Bringing Cody's Wish back at 5 proves a smart business move

Most in the racing world assumed they had seen the last of Cody’s Wish when he stormed back from last and outdueled gritty Cyberknife by a straining head in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile last November.

It seemed a fitting way to close the inspiring tale of the wonderful connection formed between a special horse and an even more special boy, Cody Dorman. Cody has struggled to cope with Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome, surviving almost 50 operations. The rare genetic disorder makes it impossible for the teenager to speak or walk. Cody uses subtle head movements to communicate through a tablet.

With Cody looking on at Keeneland, Cody’s Wish turned the Dirt Mile into his second consecutive Grade 1 score after his conquest of then-reigning sprint champion Jackie’s Warrior in the Forego at Saratoga.

Cody’s Wish certainly had proven himself a worthy son of two-time Horse of the Year Curlin. He had never missed the board while winning 7 of 11. The homebred had banked more than $1.3 million on behalf of Godolphin and, at 4, was surely an attractive stallion prospect.

But Godolphin resisted the temptation to hurry him off to the breeding shed and made the uncommon decision to bring him back at 5.

“We thought there was a great opportunity for a big year by bringing him back. He was a lightly raced horse and still had plenty to give,” said Michael Banahan, director of bloodstock for Godolphin USA.

It perhaps made the decision a bit easier to know that Cody’s Wish would remain in the expert hands of Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott, renowned for his ability to help older horses fulfill their potential. If there was any more there, Mott would find it.

And so he has.

With Cody and his family attending their first Kentucky Derby as guests of Churchill Downs, Cody’s Wish shook off any rust in his first start since his stirring Dirt Mile triumph to easily take the Churchill Downs Stakes (G1) by 4 3/4 lengths as part of the Derby undercard.

That set the stage for the Metropolitan Handicap (G1) Saturday at Belmont Park. Better known as the Met Mile, the race represented one of the primary targets for Godolphin in its decision to allow an encore season.

Cody’s Wish, leaving from the rail for regular rider Junior Alvarado, broke in a step. Then he was stuck inside throughout the early going. Would he be able to wriggle free to unleash his powerful closing kick?

“I was just trying to find my way out,” Alvarado said. “At about the half-mile pole, I found my seam, moved behind the heels of horses to get into the clear, then he turned everything on. Then I just had to get out of his way and let him do his thing. He’s unbelievable.”

In the end, Cody’s Wish made the Met Mile look every bit as easy as the Churchill Downs Stakes had been in notching his fourth consecutive Grade 1, his sixth win overall and ninth in his last 10 starts.

If Banahan needed validation for the decision to bring back the horse, an authoritative 3 1/4-length margin provided it.

“He looked like he was toying with them at the end. It’s something to win the Met Mile by that big of a margin,” he said. “There are some really, really good horses who have won the Met Mile over the years, and I think he’s in the pantheon of those horses.”

At 5, Cody’s Wish is displaying a new-found maturity and responsiveness. He is no longer willful to a fault. He entered the paddock with the cool and calm of an unfazed veteran. Whatever Alvarado needed during a trip that was filled with twists and turns, he provided. It was the same in the Churchill Downs Stakes.

“He’s finally figured it out,” Mott said.

Whatever the future holds, Cody’s Wish already has done so much good away from the track. Cody has used his tablet to communicate that he believes the horse saved his life. Now 17, Cody has improved in his schoolwork and therapy.

Dorman met Cody’s Wish when the horse was an unnamed foal at Godolphin’s Gainsborough Farm in Versailles, Ky. The visit was arranged as part of a program involving Keeneland and the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Over time, Cody has become an important role model. “We’ve had families contact us with children who have different types of issues,” said Kelly, the boy’s father, “and they’ve talked about how much this inspires them.”

Dorman, from Richmond, Ky., recently was asked to appear at a race for hearing impaired children. Although he is not hearing impaired, many of the participants asked to have their pictures taken with him.

Make no mistake. Godolphin made a business decision when it kept Cody’s Wish in training. But in doing so, it also has extended a feel-good story, one the world and the sport desperately needs.