Hofburg odds-on in Curlin Stakes
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. »
In its brief history, the Curlin Stakes has developed into a somewhat surprising source of starters for the Travers. The $100,000 race, which will be contested today for the tenth time, is restricted to 3-yearolds who have not won a graded stakes over a mile during the current year. These conditions make the Curlin an option for horses not deemed ready to take on the more accomplished runners generally found in the Jim Dandy – as well as those looking for an easier path to the Travers.
No horse in last year’s Curlin ran in the Travers. Over the previous five years, however, a dozen Curlin starters went on to do so, including 2014 Travers winner V. E. Day. Connect and Gift Box, the 1-2 finishers in the 2016 Curlin, ran fifth and fourth, respectively, in that year’s Mid-Summer Derby.
The biggest name in this year’s Curlin is Hofburg, who has been made the 1-2 morning- line favorite. Best known for his solid thirdplace finish behind Justify in the Belmont, the Tapit colt was also runner-up in the Florida Derby. For all that, though, Hofburg has only a maiden win to his credit. The Juddmonte homebred has been training well for this spot, including a bullet breeze (fastest of 33 at four furlongs) on the Oklahoma training track on July 8.
Madison’s Luna, the only graded-stakes winner in the field, is next at 4-1. The win came in the seven-furlong Hutcheson Stakes in late March. The son of Tapit was well-beaten in his next two starts but showed signs of life in a one-mile optional claimer at Churchill on June 24. That race was on turf, however. Madison’s Luna has never raced beyond a mile.
Stakes victories in Louisiana and New Mexico over the winter inspired the connections of Reride (6-1) to give him a shot in the UAE Derby (G2) on Mar 31. The Winchell Thoroughbreds homebred finished a distant third behind Mendelssohn that day. In his lone start since, Reride ran fifth in the Mystic Lake Derby at Canterbury Downs. Reride is cross-entered in Saturday’s Jim Dandy.
American Lincoln (12-1) and maiden winners Zing Zang (8-1) and Nicodemus (10-1) round out the field of six.