Kentucky Derby 134 Update: April 7

TOP STORIES:

- Tale of Ekati Overhauls War Pass in Wood Memorial
- Colonel John Strikes Late to Win Santa Anita Derby
- Recapturetheglory Wires Illinois Derby Field

EAST/TALE OF EKATI PUTS TAGG SQUARELY IN DERBY PICTURE – Trainer Barclay Tagg, who had his first taste of Kentucky Derby success in 2003 with Funny Cide, added to his potential 2008 arsenal for Churchill Downs on Saturday when Charles Fipke’s Tale of Ekati surged past Robert LaPenta’s War Pass in deep stretch to post a half-length triumph in the $750,000 Wood Memorial (GI) at Aqueduct.

The time for the mile and an eighth over a track labeled as “fast” was 1:52.35.

Ridden by Edgar Prado, Tale of Ekati turned the tables on War Pass, who had beaten him by 17 ½ lengths in last fall’s Bessemer Trust Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (GI) at Monmouth Park. A son of Tale of the Cat out of the Sunday Silence mare Silence Beauty, Tale of Ekati improved his record to 6-3-1-0 with earnings of $769,200.

Tagg, who sent Tale of Ekati to Keeneland on Sunday, has two other Kentucky Derby hopefuls, Eric Fein’s Big Truck and Robert S. Evans’ Elysium Fields, stabled at the Lexington track. Big Truck beat War Pass in the Tampa Bay Derby (GIII) in his most recent start on March 15 and Elysium Fields is coming off an 11th-place finish in the March 29 Florida Derby (GI).

“Elysium Fields may go in the Blue Grass, and I’m not sure yet what I’m going to do with Big Truck,” Tagg said Sunday morning. “I’ve been traveling a lot lately, and I want to see both horses work before I make any decisions.”

Two-time Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Nick Zito was happy with the performance of War Pass.

“It was the only big race that I finished second in that I appreciated it as a win,” Zito said on Sunday morning. “He ran as tough as he could and showed what kind of horse he is, especially the way the race shaped up.”

War Pass had entered the Wood Memorial off a last-place finish, beaten 23 lengths, as the 1-20 favorite in the Tampa Bay Derby.

“Obviously this sets him up great for the Derby,” Zito said. “He got nothing out of his race in Tampa, so he needed this.”

Closing strongly to finish third, 1 ¼ lengths behind War Pass, was IEAH Stables and WinStar Farm’s Court Vision. Trainer Bill Mott indicated Sunday morning at Keeneland that Court Vision would ship to Churchill Downs.

J BE K IS A-OK IN BAY SHORE – Zayat Stables’ J Be K rated off the pace set by Go Go Shoot before exploding to a clear lead and cruising home five lengths best in the $150,000 Bay Shore Stakes (GIII) at Aqueduct on Saturday.

Trained by Steve Asmussen, J Be K remained undefeated in three starts around one turn, completing the seven furlongs over a track rated as fast in 1:23.67. Now three-for-four lifetime with earnings of $157,200, J Be K’s lone loss was in the mile and a sixteenth Louisiana Derby (GII).

J Be K is a son of Silver Deputy out of the Valid Wager mare Major Wager.

Germania Farms’ Gattopardo rallied for second, finishing three lengths clear of Alan Cook’s Jockey Ridge. The first three finishers are Triple Crown nominees.

WEST/COLONEL JOHN EMERGES AS CALIFORNIA’S BEST – WinStar Farm’s Colonel John rallied from far off the pace to collar Jeff Harmon and Tim Kasparoff’s Bob Black Jack in deep stretch to capture Saturday’s $750,000 Santa Anita Derby (GI) at Santa Anita by a half-length.

A homebred son of Tiznow out of the Turkoman mare Sweet Damsel, Colonel John improved his record to 4-2-0 in six career races with earnings of $825,300. Trained by Eoin Harty, Colonel John covered the mile and an eighth in 1:48.16 over Santa Anita’s all-weather surface.

Coast Guard, owned by the Amerman Racing Stable, set the pace with Bob Black Jack rating in second through early fractions of :23.33, :47.57, and 1:11.64 while Colonel John bided his time along the inside before jockey Corey Nakatani swung him wide into the stretch. Bob Black Jack grabbed the lead from Coast Guard in midstretch, but could not hold off Colonel John.

Coast Guard finished a length back of Bob Black Jack in third, 2 ½ lengths clear of Yankee Bravo, who was 1 ¼ lengths better than race favorite El Gato Malo.

“He certainly proved himself as a contender (for the Kentucky Derby), and justified the faith I’ve always had in him,” Harty said Sunday morning. “I’ve always felt Colonel John was a very good horse and it all came together yesterday.”

Harty said after the race he planned to give Colonel John two works at Santa Anita before shipping to Churchill Downs 12 days before the Kentucky Derby and having one workout there.

James Kasparoff, trainer of Bob Black Jack, said Sunday: “He looks good right now, and I’d say we have no plans right now, but the Kentucky Derby is an option. Over the next week and a half, we’ll discuss everything, but he’s got to be doing well and show me he deserves to go.”

Trainer David Hofmans said of Coast Guard: “We are not considering the Kentucky Derby. I don’t know what we’re doing yet.”

Craig Dollase, trainer of El Gato Malo, said Sunday that no decision had been made on El Gato Malo’s next race.

MIDWEST/RECAPTURETHEGLORY UPSETS ILLINOIS DERBY FIELD – It was a blast from the past in suburban Chicago on Saturday as Louie Roussel III and Ronald Lamarque’s Recapturetheglory posted a wire-to-wire, four-length victory in the $500,000 Illinois Derby (GII) over Golden Spikes.

Ridden by E.T. Baird, Recapturetheglory covered the mile and an eighth on a track rated as fast in 1:49.01. Trained by Roussel, Recapturetheglory is a son of Cherokee Run out of the Dehere mare Cold Awakening. A late nominee to the Kentucky Derby and Triple Crown, Recapturetheglory improved his record to 2-1-2 in six races and hiked his earnings to $333,080.

“Louis Roussel named this wonderful horse Recapturetheglory because the Kentucky Derby got away from us,” Lamarque said referring to the duo’s Kentucky Derby run 20 years ago when Risen Star ran third at Churchill Downs but came back to win the Preakness (G1) and Belmont Stakes (G1).

After the race, Lamarque said: “I told Louie to pack his bags. We’re going to the Kentucky Derby.”

Golden Spikes, owned by M375 Thoroughbreds and Suarez Racing Stable, finished three-quarters of a length in front of Zayat Stables’ Z Humor, who in turn was another three-quarters of a length in front of Dogwood Stable’s Atoned.

The race favorite, Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warren Jr.’s previously undefeated Denis of Cork, finished a non-threatening fifth, three lengths behind Atoned.

TRIPLE CROWN NOMINEES TAKE KEENELAND STAKES – Vision Racing’s Keep Laughing outgamed a fast-closing Hatta Fort (GB) by a nose to win Sunday’s $110,300 Lafayette Stakes at Keeneland.

Ridden by John Velazquez and trained by Kiaran McLaughlin, Keep Laughing covered the seven furlongs over the Polytrack surface in 1:22.26. The victory improved Keep Laughing’s record to 3-2-1-0 with earnings of $100,386. Keep Laughing is a son of Distorted Humor out of the Personal Flag mare It’s Personal.

Hatta Fort, owned by Godolphin Racing, is not a Triple Crown nominee. Zayat Stables’ Eaton’s Gift, who had won the Swale (GII) in his previous start, finished third, another 2 ¾ lengths back.  Even-money favorite Kodiak Kowboy finished 4 ½ lengths farther back in fourth.

On Friday, Uptown Racing’s Boss Lafitte registered a half-length victory over fellow Triple Crown nominee Riley Tucker, owned by Zayat Stables, in the $150,000 Central Bank Transylvania Stakes.

The race was moved from the turf to Keeneland’s Polytrack surface because of heavy rain late Thursday and early Friday.

Trained by Tom Amoss, Boss Lafitte covered the mile and a sixteenth in 1:44.43. Amoss indicated Boss Lafitte may run next in the Crown Royal American Turf (GIII) to be run May 2.

Other Triple Crown nominees in the Transylvania were Prussian, owned by Monticule LLC, who finished fourth, and Godolphin Racing’s Barrier Reef, who finished seventh.