Recruiting Ready meets easier foes in six-furlong Buffalo Man

Already having faced some of the most promising young colts in the country, Sagamore Farm’s multiple graded stakes-placed Recruiting Ready makes his return to the races and his South Florida debut in Saturday’s $75,000 Buffalo Man at Gulfstream Park.

 

The six-furlong Buffalo Man and $75,000 Smooth Air, contested at one mile, are two of six stakes for 2-year-olds worth $450,000 in purses on the 11-race Juvenile Showcase Day program.

 

Recruiting Ready was a 10 ¼-length winner of his unveiling going 4 ½ furlongs May 28 at Pimlico Race Course, earning him a trip to Kentucky for the Bashford Manor (G3) where he drew clear in the stretch only to get run down by Classic Empire, beaten less than a length. Classic Empire, trained by Mark Casse, went on to win two Grade 1 races including the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile to establish himself as the early Triple Crown race favorite.

 

In his next start, the Aug. 14 Saratoga Special (G2), Recruiting Ready again looked like a winner in the stretch before getting caught by late-running long shot Gunnevera and finishing second by a length before being disqualified to fourth for interference. Two starts later, Gunnevera won the $1 million Delta Jackpot (G3).

 

Most recently Recruiting Ready was back at Churchill Downs for the 1 1/16-mile Iroquois (G3), drawing even with the leaders nearing the stretch before flattening out and wound up third. The Dale Romans-trained winner, Not This Time, ran second to Classic Empire in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile before being retired late last month with a soft tissue injury.

 

“He’s down here and he worked twice over the track so we’re going to go ahead and give him a start there, take him back to three-quarters and just kind of focus on the sprinter series. Hopefully he kind of puts those races together,” trainer Horacio DePaz said. “He got caught with some really tough company in his last three races so hopefully he can get something done there.

 

“It’s just hard when you have a trainer like Dale Romans saying that it was probably the best 2-year-old he ever trained, and Mark Casse, as well. They’ve got some very talented colts that we ran into,” he added. “Even Gunnevera, he came back and won the big race at Delta. They weren’t slouch horses that we ran against. He can run, but he got caught by some very nice colts.”

 

A bay son Algorithms, 2012 winner of the Holy Bull (G2) at Gulfstream, Recruiting Ready has posted three straight bullet workouts including two straight at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream’s satellite training facility in Palm Beach County. He went a half-mile in 48 seconds on Monday, fastest of 24 horses.

 

“Hopefully we lighten up the company a little bit. There’s some decent horses in there but as far as being tested he definitely ran against some top horses,” DePaz said. “I think he’ll take a liking to Gulfstream. It’s a little bit tighter track and shorter stretch, so we’ll see.”

 

Joel Rosario will be aboard for the first time from outside Post 9 at 116 pounds.

 

Recruiting Ready will see a familiar face in Calumet Farm’s Sonic Mule, who finished fourth but was placed third in the Saratoga Special. A first-out winner July 15 at Monmouth Park July 15, he was third in the Sapling and second in the Armed Forces, both at one mile and the latter on turf, before taking a six-furlong optional claiming allowance on the dirt Nov. 3 at Gulfstream Park West.

 

“He’s pretty versatile and we just felt like six furlongs was the right [distance] for him this time. He’s run on the turf, he ran a mile on dirt at Monmouth, but I think this is the right race for him now,” trainer Todd Pletcher said. “Anytime you have experience it’s beneficial, so hopefully that pays off for him in this race.”

 

Sonic Mule will leave from Post 2 with Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez in the irons.

 

Hardway Stables’ Talk Logistics, a handy 3 ¾-length debut winner July 3 at Parx for trainer Eddie Plesa Jr., will be making just his second career start in the Buffalo Man. In His Image, a five-furlong maiden turf winner at Gulfstream Park West Oct. 28; My Carrots, unraced since notching his second straight win Sept. 10 at Monmouth Park; Uncle B, second in the Swynford Stakes Nov. 27 at Woodbine; Gulfstream Park West maiden winner Vencedor; Red Crescent and Two Steps Before round out the field.

 

 

Unbeaten through his first two starts, Michael Tabor, Susan Magnier, Derek Smith and Stonestreet Stables’ Fact Finding is set to stretch out to a one-turn mile for his stakes debut in the $75,000 Smooth Air.

 

Fact Finding was sent off at 6-1 for his Aug. 6 debut at Saratoga, winning by 2 ¼ lengths going six furlongs after prompting the pace. Favored in his subsequent start, a 6 ½-furlong second-level allowance at Keeneland, the The Factor colt took the lead at the top of the stretch and drew off for a 4 ½-length victory.

 

Velazquez, up for both starts, gets the return call from Post 1 of eight at 118 pounds.

 

“We just felt like his first two races were good and we’re kind of looking to stretch him out and see how he does and how he fits in a little bit of a longer race and take it from there,” Pletcher said. “He’s actually kind of an idle horse to train. He can be a little bit of a lazy horse in the morning so we weren’t sure what he would do in his debut, but he ran slightly better than expected.

 

“That gave us a little confidence, knowing that he can be a bit lazy in the mornings,that he would run well in the allowance at Keeneland, which he did,” he added. “Just kind of looking at the calendar of options, we felt like the gradual progression and stretch out to a mile made sense.”

 

Four Horsemen Racing Stable and Lady Lindsay Racing Stables’ Sweetontheladies enters the Smooth Air off a victory in the 6 ½-furlong Juvenile Sprint Stakes Nov. 12 at Gulfstream Park West, where ran next-to-last for a half-mile before flying down the stretch to win by three lengths.

 

The Twirling Candy colt is undefeated in his three dirt starts, including maiden and allowance wins this summer at Gulfstream, suffering his only loss going a mile on turf in the Armed Forces Oct. 1.

 

“He ran three races [on dirt] and he’s never been headed. Even on the grass he was not headed. When he came from off the pace, let alone being last at the head of the lane, it’s got to make you feel good,” trainer Henry Collazo said. “Now he has more than one way to win a race, which is always a blessing.”