Fighting Seabee prevails in With Anticipation

SARATOGA SPRINGS >> When Fighting Seabee broke his maiden at first asking at Ellis Park on July 6, he did so by coming from off the pace. In Wednesday’s featured $150,000 With Anticipation Stakes (G3), the 2-year-old son of Summer Front took a somewhat different approach.

Breaking well from the no. 3 gate, Fighting Seabee found himself contesting the lead with Fly Fly Away for the first halfmile. Taking over from that one wheeling into the far turn, Fighting Seabee assumed a short advantage that he maintained through the turn and into the stretch. And that’s more or less how the rest of the race went, with Fighting Seabee keeping Field Pass at bay and crossing under the wire a length in front. The running time for a mile and a sixteenth over firm turf was 1:43.34.

“We were thinking there was going to be a little pace in the race,” said winning trainer Ken McPeek. “When there wasn’t, it looked like [winning jockey] Brian [Hernandez] took advantage of that. [Fighting Seabee] took him right to the front, and this colt is fast. He’s smart as a whip, and he made my job and Brian’s easy today.”

Field Pass held second by 1½ lengths over Andesite, with Our Country, Fly Fly Away and Tuggle trailing in that order.

Fighting Seabee was fortunate to avoid an incident early in the race that impacted second choice Tuggle (3-1). After Our Country, the 6-5 favorite, stumbled and lost ground leaving the gate, he decided to try to put himself back in the race all at once. Looking for room where there really wasn’t any, Our Country effectively took Tuggle out of the race while squeezing through along the hedge, then nearly ran up on the heels of the leaders before being brought under control by jockey Manny Franco.

“I heard a couple of guys holler back there, but in a short field that can happen,” said Hernandez. “I had the confidence knowing that if I gave [Flying Seabee] a good trip around the first turn, he could take care of the rest, and that’s how it worked out. He crossed the wire with his ears up, so you got to be confident about that.”

Fighting Seabee is the fourth winner and first stakes winner for firstyear sire Summer Front, a son of War Front who stands at Airdrie Stud in Kentucky. Fighting Seabee races for Walking L Thoroughbreds LLC.