2007 Horse of the Year: Curlin
A date with destiny is rapidly approaching for Curlin, Eclipse Award winner for 2007 Horse of the Year. The 4 year old blasted his way through U.S. competition by winning the Preakness, Jockey Club Gold Cup, and Breeder’s Cup Classic last year. With one prep race under his belt for 2008, he now has his sights set on the Grade 1 Dubai World Cup this Saturday.
It’s a moment I”ve been waiting for ever since it was announced he was headed to Dubai earlier in the year. As many of you know, I’m quite fond of Curlin and consider him the greatest horse I’ve had the pleasure of seeing with my own eyes. I know that’s a bold statement, but I firmly stand behind it. I cheered for him all throughout his 3 year old campaign, including the euphoria of winning the Preakness and the Classic, as well as the agony of losing in the Belmont and Kentucky Derby. It’s been a roller-coaster ride, for sure, but I never for a moment doubted how talented he is.
Despite his wins in the Preakness and Classic, Curlin is still not quite as well known as I’d like him to be. From conversations I’ve had over the past year with folks who are not regular fans of the game, it’s easy to observe that Street Sense has somehow achieved more fame and name based recognition. This bothers me for a number of reasons, most notably that Curlin is 2 for 3 when head to head with Street Sense, and probably would’ve made it 3 for 3 if not for a “kiss of death” post position (the 2 hole) in the 2007 Kentucky Derby. Nonetheless, the public somehow remains fascinated with Street Sense, who has long since retired, while Curlin continues to march towards history. Owner Jess Jackson brought him back for his 4 year old campaign after we yet again watched with disappointment as the top 3 year olds in the nation retired to the breeding shed. Jackson said he wanted racing fans to have a hero to cheer for, and wanted a super star that could attract fans to the sport and restore some of the luster to our struggling sport. A win by Curlin this weekend would do much towards fulfilling that vision.
History itself could be in the makings this weekend if the 4-year-old son of Smart Strike is able to prevail in the prestigious event. He’s already racked up over $5 million in lifetime earnings with his 7 wins in 10 lifetime starts. A win in the Dubai World Cup could make him the horse with the most earnings in history. Currently that honor is held by the legendary Cigar, who won $9,999,815 over a storied career. With $6 million in total purse money on the line in Dubai, the lions share of which awarded to the winner of the World Cup, Curlin won’t quite break Cigar’s record with a win. However, a victory would put him in great position to overtake Cigar at some point later this year. You might say the son of Smart Strike would be in “striking position” – which if you’ve ever seen Curlin run is precisely when he’s at his best. Give him a target to run at and he’s bound to take aim at it with his giant closing strides.
Facing Curlin will be an impressive array of competitors from all over the world. The Dubai World Cup (DWC) stands to feature a full field of 13 horses, which represents the largest field in the history of the race. The top competitors of the world will line up to take their shot at the American super-horse this Saturday at Nad al Sheba racetrack. The field for the DWC looks like this:
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Curlin
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Jalil
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Vermilion
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Premium Tap
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Asiatic Boy
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A.P. Arrow
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Well Armed
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Happy Boy
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Great Hunter
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Gloria De Campeo
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Lucky Find
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Kocab
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Stay Ed
Jalil is an interesting competitor for Godolphin Stables, as he was a staggering $9.7 million purchase as a yearling. He started off a bit slow, but the 4 year old son of Storm Cat and brother to After Market has handled his DWC prep races exceptionally well. He won the Grade 2 Al Maktoum Challenge (Group III) using a determined drive from around mid-pack to take command in the stretch. He’s got 4 wins and 2 places in 7 lifetime starts and is in exceptional form. I think he’ll be the biggest threat to Curlin on Saturday.
Folks may recall Premium Tap from last year’s World Cup, where he dueled with Invasor through much of the stretch before finally being put away by the 2006 Horse of the Year. The 6 year old son of Pleasant Tap won the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup and the Crown Prince Cup at Dubai last year before going down in the DWC. Interestingly, just a few weeks ago trainer Julio Gardel had indicated Premium Tap might skip the DWC, but now he has officially entered. My gut tells me that he was a better horse last year and that his connections are hoping for a minor award at best.
Vermilion is the top dirt horse in all of Japan. The 6 year old is out of the Sunday Silence mare Scarlet Lady and has won 4 races in a row in Japan since finishing 4th in last year’s DWC. Most recently he won the prestigious Grade 1 February Stakes at Tokyo. Vermilion looks to be in sharp form entering Saturday’s race and could be one of the main challengers to Curlin.
Happy Boy, like Jalil, is from Godolphin Stables and figures to be a main rival. The son of Ski Champ prevailed in Group I of the Al Maktoum Challenge and has proven he can handle the Dubai track. He’s a Brazilian bred with a lot of upside that many bettors will find reason to support on Saturday. His only race at Nad al Sheba he won by an impressive 9 lengths. My guess is that one of the Godolphin horses will be the main competition, I just tend to think Jalil may be the main threat with Happy Boy close behind.
In keeping with the “boy” theme, Asiatic Boy is a 5 year old son of Not for Sale that is owned by Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa al Maktoum. Asiatic Boy will be trying to become the first horse in history to win both the UAE Derby and the Dubai World Cup. He’s trained by Mike de Kock, one of the best South African trainers in the game. Prior to being defeated in his last start he was a perfect 5 for 5 at Nad al Sheba. Clearly he’ll be fodder for “horse for the course” type players.
Well Armed is a big, strong looking son of Tiznow. He fractured his pelvis in the 2006 UAE Derby and spent 19 months on the bench as a result. He’s trained by Eoin Harty, of Colonel John fame. Lately he’s been running at Santa Anita, having finished 2nd in the Grade 2 San Pasqual Handicap in January and then defeating the highly regarded Heatseeker in the San Antonio Handicap on February 9th. He figures to be the possible pace of the race and should lead the field into the final turn.
Great Hunter hasn’t won a race in over a year. At one point he managed to defeat Street Sense when they were both 2 year old’s in the 2006 Lane’s End Breeder’s Futurity. Street Sense of course went on to win the 2007 Kentucky Derby. Great Hunter ran in the Derby but finished well out of the money. The 4 year old son of Aptitude will be ridden by jockey Garrett Gomez, and features a late closing style that could put him at a disadvantage if no one goes after Well Armed on the lead.
Of the rest, A.P. Arrow is a Todd Pletcher trainee and 6 year old son of A.P. Indy. I don’t really know that much about him, but my gut tells me he’s a longshot. Gloria De Campeo has been running behind Jalil and Happy Boy in recent preps and would be something of a longshot to win, although a minor award seems possible. I’ll just come right out and admit that I know next to nothing about Kocab, Stay Ed, and Lucky Find. If any of them were to prevail it would be fairly big upset.
You won’t need to see a race-day update from me to know my selection. I’m 100% behind Curlin and will be cheering my heart out for him as they turn for home. I could see big runs from Jalil and Happy Boy, with Vermillion and Asiatic Boy being my next tier of competition. Well Armed, as stated above, could be a handful if alone on the lead, but ultimately I think he’ll be the target that Curlin focuses on. I look for Curlin to gun them down in the stretch and come away crowned as an international champion.
Go get ‘em, Curlin. It’s time to take your place as the world’s finest.
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