Unlike Bob Baffert and waiting until the Kentucky Derby to test his synthetic-only horse Pioneerof the Nile one of his West Coast counterpoints is shiping off Santa Anita ‘soil’ and testing the real stuff next month: I Want Revenge (traine by Jeff Mullins) and and ridden by Joe Talamo will move their show in New York.
I Want Revenge will ship cross-country later this week to prepare for a start in the Grade 3, $250,000 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct on March 7.
"He didn’t act like he handled Santa Anita that well, not as well as he did Hollywood Park,’’ Mullins said. "Hollywood Park has basically transformed into a dirt track anyway. If we got Triple Crown dreams, we want to see if he can handle the dirt or not before we get too far.’’
Mullins said he is hoping to line up transportation later this week to fly I Want Revenge to New York so that he could get one workout over the inner track before the Gotham. Mullins said if I Want Revenge were to run well in the Gotham - run at 1 1/16 miles - he may stay in New York and run in the Grade 1 Wood Memorial over Aqueduct’s main track on April 4.
Looks like Ramon Dominguez is off Haynesfield although that’s simply out of circumstances for now although in the Kentucky Derby Ramon would be up on Old Fashioned anyhow.
Carol Seaver, the racing manager for Harvey Weinstein’s Turtle Bird Stable, said Monday afternoon that Weinstein has chosen C.C. Lopez to ride Haynesfield in the Gotham. Ramon Dominguez, who had ridden Haynesfield to three consecutive stakes wins, is committed to ride Court Vision that day in the $1 million Santa Anita Handicap.
Some other Gotham runners in addition to Masala, Naos and Imperial Council include:
Mr. Fantasy, unbeaten in two starts; Russell Road, a winner of six straight at Charles Town and Laurel; and possibly Wildcat Brief, second in the Fred “Cappy” Capossela Stakes.
