What we learned: After good trip, Jack Christopher struggles

As the heavy favorite, Jack Christopher needed to answer whether he could handle the nine-furlong distance in the Haskell Stakes (G1) at Monmouth Park. Previously, the son of Munnings had competed at one mile or less with a 4-for-4 record, including two Grade 1 wins and one Grade 2 win.

But after a great trip sitting off the long-shot pacesetter Benevengo, Jack Christopher came up a few lengths short as Cyberknife won over Taiba.

When the gates opened, Jack Christopher and Benevengo were sent from the outside posts to clear the field and head to the front. Jack Christopher let Benevengo cross over, and Jack Christopher took his usual spot in second.

Benevengo set opening fractions of 23.60 and 46.96 seconds. Without thinking about the entire day, those fractions might seem lightning fast for nine furlongs. Earlier in the card, Antigravity set opening fractions in the nine-furlong Monmouth Cup Stakes (G3) in 23.63 and 47.47. The strange part about Antigravity is that he was a closer on paper. 

Despite the faster 46.96-second half-mile, Jack Christopher still settled into a perfect position relative to his past races. In all four starts before the Haskell, Jack Christopher traveled in second in the opening quarter.

Plus, when a talented horse in second is chasing an overmatched pacesetter, it should almost feel like no horse is in front of him. The class difference between Benevengo and Jack Christopher was large.

As they rounded the far turn and hit six furlongs in 1:09.83 on the fast dirt surface, Jack Christopher started to inch toward the lead. But it seemed clear that he could not separate from the field.

Jack Christopher had the lead at the top of the stretch, but he gave no indication of a horse ready to open up on the field. Rather, he seemed tired. Howling Time made an outside move, while Cyberknife waited for room and Taiba moved outside of Howling Time to set up his stretch bid.

Taiba took the lead from Jack Christopher before Cyberknife found his path on the inside and rallied in front of the California-based shipper to prevail by a head. Given his traffic problems, Cyberknife was capable of winning by more if he had nothing to stop him on the turn. 

Cyberknife finished the nine furlongs in 1:46.24 for a 102 Beyer Speed Figure. Jack Christopher lost by only two lengths, which means he likely still earned a high Beyer Figure not far from the 102 for Cyberknife and Taiba.

Numbers aside, it just does not feel like Jack Christopher wants nine furlongs. In three of his four races, Jack Christopher had widened his lead from the stretch to the finish line. Just recently in the Woody Stephens Stakes (G1), he went from leading by four lengths in the stretch to 10 lengths at the wire.

In this race, Jack Christopher let the 18th- and 12th-place finishers from the Kentucky Derby pass him. Cyberknife and Taiba both came into the Haskell as past Grade 1 winners, but neither runner looked like a monster on paper, and neither horse came out as monsters.

Now to discuss the betting lesson learned in this race. With no previous nine-furlong success and a pedigree that leaned toward sprinting, Jack Christopher started the Haskell as the 3-5 favorite, while the second choice Taiba, with questions of his own, entered the gate at 2-1.

The Haskell results work as a good reminder to distrust heavy favorites who have no previous success at the given distance. At 3-5, the horse needs to hit all the checkmarks. Some readers might mistake this as saying all horses stretching out are untrustworthy betting options, but that is not true either. The point is, at 3-5, why take the gamble for little return? 

Flip the odds around with Taiba at 3-5 and Jack Christopher at 2-1, and perhaps Jack Christopher looks more enticing even without the previous experience at nine furlongs. At least the return if Jack Christopher had won at 2-1 would feel worth the risk of betting money on him.

Although Jack Christopher could find paceless races and win at nine furlongs in the future, he belongs in seven-furlong or one-mile races.  

Taiba ran fine in second. Still, he did get a clear shot in the stretch. Earlier in the race, Mike Smith had to constantly work on him as Taiba began to lose position and needed urging to start his rally on the far turn.

Cyberknife belongs in the Travers Stakes (G1) at Saratoga. With that said, he will meet tough customers if Early Voting, Epicenter, Zandon and Charge It all show up. He set a track record in his Haskell win, but that new track record is likely the result of a souped-up racetrack more than anything.

Overall, it was a great Haskell to watch. But the Travers winner will probably come from the Jim Dandy Stakes (G2) at Saratoga next weekend.