The KYD (Grade 1)- $2,000.000 Purse
CD- For Three Year Olds
One Mile and One Quarter on the Dirt
May 7, 2016  

Well, some things are difficult to pick.  Choosing the winner of a 20-horse field in our virtual world when they are twenty of the absolute best in the game is not an easy task.  There was not much talk about Water Mummy leading up to the race as being the horse to beat.   Certainly, I was more partial to the trainer’s other horse, Missing In Action.   Other SRF writers were asked for their picks, and none of them included Water Mummy in their selections.  Even Lanfranco Stable, looked past this one in his pick, mentioning that the horse had not won in 2016 up until this point.  The prior three mentions of this horse before this race was over, was by the trainer saying that he was willing to sell the horse.  We all had our chance!   Surely now, Water Mummy was either found a long term home with Downwind Stables, or that offer he would have to be given to sell, just doubled or tripled!   No one would say that Water Mummy was a bad horse, as he had earned his spot here pretty well.  Second in the Swale and Risen Star.  Third in the Wood Memorial.   Fourth in the BC Juvenile.  The results were there, but putting him against some of the others here, it didn’t seem like he’d be a factor.

Congratulations to Downwind Stables on getting this horse to the KYD, and allowing us a chance to see what he could do today.  In his last few races, Water Mummy had run with the leaders, but the trainer did well to remember what he had done in the Juvenile, and would not have Water Mummy be concerned with the early pace.  His trip was ideal today, just what you want to have when you start on the rail.  You still have to execute when such a trip presents itself, and Water Mummy did that with authority!

For Downwind Stables, this is the first TC win that he has picked up, and his 13th career win in a Grade 1. I can only imagine the kind of jubilation that he is feeling as he celebrates what is a goal of essentially, all of us.  The winning jockey was G L Stevens, and it’s the first time this legendary rider gets his name on our KYD leaderboard.  The time of the win was 2:01.15, and almost identical time to King Cobra last year.  Congratulations to all involved, everyone in this race should be proud of their entry, since it’s tough to earn a spot here.  Let’s look more at how it panned out!

1st- 1- Water Mummy (18/1)-   Our eventual race winner from Downwind Stables was not worried about the early pace and would choose to run near the back of the pack and to protect his position along the rail.  The first time he hit the start finish line, he would be six lengths from the lead.  He would gain some of that gap back over the first turn, and by the time the backstretch run began, he could be considered a midpack horse.  He would hold steady then at this point, and G L Stevens would wait for the perfect time to strike, although another may have made that decision for him.  At the top of the final turn, The Perfect Day came crashing down off the rail into others, which left the rail just sitting there and to be calling Water Mummy’s name.   He would take full advantage of this as he moved up in the turn as others battled for track position.  By the time they hit the top of the stretch, he was now just two and a half back of the leader, and coming on strong.  He would take the lead with just under a furlong to go, and still had plenty of energy left in the tank to hold off the What A Guarantee, who had drafted him through the hole, and Copper Beast who had a great run going, but in the middle of the race track.  In the end, Water Mummy holds them off and picks up the first career TC win for his trainer, Downwind Stables in 2:01.15! Congratulations!  Water Mummy is a three year old gelding by Mummy and out of Delaware River.  He was bred in New York by La Canada Racehorses as a yearling and was purchased unraced in the March 2015 auction for $60.010.  Congrats to all the connections!

2nd- 10- Copper Beast (17/1)– The Pan Farms entry started well and looked as though he would be closer to the front early on before it looked like R Alvarado Jr started to restrain him a little bit.  By the time they had rounded the turn, he had dropped about five lengths from the lead, running in expected company with Ned Isakoff and Atomic Twister.  Maintained this trip for the backstretch, and then would be forced a lane or two extra outside then was probably necessary due to the aggressive move of this stablemate.  This allowed him a clear lane eventually to the outside of the other Downwind Stables horse, and he was ready to make his run to the wire.  It was a valiant effort, but what did him in today in regards to winning the race was that he was about nine or so lanes over in the stretch, while the horse that beats him out in the photo to win the race, had a nice rail trip.  He simply ran out of time.

3rd- 4- What A Guarantee (17/1)- Not surprisingly, the deep closer from Blushing Meadows had no interest in the early pace and would be towards the rear early on.  Around the turn and into the backstretch, M E Smith was able to position his horse on the rail, running right behind the eventual winner, Water Mummy.  As Water Mummy began to hit his best stride in the turn and into the stretch, it was still the best decision for Smith to simply bring him on through behind him.  As soon as an opportunity presented itself, he did look to the outside of Water Mummy to try and line up the pass if possible but that one wasn’t going here and the start/finish line was coming up too soon for him here.  It was an excellent run for What A Guarantee and he may be one of the leading candidates now for the BEL.

4th- 3- Moment Of Madness (19/1)-   The Mb Stables entry started very well in this race, and may have even surprised some by being quicker then Compress was out of the gate.  He would stay right up there with the leaders, running with Compress, Champagne Supernova, and Blue Guy. At the point of the race where we often see races get won, Moment Of Madness made his move to the lead at the top of the final of the turn, and as they moved into the turn, Mb Stables had a brief moment of jubliant madness as he emerged with a length and a half lead.   Compress was backing up, and others seen as his biggest threats didn’t seem close enough.  Very late, he conceded a couple spots, and would have lost several more if the race was just slightly longer.

5th- 18- Spring Lover (31/1)- The longshot out of Mb Stables went right to the back and give himself plenty of ground to make up.  He would train by ten lengths at the half mile, and still by nine when they hit three-quarters.  On exit of the turn, he exploded with run, and looked to follow Atomic Twister through.  The worked for a little bit until he moved out of that lane to then follow the other Blushing Meadows entry, What A Guarantee, before utlimately ended up at the rail.  Might be interesting to see what this one can do with a little more race track if future TC races, if entered.

6th- 7- Atomic Twister (10/1)-   The Blushing Meadows entry got off to a rather average start and was midpack around the opening turn.  During the backstretch, he would ride along between both Water Mummy and Copper Beast, and the trainer will be wishing he could have just stayed between them the whole way!  Much easier said then done, of course, and he was probably in a pretty difficult position when The Perfect Day moved down so aggressively and caused a chain reaction move to the outside with 3.2 furlongs to go. Atomic Twister was immediately behind this by a length so it may have led to some hesitation by J Alvarado in the turn.  Wisely, the jockey repositioned Atomic Twister to go to the inside of The Perfect Day.  He runs well to the wire and ends up being in the middle of a cluster who finished in close proximity.

7th- 12- Palestinian (18/1)- Started pretty well for trainer Nakamura Stables, assuming a position just off the lead down the frontstretch, and continued to race in this position around the first turn and into the backstretch.  He seemed to have a nice lane going for himself behind Moment Of Madness when all of the sudden The Perfect Day decides he is going to go through him, and knocks him down a lane or two, forcing him into Dogs Got Wings in the process.  Showed resiliency and that it probably didn’t affect him all that much, and at the top of the stretch it really looked like he was in a great position to make his bid to win the race.  He needed to dig down for a little more, but would not have it.

8th- 20- Cliffs of Moher (22/1)- Starting from way out in left field, the Mb Stables entry would wisely not concern himself with anything happening at the front, and trail the field early on the race.  Stayed in the back of the back and watched as some position shuffling was occurring before him.  In the turn, J R Velazquez had plenty of horse underneath him and looked to make his move.  Passed a lot of horses in the stretch, and looked poised to get even closer to the front then this, but very late in the race, the jockey altered Cliffs of Moher’s path several times, and that may have cost him a third or fourth place check.   Not a bad day for Mb Stables today as all three of his entries go in the top eight.

9th- 6- The Perfect Day (6/1)- It was a rather eventful race for the second Pan Farms entry.  He was positioned quite nicely around the opening turn and was about a length and a half behind Compress has the backstretch run commenced.   At the 3.2 furlong to go mark at this race, he makes a move that, you have to say, in the real world may have seen the stewards take him down.  He aggressively shoves Palestinian, who in turn shoves Dogs Got Wings (ruining that ones race), and on the far outside, Ned Isakoff has to end up wider.  This move subsequently frees up the rail, perfectly, for Water Mummy.  For his own cause, this did him in, as he was caught behind the Champagne Supernova and Blue Guy in a very tight bunch of horses.  The trainer may be asking R A Baze why he didn’t just stay on the rail.

10th- 8- Ned Isakoff (8/1)- The entry from Jerry Garcia Racing ends up being one of the day’s disappointments, though giving his running style I thought he had a great midpack position around the opening turn and into the backstretch.  He seemed to be content to maintain this position, but when The Perfect Day made his move, the snowball effect reached him, and therefore meant that he had to be about 7-8 wide for the final turn.   He did respond well with some run at the top of the stretch, but being so far outside would simply do him in today.

11th- 14- Missing In Action (28/1)- As trainer Downwind Stables’ eventual race winner was staying along the rail with a great trip, his other entry, as expected, was out with the leaders early. As they hit the half mile, he was fifth, while running four wide and stalking the pace. This is where he would remain throughout the backstretch.  On exit of the turn, Missing In Action found himself drifting a little wider, and this would allow for others to position themselves to the inside of him.  He still had fight at this point, and looked to battle Copper Beast a little bit.  The closers and those coming off the pace would simply have more kick in the stretch, but at this point, the trainer was screaming for his winner!
 
12th- 2- Compress (5/1)-   The post time favorite, and the favorite of many within the game from Cherrytree Hill Farm was not able to get it done today.  The FL Derby winner would start well, and had a good position along the rail while stalking the leaders in the opening turn, so it seemed to be setting up according to plan.  He was less then a length from the lead down the backstretch, and seemed comfortable during this portion, but may have started to lose some ground to Moment Of Madness as they moved into the turn.  On exit of turn, eventual winner Water Mummy went flying by to the inside, and perhaps that startled Compress.  In the stretch, particularly in the final half furlong, he lost a bunch of positions.

13th- 17- Blue Guy (72/1)- Initially, the longest shot on the board from Grimley seemed as though he would be content to start midpack, but then made an aggressive move at the point of the start finish line on the first lap, and would soon emerge with the lead as they made their way around the turn.   He would be the one to lead the way as they hit a half mile in :47.07.  Blue Guy was four wide at this point, with the three others to his inside just a half length back and applying pressure.  Still led at 3/4, running that distance in 1:10.93 as Moment Of Madness prepared to strike.  Once that one got by, Blue Guy still seemed to be looking good, and as late as a furlong to go, he was still third.  He got caught up in a huge traffic jam late and surrendered a positions at that point.

14th- 9- Rising Light (23/1)- It was a decent start for the Nakamura Stables entry fresh out of the gate, and it seemed as though he would be right in the middle of things early.  Though jockey J J Hernandez looked to restrain him in the turn, and he would end up with those in the back early, and would actually run with stablemate Coup de Lyon for a while.   On exit of the turn, he looked pretty good and seemed poised to pick up a few spots.   Maintained that stride in the stretch, but he just did not have the lane in order to utilize in order to pick up more then just a few spots.

15th- 5- Copper Opus (10/1)-   The Big Guns Stables entry would go to the back of the pack early on, and would end up about nine lengths off the lead into the backstretch.   He would have a pretty good view of the racing going on in front of him as the race progressed.   As they moved into the turn, he found himself boxed in between Spring Lover and Cliffs Of Moher, with Rising Light seeming to almost back up into him at some points.  Fortunately for him, Rising Light had some run on exit of the turn, so Copper Opus was able to follow him through.  Once clear, he looked like he had a ton of run, just no where to go with it.

16th- 11- Dogs Got Wings (14/1)- Did not get out to the quick lead that we saw from him in the Spiral for trainer, Grimley.    Instead, he would end up in the middle of the pack, in the 11th position around the opening turn and between four and five lengths off the pace.  In the backstretch, he found himself with not a lot of room to run between Palestinian and Missing In Action, and when The Perfect Day made an aggressive move to the outside, the accordion effect  led to him being in even tighter quarters.  A late run by Cliffs Of Moher pretty much cancelled out any chance he would have to get a lane to make a move to the front.

17th- 15- Champagne Supernova (31/1)-   The Eastern Equine entry shot right out of the lead from the gate and had the field cleared by about a length the first time they hit the start finish line.  By the time the run around the turn had begun, he would concede the lead to the equally fast early Blue Guy. He would stay there in his shadow though over the turn and into the backstretch.  He began to lose a little ground in the turn, and when Moment Of Madness took over momentarily, Champagne Supernova began to gradually fade.  The last furlong was a struggle.

18th- 19- Coup de Lyon (60/1)- One of the longest shots on the board, this Nakamura Stables entry never was able to make his presence felt.  It started with him being about five wide into the opening turn, while near the back.  Never in this race did we see Coup de Lyon look to make a move forward, and in the stretch it just seemed as though he was less tired out then Phooeys Ideal or Snowmizer.  A rather flat performance, but there will be much better things in his future.

19th- 13- Phooeys Ideal (51/1)- Did not get the start that trainer Nynl Stables was expecting him too, and would end up near the back of the pack early on.  Around the first turn and into the backstretch, he would stabilize into the 14th position, about seven lengths from the leaders.   Looked like he might have enough fight at the top of the stretch to pick off a couple positions from others bowing out of it, but he would not be able to make it stick, and only beats Snowmizer on this day.  Having achieved his goal of the making the KYD, the trainer is proud of him and will now prepare to move into the post-derby racing plans for him.

20th- 16- Snowmizer (26/1)- This was not the debut that his new trainer D J C Racing Stables wanted with his new purchase, but hopefully it ends up just being one step back to take many forward.  He actually started fairly well, being just off the lead for the frontstretch run the first time, before tucking into a position about four lengths off the lead while running four wide.   Remained steady in the backstretch, but as they moved into the final turn, he was just not up to the task, going wide, and gradually started fading back, all the way to the end.

Track: Fast
Time: :47   1:10⁴  1:35¹  2:01

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 1 – 10 Paid 1,931.20
$1 Trifecta: 1 – 10 – 4 Paid 2,181.90

Scratched: Carneyman, Connectivity, Copper Conduit, Cozzene Lyphard

— NS

Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES, TC 2015-2020, THE TRIPLE CROWN