Sometimes horse racing is akin to dodge ball. Just ask Bob Baffert. Originally headed towards last weekend's GI Awesome Again S. and the thankless task of facing California Chrome (Lucky Pulpit), Hoppertunity (Any Given Saturday) was instead re-routed for Saturday's $1-million GI Jockey Club Gold Cup. The decision reaped rewards when the veteran entire sat handy to a moderate tempo and outfinished favored Effinex to earn a date against Chrome and company in the GI Breeders' Cup Classic Nov. 5. And there will be no ducking anyone then.
Saturday, Belmont Park
JOCKEY CLUB GOLD CUP S.-GI, $980,000, BEL, 10-8, 3yo/up,
1 1/4m, 2:00.68, ft.
1–HOPPERTUNITY, 126, h, 5, by Any Given Saturday
1st Dam: Refugee (SP, $114,070), by Unaccounted For
2nd Dam: Polish Maid, by Danzig
3rd Dam: Davona Dale, by Best Turn
($300,000 Ylg '12 KEESEP). O-Karl Watson, Michael E. Pegram
& Paul Weitman; B-Betz/D.J. Stable/Kidder/J. Betz/Robenalt
(KY); T-Bob Baffert; J-John R. Velazquez. $600,000. Lifetime
Record: 22-6-6-4, $3,562,675. *1/2 to Executiveprivilege (First
Samurai), MGISW, $999,000; and Profit (Not For Love), SP,
$180,285. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.[bullet ad=”lanni-hillndale-purchased”][bullet ad=”kbif-g1″]2–Effinex, 126, h, 5, Mineshaft">Mineshaft–What a Pear, by E Dubai.
O-Tri-Bone Stables; B-Russell S. Cohen (NY); T-James A.
Jerkens. $200,000.[bullet ad=”best-a-luck-farm-shell”][bullet ad=”nytb-20000″]3–Protonico, 126, h, 5, Giant's Causeway–Alpha Spirit, by A.P.
Indy. O-Sumaya U.S. Stable; B-International Equities Holding,
Inc. (KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher. $100,000.
Margins: HF, 2HF, 4 3/4. Odds: 3.80, 1.25, 6.40.
Also Ran: Mubtaahij (Ire), Watershed. Scratched: War Story.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
Hoppertunity, who led home a sophomore 1-2-3 in the 2014 GI Clark H., won the GII San Pasqual S. and was second to Effinex in defense of the Clark in nine trips to the post last season. Victorious in the GII San Antonio S. to kick off this campaign, the bay was third to California Chrome in the G1 Dubai World Cup Mar. 26, taking home a cool $1-million check, but had rolled a hard eight in his last two, with fourth-place efforts in the GI Gold Cup at Santa Anita June 25 and to California Chrome in the GI TVG Pacific Classic Aug. 20.
Hoppertunity fell out of the gates and lobbed along from last, hugging the fence and never far from the front, as Protonico (Giant's Causeway) and Effinex crawled through the opening half-mile in a pedestrian :49.03. The cadence quickened as they raced through an internal quarter-mile in :23.15, but Hoppertunity was keeping pace for John Velazquez, even if he was being niggled along to do so. With Mike Smith swinging off Effinex, the duo loomed up outside of Protonico and the race looked like his to lose, but Hoppertunity was switched away from the fence and into the clear to make best use of his grinding style. Almost lazily, Effinex inched up to grab a narrow lead approaching the eighth pole, but it was Hoppertunity who was finishing more generously to scoop his second career top-level success.
“There wasn't a whole lot of speed in the race other than Effinex,” commented Jimmy Barnes, traveling assistant to Baffert. “Everybody stayed sensible. The most important thing for Hopper is that he was standing good and broke good and he was placed more forwardly in the race, especially on a slow pace, that's probably why he was a little closer. We always thought in our minds that he would like these big turns here, and this big, deep track where he would have a chance to come from behind.”
The winner and runner-up are on track for a rematch in the Classic.
Pedigree Notes:
A half-brother to multiple Grade I-winning TDN Rising Star Executiveprivilege, also campaigned by this triumvirate, Hoppertunity is also kin to LNJ Foxwoods' Freedom (War Front), a $650,000 Keeneland September purchase who was most recently a neck away from breaking her maiden over the Churchill turf course Sept. 22. Refugee's foal of 2015, a filly by Tapit, was hammered down to Crupi's New Castle Farm for $1.3 million, the third-dearest price for a foal at last year's Keeneland November sale. She foaled a colt by War Front this past May 23.
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