J Boys Echo rallies to upset the Gotham

When March comes around and you are on the 2017 Kentucky Derby Trail it only takes one big effort and you have a spot in the starting gate at Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May. So, it was for trainer Dale Romans, when J Boys Echo made a big closing move to win the $300,000 Gotham (G3) by a decisive margin of 3½ lengths.

From his very first start as a two-year-old at Churchill, J Boys Echo showed a lot of talent as a horse that liked to rally from behind. He finished second in that initial start and three weeks later the son of Mineshaft broke his maiden at Keeneland. He picked up his first Kentucky Derby point when he ran fourth in the Delta Jackpot. Romans decided to bring the $485,000 yearling purchase to New York for his three-year-old debut in the Withers. There, J Boys Echo picked up a couple more Derby points when he finished third behind El Areeb.

All that would change in the Gotham, when J Boys Echo and his regular rider, Robby Albarado, got a perfect race set-up. Out of the gate, the odds-on (2-5) favorite El Areeb was hustled to the lead and was immediately challenged by True Timber. Those race tactics were a bit surprising considering that El Areeb and his jockey Trevor McCarthy had won the first two New York prep races by relaxing off the pace in the early going. True Timber refused to let El Areeb get loose today and the two of them carved out early fractions of 23.58, 47.70, and 1:13.59.

Cathal Lynch trainer of El Areeb said, “I knew that horse [J Boys Echo, No. 1] was going to run well because he ran well last time, but pace killed us today. Trevor [McCarthy] said he looked back twice and he said he had already committed [to being in front] at that point. Once they came out of the gate, they were already into the first turn. It was too late to go changing his mind at that stage.  He ran his race and he'll come back and fight another day. There's plenty of options. This is a nice horse and he'll do well later on. I'm not sure, I'll talk to the owners and decide what we're going to do next."

All the while, the eventual winner sat in fourth position, at one point seven lengths behind.  After six furlongs, the battle on the front end began to take its toll on El Areeb and True Timber. Albarado asked J Boys Echo to move on the leaders and it wouldn’t take long for them take the lead as they accelerated around the final turn into the stretch. At the top of the stretch they had taken the lead and drew off to win the mile and a sixteenth contest in a final time of 1:46.34.

With his victory, J Boys Echo became a graded stakes winner and most importantly earned 50 qualifying points and now with a total of 53, trainer Dale Romans has enough points to have his eighth career runner in the Kentucky Derby. Romans has two third place finishes in the Run for the Roses with Paddy O’ Prado in 2010 and Dullahan in 2012.

"I wasn't paying attention up front as much as my horse was moving down the backside,” said Romans. “I was just focused on him and when we got the gap between both groups just sitting open and I knew Robby could go around or inside whatever he felt like doing and he looked like he was moving comfortable at the half-mile pole we just started gaining on them and I knew he wasn't going to back up. I felt pretty good going into the last turn. He geared down, it was a pretty good move and he saved a little more for the next spot. He's coming around at the right time and the right way.”

In only his second career start, Cloud Computing rallied to get second place and 20 Derby points while 7 ½ lengths ahead of El Areeb, who now has a total of 30 points. Action Everyday raced evenly to finish fourth and earn the remaining 5 points.

The Albaugh Family Stable runner upped his career stats to 5: 2-1-1 with earnings of $299,600. Sent off as the 6-1 second betting choice J Boys Echo returned $14.80, 7.30, and 2.70 across the board. Cloud Computing, who was 7-1, completed the $114.50 exacta. The $2 trifecta down to El Areeb paid $218.

"We'll have to talk about where we go next,” said Romans. “It's hard for me to skip the [Grade 2] Bluegrass [April 8] and both races [along with the Grade 2 Wood Memorial] unjustly downgraded to Grade 2's.”