Dortmund Prime for 3yo Debut in Lewis
For a guy who has been “living on the rail,” Bob Baffert got a breather with Dortmund, the unbeaten colt who makes his 3-year-old debut in Saturday’s Grade III Robert B. Lewis Stakes, which offers 17 qualifying points to the Kentucky Derby, 10 to the winner, four to the runner-up, two to the third horse and one to the fourth.
“Well, he’s going to be wide the whole way,” Baffert said of the chestnut son of 2008 Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown owned by Kaleem Shah.
Not necessarily. On paper, there doesn’t appear to be that much speed inside him in the field of six going a mile and a sixteenth.
The Robert B. Lewis lineup: Tizcano, Martin Pedroza, 15-1; Rock Shandy, Victor Espinoza, 6-1; Sebastian’s Heart, Agapito Delgadillo, 30-1; Hero Ten All, Tyler Baze, 10-1; Firing Line, Gary Stevens, 7-5; and Dortmund, Martin Garcia, 4-5.
Drayden Van Dyke lost the bug but not his confidence or ability.
The 20-year-old riding star, who surrendered his five-pound apprentice allowance on Jan. 20 and has been riding as a full-fledged journeyman since, has maintained his place among Santa Anita’s leading riders and has no intention of losing it.
“I had a good first week once I lost the allowance,” Van Dyke said during a rare lull on another busy work day. Through 25 racing days, Van Dyke, who tacks 111 pounds and is represented by agent Sarah Wolfe, had 11 wins, 13 seconds and 16 thirds. His mounts have earned $656,626.
“I had my first winner (as a journeyman) my first ride back, which was really cool to do. I’m riding the same. If anything, I’ll ride better because I’ll be stronger and weigh a little more.
“I just have to get the better horses, that’s all.”
One such horse is Patrioticandproud, a 6-year-old Pennsylvania-bred gelding he rides in Saturday’s Grade II San Marcos Stakes at 1 ¼ miles on turf.
Trained by Mark Casse, Patrioticandproud rallied for second, beaten only a length by Finnegans Wake last out in the Grade II San Gabriel Stakes. In the race prior, Finnegans Wake again got the better of Patrioticandproud, winning by a neck in the Grade II Hollywood Turf Cup.
“Finnegans Wake got the jump on me in that race,” Van Dyke said of the San Gabriel. “In fact, my horse’s last two races were pretty much the same. If we can get the jump on Finnegans Wake and a better trip this time, I think I can beat him.”
The field for the San Marcos: Finnegans Wake, Victor Espinoza, 5-2; Patrioticandproud, Drayden Van Dyke, 4-1; Majestic Harbor, Mike Smith, 8-1; Power Ped, Flavien Prat, 9-2; Little Jerry, Edwin Maldonado, 12-1; Diamond Bachelor, Martin Pedroza, 20-1; Dynamic Sky, Corey Nakatani, 3-1; and Power Foot, Kieren Fallon, 8-1.
HECTOR PALMA GOING STRONG AT AGE 77
When it comes to winning races, there is no wasted motion with Hector Palma.
Through 25 racing days at Santa Anita, the 77-year-old trainer had five wins and two seconds from 12 starts, a sparkling 42 percent average, not too shabby for a barn of 25 horses.
Palma hopes to enhance his norm with The Mad Hungarian, 9-5 morning line favorite in today’s second race, but win or lose, he’ll take it in stride.
“The key in this game is having the right horses,” said Palma, who owns the speedy son of Dixie Chatter along with George Yager, who races as B G Stable.
“I’ve been training since 1971 and been coming to Santa Anita since 1956, when I was here as a groom with (the late) Riley Cofer,” said Palma, who with Yager recently purchased a 50-acre spread in Hemet from Benjamin Warren, and operate it as BJ Thoroughbred Farms.
“I’ve won over 1,000 races and I’m going for 1,100,” Palma said. “For someone who came from Mexico with nothing, that’s pretty good.”
Source: Ed Golden, Santa Anita Stable Notes