Hollendorfer, Bonde ready for key races
Jerry Hollendorfer and Jeff Bonde train at Golden Gate Fields and in Southern California, but they are at Churchill Downs this week preparing their horses for the 35th Breeders’ Cup.
Gunmetal Gray and Dueling run for Hollendorfer in the $2 million Juvenile on Friday’s Future Stars program for 2year-olds. Bonde runs King of Speed in Friday’s $1 million Juvenile Turf and Miss Sunset in Saturday’s $1 million Filly & Mare Sprint.
Hollendorfer has done well at the Breeders’ Cup, with three wins and four seconds from 22 starters and 12 entrants earning purse money by finishing at least fifth. Bonde hasn’t won a Cup race (She’s a Tiger was disqualified from first to second for late interference in the 2013 Juvenile Fillies), but five of his eight runners have earned purse money.
“I’m grateful to have had as many opportunities as I’ve had, and our stable has made the most of our opportunities,” Hollendorfer said.
Said Bonde: “You try to make yourself have everything be perfect on that given day against the best horses in the world. There’s a lot of pressure involved with that.”
Hollendorfer won the 2010 Dirt Mile with 37-1 shot Dakota Phone, the 2015 Juvenile Fillies with 3-5 favorite Songbird and the 2017 Dirt Mile with 14-1 shot Battle of Midway. Songbird lost by just a short nose to Beholder in the 2016 Distaff, and Hysterical Lady (2007) and Blind Luck (2010) also ran second in the Distaff.
Gunmetal Gray finished fifth in his sprint debut, then romped by 6¾ lengths going 1 mile and ran second in the Grade 1 American Pharoah Stakes. Dueling finished second in two sprints, then won by 2¾ lengths going 1 mile.
Both horses were beaten by undefeated Breeders’ Cup Juvenile favorite Game Winner — Gunmetal Gray losing by 4½ lengths in the American Pharoah Stakes and Dueling by 5¾ lengths in his second start.
Hollendorfer believes his horses can be much1more competitive in Friday’s 1 ⁄16-mile race.
“It’s not going to be a five- or six-horse field, and there’s going to be some pace in there,” he said. “That’s a lot different than what we saw at Santa Anita.”
Fourteen 2-year-olds were entered Monday for the Juvenile, and Complexity, Game Winner, Mind Control, Tight Ten and Well Defined possess front-running speed. On paper, that sets up well for comefrom-behinders like Gunmetal Gray and Dueling.
King of Speed is not your typical Bonde trainee in that — unlike his name — he possesses no early speed at all. He couldn’t threaten in two dirt sprints before stretching out to a mile on the turf and finishing third and second in maiden events.
Then King of Speed stormed from ninth place to win the Del Mar Juvenile Turf Stakes and rallied from nearly 10 lengths behind to take the Zuma Beach Stakes at Santa Anita.
“He’s a little different character,” Bonde said. “He was a slow learner at first, like a teenager. When we put him on turf and long, he grew up. He has a very good mind; there’s no fear in that horse.”
King of Speed is the 8-1 fourth choice in the morning line, which is respectable, considering that East Coast and European runners historically have been superior to West Coast grass horses. But King of Speed’s slow-early, fast-late running style is exactly how European horses perform.
Gary Stevens “has been riding regularly and breezing him, and he thinks he’s ready for his best,” Bonde said.
Miss Sunset has won 10 of 19 starts and though seven of her nine stakes victories came in restricted events, she also won the Grade 2 Raven Run Stakes and lost by just a nose in the Grade 1 Madison Stakes.
“She’s been one of the most consistent sprinters that I’ve ever had,” Bonde said. “It’s hard for sprinters to keep their form.”
Unfortunately, Miss Sunset — who runs best from the outside — drew the No. 2 post. Her opponents Saturday include favorite Marley’s Freedom, who has won three straight stakes since moving to trainer Bob Baffert’s barn, and Selcourt, who beat Marley’s Freedom previously.