Looks to be a three-horse race in the 1 1/16-mile $300,000 Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park. Although NOBLE'S PROMISE and LOOKIN AT LUCKY are making their first starts on dirt, their respective trainers, Ken McPeek and Bob Baffert, expect their colts to run big. If his morning workouts at Gulfstream are any indication McPeek could be right. NOBLE'S PROMISE could make himself a legit contender with a big performance on Saturday.
LOOKIN AT LUCKY, the Breeders' Cup Juvenile runner-up and Cash Call Futurity winner, is making his first start in more than two months while adding blinkers for the first time. Garrett Gomez makes the trip for a horse who needs to run a big one to prove he belongs on top. With a better trip on Saturday I expect DUBLIN to be right there at the end of this one, too. Racing wide on both turns in the Southwest he came roaring down the lane to finish 2nd on a speed favoring track to Conveyance who had everything his own way on the front end that day. The one thing that concerns me is the short rest after a big comeback race. Let's hope three weeks was enough and he will have plenty of time after this to prepare for the Derby.
All eyes are on SUPER SAVER. in the 1 1/16-mile Tampa Bay Derby at Tampa. The Todd Pletcher trainee was last seen going pole to pole in the KY Jockey Club. Razor Ramon Dominguez retains the mount on this Maria's Mon colt who has been working steadily at Pletcher's winter base in Florida, Palm Meadows. He will need to be on his game though, as the up-and-coming ODYSSEUS trained by Tom Albertrani is seeking his 3rd straight since romping in an entry level allowance by double digits. Other horses to watch looking to make themselves Derby Contenders are SCHOOLYARD DREAMS and UPTOWNCHARLYBROWN who finished 2nd and 3rd respectively to RULE In the Sam Davis.
The 1 1/16-mile $150,000 San Filipe Stakes at Santa Anita appears to be a wide-open affair. Here are the angles to consider:
(1) CARACORTADO puts his winning streak on the line as he goes for his 6th straight.
(2) INTERACTIF , the talented Broken Vow colt is switching to the synthetic surface after racing exclusively on turf.
(3) AMERICAN LION will add blinkers for this race and it seems Julien Leparoux is not ready to give up on this one either as he flies in once again for the mount. Look for an improvment after he disappointed in his last.
4) SIDNEYS CANDY will be stretching out past 7f for the first time but the way he drew off in the San Vicente I would not be worried by the added ground. This good-looking son of Candy Ride has had several fast drills to suggest John Sadler has him ready to run another big one.
See Rob's previous columns:
(Rob, a horse trainer at Assiniboia Downs, is an exceptional analyst of 3-year-old talent, having won "Road to the Triple Crown" contests two years in a row.)
