CA Cup Turf Classic- $250.000 Purse
SA- For Four Year Olds and Upward Foaled in CA
One Mile and One Eighth on the Turf
January 30, 2016

Last year, Pip Cozzene gave Chili King Stables a victory in this stake.  Pip Cozzene is sired by Pip Boy, who has really emerged as one of the best sires in our virtual world, and possibly the best sire out of any when it comes to producing top turf horses (he’d have my vote).    Chrystal Pip came into the race with an impressive resume, but one that was a little different then the likes of Pip Bull or Pip Cozzene.  Chrystal Pip has been highly successful on the main track as well, and because of that he spent most of the second half of 2015 on the dirt.  However, he had also been dominant on the turf, and he looked to be a very safe bet for this race.  Surprisingly, he went off at odds that approached 7/1.   So as was the case last week, if you played our choice, you made some money!  The winning time of 1:45.47 just barely missed the stake record set by his half-brother last year.  Congratulations to all of the connections, and now let us take a deeper look at how this result happenend!

1st- 1- Chrystal Pip (7/1)- Our eventual race winner was not concerned by what was going on at the front end early, and this is what we have come to expect form Chrystal Pip.  Jockey G Stevens was more then happy to allow his Chili King Stables colt to bide his time near the back of the pack.  As they moved into the final turn, the rest of the field, except maybe Gypsy Corner, seemed content to just ride along in their positions while Chrystal Pip made a noticeable push along the rail to close the gap.  At the top of the stretch, Chrystal Pip simply exploded with an all out drive.  He had a nice clear lane and seized his opportunity.  With every stride in the stretch, he advanced on Dreaming Again, before completing the pass.  He couldn’t let up, because if he did the tailgating Finding Faith may have run him over.   Chrystal Pip hung in there, and would win driving to the wire, in a time of 1:45.47.  Congratulations again!  Chrystal Pip is a four year old colt by Pip Boy, and it marks the second straight Pip Boy foal to win this stake.  He is out of Chrystal Bubba and was bred in California by Chili King Stables, the only trainer for which he has ever known.

2nd- 8- Dreaming Again (4/1)- Today’s runner up from Gdp Inc looked to have made an aggressive push out of the gate early, and this enabled him to get over to the second lane in time for the run around the turn.  Maintained his position throughout the backstretch without really making much a move, but started to advance within the turn.  By the top of the stretch, he had completed the pass of Skipping Stone, but it was pretty clear at this point, that his lead would be short lived as Chrystal Pip was flying.  He gave it all he could, and because of that, he was able to stay ahead of Finding Faith.  The trainer should be happy with this performance.

3rd- 5- Finding Faith (7/1)- The Emerard Racing Inc entry opted not to utilize the strategy that worked well last time, and instead went back to his more traditional style, which is to try and close late.  Remained at the back of the pack with Hold The Point, and only upon exit of the turn did he begin to make his move.  All he could really do, though, is follow Chrystal Pip on through, but this proved to be good enough to get him a strong third.

4th- 2- Girl Talk (11/1)- Nolespan Racing’s filly got off to a strong start, and would assume a comfortable position along the rail as they made their way around the first turn.  Kept in a position behind Skipping Stone, before looking to move around his outside in the turn, and she would make some progress.  This move also helped the advancement of Chrystal Pip in the turn. She battled fairly well for a while, but in the end the others proved to be better then her.  Girl Talk showed some resiliency, and with that, the trainer gets a bit of a check.

5th- 4- Skipping Stone (9/1)- Quick out of the gate for Night Rider Stables, and would emerge with the lead just prior to crossing the finish line the first time.  He would continue to lead the field around the turn and into the backstretch, setting the opening half mile in :46.98.  He would open up by almost two lengths in the backstretch, and the field began to close in as they made their way into the turn.  Maintained the lead until the top of the stretch, but when Dreaming Again went by, he packed it in.

6th- 7- Steel Moon (3/1)- Initially, the On The Map Racing entry was the quickest out of the gate, but elected to back off a little bit before they approached the opening turn.  He would ultimately settle into a position in the middle of the pack.   Maintained this position for duration of the turn, possibly with a brief excuse of being boxed in, but he simply did not fire in the stretch.

7th- 6- Gypsy Corner (5/2)- The very surprising betting favorite in this race from Team 7 Illusions opted for a midpack position in the early going.  Appeared as though J Lezcano considered an aggressive move on the outside as they approached the turn and may just not have had the horse underneath him to make it stick.  Seemed out of gas particularly in the final half furlong.

8th- 3- Hold The Point (38/1)- The longest shot on the board, out of Big Guns Stables, was near the rear of the field in the opening stages.  He did not show any interest in making a move throughout the backstretch, or into the turn, or at any point thereafter.

Track: Firm
Time: :46⁴  1:10   1:33³  1:45²

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 1 – 8 Paid 64.90
$1 Trifecta: 1 – 8 – 5 Paid 315.30

Scratched: None

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded