The 20th Running of The Wise Dan (G2)

June 26, 2021

$250.000 Grade 2 for 4YOs+ Carrying 122lbs

 One Mile and One Eighth (Turf) 

Stakes Record: Aggravation (2016); Devilish Details (2019) 1:39.26

Track Record: Clear The Way (2012) 1:38.67

As part of a Hall of Fame career, the real life Wise Dan won five graded races at CD.  He twice won this race, aka The Firecracker-G2 (contested at a flat mile on the grass for its first 14 renewals), to go along with two G1 Turf Classics (9f Turf), and he threw in a Clark Handicap-G1 (9f Dirt) just for kicks.  If a horse ever deserved a race in his honor, this gelding surely fit the bill. 

For an HRP history of the race, Mb Stables is the only trainer to claim two renewals  (Aggravation-2016; Devilish Details-2019) and (surprisingly) jockey R. Albarado has brought home four winners (Carthagian-2005; Once Bitten-2008; Ram It-2011; Aggravation-2016).  Up until last year, this race was for 3yo+ and the sophomores dominated the last four renewals under those conditions so it was nice to see the 4yos+ get another Spring target without the fear of a weight penalty.

Enough with the history lesson; let’s look to the present and while this G2 is sandwiched between a pair of G1 BC automatic qualifiers at CD on Saturday, the quality and depth of this field should provide for a stirring contest underneath the Twin Spires.  Let’s take a closer look at the contestants: 

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Categories: STAKES ARTICLES