OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Deterministic, a two-time Grade 1 winner this year and among the leaders of North America’s male turf division, will not race again this year, but he will be brought back for a 5-year-old campaign in 2026, trainer Miguel Clement confirmed on Saturday.
Deterministic has not had a published work since he won the Grade 1 Fourstardave at Saratoga on Aug. 2. Two months prior to that, he won the Grade 1 Manhattan, a race shortened from 1 3/16 miles to 1 1/8 miles and also run at Saratoga on June 8.
Clement said that Deterministic came out of the Fourstardave “needing a bit of time,” and it turned out to be a longer period than originally thought.
“He’s on his way back, but we won’t have him back in time to get him to the Breeders’ Cup,” said Clement, who would not specify the issue Deterministic had.
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Clement called Deterministic “the best miler in the country” while noting that the colt can be effective anywhere from a mile to 1 1/4 miles. Clement said it has not yet been decided if Deterministic would be put in training in time to point for a race like the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational at 1 1/8 miles at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 24 or target a later-starting campaign.
In addition to victories in the Fourstardave and Manhattan, Deterministic won the Grade 2 Ft. Marcy at Aqueduct in May. Prior to that, Deterministic ran second in an off-the-turf allowance race at Keeneland in April.
“He really ran some big races, but it was a tough campaign,” Clement said. “It’s not fair to him to try and bring him back not at his best, so we gave him time.”
For his career, Deterministic has a record of 7-3-1 from 13 starts with career earnings of $1.98 million. As a 3-year-old, he won the Grade 3 Gotham on dirt, but after poor efforts in the Wood Memorial and Peter Pan, Deterministic was switched to turf, a surface on which he has five victories, including the Grade 3 Virginia Derby and Grade 3 Hill Prince.
Deterministic, a son of Liam’s Map, is owned by Vinnie and Teresa Viola’s St. Elias Stable, Steve Duncker, Ken Langone, and Vicarage Stable.
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