Saratoga: Dr. Agne returns for DeVaux in With Anticipation
Dr. Agne is prepared to make his second start in Thursday’s Grade 3, $175,000 With Anticipation, a 1 1/16-mile inner turf test for juveniles at Saratoga.
Trained by Cherie DeVaux, the Into Mischief bay closed to win his off-the-turf, seven-furlong debut on July 11 here. The victory was emotional for the connections as the horse’s name honors the late Dr. Robert Agne, who was an instrumental veterinarian in the laminitis recovery of the colt’s dam Lady Eli en route to her eventual 2017 champion turf female honors.
In his debut, Dr. Agne traveled double-digit lengths back through the half-mile in 46.19 seconds under Jose Ortiz, improving up the rail and moving out at the three-sixteenths pole en route to a closing one-length victory over the favored Epic Desire.
“Step one was winning, and he did that. He did that impressively,” DeVaux said. “We just hope to continue on now. He is maturing well. He is a horse that is big and sturdy. He holds his condition well, and he’s doing really well.”
The final time of 1:25.97 earned a modest 47 Beyer Speed Figure from Daily Racing Form, but Dr. Agne has continued to train forwardly at the Spa with an eye toward turf, a surface Lady Eli posted a 14: 10-3-0 record over, banking just shy of $3 million.
“If we won on debut, this was where we were going to run him,” DeVaux said. “He’s been training well, so we’ll see. This will be good to get him on the turf and around two turns.”
Godolphin’s Kentucky homebred Gloves Off closed from 9 1/2 lengths back early to win his lone start going one mile over good turf in July at Ellis Park. Trained by Eoin Harty, the Nyquist chestnut is out of the Bernardini mare Fjord, and his second dam is dual Grade 1-winning millionaire Round Pond, who produced last year’s local Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) winner Highland Falls and Group 1 victor Long River.
“We were very pleased with his first run,” said Michael Banahan, Godolphin USA’s director of bloodstock. “He had shown some talent, but you never really know until you get them to the track and let them loose. He was quite impressive with his maiden win, and this stakes race looks like a logical next spot.”