Horses to Watch: 4 sophomores enhance their records
In this biweekly series, racing analyst Keeler Johnson shares promising horses from his handicapping watch list, reviewing runners who have recently caught his eye and previewing horses scheduled to run back in the near future.
Recent watch list winners
Booth
Brilliant maiden winner Booth bounced back from a subpar stakes debut at Churchill Downs last fall to win his first sophomore start in convincing fashion. The Steve Asmussen trainee started as the 3-5 favorite in a six-furlong $100,000 allowance-optional claimer on Sunday at Oaklawn and left no doubt about his superiority, tracking fractions of 21.99 and 46.38 seconds before finishing fast (final furlong in approximately 11.85 seconds) to dominate by 4 1/4 lengths in 1:10.81. A strong season could be in the offing for this son of champion male sprinter Mitole.
After winning multiple graded stakes on turf as a juvenile, Endlessly switched to Tapeta for his 3-year-old debut and unleashed a big finish from seventh place to win the 1 1/8-mile El Camino Real Derby at Golden Gate Fields. The Michael McCarthy trainee gained 2 1/2 lengths through the final furlong alone and appears poised for another productive campaign.
Flashy debut winner Kinza had no trouble stepping up in class and distance for the Las Virgenes (G3) at Santa Anita, leading all the way through splits of 22.99, 46.91 and 1:10.82 to win the one-mile contest by two lengths in 1:37.03. The New York-bred filly should be tough if she turns up in races such as the March 3 Santa Ysabel (G3) and/or the April 6 Santa Anita Oaks (G2) at Santa Anita.
He had to work harder than expected, but second-time starter Maymun successfully stretched out over one mile to win a $100,000 allowance-optional claimer on Sunday at Santa Anita. Favored at 3-10, the Bob Baffert-trained 3-year-old set fractions of 23.91, 48.07 and 1:11.54 and got passed by stablemate Imagination with a furlong remaining,. But he battled back from a half-length deficit to prevail by a neck in 1:36.65. Imagination pulled 10 1/2 lengths clear of the rest, so Maymun ran well despite his narrow margin of victory. Now 2-for-2, the son of Frosted looks bound for stakes company.
Worth another try
Agate Road
The Pilgrim (G2) winner switched from turf to dirt for the Sam F. Davis (G3) at Tampa Bay Downs and ran well in the 1 1/16-mile road to the Kentucky Derby qualifier, charging from 11th place to finish second by 1 1/4 lengths. The Todd Pletcher trainee gained 1 3/4 lengths against the gate-to-wire winner through the final furlong and pulled 5 1/4 lengths clear of the third-place finisher, so Agate Road is developing into a talented multi-surface threat.
Change of Command
Winner of maiden and allowance contests at Gulfstream Park, Change of Command ran below expectations when stepping up in class for the Sam F. Davis, pressing fractions of 23.52, 46.61 and 1:10.81 before fading to finish 11th by 21 1/2 lengths. Since this marked a sharp regression from Change of Command’s previous form, I’ll give him a chance to rebound next time.
Nothing Like You
The Starlet (G2) winner failed to challenge when kicking off her 3-year-old season in the Las Virgenes, trailing early before passing only a single rival to finish fourth, 12 3/4 lengths behind stablemate Kinza. I’ll give Nothing Like You a chance to bounce back in her second run of the season.
Off the watch list
Laurel River
A dominant winner of the 2022 Pat O’Brien (G2) against a strong field at Del Mar, Laurel River recently ended a 17-month layoff with a seventh-place finish in the Al Shindagha Sprint (G3) at Meydan in Dubai. I’ll want to see Laurel River recapture his fine form from 2022 before returning him to my watch list.
Here is my complete, updated list of Horses to Watch.