Tiz the Law still on top of NTRA 3-year-old poll
Tiz the Law has spent much of his 2020 season in the driver’s seat where divisional bragging rights are concerned and the son of Constitution will take that lofty status into his expected run in the 146th edition of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on Sept. 5.
Trained by Barclay Tagg for Sackatoga Stable, Tiz the Law has been the clear choice among voters in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) Top Three-Year-Old Poll for several weeks.The Belmont and Travers Stakes winner remains the dominant figure heading into the “Run for the Roses” with 35 first-place votes and 350 points. Should he prevail in the Kentucky Derby, it would mark his fifth career Grade 1 victory.
NTRA TOP THREE-YEAR OLD POLL
Other horses receiving votes: NADAL (22), CARACARO (21), DR POST (13), MAXFIELD (7), CHARLATAN (6), COLLUSION ILLUSION (5), PNEUMATIC (5), ENFORCEABLE (4), SHEDARESTHEDEVIL (3), MAJOR FED (3), YAUPON (2), SOLE VOLANTE (1), UNCLE CHUCK (1), ATTACHMENT RATE (1), SPEECH (1), DECORATED INVADER (1)
A win in the 1 ¼-miles classic would also be a second victory in the race for both Tagg and Sackatoga Stable, who teamed up to win the 2003 Kentucky Derby with Funny Cide, who became the first and so far only New York-bred to win the prestigious event.
“He is a fairly easy horse to train and just does it,” Tagg said of Tiz the Law. “He’s got a good constitution. He’s fast, of course, and is willing to do what you ask him to do. Everything just kind of falls into place with him.”
Blue Grass Stakes winner Art Collector remains in second with 280 points followed by Honor A. P. (252 points) and fellow Grade 1 winner Authentic (219).
Gamine, who was deemed the even-money, morning-line favorite for the Sept. 4 Kentucky Oaks, sits in the fifth position with 185 points while her top Oaks rival, Swiss Skydiver, is sixth with 182 points. Thousand Words (123 points) holds in seventh with King Guillermo (107), Ny Traffic (83) and Max Player (48) completing the top 10.
There was little change in the top 10 in this week’s NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll as champion Maximum Security holds first place for a second straight week with 16 first-place votes and 311 points.
The 4-year-old bay colt has won both of his starts since being transferred to the barn of Bob Baffert having captured San Diego Handicap (G2) on July 25 and most recently taking the Aug. 22 Pacific Classic Stakes (G1).
TOP THOROUGHBRED POLL
Week 27 of the 2020 NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll conducted by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), covering racing performances through August 30. Current Horse of the Year ranking of the Top Thoroughbred on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-1 basis with first place votes in parentheses, 2020 record and total points. Poll Concludes Monday, Nov. 9. A-S: Age-Sex, Sex: C-colt, G-gelding, H-horse, F-filly, M-mare, R-ridgling.
Other horses receiving votes: GAMINE (35), VOLATILE (22), SWISS SKYDIVER (19), TACITUS (18), MUCHO GUSTO (18), CODE OF HONOR (16), SERENGETI EMPRESS (14), NEWSPAPEROFRECORD (12), DUNBAR ROAD (11), INSTILLED REGARD (7), WIN WIN WIN (6), YAUPON (3), WAR OF WILL (3), GUARANA (2), HALLADAY (1), MEAN MARY (1), MO FORZA (1), CHANNEL MAKER (1)
Multiple Grade 1-winner Vekoma remains in second with 6 first-place votes and 264 points. Tom’s d’Etat (3 first-place votes, 223 points) is third followed by Whitney Stakes-winner Improbable (216 points) in fourth.
Tiz the Law (10 first-place votes, 200 points) ranks fifth and is the lone sophomore in the top 10 of the Thoroughbred Poll. Champion distaffer Midnight Bisou sits in the sixth position with 167 points while multiple Grade 1-winner Rushing Fall (105 points) moves up one spot to seventh.
Zulu Alpha (102 points) ranks eighth followed by champion Monomoy Girl (76 points) and By My Standards (63 points) to round out the top 10.
The NTRA Top Thoroughbred polls are the sport’s most comprehensive surveys of experts. Every week eligible journalists and broadcasters cast votes for their top 10 horses, with points awarded on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. All horses that have raced in the U.S., are in training in the U.S., or are known to be pointing to a major event in the U.S. are eligible for the NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll. Voting in both the Top Three-Year-Old Poll and the Top Thoroughbred Poll is scheduled to be conducted through the conclusion of the Breeders’ Cup in November.