Secretariat Stakes – Grade II
1 Mile Turf Stake Purse $500.00 Open 3 Year Olds.

1st Energizer Party Mb Stables Silvera Ru

I think the whole question over which surface a horse prefers is rather an over asked question and this is a great example of a horse where the question of whether it prefers dirt or grass never really needs to be asked. The winner of the grade two Rebel on the dirt he is now the winner of the grade two Secretariat on the turf and whilst he may never run on the dirt again it has to be said that you don’t win The Rebel with a strong turf preference. So where does this one stand in the turf rankings as we start to think about the Breeders Cup? Well, he only won by a nose in a game run carrying 122Lbs to win in a 1.32 and 4 winning time. That would suggest to me that he can be a BC Mile contender with the three-year-old allowance and maybe that is why, with the dirt contenders locked in for the stable, that he has gone this route.

2nd Winter Book Fractious Geroux F

Another dirt router that has switched to the turf, much of what I have just said about Energizer Party will apply to this one although I do feel he may be more likely to be a BC Turf contender if he can get the required points for that contest. He was a little outpaced early on today but finished really strongly and may well have won in a few more strides but as he has proven with just the two wins in his career trying to close and win consistently is very tough on this new engine.

3rd Calling All Angels D J C Racing Stables Ferrer J C

The top three in this race had only run two turf races between them before today which says a lot about the differences in surfaces at HRP. Certainly, there is a huge performance difference between and off track and a dry track but between grass and dirt not so much. He came from even further behind than the runner up and could well have taken both of the first two in another half furlong, very similar in fact to his last effort. There is probably very little difference between these three but with the on-pace style of the race engine the consistent success will always go to the ones with early pace and the closer’s just having to take their turn.

4th Indian Summer Diablo Diablo Castellano J J

Probably the only runner in the field that could be argued as being better on turf than dirt he was beaten a length today by the winner on turf today and half a length by the winner in the Rebel on dirt and that says a lot. I thought he may well go on and recapture his former glory just after halfway, but he hit a dead spot and in the end suffered that fate which we see a lot with those that are drawn the rail. Instead of taking the yawning gap on the rail he tried to go wide and just when he should’ve been kicking on, he was stuck behind the eventual winner. It seems like this horse finds trouble this year, that can sometimes mean that they come out and make up for lost time as a four-year-old, so I wouldn’t be writing him off just yet.

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES