McLaughlin impressed with romping debut 2-year-old winner Takaful
Drawing away to win by eight lengths to earn a 94 Beyer Speed Figure in his first career start, 2-year-old Shadwell homebred Takaful made one of the more impressive juvenile debuts for the Belmont Fall Championship Meet on Saturday.
By Bernardini and out of an unraced Distorted Humor mare, the Kiaran McLaughlin-trained Takaful left the gate at odds of 12-1 but more than out-ran his price to the delight of his veteran trainer, who admitted even he was a little taken back by the performance.
"It wasn't a shock but it was a nice surprise," said McLaughlin. "We always knew he was a talented horse but I thought he might need one race for experience. We knew the raw ability was there, but when he broke and started running like that, wow. That was a wild race. It's a little bit like when Frosted won by 14 [lengths]. Did we see that coming? No, but it wasn't a total shock either."
Although in good order one day after his race, McLaughlin was still waiting to see how Takaful bounces back from his debut before speaking with Rich Nichols, Shadwell's U.S. racing manager and plotting his next start.
"There are a lot of options of where we could go next. Of course, the [Grade 3] Remsen [on November 26 at Aqueduct Racetrack] is a possibility, but we'll continue to monitor how he comes back and I'll speak with Rich as we plot out a course."
Switching gears to the Breeders' Cup, McLaughlin was happy to report his contingent, headlined by Classic contender Frosted along with Tamarkuz, for the Dirt Mile, and Lady Shipman, currently an also-eligible for the Turf Sprint, have all settled in nicely at Santa Anita and were continuing preparations for next Saturday's races.
"I head out there Wednesday," added McLaughlin. "I've been getting good reports from everybody out west, so everything's going according to plan so far. Frosted will continue with galloping in the mornings heading into the Classic, and hopefully Lady Shipman will be able to get in. We're still awaiting to hear the final word on that."
Source: NYRA Communications