Prospect Watch: Covfefe’s half-brother debuts at Saratoga
The wait is over. The summer season in U.S. horse racing does not truly begin until the annual meet at Saratoga gets underway. Thursday marks the start of the stakes-packed schedule at “the Spa,” so it is safe to say summer is officially here.
Saratoga is always a great place to search for up-and-coming 2-year-olds with star potential. The meet is always packed with high-profile maiden special weights for juveniles, and opening week of the 2021 meet is no exception. A bevy of well-bred youngsters are slated to debut, so let’s dig in and review five noteworthy names. All times are EDT.
Thursday
Saratoga Race 5: Maiden Special Weight (5 1/2 furlongs, 3:21 p.m.)
#8 Frosted Oats
Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott appears to have a promising prospect on his hands in the form of Frosted Oats. Certainly, her pedigree is encouraging. She is a daughter of brilliant Metropolitan Handicap (G1) winner Frosted out of the Smart Strike mare More Oats Please, previously the dam of Alcibiades Stakes (G1) winner Peace and War.
Only time will tell if Frosted Oats can follow in the footsteps of her illustrious ancestors. With just five timed workouts under her belt, she probably is not cranked for a peak effort on debut. But the chestnut filly is well worth following in the long term, since her pedigree hints she will improve when stretching out over one mile or farther.
Saratoga Race 5: Maiden Special Weight (5 1/2 furlongs, 3:21 p.m.)
#6 Solasta
From top to bottom, Solasta is bred for speed. A $300,000 yearling purchase, the bay filly is a daughter of two-time Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner Goldencents out of Greer Lynn, a daughter of champion sprinter Speightstown. Greer Lynn has already achieved elite success as a broodmare, producing Humana Distaff (G1) winner Mia Mischief.
To put it another way, Solasta’s sire, dam sire, and half-sister all won Grade 1 races over one mile or less. If Solasta has inherited a fraction of the speed possessed by her immediate family members, she can make her debut a winning one. She’s already turned in a couple of bullet moves from the Saratoga starting gate (including five furlongs in one minute), and trainer Jeremiah Englehart wins at a 20-percent rate with first-time starters. Throw in the presence of three-time Eclipse Award-winning jockey Irad Ortiz Jr., and I think we have a winning combination.
#7 Echo Zulu
Just like Solasta, Echo Zulu sold for $300,000 as a yearling. But whereas Solasta is bred for speed, Echo Zulu has the pedigree of a late-maturing route runner. A daughter of 2017 Horse of the Year and Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Gun Runner, Echo Zulu was produced by the Menifee mare Letgomyecho, previously the dam of Gotham Stakes (G3) winner J Boys Echo and H. Allen Jerkens Memorial (G1) winner Echo Town.
On the other hand, Gun Runner is siring a lofty 38-percent winners from first-time starters in his first crop, so Echo Zulu might well vie for victory right out of the gate. Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen has gone 12-for-48 (25 percent) debuting juveniles over the Saratoga main track since 2016, and Echo Zulu clocked a bullet half-mile from the Keeneland starting gate in 47 2/5 seconds last month, so do not count this promising filly out of the mix.
Saturday
Saratoga Race 5: Maiden Special Weight (5 1/2 furlongs, 3:23 p.m.)
Easily one of the most exciting first-time starters entered to race this week is Montauk Point. Sold for $550,000 as a yearling, the chestnut colt is a son of Grade 1-winning juvenile Violence (who sires 17-percent debut winners) out of the Unbridled mare Antics, previously the dam of champion female sprinter Covfefe.
Suffice to say, this is a top-class pedigree geared toward speed and early maturity. Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey is not really known for saddling ready-to-win first-time starters, but Montauk Point should be fit for an encouraging debut after turning in 11 timed workouts since May 8. He showed speed at Belmont Park on June 30, clocking five furlongs from the starting gate in a bullet one minute, 3/5 seconds, so look for Montauk Point to show some promise on Saturday.
Saratoga Race 6: Maiden Special Weight (1 1/16 miles on inner turf, 3:55 p.m.)
#4 Portfolio Company
Although Portfolio Company sold for just $125,000 as a yearling, the Chad Brown trainee actually boasts a top-class turf pedigree. As a son of perennial leading turf sire Kitten’s Joy out of the Wild Again mare Iteration, Portfolio Company is a full brother to four-time grass stakes winner Charming Kitten (also a Kentucky Derby starter) and Marine Stakes hero Queen’splatekitten (who placed in four graded stakes on grass).
Portfolio Company has already breezed a couple of times on turf and will be widely expected to vie for victory under Ortiz. If his pedigree is any indication, Portfolio Company might be a bright prospect.