Instagrand ready for much-awaited comeback race

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – The manner in which Instagrand won his first two starts had the racing world abuzz and observers believing they were possibly witnessing racing’s next big thing.

Instagrand won his career debut by 10 lengths in June at Los Alamitos and six weeks later he galloped by 10 1/4 lengths in the Grade 2 Best Pal at Del Mar.

However, as rapidly as Instagrand rose to prominence he was whisked away to the farm for a break, owing to nothing more than owner’s prerogative.

“If I give them a break, it’s because I want to give them a break,” owner Larry Best told The Blood-Horse last September when it was announced Instagrand would be shut down for the remainder of the year.

Seven months later, Instagrand will make his highly anticipated 3-year-old debut in the Grade 3, $300,000 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct. Instagrand was one of eight 3-year-olds entered Wednesday for Saturday’s Gotham, a one-turn mile race that offers 85 qualifying points (50-20-10-5) to its top four finishers to the May 4 Kentucky Derby.

Instagrand, who will be ridden by Hall of Famer Javier Castellano, drew post 6 in a field of eight that includes Grade 1 winners Knicks Go (post 2) and Mind Control (post 3) as well as listed or restricted stakes winners Haikal (post 5), and Not That Brady (post 7). Much Better (post 4), Tikhvin Flew (post 8), and Family Biz (post 1) complete the field.

Some may view the Gotham as Instagrand’s first steps down the Triple Crown trail. Jerry Hollendorfer, Instagrand’s Hall of Fame trainer, says he’s not allowing himself to think that far ahead.

“Mostly my attitude my whole career is to take them one race at a time,” Hollendorfer said Wednesday morning by phone from Northern California. “We need to get past this race, see what he does and then make another decision.”

Hollendorfer said he disagreed with Best’s decision to pull Instagrand out of training last September when the horse seemed perfectly healthy.

“I didn’t agree with Larry about what to do with Instagrand, but as it turns out the horse got freshened up and has come back and worked very well,” Hollendorfer said. “Maybe in the long run it was the best thing for this horse. I like to throw things back and forth with the owners. We don’t always agree – and not just Larry – but usually we come to the right conclusion.”

Best did not return phone calls seeking comment for this story.

The decision to run Instagrand in the Gotham was made well in advance of the Tuesday decision by Santa Anita officials to suspend racing indefinitely while they address concerns over factors that have led to 21 equine fatalities there this winter.

The other option was the Grade 2, $500,000 San Felipe, which was scheduled for Saturday but has been postponed. That race was at 1 1/16 miles around two turns and was to include 2-year-old champion Game Winner and fellow unbeaten Improbable, both trained by Bob Baffert.

“The distance, the one turn, at the stage we’re at seems like a better fit,” Hollendorfer said of the reason to run Instagrand in the Gotham.

When the decision was made last September to shut Instagrand down, he was sent to Taylor Made Farm in Lexington, Ky. He was sent back to Hollendorfer in late November and began working again on Dec. 30.

On Tuesday, at Santa Anita, Instagrand put in his final work – his 10th since his return – breezing a half-mile in 47.80 seconds with a strong gallopout. Hollendorfer had him galloping out five furlongs in 1:00.

“That was very good the way he did that,” Hollendorfer said. “He has been very, very sound coming up to this race and just doing everything really well.”

In addition to this being Instagrand’s first start in 210 days and first beyond six furlongs, he is shipping into a significantly colder climate and, more importantly, to a track that was quite deep and slow last week.

“We understand the difficulty of it,” Hollendorfer said. “Our stable’s done that a lot. We’re doing the best we can. We’re thinking very positively with due respect for the other horses that are going to be running in that race. It’s definitely not an easy race.”

With Santa Anita closed indefinitely, Mike Smith was named to ride fellow California shipper Much Better. Junior Alvarado had been scheduled to ride the Bob Baffert trainee.

The Gotham will go as race 9 on an 11-race program that begins at 12:20 p.m. Eastern. Other races on the card include the $250,000 Busher Invitational for 3-year-old fillies at one mile; the Grade 3, $200,000 Tom Fool Handicap at six furlongs; and the $150,000 Stymie at one mile.