SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Cherie DeVaux had two first-time starters entered in a maiden turf race for 2-year-olds at Saratoga on July 20. While the public sent Profound off the 2-1 favorite, DeVaux won the race with 13-1 shot Without Caution.
While DeVaux liked both horses, it turned out Without Caution was the more professional, sitting an inside stalking trip, then tipping out wide in the lane and closing strongly to win by 1 3/4 lengths.
Thursday, Without Caution will try to replicate that effort when he faces eight rivals in the Grade 3, $150,000 With Anticipation Stakes scheduled for 1 1/16 miles on the inner turf course.
DeVaux said she was not all that surprised Without Caution, a son of Without Parole, ran as well as he did in his debut, which came at 1 1/16 miles.
“He trained well and showed up in the mornings and was one we liked quite a bit going into the race,” DeVaux said. “He came out of that race good, has trained forwardly since. He’s had a couple of nice works, he’s a mature colt physically and mentally, and seems like an exciting horse right now and in the future.”
Only two horses have run back from that July 20 race with sixth-place finisher Papiamento finishing first and fourth-place finisher Hands of Time third in a maiden race here last Saturday.
Jose Lezcano rode Without Caution on debut, but he begins a three-day suspension on Wednesday so Manny Franco has the mount.
Zulu Kingdom, an Irish-bred son of Ten Sovereigns, won his debut by 3 1/2 lengths from a forward position in a field of 12 going seven furlongs at Saint-Cloud in France on June 4. Trained by Andre Fabre then, he has since been purchased by Madaket Stables and Michael Dubb and transferred to Chad Brown. Zulu Kingdom has been stateside long enough to get in five works at Saratoga leading to this spot.
“He has been very consistent, settled into the program nicely, I’ve been very pleased with this horse,” Brown said. “The distance, you never know with the European horses who’ve sprinted once but he sure runs like he’ll handle two turns. He trains that way.”
Flavien Prat is named to ride from post 7.
Cavallo Bay, trained by Charlie Appelby for Godolphin, has made three starts in Great Britain, winning once on synthetic at Wolverhampton and once on turf at Haydock. In his race at Wolverhampton, Cavallo Bay had to run inside of a loose horse who had unseated his rider, but he prevailed by a half-length over Brindavan, who two starts later won his maiden.
Appleby said that the course at Haydock “is more of a galloping track that probably suited him. With three races, he brings a bit of experience, whether he’s got the gate speed, he’s probably lacking that. Without knowing the competition, I think he’ll be a player.”
Dylan Davis, having an exceptional summer at Saratoga, rides for this outfit for the first time.
Todd Pletcher has won the With Anticipation six times and has three entries in this year’s race, two of whom are in the body of the field for turf and one who would run only if the race is transferred to the main track.
Tenacious Leader won a one-mile, off-the-turf race in his second start. But his half-mile work in 48 seconds over the Oklahoma turf since that race was the fastest of 96 breezes over the course at the distance.
“We kind of always thought he might be turf and then we worked him on it and that confirmed what we were thinking,” Pletcher said.
Nudge is still a maiden but ran a respectable third behind Without Caution after pressing the early pace. Should the race come off the turf, Pletcher has the first-out maiden winner Uncaged to run. Should the race remain on the turf, Pletcher said Uncaged would likely to go to the Grade 3, $300,000 Iroquois Stakes at Churchill Downs on Sept. 14.
Test Score, runner-up to next-out stakes winner Governor Sam in a July 19 maiden race here; the filly Good Long Cry, eschewing Wednesday’s P.G. Johnson for 2-year-old fillies for this; second-out winner Dancing Bear; and off-the-turf winner Reach for the Rose complete the field on turf.
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