Sullivan Stakes ($100.000 Purse)
GG- For Three Year Olds Foaled in CA
One Mile on the Turf
May 1, 2016
Younger turf horses bred in California that might not quite be able to contend with graded runners (at least not yet) get their chance to shine this weekend at GG in the seventh running of the Sullivan Stakes. it will be the sixth time that the race runs as restricted to California breds as the inaugural event was an open affair. The race was in 2005, and then the race disappeared on our schedule until 2009. After that season, it took another two years off before becoming a regular staple on the schedule in 2012. The most prolific past winner when the race has been run as CA-bred only, is 2014 winner Pip Cozzene, which was in that gelding’s prime. Pip Cozzene now proudly races under this writer’s silks and will still be seen on the race track from time to time this year. On Sunday, a field of seven up and comers will contest this race in hopes of one day getting to that figure as well. This race has no standout at the current time, though a few of these have run at the highest of levels and still one day may be headlining bigger and better things. It is actually a very good field, and should be a very interesting race. Let us now look a little more at these runners.
#1- Western Ideal (Night Mare Racing, ridden by J Delgadillo)- The fantastic bloodlines of this colt immediately jumped out at me. The sire, Broomstick Nebraska, should need no further introduction in that he is the sire of the great Broomsticks Copy, one of the game’s few two-time Breeders Cup Champions. The dam Antiquated Idea is a six-time graded stake winner and former fifth place runner in the BC Ladies Classic in what may have been HRP’s best ever season of racing on the fillies and mares side. Western Ideal has a way to go, and only broke his maiden in his last start despite the trainer entering him in races such as the OT Juvenile Turf before he won a race. Other then the dreaded short femur, he is conformed well, making this really a horse that you want to root for and support. He’s going to have to continue to develop and mature, though, as he really hasn’t yet had two good races in a row. Added lasix for the first time in his last start prior to winning, and will have it again.
#2- Bottoms Out (Blushing Meadows, ridden by J J Hernandez)- The Copper Bottom gelding is coming off a fantastic two year old season that saw him run second in the Grade 3 Iroquois, then third in the Breeders Futurity a month later. The trainer can look back at them and smile, knowing Bottoms Out once defeated The Perfect Day, Edwin Drood, Dogs Got Wings, and others that will be seen in the KYD. That may seem like an eternity ago, but Bottoms Out may be beginning to find his niche on the turf now. Since being moved to the grass at the start of the year, he won his first two races, a pair of allowances, before being moved up to the Grade 3 Transylvania Stakes at the bginning of April, and proceeded to disappoint. He seems better then he ran there, so perhaps there is a good excuse for that run, making him poised for a big run here.
#3- Know How Skeleton (Chili King Stables, ridden by D Ch Lopez)- The run of impressive pedigree continues with this colt, being by Skeleton Key, who is quickly becoming a very good sire. Like Western Ideal, the bloodlines are just as good as on the dam side with Thirlling Know How, otherwise known as the dam of Know How Causeway. That one won a little over $1,800.000 over the course of his career, including a win in the Grade 1 BEL Oaks and third place finish in the fillies and mare’s turf of 2014. Know How Skeleton is already proving to be on to watch, and has been seen in races like the Grade 3 Bourbon. However, so far he has not really made his presence felt in bigger races. Though, he looks to still be developing, and is one to watch. A win here can go a long way for him.
#4- Escobas Grandes (Drabfantasy, ridden by R A Baze)- As is becoming common with this stable, Escobas Grandes was thrust into top competition immediately, making his debut in the $100.000 King Glorious Stakes for CA-breds, and he defeated two others (one of which also from the same stable doing the same thing. Before we go further, how can that race, which was in December, have only three runners? Another example of how statebred racing needs to improve here). The result shows why it can be a risk worth taking to place horses highly from the start. The other two races in which he has run in are none other then the LA Derby and TAM Derby, both in March. Now off of the derby trail, this will be his turf debut, and continuing with the bloodlines theme, you absolutely have to like his pedigree to run on the grass. There is talent here, but also seems a little raw, and I do usually shy away from this type when making my selections.
#5- Power Indy (Power Racing, ridden by D Van Dyke)- Only recently has Power Indy been showing that he can be a stake quality horse, providing another example of what a geld can do. Before the snip, Power Indy was 1-for-4, running in claimers, and then turned in flat performance in a N1X allowance at TUP. That race cost him his ability to breed, but the trainer immediately saw dividends with a dramatically improved performance in winning a $50.000 claiming race at SA. That was followed up with a victory in a N1X at PRX, running a similar distance. In this race we will see if he can advance his career a little further, and he runs against some good though even company here for the trainer to see how Power Indy measures up.
#6- Virgin Sturgeon (Wolfs Den, ridden by A Cedillo)- If you were at the track watching workouts on Monday, you witnessed a horse fire off quite an amazing mile turf work that you likely assumed was a past graded stake winner based on the time. Only three others have worked faster in 2016 at the same distance on the GG turf. Despite the work, the new gelding is a virgin when it comes to racing on the turf. Up to this point, his results have been ok in mid to higher level claimers, but there is a sense that the past simply doesn’t matter today. How will Virgin Sturgeon fare on the turf? Because if you look at the works it may leave you wondering what took so long to get him there. As far as what a geld can do, one needs to look no further then his neighbor in the starting gate to the inside. There’s a lot to be excited about here, and if his odds climb, which they might, play him. Heck, bet on him in some way, regardless.
#7- Handsome Stallion (Pacific Diamond, ridden by Ru Gonzalez)- The Chai Chicken colt is not only handsome (and his conformation does back it up), he is also fast. In five races, he has won twice, and has only failed to hit the board one time. His most recent race saw him win the $35.000 Tempe Handicap at TUP. Those $35.000 TUP stakes often serve as a proving grounds, if you will, for unaccomplished horses to show that they are stake quality, and Handsome Stallion rose up to the occasion. The win earned him a 94 SRF figure, a number only others in this field has been able to surpass. Handsome Stallion’s stock is rising, and a good run here may be enough to get him running in graded company in his next start.
Prediction: 3-6-5-2
— NS
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded
