Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Instilled Regard headed home; could return for Risen Star
NEW ORLEANS – Instilled Regard had his head out of his stall and nipped at a passerby’s sweater Sunday morning, the day after he won the Lecomte Stakes here at Fair Grounds, and the spirited vibe he gave appeared backed up by what trainer Jerry Hollendorfer had seen earlier in the day.
“We looked at him early this morning, jogged him down the road,” Hollendorfer said. “He ate good last night. We’re happy with how he came out of it.”
Instilled Regard got a Beyer Speed Figure of 92 after running one mile and 70 yards in 1:42.59 and winning the Lecomte by 3 3/4 lengths over Principe Guilherme. The speed figure equaled the number Instilled Regard earned finishing a close third (second via disqualification) in the Los Alamitos Futurity in his previous start, and Instilled Regard acted professionally from start to finish Saturday while finishing and galloping out like a horse who will handle longer distances.
Instilled Regard raced twice in sprints to start his career, but Hollendorfer always regarded the colt, by Arch out of a strong female family, as a route horse.
“We thought once he got stretched out, he’d be a little better horse,” Hollendorfer said. “We’re happy to have a horse that has tactical speed. He doesn’t have to have the lead or come from behind. Javier [Castellano] was very pleased with the way the horse ran. He said he did whatever he wanted him to do.”
Instilled Regard not only
has raced five times but has been working without missing a beat since May 26.
“I try to work the horses on a regular schedule, and he’s been able to handle that. He’s got a pretty good foundation in him,” Hollendorfer said.
Instilled Regard, owned by Lawrence Best’s OXO Equine LLC, was to fly back to California on Monday. No plans are firmly set for his next start, but a return trip to Fair Grounds for the Risen Star Stakes here Feb. 17 will definitely be considered.
“We’ll get him back to California, train him, and make a decision,” Hollendorfer said. Trainer Steve Asmussen sent out the second-, third-, and fourth-place Lecomte finishers – Principe Guilherme, Snapper Sinclair, and Zing Zang – and said Sunday that all three had come out of the race in good shape. Principe Guilherme lost ground on both turns after breaking from an outside post and suffered his first defeat after two blowout wins to start his career. Asmussen believes the colt tired late in the Lecomte, and tentative plans call for him to run back in the Risen Star. Snapper Sinclair ran an extremely game race to finish just a neck behind Principe Guilherme after being involved in a strong pace from the start. Asmussen said Sunday that immediate race plans have yet to be formulated for Snapper Sinclair and Zing Zang.
Cedartown to New Orleans
Cedartown won his second stakes in a row, capturing Saturday’s $75,000 Louisiana Stakes at Fair Grounds and taking another step toward his connections’ goal of getting to the New Orleans Handicap. Cedartown, who swooped past favored The Player at the top of the stretch, beat Scuba by two lengths and ran 1 1/16 miles on dirt in 1:44.18, earning a career-best 100 Beyer. In his previous race, he had gotten a 96 Beyer winning the Zia Park Derby by 1 3/4
lengths over Untrapped. Cedartown, a Godolphinowned 4-year-old by Candy Ride, didn’t debut until June and won for the first time in his third start when he was stretched from sprints to a route. It was his Sept. 9 first-level allowance at Delaware Park that really caught trainer Mike Stidham’s eye. Cedartown was second by two lengths in that race, but battled head and head through the homestretch with a horse named Dr. Blarney, a multiple Massachusetts-bred stakes winner who still was eligible to the open allowance condition. Cedartown, Stidham said, came out of his Louisiana Stakes win in good condition. His connections are pointing backward from the New Orleans Handicap, and it’s yet to be determined whether Cedartown will come back in the Mineshaft Handicap on Feb. 17, though it’s more likely than not he will show up in that race.
Stronger Than Ever staying put
Stronger Than Ever, the 33-1 upset winner of the Silverbulletday Stakes on Saturday, will stay at Fair Grounds and run back in the Rachel Alexandra Stakes on Feb. 17, trainer Ken McPeek said Sunday.
After winning her first two races last year, Stronger Than Ever was seventh in the Golden Rod Stakes at Churchill Downs and a well-beaten third in the Trapeze Stakes at Remington Park, but after returning to Kentucky following the Trapeze, McPeek sent her to his Fair Grounds string a couple weeks ago with his eye on the Silverbulletday. Rallying from last under Florent Geroux, Stronger Than Ever got the best of favored Wonder Gadot by a neck, running one mile and 70 yards in 1:44.28, earning a 76 Beyer.
“She’s a really solid filly and has been from the beginning,” McPeek said. “These young horses are continually changing, and she just was going the right way. The track at Remington was kind of against her, and at Churchill she didn’t fire her best shot. I do like the way Florent rode her yesterday. I think she’s going to love a mile and an eighth once we get to races like that.”
Wonder Gadot, who probably got too much of a strong early pace, held gamely for second. She’s likely to remain at Fair Grounds, trainer Mark Casse said, and is a probable runner in the Rachel Alexandra. So, too, is Heavenly Love, the Casse-trained filly who was a somewhat disappointing fifth in the Silverbulletday.