The Forego (Grade 1)- $600.000 Purse
SAR- For Four Year Olds and Upward
Seven Furlongs on the Dirt
August 28, 2021
Some of the best sprinters in the game will be at the Spa for the 19th running of the Grade 1 Forego, sending older horses seven furlongs along the main track. 2020 was the first year that three year olds were excluded from the race, and that trend continues this year. Fortunately, what does return is the $600.000 purse, after being reduced last year. Among the past winners for the race is Shoot Skyhigh, the only one to win the race twice. Those wins were in 2009 and 2011, and he did not run in 2010. More recently, Residue and Kiss The Snake were winners here. Last year, the late Reach For A Latte picked up the victory for Fractious in what was his last hurrah. This year, we see several coming in from the Crosby, as well as the Nerud and Vanderbilt Handicap. It should be a good one! Here’s the field!
#1- Mr Charming (Fractious, ridden by A Cedillo)- Just three months ago, Mr Charming was picked up in a $50.000 claimer from Jediminds Stable. He had primarily run in overnights with that barn, but the aspirations of Fractious were much greater, putting him in the $100.000 Thors Echo, which he won. Followed that up nicely by running second in the Grade 3 Virgil Stakes, so this is a good shot to take here and now. Never runs a bad race, it seems, but now it is his time to shine against the best.
#2- Night Creature (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by S X Bridgmohan)- This gelding has mostly run at least a mile for his career, with seventeen of this 21 starts being so. That said, seven furlongs is not a big deal off of that, so in that regard, I would not be concerned. Did run in the Grade 2 Nerud, and set the pace for the race before dropping to fifth in the stretch. His best results have come with him being at or near the front early on.
#3- That Funky Monkey (Maxmillion Farm, ridden by J K Court)- Sometimes, it does not matter if you go from routing to sprinting, as we saw with That Funky Monkey last month in the Vanderbilt Handicap. The long time turf router first moved to the main track running long, and then to the Vanderbilt, and got the big win while running six furlongs. Wins have been scattered throughout his career, and he shows good versatility. With Court back in the saddle, I would be surprised to see anything other than the same gameplan happen here again.
#4- In Captivity (Mb Stables, ridden by G Saez)- This seven year old gelding will make the 41st start of his career, hoping to get win number nine. He did win his last start, coming at DMR in the Grade 2 SD Handicap. He’s been in the Forego before, but you have to go back to 2018 for that race, where he ended up being second. Since then, he has shown great durability, but has not really been taking on the level of competition he sees here today in a while.
#5- Starship Sweeper (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by S Ryan)- Twenty two times Starship Sweeper has entered the starting gate. Zero times has he visited the winners circle. The maiden has been in stakes before, and has been a consistent seventh place finisher in them. Standard MSW’s have seen him hit the board, but be unable to win. He was five lengths out in one, albeit in the mud, in his last start. This does not create confidence that he is about to win the Forego.
#6- Tallamadge Star (Our Athletes, ridden by J R Velazquez)- Picked up in private sales for $200.000 in December, and up to this point has had a great career in the Our Athletes silks. He has been first or second in all of his five starts, with the biggest win being the Grade 2 Nerud, coming last month at BEL. Naturally, that makes you feel very good about his chances to win this similar race here. He was good with Oquinn Farm, too, running second in the BC Sprint last year. Ran in the Forego last year and nearly won, placing second in a photo.
#7- Geronimo (Nakamura Stables, ridden by V R Carrasco)- This is a horse that will always be remembered for his 2020 KYD, when he went out and set that blistering pace. He’s been a lot more than that, however, and has scored three wins in his last five starts. The biggest victory was the Grade 3 Bold Venture at WO, but the most telling result was his last outing, where he was the runner up in the Crosby. We should not be surprised that Geronimo has developed into a top sprinter, and he is a good threat here.
#8- On The Turning Away (Gdp Inc., ridden by L Saez)- We saw this one in the Crosby as well, and he finished one spot behind Geronimo in the third position. He does have two wins this year, one being an open allowance where he was dropped into for some reason, and the other being a far more impressive score in the Grade 1 Carter Handicap at AQU. If he can duplicate that effort, then he can get it done here today, but it can’t be anything short of that.
#9- Winchester (Fractious, ridden by E Jaramillo)- After running in the FL Derby and the Peter Pan, Winchester was moved to the grass by former trainer Maxmillion Farm, and he had an occasional positive moment there. He would ultimately be sold to Fractious for $250.000 in April, and so far, it has not been a huge success story. His top finish was a fourth place effort in the Grade 3 MTH Cup, and he must build on that here.
#10- Dangerfield (Mo Mentum Farm, ridden by J Lezcano)- Earlier this year, Dangerfield went on a three race winning streak that began with a FL-bred optional claimer and culminated in the Grade 2 Triple Bend Stakes at SA. He deserved the respect of being moved forward after that, but has been unable to build on that streak, with two subpar outings. This includes the Crosby last month.
#11- Korean Boyband (Night Rider Stables, ridden by J J Castellano)- He has been a good claim by the trainer after appearing to fall out of favor with Team 7 Illusions. He’s won two out of five since the $35.000 addition, with one graded victory, the Smile Sprint Handicap. It hasn’t all been roses though, because the other results show struggles, and he was only fifth in the Crosby last month.
#12- Marx On The Moon (Court Jester Racing, ridden by C J Hernandez)- This five year old horse will make the 30th start of his career, and I was surprised to see that he only has five wins. It will be almost exactly one year ago to the date for the last time he did win a race, with it coming in the Grade 2 OBrien at DMR. With a little more luck, he could have had two more wins this spring, so the effort is still there, and that is why we see him running here. Back on the main track after some runs on the grass.
#13- General Obvious (Mb Stables, ridden by D Davis)- Picked up in a $40.000 claimer last March after running in a handful of stakes with that trainer. Mb Stables waited a little bit to put him back in a stake, but he has been coming along pretty well of late. He won the Grade 3 Native Diver Stakes in November, and recently was fourth in the Vanderbilt Handicap in an impressive race time. He’s never seen a field like this, however.
Prediction: 6-7-3-8
— NS
Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES
