Pavel finally strutting stuff

ELMONT, N.Y. – To say that Pavel has come a long way in a short period of time understates the cliché.

On July 1, Pavel won a 6 1/2furlong maiden race at Santa Anita. Four weeks later, he was swapping punches with the Kentucky Derby and Preakness winners in the Grade 2 Jim Dandy at Saratoga. Now, after a visually impressive victory in the Grade 3 Smarty Jones Stakes at Parx on Labor Day, Pavel is meeting older horses in Saturday’s Grade 1, $750,000 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park.

Pavel, who drew post 4, will take on Grade 2 Suburban winner Keen Ice and his stablemates Destin and Rally Cry as well as Jim Dandy winner Good Samaritan, Diversify, and Highland Sky in the 99th running of the Jockey Club Gold Cup. The Gold Cup, which offers its winner a fees-paid berth in the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar on Nov. 4, is the 10th race on an 11-race card that includes the Grade 1 Champagne, Grade 3 Hill Prince, and Belmont Turf Sprint Invitational.

Pavel, a son of Creative Cause, actually was among the early group of 2-year-olds to join trainer Doug O’Neill’s barn last year. He worked six times from May 26 to July 24 last year before being sidelined by a shin injury. He returned to the work tab Oct. 12 and worked nine times through Dec. 16 before there was an issue with his tibia, O’Neill said.

Pavel was back on the work tab in April and had 10 works before his debut at Santa Anita, which he won by 4 1/2 lengths at odds of 7-1.

Fearing the distance of the maiden race was too short, O’Neill wasn’t expecting that type of performance, even talking owner Paul Reddam away from the windows.

“I might have cost him a little bit of money,” O’Neill said Wednesday from California. “When he did what he did in that debut, we all huddled up here and said we are in July of his 3-year-old season, we’re running out of time. Let’s see if he can’t swim with the Michael Phelpses.”

Thus began Pavel’s journey east. At the quarter pole of the Jim Dandy, Pavel was three wide, just outside of Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming and Preakness winner Cloud Computing. Under Mario Gutierrez, Pavel finished a head behind Always Dreaming and a neck in front of Cloud Computing while that trio finished behind Good Samaritan and Giuseppe the Great in the fivehorse field.

“When he turned for home and lined up with those big dogs, he didn’t back out, didn’t get intimidated,” O’Neill said. “Mario said he just got a little tired going from 6 1/2 to a mile and an eighth.”

In his next start, Pavel rolled to a six-length victory in the Smarty Jones, the local prep for the Pennsylvania Derby. But O’Neill and Reddam had Irap, a multiple graded stakes winner, for the Pennsylvania Derby, so they separated the two horses.

While Irap did run second in the Pennsylvania Derby, he came out of the race with a career-ending leg fracture. Irap had surgery at the New Bolton Center, where, according to O’Neill, his recovery has had “some ups and downs” lately.

In the Gold Cup, Pavel will be racing at his fourth track and at his fourth distance in 99 days.

“To do what he did second time out shows us as long as he’s feeling it, it doesn’t matter what the surface is like or what the size of the field is,” O’Neill said. “He’s just a very mature colt for a lightly raced 3-yearold. I don’t think fourth track in his fourth career race will be a factor in the result.”

Diversify, the speedy New York-bred, drew the rail. Outside of him are Highland Sky, Good Samaritan (who will be equipped with blinkers), Pavel, Rally Cry, Destin, and Keen Ice.

Large field for Champagne

Trainers Jason Servis and Eric Guillot each entered two horses in a field of 12 for Saturday’s Grade 1, $500,000 Champagne that lacks a clear favorite. Servis entered Firenze Fire and Full of Run, while Guillot entered Stronger and the maiden Master Manipulator.

Firenze Fire is the lone graded stakes winner in the field, having won the Grade 3 Sanford at Saratoga on July 22. Firenze Fire then finished fourth in the Grade 1 Hopeful. Servis said that the week before the Hopeful Firenze Fire was coughing, and in the race he didn’t change leads, yet he was beaten only 4 1/4 lengths.

“He didn’t run his race in the Hopeful, never changed leads, never picked up the bit,” Servis said.

Servis said Firenze Fire has trained better since that race.

Full of Run, a son of Power Broker, won his 5 1/2-furlong debut at Monmouth on Aug. 26 by 3 1/4 lengths. He drew post 10, while Firenze Fire drew post 12.

From south Florida, Guillot shipped in Stronger, a maiden winner, and Master Manipulator, a troubled second in a maiden race at Gulfstream. Guillot had the option of running Master Manipulator in a maiden race Saturday.

“There’ll be a gazillion maiden races,” Guillot said. “There’s only one Champagne.”

Stronger drew post 3, and Master Manipulator drew post 5.

The remainder of the field is Aveenu Malcainu, Bahamian, Blame It On Honey, Enticed, Good Magic, Hazit, Honorable Treasure, and Kowboy Karma.

Frostmourne back in Hill Prince

Frostmourne, the impressive winner of the Kent Stakes at Delaware Park on July 8, returns to the races in Saturday’s Grade 3, $500,000 Hill Prince Stakes going 1 1/8 miles at Belmont Park.

Frostmourne drew post 4 in a field of nine 3-year-olds entered Wednesday for the Hill Prince.

Frostmourne was being pointed to the Secretariat at Arlington this summer, but trainer Christophe Clement didn’t feel he was training well enough in early August to take on that challenge.

“His last two works have been good; his last work was [a bullet],” Clement said. “I know it’s a very tough race. That’s okay, he’s a nice horse.”

Bricks and Mortar will try to rebound from his first loss in the Hill Prince. Others entered were Hieroglyphics, Lucullan, Rocketry, Secretary At War, Small Bear, Ticonderoga, and Yoshida.

◗ Disco Partner, who set a North American record for six furlongs on turf (1:05.67) winning the Grade 3 Jaipur here in June, will be heavily favored in a field of five entered in the $150,000 Belmont Turf Sprint Invitational at six furlongs. He will face Snowday, We Deer You, Ready for Rye, and Bold Thunder. The Belmont Turf Sprint will go as race 3.