Intrepid Imperador holds off noble Arklow in Kentucky Turf Cup
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| Joe Talamo on #1 Imperador on inside before shifting to outside. |
Sept 12, 2021 - Kentucky Downs is unique among tracks in the U.S. Only turf racing. A track that follows the lay of the land, with a couple of dips and an uphill run on the stretch. Green fields, maybe a little blue too, on a late summer Saturday. It’s brief meet has big purses, and attracts interesting stakes and allowance horses from all parts of the country. If a horse loses here, I tend not to fault it in its next out. Kentucky Downs is an anomaly in so many ways.
One anomalies is a good helping of really good payouts for winning bettors. Yesterday, I took a couple of pops there, and really just had a great day at the races. The Calumet Turf Cup, pegged as Race 9, featured turf distant specialists like early-running Channel Cat and the great late-running 7-year-old Arklow (2-1), who has won this race twice. Another great, Zulu Alpha, was scheduled to run, but was retired and headed to a lush pensioners’ field the day earlier. The pot was $715,105 for the Grade 3 Turf Cup, run at 1 1/2-miles.
I pretty quickly centered on the Paulo Lobo-trained Imperador (9-1), which had run well, tho not successfully since coming to the U.S. from his native Argentina last year. Imperador was a trier. In the Grade 1 United Nations Stakes in July at Monmouth Park, he’d made a hard driving run for second that I noted. Today, Joe Talamo got the mount.
Channel Cat took to the lead early, and had company. Arklow and Imperador were running pretty easily a few lengths back, with Imperador on the rail. Before the last (long winding) turn, Talamo dramatically shifted Imprerator to the outside, running well. The horse stole a march and pulled ahead of the pack. The noble Arklow was pretty boxed in, but endeavored. Eventually, he got through, but could not quite get past Imperador at the wire. We had Imperador and Talamo to win and place.
This was a nice end to a series that saw Race 6, the Mint Ladies Sprint Stakes at 6 1/2 Furlongs went to Good Spirits ($31.80), an Also Eligible that drew in, ridden by John Velasquez. I had the second (Joe Sharp’s Catch a Bid) and forth (Richard Mandella’s Superstition ) horses, so got some place money. Both may have been undone by the anomalous Kentucky Downs terrain. In Race 7, Abscond made a good go of it. Ended up third, with the victory going to highly favored Princess Grace and the place to highly able Dalika. In Race 7, the Turf Sprint the amazing Got Stormy, a former winner in this race on hand after a strong comeback win at Saratoga, failed to fire as favorite. This left me short on tri I tried, But still happy cause I picked the 3rd place horse, Bombard, and the winner, Gear Jockey ($13.80). Imperador in the Turf Cup paid $19 | $8 | $5. Have to shout out to Caleb Keller, TVG capper, who buttressed my decision with Imperador, who he too saw as a very valid long shot.
Why am I telling you this? Hey, like the old Jewish cat asked that, after he confessed to a priest that he’d been naughty til dawn with two young blonds: ‘Telling you? I’m telling everybody!’
The boutique track was packed. Kentucky has middling vaccination (50%) and high Covid (third in recent rankings). But America has pretty much decided life or its alternative goes on. The track and stands are very open air setting. Fresh air is good. – B.B.
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