be a contender here, but the Whitney and the OP Handicap will cause some concerns.
#7- Come To Poppa (South Shore Stables, ridden by T Gaffalione)- If you want your horse to be on good form in the BC, then Come To Poppa is definitely not the horse for you. He made a name for himself last year by running second in the BC Juvenile, and he began this year very well by winning the Jerome and the Withers. Recently, there is almost nothing to be excited about. But, just like Mintmach has the Whitney squeezed between poor races, Come To Poppa has a strong showing in the Grade 1 Crosby between poor efforts. But, that was at six furlongs, and he was passed late. I’m not confident with him at this distance, against this caliber of opposition.
#8- Pluckzy (Gdp Inc., ridden by J R Velazquez)- This three year old had an impressive spring, winning the Grade 1 SA Derby right after the broke his maiden. That allowed him to run in the KYD, and while he didn’t do much there, he was much better in the BEL, placing third. He would even finish fourth in the Jim Dandy. What Pluckzy has not done a lot of is run a mile, and while we know that both he and the trainer can adapt just fine, the concern can be that this is the wheelhouse distance for many others in this field.
#9- Figured The Storm (Arindel, ridden by E Jaramillo)- At this time last year, Figured The Storm was running for a $12.500 claiming tag at FL. Arindel is certainly very happy that no one picked him that day or other claimers that he was in around that time. In February, this gelding began to get hot, winning four out of five races with two of them being a three length win. The wins continued, he has gone on now to win six times in eleven starts this season. Of course, race eleven was only a week ago, coming in the Grade 2 Fayette. If anyone can make this work, it’s Arindel.
#10- Buck (Big Jd Racing, ridden by J Talamo)- Prior to being purchased for $3.120 in the December 2021 auction, Buck had not done much, hence that price. What Big Jd Racing has done with this one is very impressive since this horse was not a rookie when he was acquired. Buck was brought along the ladder gradually, proving up to each task he was faced with either by winning of being a close second. After winning the Grade 3 Cartier Stakes in May, Buck scored a massive win in the Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap, proving that he could beat the best in the business. He’s gone longer in each of his last two starts, and the results were not stellar so it is appealing to see him back at a mile again. What a story it would be for this $3.120 auction purchase to become a BC champion eleven months later!
#11- The Martian (Mo Mentum Farm, ridden by E T Baird)- It took a lot more than $3.120 for this one to change hands last year, as Mo Mentum Farm purchased the then two year old for $400.000 last November in private sales. He would run well in several different KYD preps to begin the year, though never winning any of them. In May, he would run in the PRK and again represented himself well by placing fourth. His lone win of 2022 came in mid-September, at the Grade 3 BC Derby. What we have here is a horse that almost always is in the mix, but needs to find a little more to get a win. Maybe things could set up well for him here, and I would not entirely rule him out.
#12- Changing Times- Scratched
#13- Howl Of The Hound (Mb Stables, ridden by L Saez)- We all know what this horse did last year, but what has he done as a four year old? Well, it has been a winless year for him, as none of his nine starts have ended with him in the winner’s circle. He’s had a few duds along the way, but more often than not, Howl Of The Hound has been competitive at the graded level and may be knocking on the door of his first win since the 2021 PRK. At the Grade 1 Forego, he narrowly missed, settling for second in a close photo. It was really disappointing, though, to see his failure to follow that up well afterwards. Many of us would love to see this horse go out on a high note here in the BC, but there are others in here who seem more appealing.
#14- Oleg (Arindel, ridden by D Moran)- This continues to be a horse that you never know what to expect from. You can say that about a lot of horses, but Oleg really does take that to another level. When I saw him at the CT Classic, he looked real sharp, scoring what was his second win of the year, but perhaps more importantly was stringing a few good races together. Maybe then, he was turning the corner to consistency? Or, maybe not. In the Woodward, he was back to negative ways. Now, it was a sloppy track that day and Oleg has not been that great on off tracks worse than good. With Oleg, who really knows. If you think he’s going to show up, put money on him!
#15- Higher Drift (Asgar, ridden by M Franco)- The scratch of Changing Times allows Higher Drift to get into the race, now we will see if he can make the most of this opportunity. In 2022, he has won twice over his seven starts, getting a win last week in the Kelso Handicap. It was his first race since August and the CT Classic, so maybe he will be okay with that. But I always have to wonder how the meters can get right on such a short turnaround.
Prediction: 1-6-10-9
— NS
Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES, THE BREEDERS CUP
