O'Dwyer Looks to Capitalize on Good Juvenile Form

Trainer Jeremiah O'Dwyer and some of his owners will attempt to capitalize on the sharp form of a pair of juveniles by sending them through the ring at Fasig-Tipton's July Sale of Horses of Racing Age. One of those 2-year-olds is maiden winner Such Great Heights (Awesome Again), but the other, Rookie Salsa (Two Step Salsa), is already a stakes winner and looks to capture his first graded event Saturday in the GIII Bashford Manor S. at Churchill Downs.

A debut winner at Laurel Apr. 19, Rookie Salsa followed suit with a win in the Kentucky Juvenile S. at Churchill Downs May 1. The $15,000 FTKOCT buy was third last time out in Belmont's Tremont S. June 7.

“He is going to the sale off some good form,” said O'Dwyer, who graciously granted the TDN an interview while pool side in Mexico on the final day of his honeymoon. “He has been training well and my owners are game to take a chance. I am very pleased with him. He looks great and came out of [the race at Belmont] in good order. He is obviously a nice 2-year-old, he is sound and enjoys his job. He seems to bounce back very quick. I don't see why he wouldn't give a good performance again.”

The fact that Rookie Salsa already boasts a stakes win beneath the Twin Spires, gives his conditioner added confidence heading into Saturday's test.

“It is favorable,” O'Dwyer said. “I wouldn't be as keen to run him back at Belmont, let's say, before the sale. I am keen to run him back at Churchill on that surface. I have galloped him over the Churchill surface myself and he definitely goes well over that. He proved that he can run over it and quicken up off it.”

The Irishman added, “He has to give weight this time, which is what I am most concerned about. He has to give four pounds to some of those maidens. Every 2-year-old has to improve and take a step forward. Some regress. It is whoever shows up on the day. Like I said, my horse is in very good form. We are going to take a chance and try to enhance his value before he goes to the sale.”

If Rookie Salsa does not perform as well as O'Dwyer expects Saturday, he could end up keeping his stall in the young conditioner's Laurel barn.

“It is sort of a catch 22 because if he ended up having a bad run, it would devalue him,” said O'Dwyer, who also trains Silverbulletday S. winner Needs Supervision (Paynter). “We wouldn't want to send him to the sale if he performs poorly because he wouldn't get a fair look. He would have to run well to go to the sale. That would be my opinion. He is a nice horse. He is a Florida-bred, so if we still have him, we can take him out there and he can run in those Florida-bred stakes.”

O'Dwyer continued, “If he runs a poor race, I would doubt we would take him to the sale because we don't want to give him away, but I think he has a good chance. We want to capitalize on his good form. The owners has put a lot of money into the game and I am trying to get a good return for them. If somebody does buy him, they will be very pleased with him. He is a beautiful horse to be around, very clean limbed. He has never had a touch of sore shins or nothing. He hasn't missed a beat from day one. He is a trainer's dream to have.”

Rookie Salsa is catalogued as Hip 534 with the Hunter Valley consignment, who will also offer his stablemate Such Great Heights as Hip 555. Also a $15,000 yearling purchase, albeit at the Keeneland September Sale, the bay filly graduated by 3 1/2 lengths on debut while in for a $25,000 tag at Laurel June 9. She is owned by O'Dwyer's wife Alison Wilaby and his friend and fellow trainer John Ennis' wife Erin Lynn Ennis.

“I bought her with a friend of mine last year and we gave her to our significant others,” said O'Dwyer. “She won first time out, so we put her in the sale to see if we can turn over a bit of money and reinvest it again. She has done very well and has a little bit of a page. She has improved and will be better when she goes a little longer. At the same time we won't be giving her away. If she makes what we think she is worth, we will sell. If not, we will be happy to keep her. She is another one who didn't race on any Lasix and she is very sound and clean limbed.”

He continued, “I think they will be very pleased with her physically. She is very well built, a nice filly to look at. We will try to capitalize on what she has done already. If we get a good offer for her, she will be sold. If not, we will go on with her.”

While O'Dwyer's main focus is on training his stable, which has blossomed from a dozen horses at the start of the year to 27 currently, he does realize that racing is a business and there are different ways to make a profit, including selling.

“We buy a couple every year to try and turnover,” the horseman said. “It is a business at the end of the day. I like to have a couple of horses to train, but I have to try to generate some income from another source. If they are ready to run and run good, I think why not put them into the sale. People want horses that are ready to run.”

The Fasig-Tipton July Horses of Racing Age Sale will be held at Newtown Paddocks Monday, July 8 at 4:00 p.m.