August 1, 2016
Given the fact that the KYD winner and the PRK winner were not in attendance, one would have thought that BEL winner Carneyman would certainly be considered one of the favourites in the Grade I Haskell at MTH on Sunday afternoon but as has been the case all year long, he was completely overlooked as the longest shot on the board yet led the field on a merry chase that resulted in his wire-to-wire win. It is hard to imagine that a colt with no HRP breeding would be good enough to win three Grade I races in this day and age but the BC Juvenile-BEL-Haskell treble puts him at the top of his category right now and gives him five career wins and nearly $3000.000 in earnings, which is incredible for owner Broken Spoke Stables, who only earned $13.180 total in all of 2014.
A pair of early scratches and a downgrade of the course conditions to “good” changed the complexion of the race completely from the onset as longshot Carneyman (47.50) burst from the gate and cleared the field before the first turn. Viking Rasta (14.30) was away well in second with Indian Chief (9.80) holding the rail and as the field moved around the bend, both Copper Opus (7.45) and Copper Beast (8.55) dropped back to the rear of the field. The field bunched right up again into the backstretch as Spirits Reward (9.90) and Ghost Star (4.10) rushed forward but Carneyman held his own through a solid half-mile of 48.01 and actually cleared to a two-length advantage. Into the far turn, Spirits Reward threw in the towel as Ghost Star moved four-wide and Black Mojo (5.90) looked for room but passing six-furlongs in a quick 1:11.89, Carneyman looked almost indestructible. Around the turn, Viking Rasta stalled as Indian Chief looked to move up inside and at the head of the lane, Copper Opus came wide into second with Copper Beast charging very wide. But with a furlong to run, Carneyman had driven every single one of his rivals into the ground and although he did tired noticeably to the wire, the margin of victory was still a half-length over a charging Black Mojo with Copper Opus in third and Atomic Twister (*1.85) in fourth, although no threat to the winner whatsoever. Copper Beast failed to menace in fifth, Ghost Star and Viking Rasta faded, Indian Chief did not go on and Spirits Reward backed up badly to be beaten almost 12-lengths over a course condition that he clearly did not handle well.
Carneyman started off 2016 with some lackluster efforts but has consistently gotten better with each and every start and after shocking the racing world with a win in the Grade I BEL at 55-1, he came back in the Grade I Haskell and went gate-to-wire at 47-1 in one of the greatest three-year-old performances this year. Clearly the leader of a division that is crying for a champion, he might just head to the Grade I Travers with much more to prove, especially since victories at both 9- and 12-furlongs prove that 10-furlongs is perfectly acceptable for him.
Congratulations goes out to owner Broken Spoke Stables and their three-year-old colt Carneyman, a dazzling winner of the Grade I Haskell!
Prediction Indian Chief / Atomic Twister / Spirits Reward
Winner Carneyman
Three-year-old bay colt
Auto-Generated
Owner Broken Spoke Stables
Time 48.01, 1:11.89, 1:36.60, 1:49.70
Overall
Carneyman 47.50 broke sharp, never headed
Black Mojo 5.90 behind rivals, found room, up for second
Copper Opus 7.45 slow into stride, minor late rally
Atomic Twister *1.85 even effort throughout
Copper Beast 8.55 wide both turns
Ghost Star 4.10 pressed, tired
Viking Rasta 14.30 between horses, even
Indian Chief 9.80 rail run, no late gains
Spirits Reward 9.90 faded badly
Triple T Racing 🙂
Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES
