Prospect Watch: 8 promising debuts on Pegasus weekend
The Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup (G1) and Pegasus World Cup Turf are the highlights of a busy weekend of racing across the country. But the abundant stakes action shouldn’t completely overshadow the bevy of competitive maiden special weights on the agenda.
For this week’s edition of Prospect Watch, we’ll explore eight promising 3-year-olds slated to debut at Gulfstream Park, Aqueduct and Oaklawn.
Saturday
Gulfstream Park race 2: Maiden special weight (seven furlongs, 11:19 a.m. EST)
No. 1 Dark Vector
3-year-old colt
Pedigree: Bolt d’Oro–Just Louise, by Five Star Day
Purchase price: $275,000
Trainer: George Weaver
Talk about a classy pedigree. Dark Vector is a son of multiple Grade 1 winner and hot young sire Bolt d’Oro out of Just Louise, winner of the Debutante (G3) at Churchill Downs as a juvenile and the dam of San Vicente (G2) and San Felipe (G2) winner Forbidden Kingdom. There’s a lot of speed and early maturity in this pedigree, so Dark Vector is eligible to fire a winning shot while sprinting seven furlongs on debut.
No. 6 Foxburg
3-year-old colt
Pedigree: Arrogate–Too Much Malibu, by Malibu Moon
Purchase price: $300,000
Trainer: Bill Mott
Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott is set to unveil Foxburg, a $300,000 yearling acquisition sired by Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Arrogate. The bay colt has posted three consecutive bullet workouts over the slow surface at Payson Park, capped off by half a mile in 48.4 seconds, and it’s worth noting Mott has gone 3-for-11 (27 percent) debuting male horses in dirt sprints at Gulfstream since 2017.
Aqueduct race 1: Maiden special weight (6 1/2 furlongs, 12:10 p.m.)
No. 1 Gotta Connect
3-year-old colt
Pedigree: Connect–Arisia, by Declaration of War
Purchase price: $37,000
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
A son of Cigar Mile Handicap (G1) winner Connect, Gotta Connect was produced by Arisia, an unraced daughter of the versatile racehorse and stallion Declaration of War. Gotta Connect sold for only $37,000 as a 2-year-old in training, but he’s shown speed in the mornings (most notably clocking five furlongs from the Belmont Park training track starting gate in a bullet 1:01.00 seconds), and trainer Todd Pletcher is a 21 percent lifetime winner with first-time starters. Don’t count Gotta Connect out of the mix.
No. 7 Treaty Obligation
3-year-old colt
Pedigree: Maclean’s Music–Heavenly Tap, by Tapit
Purchase price: $200,000
Trainer: Chad Brown
Four-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer Chad Brown conditions Treaty Obligation, whose sire Maclean’s Music is best known for siring Brown’s 2017 Preakness winner Cloud Computing. Treaty Obligation sold for a respectable $200,000 as a yearling and has put together a lengthy work tab in preparation for his debut, suggesting this Klaravich Stables colorbearer is worth watching.
Oaklawn Park race 7: Maiden special weight (six furlongs, 4:15 p.m.)
No. 5 Into It
3-year-old colt
Pedigree: Street Sense–Queen’s Award, by Medaglia d’Oro
Purchase price: N/A
Trainer: Steve Asmussen
The latest sophomore to debut from the barn of Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen is Into It, a son of Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense out of the Medaglia d’Oro mare Queen’s Award. Into It hasn’t put together the flashiest work tab, but Queen’s Award was a stakes-winning sprinter, so perhaps Into It can show enough speed to factor sprinting six furlongs on debut.
Sunday
Gulfstream Park race 4: Maiden special weight (seven furlongs, 1:37 p.m.)
No. 1 Take a Break
3-year-old filly
Pedigree: Quality Road–On Leave, by War Front
Purchase price: N/A
Trainer: Shug McGaughey
A son of four-time Grade 1-winning dirt star Quality Road, Take a Break was produced by the War Front mare On Leave, who won half a dozen turf stakes (two of them graded) during an accomplished career. Shug McGaughey trained On Leave and likewise conditions Take a Break, who has the pedigree to shine on both dirt and turf. She enters off a couple of quick half-mile workouts over the dirt track at Payson Park and warrants watching while debuting on dirt at Gulfstream. Even if Take a Break misfires, it’s possible she’ll develop into a classy turf filly down the road.
No. 4 Bandita
3-year-old filly
Pedigree: Gun Runner–Tricky One, by Unbridled’s Song
Purchase price: $350,000
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
Bandita is a daughter of 2017 horse of the year and acclaimed young sire Gun Runner out of a mare by 1995 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner and accomplished sire Unbridled’s Song. Clearly Bandita is bred like a star, and quick workouts at Palm Beach Downs (including a bullet half-mile in 48.62 seconds) suggest she might have the speed to match. She looks ready to challenge for victory under three-time Eclipse Award-winning jockey Irad Ortiz.
No. 7 Arrow Bolt
3-year-old filly
Pedigree: Arrogate–Soothing Touch, by Touch Gold
Purchase price: N/A
Trainer: Bill Mott
The above-mentioned Foxburg isn’t the only son of Arrogate debuting for Bill Mott this weekend. Mott also will unveil the Arrogate filly Arrow Bolt, whose dam Soothing Touch has previously foaled four-time Grade 1 winner Emollient plus Belmont Stakes third-place finisher Hofburg. This is an elite pedigree with lots of potential, and after breezing a bullet half-mile at Gulfstream Park in 47.10 on Monday, it appears Arrow Bolt has significant talent. This Juddmonte homebred looks like a good one.