The Hopeful (Grade 1)- $350.000 Purse
SAR- For Two Year Olds
Seven Furlongs on the Dirt
September 5, 2016

Another year of fabulous racing at SAR has come to a close, and it officially ended in our virtual world with the 14th running of the Grade 1 Hopeful, a fantastic seven furlong event for two year olds.  It was an even field of eight, and all of them will now have the hopes of returning here for more Grade 1’s next year.  Today’s winner Ginger Haggis certainly will be looking to do that, but the first focus will surely be the BC Juvenile at this point!  Ginger Haggis was making the sixth start of his career, and heading into this, he won three races.  He also finished 8th twice, so I was a little concerned about that in an otherwise balanced stake.  Sure enough, overlooking this type of horse in my picks comes back to bite me again.  Though, I was not the only one, as he goes off at a hefty 21/1 price.  The winning trainer is The Sidley Stud, and this makes the first Grade 1 in which they have ever won.  That is a special accomplishment this writer still dreams about, so special congratulations go out to them for their monumental victory!  Such a win, however, is old hat for J R Leparoux.  With the win today, Leparoux was now won the Hopeful three years in a row, and four out of the last five.  The time of the win was 1:21.60, making it the second quickest edition of the stake in its history.  Leparoux also rode the fastest such race, in 2014 with Just A Chance.   Ginger Haggis joins an impressive list of past winners the includes The Maestro, Noble Warrior, and Model American to just name a few.   Let’s look more at how it was won!

1st- 5- Ginger Haggis (21/1)- Perhaps we should have known better then to doubt J R Leparoux in the Hopeful!  The eventual winner from The Sidley Stud was happy to let the rest of the field go right out of the starting gate, and would eventually stabilize about four lengths from the leaders early as he ran between General Geek and Final Delivery at the back.  Moving into the turn, Leparoux began to size up his options for Ginger Haggis, and a hole was beginning to develop between Jolly Be Native and Hold The Gold.   He jumped right on top of this opportunity, which was made a little easier when Hold The Gold had to go further outside to avoid running into Renal Pleasure, who seemed to think the race was over in the turn.  Jolly Be Native was also running well, and the two of them emerged at the top of the stretch with about a length and a half to make up on Shen Valley.  This is where Ginger Haggis was at his best, running with authority to pass a horse in Jolly Be Native who himself was still in full stride.  With about 3/4 of a furlong to go, Ginger Haggis had pulled out in front, and there were no new challengers coming.   He would pull away, and win by a length and a half, running in a time of 1:21.60.  Ginger Haggis is a two year old by Zyzoxolous.  If you don’t know that one, you know his sire, which is Charley Farley.  He is out of Ginger Time, who has unheralded bloodlines, and was bred in Texas by The Sidley Stud as a yearling, and they have been together throughout! Congrautlations to the connections!

2nd- 3- Jolly Be Native (4/5)- The betting public showed a lot of confidence in the Gdp Inc entry by making him such an overwhelming favorite.  Jolly Be Native was the quickest of them all out of the gate initially, though he would soon back off the ambitious pacesetters of Renal Pleasure and Shen Valley and choose a stalking position. As they moved into the turn, he remained third, and was about a length and a half behind.  He continued to run well, and draw in the leader, Shen Valley, but there was one problem with this: the hard charging Ginger Haggis splitting the two of them!  Jolly Be Native and I Ortiz Jr would get by Shen Valley, but by that time Ginger Haggis had already left the building.  It’s a good second place finish for this one.

3rd- 1- Cantilever (6/1)- Six minutes after post time for the race, Team 7 Illusions wanted to let everyone know that he was willing to sell the horse for $477.770.  So don’t be surprised if we are talking about an ownership change when he starts again, but we can probably read into this too that the trainer was a little disappointed with this run. He started decently along the rail and battled Jolly Be Native for third early.  Continued the stalking trip around the turn, and was only length out of it as they reached the top of the stretch.  Hung in there nicely until about a furlong to go, which is where he started to lose some touch with the frontrunners.  Worth that asking price, but this writer doesn’t have the funds!

4th- 4- General Geek (32/1)- Our pre-race pick from Serenity Stables was quite a longshot for this race!  He went promptly to the back of the field, but kept good company as he ran to the inside of Ginger Haggis.  Stayed there for the backstretch, and trailed the leaders by three and a half as they moved into the turn.  Tried to advance at the same time with Ginger Haggis, but the winner had a more favorable lane, and General Geek had to alter his path back to the rail, costing some time.  Run died off as he moved alongside Cantilever late.

5th- 6- Shen Valley (6/1)- Got off to a strong start for trainer, Keikowin Racing.  Was a length behind Renal Pleasure at a quarter, and led everyone else by that same distance.  Began to advance as they approached the turn, and took over the lead midway through it.  Led by a length at the top of the stretch, but did not have a response for those who were charging from behind him.  The final half furlong was a particular struggle.

6th- 7- Final Delivery (4/1)-   Began the race in the back, running along with the eventual winner Ginger Haggis.  However, unlike the winner, Final Delivery never had any kind of move forthcoming, and he was left behind when rounding the turn.  Showed absolutely nothing in the stretch and proves that even Mb Stables will have head scratching bad performances.

7th- 4- Hold The Gold (18/1)- Started right in the middle of the pack for Eastern Equine. Seemed to be in good shape as they approached the turn.  Initially went four wide to try and pass Renal Pleasure, but at that time, Hold The Gold would also pack it in.

8th- 8- Renal Pleasure (87/1)- Had the few who bet on him very hopeful early as the D J C Racing Stables entry jumped out to the early lead. Set the opening 1/4 in :23.08 and ½ in :46.15, before the bottom fell out midway through the turn.

Track: Fast
Time: :23   :46   1:09³  1:21³

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 5 – 3 Paid 44.10
$1 Trifecta: 5 – 3 – 1 Paid 1,417.70

Scratched: None

— NS

Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES