The Wise Dan (Grade 2)- $200.000 Purse
CD- For Three Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Turf
June 17, 2017

Sabre Kathology stepped up nicely in the Grade 2 Wise Dan, picking up his second consecutive win, and most important, against stepping up to the challenge that trainer Oval Express Farms gave him. I had a good feeling about him, and if you played our picks, you would have hit that $170.60 exacta, to partially make up for all the times our picks would have resulted in a loss. Having the six pound weight allowance seemed like a good thing for this horse on the ride. I leaned a little more towards fellow three year old Spring Stormtrooper, who went off at 15/1 surprisingly. They would be the top two in this race. For trainer Oval Express Farms, who’s been showing up more often in big races, so congrats on that alone, it is his first win in the stake. That is also true for the jockey, I Ortiz Jr. Congratulations to them! The time of the race was 1:41.06, which can’t be compared to any past edition as it was only the second edition of the race run at this distance, and we were on good turf for this, and not firm turf. Let’s look at how it played out.

(1/4 Mile- :23.15)- As we’ve seen before, the quickest horses out of the gate were the ones on the outside, with the exception of Turn Ninnie (TwinTowersRacing), who wanted nothing to do with the early pace. Eventually, it would be Spring Stormtrooper (Stald Gullis) prevailing in the run down the frontstretch and into the opening turn. Running along side him and giving him a bit of a battle was Gallivant, from John Henry, and the eventual third place runner take the spot early. The great Sir Tom (Brave) ran with them early, and Tundra Kenny was good out of the gate in his first start for Pan Farms. Sabre For Kathology broke well for Oval Express Farms, and stalked the top four. Those were the five primary runners early on. The rest were stuck in the pack, with Generals Opus (Mb Stables) in a four wide lane in the sixth position. The Land (Wolf Ridge Stables) and Full Speed Ahead (Night Rider Stables) ran side by side with surprising post-time favorite Hawaiian Maestro (Ekli Stable) a length further back. No Ragrets (Heavens Own) and Turn Ninnie were at the back.

(½ Mile- :46.64)- This portion of the race did not see a lot of movement within the field, but what we did see was Spring Stormtrooper and Gallivant start to battle it out between for the lead even harder. They would extend their lead over third place Tundra Kenny by over two lengths. Others were holding their ground and did not want to make a move yet. Sabre For Kathology was fifth at this point, and continuing to stalk the lead about 2 ½ lengths out of it.

(Top Of Stretch, 1.7F To Go)- As they reached the turn, and made their way around it, both Spring Stormtrooper and Gallivant battled one another pretty hard. Spring Stormtrooper continued to maintain a head in front, but things were starting to close in on him. The three wide battle for third gained a length in the turn and seemed poised to make a move. Sabre For Kathology was in perfect position among those three with the ability to split to two front runners. The two former BC champions on each side of him, Sir Tom and Tundra Kenny remained in the mix, but what was becoming noteworthy were the moves from behind. They fanned out quite a bit on exit of the turn as there was no other options. Hawaiian Maestro, if he was going to back up the faith of the betting public, seemed to have a good lane for late close. Full Speed Ahead ran into traffic trouble at this point.

(Finish- 1:41.06)- It was a thing of beauty to watch Sabre Of Kathology take the opening between Spring Stormtrooper and Gallivant. Once in the lane, he seemed to make the pass pretty easily and was pulling away at the end. He would hit the wire with a victory of a little more then a length. Behind them, we had one of our classic HRP wall finishes, but the two pacesetters would cling to the second and third place finishes, with Spring Stormtrooper edging out Gallivant. Completing the wall were the The Land, Sir Tom, Hawaiian Maestro, and Turn Ninnie from centerfield. Tundra Kenny was a length behind it, with another length to Full Speed Ahead and Generals Opus. No Ragrets rounds it out.

About The Winner: Sabre For Kathology, trained by Oval Express Farms, and ridden by I Ortiz Jr, is a three year old gelding by Rhythm Kathology and out of Green Sabre. He was bred in New York by Oval Express as a first quarter two year old, and they have been together throughout. Congratulations to the connections! The win was his third in seven starts, his second in a row, and first career graded win. His career earnings now sit at $192.520.

Track: Good
Time: :23   :46³  1:10¹  1:41

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 5 – 9 Paid 170.60
$1 Trifecta: 5 – 9 – 11 Paid 700.40

Scratched: None

Exacta Picked By NS

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES