Mendelssohn back for Gold Cup

ELMONT, N.Y. – While the connections of many U.S.based horses have opted to train their horses up to the Breeders’ Cup in November at Churchill Downs, the Irelandbased Aidan O’Brien has taken a different approach.

On Tuesday, O’Brien shipped the 3-year-old Mendelssohn to New York, where on Saturday at Belmont Park he will take on fellow Euro shipper Thunder Snow and the speedy multiple Grade 1 winner Diversify in an intriguing 100th renewal of the Grade 1, $750,000 Jockey Club Gold Cup.

Mendelssohn finished last of 20 in the Kentucky Derby and is making his third transcontinental trip to New York since then. He finished third in the Grade 3 Dwyer here in July and second in last month’s Travers at Saratoga. O’Brien had earlier this year mentioned the Pennsylvania Derby, run last week at Parx Racing, as a possible spot for Mendelssohn, but said there were issues with the quarantine procedures.

“This race we thought would suit him well,” O’Brien said Wednesday by phone from Ireland.

O’Brien said he’s happy with the way Mendelssohn came out of the Travers.

“We were going to go straight to the Classic, but he took the race very well,” he said.

Mendelssohn led for bit more than a mile of the 1 1/4-mile Travers before being overtaken by Catholic Boy. Mendelssohn finished four lengths behind Catholic Boy and a length clear of third-place finisher Bravazo.

“We were happy with the run,” O’Brien said.

Mendelssohn drew post 3 in a field of eight entered Wednesday for the Jockey Club, run at 1 1/4 miles. The Jockey Club Gold Cup is a Breeders’ Cup Challenge race, with the winner being awarded a berth in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Diversify broke sharply from the rail and led every step of the way in last year’s Gold Cup. He will break from post 6 on Saturday.

Thunder Snow, who won the Dubai World Cup in March, arrived in New York last week from England, where he ran eighth at York in the Juddmonte International on Aug. 22. On Wednesday, he worked a halfmile in 52.94 seconds over a muddy Belmont main track. He wasn’t asked for much by exercise rider Ian Burns.

Assistant Tommy Burns, who is overseeing Thunder Snow’s preparation until trainer Saeed bin Suroor arrives, said it was important to get something into the horse, but he would have preferred to do it over a dry track.

“I wish the track was better,” Burns said. “We had to sort of just look after him today. We got a blow into him is the main thing. He’s a lazy horse at home, very lazy, that’s why we ran him at York, to get a race into him.”

Burns said he thought about postponing the work to Thursday, but there was rain forecast for Wednesday night.

Thunder Snow drew the outside post in the Jockey Club Gold Cup.

Carlino drew the rail, followed by Belmont Stakes runner-up Gronkowski, Mendelssohn, Patch, Uno Mas Modelo, Diversify, Discreet Lover, and Thunder Snow.

Carrick facing elders

A 3-year-old hasn’t won the Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic since Kitten’s Joy in 2004, the first year the race was renamed to honor the legendary Daily Racing Form columnist.

Trainer Tom Morley hopes to end that streak Saturday, when he sends out Carrick against seven older males in the $500,000 Hirsch at 1 1/2 miles over Belmont’s Widener turf course. Three-year-olds are 0 for 9 in the Hirsch starting in 2005, when English Channel finished second.

Carrick, a son of Giant’s Causeway, is 3 for 4 in his career and enters off a 38-1 upset in the Grade 1 Secretariat Stakes at Arlington. For what it’s worth, Carrick did run his 1 1/4 miles 1.25 seconds faster than Robert Bruce did in winning the Grade 1 Arlington Million on the same Aug. 11 card. Robert Bruce could be favored in the Joe Hirsch.

“If he’s good enough to beat the older horses in the Joe Hirsch, he’s one of the best turf horses in the country then,” Morley said.

Morley said the Joe Hirsch was more logical than the Grade 2, $500,000 Hill Prince for 3-year-olds next Saturday at Belmont. The Hill Prince is run at 1 1/8 miles, and Carrick would have to concede weight to others. On Saturday, he gets five pounds from the older horses.

“He has an abundance of stamina,” Morley said. “I think the mile and a half will suit him down to the ground.”

The Hirsch, which offers a fees-paid berth in the Breeders’ Cup Turf on Nov. 3 at Churchill Downs, drew a field of eight. From the rail out, it will be Robert Bruce, Hi Happy, Sadler’s Joy, Carrick, Teodoro, Spring Quality, Highland Sky, and Channel Maker.

Imperial Hint in Vosburgh

Imperial Hint drew post 6 and figures to be a heavy favorite in Saturday’s Grade 1, $350,000 Vosburgh Stakes, which offers an automatic berth in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.

Imperial Hint enters off a devastatingly easy victory in the Alfred G. Vanderbilt at Saratoga on July 28, his first Grade 1 stakes victory and 11th win in 17 career starts. He drew post 6 in a field of seven that includes Sight for soreyees, Maniacal, Forge, Mr. Crow, Silver Ride, and Still Krz.

Opry tops Pilgrim

Opry and Some like it hot brown, the 1-2 finishers from the Grade 3 With Anticipation Stakes at Saratoga on Aug. 29, were among the 10 horses entered for Saturday’s Grade 3, $200,000 Pilgrim Stakes at Belmont Park.

Opry debuted on dirt and finished third, beaten a halflength by Cairo Cat, who came back to win the Grade 3 Iroquois Stakes at Churchill Downs in his next start.

The Pilgrim field, from the rail out: Rhythm With Soul, Forty Under, Dashing Dan, Vineyard Sound, Opry, Ole Mole, Some like it hot brown, Social Paranoia, Spirit Animal, and Pipes.

Weekend Hideaway retired

Weekend Hideaway, a New York-bred sprinter who won stakes races in seven consecutive years, has been retired from racing after being injured in his most recent workout, trainer Phil Serpe said Wednesday.

Serpe said Weekend Hideaway sustained a fracture of the inside sesamoid in a front leg. Weekend Hideaway had worked five furlongs in 1:00.20 on Saturday over Belmont’s main track.

Weekend Hideaway, a son of Speightstown, began his career in July 2012. After finishing second in his debut at Saratoga, he won a maiden race and the David Stakes at the Spa before completing his juvenile campaign with a victory in the Bertram F. Bongard Stakes.

Weekend Hideaway would go on to win stakes at ages 3,4,5,6,7, and 8. He won two runnings of the John Morrissey Stakes at Saratoga, including the most recent running on July 26 at odds of 10-1.

“It’s sad, but on the other hand, I am really, really happy that I’ll be able to walk him out of here in one piece,” Serpe said.

Weekend Hideaway retires with a record of 13-7-10 from 49 starts and career earnings of $1,144,922.