Ryvit can get jump on Tejano Twist

The field-size problem in American racing is evident in Saturday’s stakes.

At Oaklawn, the Purple Martin drew six entrants, the Whitmore, seven. The lone open stakes at Laurel, the Harrison Johnson, got seven, as did the Hutcheson at Gulfstream. The Pasadena at Santa Anita lured a grand total of five 3-year-old turf horses; the San Marcos has seven, but The Chosen Vron is odds-on.

Only the Queen at Turfway Park produced a large field, a dozen plus an also-eligible, and even at Turfway, average starters per race has recently fallen. Turfway still averages 9.27 horses in the gate. Compare that to the 7.09 at Aqueduct, where the Cicada Stakes attracted a field of . . . five.

Whitmore

Tejano Twist will be favored, but Ryvit is solidly preferred in the Whitmore.

Five-year-old Tejano Twist has durability and consistency on his side, but 4-yearold Ryvit has all the upside and already is nearly as fast as Tejano Twist, peak race to peak race. Ryvit puts himself in a far better tactical position and will be the longer price of the pair, making him the easy play.

All credit to Tejano Twist, who has earned his connections roughly $1 million since being claimed for $80,000 in June 2022. Tejano Twist, a dedicated one-run closer, has run to form his last 12 starts while producing a steady stream of Beyer Speed Figures in the high 90s and three triple-digit figures. His second-place finish Feb. 3 in the King Cotton was solid as ever. Skelly, the winner, simply is a faster horse, and Tejano Twist does not love a sloppy surface.

While Ryvit has yet to hit a triple-digit Beyer, Saturday could be the day. It was at Oaklawn last season that Ryvit came to hand, but after five consecutive strong showings he fell apart at Saratoga in July. The Charles Town bull ring and a sloppy Parx Racing surface provide plausible excuses for two more starkly subpar races before Ryvit returned to form running the race of his life in the $250,000 Steel Valley Sprint. That race was Nov. 20 and a short turnaround into the Dec. 9 Ring the Bell likely accounted for another step back.

In the Steel Valley Sprint, Ryvit got badly knocked around but was entirely willing to race inside, behind, and between rivals as he closed from seventh and won going away over talented Damon’s Mound. Following a freshening, there was Ryvit contesting a fast pace on the way to a sharp open allowance score Feb. 23. Ryvit has stablemate Jaxon Traveler to provide a target Saturday, and after taking Jaxon Traveler’s measure in upper stretch, he’ll finish too strongly for Tejano Twist to catch him.

Hutcheson

Valiant Force did train well over the Santa Anita dirt before a strong showing in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint, and connections have been looking for a spot to race the colt on dirt. They’ve found a dandy one in the Hutcheson, where Valiant Force is likely favored.

Even if Valiant Force proves as good on dirt as on turf, I don’t see him beating Beeline, who could offer a fair price even as a strong second choice.

Beeline got a strong 87 Beyer winning his lone start by nearly four lengths in a full field of Gulfstream maidens, and his performance held even more visual appeal than on paper. When he switched leads and kicked away from his nearest rival in upper stretch, Beeline showed that extra spark one sees in especially promising young horses. And while he contested a strong pace, Beeline didn’t at all look like a oneway speed horse. As good as he was in his first race, Beeline can run even better in his second.

Pasadena

Stay Hot will be favored in the one-mile Pasadena, deservedly so, but one wonders if this horse has hit a form plateau. Whether he has or hasn’t, Stay Hot and three other horses will be tasked with running down loose leader Island Cruiser. And Island Cruiser, with three starts to Stay Hot’s six, is ready to jump to a new level, perhaps aided by a move from sprints to a two-turn mile.

Not once during his trio of races has Island Cruiser pulled and raced aggressively like a horse who wouldn’t rate on the lead. His body type leans sprint, but I expect Island Cruiser to make full use of his tactical advantage and go wire to wire.