Wise Dan (Grade 2)- $500.000 Purse
CD- For Four Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Turf
June 29, 2024

We’re heading to the grass on Saturday at CD for the 21st running of the Wise Dan, which is for older horses and runs for a $500.000 purse. That purse amount represents a high for the race and is double what the race ran for in 2003. Through time, we’ve seen some great horses get the win here, including Billy Nomates, Stealth Fighter, Seven Years and Sir Tom among others. Last year’s winner certainly is a headliner on that list as well, as Penal Hockey Party earned a two-length victory on a rainy day here. Four months later, he came oh so close to winning the BC Mile for Maxmillion Farm but was beaten by a nose by Atomic Eclipse. We’re not going to see either of those two here, but our field of ten is plenty of capable of producing several BC Mile runners. Let’s meet them now:

1- Americas Hope (Nakamura Stables, ridden by A A Gallardo)- Won over $1,000.000 as a four-year-old in 2023, with a third place run in the BC Turf being a part of that. So far this year, he has not yet established himself as one of the top horses in the division, and he could only place third in a couple of open allowances. Last month, he was fourth of six after setting the pace in the Grade 3 Dinner Party Stakes, which was on soft turf. A nice work at the start of the month can give us confidence but others are more appealing here.

2- Absolutely Grande (Grimley, ridden by Mar Garcia)- Looked very good last month in winning the Grade 3 Arlington by two lengths on soft turf. We need to mention the weather here, too, because there is a 51% chance of showers at CD for Saturday, as of Wednesday. Absolutely Grande likes it wet, and the more rains, the better he seems to be. He’s 6-for-10 on off tracks, and 1-for-24 when it is dry. He’s done better running second and third on dry tracks, but Grimley would love a downpour here on Saturday.

3- Xavier Breath (Maxmillion Farm, ridden by S X Bridgmohan)- The trainer picked up his first win in the Wise Dan last year with Penal Hockey Party, and sends Xavier Breath back to the grass to try and win it again. Since October, we have only seen the gelding on the dirt, and he has won two of his last four races: the Razorback Handicap at OP and the OP Mile, so certainly a couple of impressive scores back-to-back there. Last month, he was third in the Sexton Mile but with a notable drop in his SRF. I’m not sure if that has anything to do with his move to the grass here as he has turf experience, though the results don’t jump out at you. That said, it’s been eight months, and I wish I could see a recent turf work.

4- Grand Opening (Riggins Racing, ridden by J R Velazquez)- Won the WO Mile last fall, which sent him into the BC Mile, a race that he also ran very well in before settling for fourth. Since we saw him at SA in that race, Grand Opening has been a successful business venture, with three wins and two seconds over five starts. The victories include his last race, the Forester Turf Classic on Derby Day here over soft turf as well as the Grade 2 San Gabriel at SA. He also ran second in the Pegasus World Cup Turf. With time to rest, and a good work at SA before heading here, it’s foolish to not consider Grand Opening one of the top threats but he may come at a short price.

5- Love Of The Derby (Mb Stables, ridden by Mario Gutierrez)- Grand Opening might be one of the favorites, but he does not have to look very far in the starting gate to see another one of the strongest contenders. They also saw each other at the wire in the BC Mile, as they were involved in a tight show photo there that saw Love Of The Derby get the head bob. Since then, he’s won two of seven races which are highlighted by the San Francisco Mile at GG, so he has not been running as highly as Grand Opening for most of the year. That part changed last month when he ran in the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile and placed second.

6- Six Pillars (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by A Cedillo)- A lot has happened since July 2022, which is the last time that Six Pillars ran on the turf. Following that, he had a string of very inconsistent finishes on the main track, and in his last five races, has been only in overnights. Something has happened not only to convince TwinTowersRacing that Six Pillars should run on the grass, but that he should take on a field of this caliber. He has no public turf works since August 2022, and while there may very well be something intriguing privately, I can’t see it, so I can’t pick him.

7- Electric Blue (Spankys Barn, ridden by L Dettori)- A horse that quietly has had a nose for the wire throughout his entire career. Most of that was with Choppy Inc., and Spankys Barn acquired him just before New Year’s in private sales for $100.000 with bigger aspirations. He was graduated immediately to graded stakes, and has won two of three, starting with the Grade 3 Thunder Road and including the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile, where he was one spot better than Love Of The Derby for the win. In each, he earned a 103 SRF. There’s nothing wrong with the race between them in terms of effort, where he was a frustrating fifth by less than a half-length in the Grade 1 Makers Mark Mile.

8- One Last Punch Line (Alydar Stables, ridden by F Geroux)- Early in his career, One Last Punch Line showed enough potential to get entered into a handful of stakes, but recently he has been seen either at LAD or TUP, running on both the dirt and the turf. In April, the trainer took a shot in the $60.000 Wildcat Stakes at TUP, and he ran well, closing to be third. That’s not going to intimidate his rivals here, but he followed that up with a win at a mile and a half in the Grade 3 Louisville right here in his last start. Can he keep moving forward? We’ll find out, but he earned the chance.

9- Istar (Rock Creek, ridden by D Davis)- Istar is about to have the race of his life as he moves up from running in overnights and into stake competition. It’s not an easy assignment here given the caliber of opposition, but the trainer is ready to give him a chance. Three starts ago, he was running for a $6.250 claiming tag, where he won and in his last race he captured an optional claimer at WO. Istar has been good on off tracks, so he could more appealing if the rain chance is true, but several of these are also good when wet.

10- Calling All Angels (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by D E Centeno)- A horse that is too inconsistent for me to put any virtual money on, but if he can follow up his last race well, then look out for him. On soft turf, Calling All Angels won the Grade 3 Dinner Party Stakes, and its $500.000 purse so we know the talent is there. Unfortunately, his prior two races were flat, including a particularly lackluster run in the Elkhorn. I can’t throw it out, because it happens too often for my liking. If the trainer can get him to become consistent and get the Dinner Party side out of him more often, then he has plenty of potential and is worthy of betting on. Until then, I have to look elsewhere.

Prediction (dry): 4-5-7-2
Prediction (wet): 2-5-4-7

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES