Furthermore, he was considered a marathon horse -- incapable, apparently, of winning at any distance shorter than ten furlongs. Twelve furlongs was probably his best distance. His abilities were often chalked up to the fact that in those long races, he was capable of rattling off twenty-four second quarters over and over and over again. In other words, he was supposedly unable to set a quick pace (i.e. :23 and change) and hang around for the finish. Perhaps this is still true.
But the funny thing about twenty-four second quarters is that the longer you can sustain them, the tougher you get. No one is afraid of a horse that can sustain twenty-four second quarters for six furlongs, for that equates to an unremarkable time of 1:12 flat. Top-level sprint races are usually run in 1:10 or less.
But a horse that can keep up five of those quarters -- whoa. That equates to ten furlongs in a spectacular 2:00 flat. And at a mile and a half, that comes out to 2:24. For the record, Secretariat is the only horse to have ever run a mile and a half that fast on a dirt track. So as you can see, those twenty-four second quarters can come back to haunt anyone who disregards them. Twirling Candy and Game On Dude found that out on Sunday in the 21st running of the Pacific Classic.
It wouldn’t be fair to state that Acclamation gave his rivals no warning of his impending monster performance. He did. In the Eddie Read Stakes (gr. I), going nine furlongs on Del Mar's turf course, Acclamation dispelled two myths regarding his abilities. 1: He proved that he can win a major race on a surface other than Hollywood's turf course. 2: He proved that he is not strictly a marathoner. But, many argued, he got a very easy lead in the Eddie Read. His winning effort was more of a fluke performance due to the bizarre pace scenario. The closers were unable to close!
Then, Acclamation was entered in the Pacific Classic. As we all know, the Pacific Classic is not a turf race. It is held over Del Mar's Polytrack, a surface on which Acclamation had only raced once. In an allowance race back when he was three -- in the summer of 2009. Now, he was being asked to do so in the meet's premiere event, going a mile and a quarter against the likes of the brilliant Twirling Candy and the tough-as-nails Game On Dude. For a horse that was, up until recently, a Hollywood Park turf course-marathoner, the Pacific Classic would seemed to be a goal completely and utterly out of reach. But as Acclamation proved in the Eddie Read, he is not that kind of a horse. In the Pacific Classic, he would reaffirm that fact with another amazing performance.
At 5:20 PM Pacific Time, the Del Mar starting gate opened and released nine of the best older males in California on their way down the homestretch in the ninth race of the day, the feature of the day, one of the biggest races in the country -- The Pacific Classic. Acclamation got off to a quick start from post position five and rocketed to the lead under Patrick Valenzuela. Game On Dude, winner of the Santa Anita Handicap (gr. I), charged up to take second while favored Twirling Candy rated back in third. Tres Borrachos, upset winner of the San Diego Handicap (gr. II), was in fourth early on, followed by Setsuko, Don Cavallo, Jeranimo, Stately Victor, and longshot Quindici Man.
The opening quarter mile was run in :24.57. Acclamation had succeeded in getting to the lead and slowing the pace down. A :24.57 opening quarter was well within his range. But Game On Dude and Twirling Candy made no attempts to press him into going faster.
Acclamation reached the half-mile pole in :48.65. He had run his second quarter in :24.08. He ran six furlongs in 1:12.88 for a third quarter in :24.23. Still, Game On Dude and Twirling Candy were content to track him in second and third. But their tasks were getting harder with every :24 second quarter Acclamation churned out.
Game On Dude made his bid with a quarter mile to run, as the field rounded into the homestretch. Under Chantal Sutherland, he boldly dove to the inside as Acclamation drifted off the fence and tried gamely to make a run. But Acclamation had turned in a fourth quarter in :23.73. He was just getting his engine revved up and turned back Game On Dude's bid with ease.
The real threat was Twirling Candy, charging on the far outside under Joel Rosario. Like Acclamation, he had a myth to dispel. After losing both the Santa Anita Handicap and the Hollywood Gold Cup -- as the heavy favorite on both occasions -- he was starting to be billed as a brilliant miler/nine furlong horse incapable of winning a top class race at ten furlongs. As he set his sights on the front-running Acclamation and charged after him, those notions slowly began to evaporate. At the same time, Acclamation was finally shedding the image of being nothing but a turf specialist. As he charged down the Del Mar homestretch, he metamorphosized, from merely a good horse into—arguably—the leading older male in the country.
I will admit right now that I had doubts in Acclamation going into this race. I was one of those people who argued that his Eddie Read win was due to the pace setup and his easy lead. I doubted his ability to handle the likes of Twirling Candy and Game On Dude. But I shall also admit that I have been fond of him since last year, and always cheer him on whenever he runs. And so while I was cheering for him as the field turned for home, I believed there was no way that he could possibly hold off the onrushing Twirling Candy.
I watched as the two horses passed the eighth pole together. I saw Twirling Candy draw up alongside. I saw them pass the sixteenth pole. I saw Acclamation still in front. And I saw a horse that was not going to give in.
Frankly, the final 110 yards of the race were unimportant. It was clear from that point out that Acclamation was not going to let Twirling Candy pass, and he did not. He hit the finish line in front by a head, stopping the clock in a phenomenal track-record time of 2:00.61. Granted, the Polytrack surface is only six years old, but it is still a remarkable time that compares favorably with the other twenty clockings of the Pacific Classic. He closed his final quarter mile in -- what else? -- :24 seconds flat.
Twirling Candy ran admirably in defeat, and in my opinion, he once and for all trounced the notion that he cannot get a mile and a quarter. Horses who cannot get a mile and a quarter do not get beaten a head in grade I races run in track record times. And for the record, Twirling Candy closed his final half-mile in roughly :47.13 seconds, and his final quarter in :23.60 -- remarkable closing fractions that would win many races. But Acclamation proved just as capable, and in the end, superior under the conditions of the race.
The victory has moved Acclamation into the discussion for Horse of the Year; a discussion that had previously never included him. His credentials are as good or better than any other horse’s in the country. He has three grade I wins and a grade II this year. Other top contenders for the award are Tizway, winner of the Metropolitan (gr. I) and Whitney (gr. I) Handicaps, and Stay Thirsty, winner of the Travers (gr. I), Jim Dandy (gr. II), Gotham (gr. II), and runner-up in the Belmont Stakes (gr. I). Then of course, there are the two fillies Blind Luck (Vanity Handicap (gr. I) and Delaware Handicap (gr. II)) and Havre de Grace (Apple Blossom (gr. I), Obeah Stakes (gr. III), and Azeri Stakes (gr. III), pointing for the Woodward (gr. I)). As the connections of Acclamation have announced that he is unlikely to run on dirt, Acclamation would have to make his final claim for Horse of the Year on turf, perhaps in the Breeders' Cup Turf (gr. I) in November. Horses who predominately race on turf do not often win Horse of the Year. But in a year without a real leader in the older males or three-year-old colts division, another grade I victory for Acclamation would make his resume very, very impressive. Let's see what happens during the rest of the year.
-Keelerman
No comments:
Post a Comment