The Day After the Day

Elmont NY –

The day after.

Avon would need a full factory working non-stop around the clock to manufacture a sufficient amount of lipstick to put on this pig.

Super Saturday gave way to Sullen Sunday.

Welcome back to the harsh reality that is autumn racing in New York.

A cold, bitter, overcast day awaited the few, hearty souls who chose to brave it, and head out to beautiful Belmont Park. As a reward for breaking out the overcoat, they got to see a trio of graded stakes, two of which provided the winners entry into the Breeders’ Cup.

The stakes portion of the card commenced with the Grade III Pilgrim Stakes. None of the five Grade I’s on yesterday’s program were deemed worthy of “Win and You’re in” status by the powers that be at the Breeders’ Cup. Yet this two year old event, which featured seven runners who, prior to today, all owned only one victory a piece, received that seal of approval.

The connections of Air Support can pack their bags for Louisville, should they be so inclined. The two year old son of Smart Strike, ridden by Rajiv Maragh, survived a jockey’s objection to capture the Pilgrim by 1 ½ lengths. Alan Garcia, aboard second-place finisher Soldat, claimed that Air Support veered out at the top of the stretch, but the stewards, perhaps deferring to the greenness of the horses in question, let the results stand.

“He was basically floating over the turf course.” The triumphant Maragh remarked. “All the way I felt like I had a lot of horsepower…and when I asked him he just kicked on.”

The juvenile fillies were up next in the Miss Grillo Stakes. Jimmy Toner trainee Winter Memories was the featured runner in here, off of a solid maiden score at Saratoga. She didn’t disappoint, taking the Miss Grillo by 5 ¼ lengths.

Winter Memories sat towards the back of the pack early on, before uncorking an extremely powerful late kick under jockey Jose Lezcano. Toner admitted to having some trepidation about the way the race unfolded.

“I was concerned around the turn when she started to drop back,” Toner allowed. “But Jose said she was trying to take him, so he checked her. She’s a big, long-striding filly, so we wanted to keep her in the clear.”

It couldn’t have been any clearer for Winter Memories at the wire. She absolutely dominated the proceedings.

Equally commanding in victory was Tizway, who prevailed in the day’s third and final stakes. Tizway won the Grade II Kelso by 5 lengths. The victory was the second on the stakes portion of the program for Rajiv Maragh. This one provided the rider much less anxiety.

“When I got to the middle of the turn, I felt like I still had a lot of horse left.” Maragh said. “Once I called on him in the stretch, he just kicked on and finished up powerfully to the wire.”

Unlike the two races that preceded it, the Kelso did not provide its winner with automatic entry into next month’s Breeders’ Cup. Still, all indications are that Tizway is headed there regardless.

*****

Rajiv Maragh may have been the happiest person on the grounds on Sunday, as it appears he locked up a couple of Breeders’ Cup mounts.

As for the rest of us, we’re left with a few days off to unpack our winter clothing from the garage, and to prepare ourselves for next week’s big juvenile races (the Grade I Champagne and Frizette). This is a natural tendency at this time of year, to want to look to the future.

By default, it has to be better than the present.