Barbara Livingston (DRF) Photo

West Coast stars Instagrand and Much Better shipping in for Gotham

by NYRA Press Office

• Knicks Go remains possible for Gotham
• Zenden re-routing to Tampa Bay Derby
• Miller considering Gotham heist with High Crime
• Stan the Man hopes winning streak won't be stymied in return to stakes action
• Espresso Shot looks to give jolt to Busher on Gotham Day

OXO Equine's undefeated Instagrand will make his 2019 debut in the Grade 3 $300,000 Gotham Stakes, slated for Saturday, March 9 at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Part of New York's "Road to the Kentucky Derby" series, the Gotham, a one-turn mile, offers qualifying points of 50-20-10-5 to the first four finishers. The Gotham headlines a lucrative card that also includes the $250,000 Busher Invitational, offering 50-20-10-5 qualifying points to the top-four finishers towards the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks on May 3 at Churchill Downs, the Grade 3 $200,000 Tom Fool, a six-furlong sprint for 4-year-olds and up, and the $150,000 Stymie at a mile for 4-year-olds and up.

The Gotham will be featured live on FOX Sports Saturday At The Races, airing on FS2 from 5 - 8 p.m., as part of a special broadcast offering three significant Derby preps, including the Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby, the Grade 2 San Felipe from Santa Anita and the Grade 3 Jeff Ruby Steaks from Turfway Park. Also featured from Santa Anita will be the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap.

A $1.2 million purchase at Fasig-Tipton's 2018 The Gulfstream Sale, Instagrand romped by 10 lengths in his June 29 debut when sprinting five furlongs at Los Alamitos. The Into Mischief colt followed up on that effort August 11 in the Grade 2 Best Pal by besting a five-horse field by 10 ¼-lengths, earning a 92 Beyer Speed Figure for the six-furlong sprint.

Hall of Fame conditioner Jerry Hollendorfer said the one-turn mile was an attractive alternative for Instagrand, who will arrive in New York on Wednesday, rather than the 1 1/16-mile San Felipe also set for March 9 at his home track of Santa Anita.

"The distance of the race seems to be a better place to start going a one-turn mile rather than a mile and a sixteenth at Santa Anita. He's been off for a while," said Hollendorfer.

Instagrand's worktab shows a steady stream of works at Santa Anita including a February 25 effort in 1:26.60 for seven furlongs.

"He's training very nice. We think we have the horse good enough to run," said Hollendorfer. "He was always a well-meant horse, and Larry Best [OXO Equine] spent quite a bit of money for him and he's proven to be worth it."

Hollendorfer, who has conditioned notable Eclipse Award winners Blind Luck, Songbird and the ill-fated Shared Belief, said he prefers not to compare the talents of his trainees.

"I don't really like to compare horses. Each horse has their own individual way of learning and doing things and we think that he's a very good prospect," said Hollendorfer.

With a Kentucky Derby winner one of the few missing bullet points on an impressive career resume, Hollendorfer said he will let his horse do the talking.

"We'd like to win it, but we'll have to have the horse to take us there," said Hollendorfer.

Also arriving from the West Coast for the Gotham is Three Chimneys Farm homebred Much Better. Trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, Much Better is an improving son of Pioneerof the Nile, the sire of Baffert's 2015 Triple Crown champion American Pharoah.

A dirt winner on debut at Del Mar on September 1, Much Better came back to finish second in the grassy Zuma Beach at Santa Anita ahead of a disappointing effort in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf in November at Churchill Downs.

Much Better returned to dirt for his seasonal debut on January 5 when third in the Grade 3 Sham at Santa Anita and followed up with a front-running score when sprinting 6 ½-furlongs in an optional claiming tilt on the Santa Anita main track.

"We were thinking this might be a good race to stretch him back out and see his ability," said Baffert. "I thought he ran solid in his last start and we'd really like to see what he can do at two turns. He's a Pioneerof the Nile and he has a lot of speed.

"Previously in the Sham when he went two turns he seemed to be moving well and just came up a bit short towards the finish," continued Baffert. "He won his debut sprinting and then we tried him out on the turf, but he's shown us enough on the dirt where we want to give him another shot to stretch out and at a mile this could be a good spot to do it."

In addition to Instagrand and Much Better, the prospective field for the Gotham includes Grade 1-winners Mind Control and Knicks Go, multiple graded stakes winner Call Paul, as well as stakes winners Not That Brady and Haikal.

The improving Federal Case, High Crime, Spun to Run and Tikhvin Flew are also under consideration to join the fray in search of Kentucky Derby qualifying points.

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Knicks Go remains possible for Gotham

Speaking from his winter base in Tampa, Florida, trainer Ben Colebrook reported KRA Stud Farm's Grade 1 Breeders' Futurity winner Knicks Go,who finished fifth in the Grade 3 Sam F. Davis last out, remains possible to make his next start in the Grade 3 Gotham.

"It's certainly a possibility that we enter for the Gotham," said Colebrook. "He's seemed to come out of the Sam F. Davis well. He's had one breeze since then that we were happy with and he's remained healthy. We're still trying to pick our spots and find our way to the Derby."

The Paynter colt broke his maiden in his debut last July at Ellis Park before going on to win the Breeders' Futurity at Keeneland at odds of 70-1. Knicks Go capped his juvenile season with a second-place finish in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile, earning a 90 Beyer Speed Figure.

Knicks Go kicked off his 3-year-old campaign on February 9 at Tampa Bay Downs with a fifth-place finish as the post-time favorite in the Sam F. Davis.

With 18 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to his credit, Knicks Go will looked to add to that total with the Gotham offering 50-20-10-5 qualifying points to the first four finishers.

Colebrook said the one-turn mile is appealing for his young charge.

"Obviously, cutting back to the mile [distance] for the Gotham could certainly work in his favor, but the race is also looking like it will come up real salty, so we'll weigh all of our options," said Colebrook.

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Zenden re-routing to Tampa Bay Derby

With two wins from three lifetime starts sprinting at Gulfstream Park, including a second-place effort in the Grade 3 Swale most recently, Pichi Investments LLC's Zenden was expected to make his next start in the Gotham.

However, after Zenden breezed five furlongs in 1:01.31 on Friday morning at Gulfstream, trainer Victor Barboza, Jr. said the chestnut colt will now target the Tampa Bay Derby.

"The work went very well but we're going to point to the Tampa Bay Derby," said Barboza, Jr. "He's been running very well for us. I thought his last race was very good. He possesses a lot of speed, but I think he'll be able to stretch out."

A Kentucky-bred son of Fed Biz, Zenden won his first career start going six furlongs by 1 ¾ lengths followed by a two-length victory on December 8 in the Buffalo Man .

Zenden kicked off his 3-year-old campaign in the Swale. Breaking from post 9 at odds of 8-1, he sat just off the pace in the field of 11 to finish second behind multiple graded stakes winner Call Paul.

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Miller considering Gotham heist with High Crime

Silverton Hill's homebred High Crime, trained by Darrin Miller, remains under consideration for the Gotham.

"We'll see how the weekend goes and make a decision after that," said Miller.

The dark bay Violence colt, out of the Smart Strike dam Done in Love, graduated at second asking in a six-furlong maiden sprint at Gulfstream Park earning a 90 Beyer Speed Figure. High Crime came out of that effort to finish fourth in the seven-furlong Grade 3 Swale.

"Facing winners for the first time I thought it was a real good effort," said Miller. "I thought he moved forward off of the maiden win as well.

"I hope he can handle stretching out," continued Miller. "From what we've seen in the mornings, we've had no issues with him settling and covering a distance. His pedigree suggests [it won't be an issue]."

Miller said the Gotham's one-turn mile is part of the attraction of shipping to New York in search of Derby qualifying points.

"It's very appealing. I think it fits with the progression in his training," said Miller.

High Crime is currently in training at Classic Mile in Ocala, Florida.

"We plan on working him again this weekend and will move forward from there," said Miller.

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Stan the Man hopes winning streak won't be stymied in return to stakes action

Long Lake Stable's Stan the Man will look to build on wins in his last two starts as he targets the $150,000 Stymie on March 9 at Aqueduct, trainer John Terranova said by phone.

Stan the Man, 5-5-2 in 16 career starts, has improved with age, registering his three highest career Beyer Speed Figures over his last three races, including his first triple-digit outing with a 102 for a 2 ¾-length score in an optional claimer at one mile last out at the Big A.

The 5-year-old Broken Vow gelding will now aim to win again at the one-turn mile distance in the 64th running of the Stymie for 4-year-olds and up, one of four stakes on a packed card highlighted by the Grade 3 Gotham for 3-year-olds and also encompassing the Busher for 3-year-old fillies and the Grade 3 Tom Fool Handicap for 4-year-olds and up.

Terranova said Stan the Man, stabled at Belmont Park, is slated to have a final breeze this weekend, with Saturday the most likely date, dependent on weather.

"Right now, we're looking at the Stymie for sure and after he breezes this weekend and shows he's ready to go, we'll certainly look at it," Terranova said.

"He came out of his last race great. He's in great form and great health, so we're looking forward to hopefully a good season with him, but we'll just go race-by-race."

Stan the Man needed 10 starts to break his maiden but was competitive at the start of his career, posting four runner-up efforts through his first nine races. The late-blooming Kentucky bred seems to have turned the corner after a breakthrough win on March 30, 2018 at Aqueduct, triggering a stretch of five wins and a runner-up effort in his last seven starts.

His only off-the-board finish came in his stakes debut, running sixth in the Grade 1 Cigar Mile on December 1 at Aqueduct in which he still recorded a 97 Beyer in finishing 5 ¼-lengths behind winner Patternrecognition.

"He was always a horse who was behind, even as a 2-year-old," Terranova said. "He just took awhile to get it together. Even in the maiden races, he kept running into some good horses and horses who have gone on to be pretty good. He faced some challenging fields but finally he just developed and matured mentally and physically. He found out what he wants to be doing and has continued to just develop the right way as he's gotten older."

An Aqueduct veteran, Stan the Man is 4-4-1 in 10 starts at the Ozone Park-based track. Terranova said the one-mile course is well-suited to his charge.

"The distance is probably perfect for him and he has the speed to control the pace, or if he needs to sit back, he's done that before, too," Terranova said. "He's very versatile. As long as he's doing well, we'll keep going step-by-step and see how far he can go."

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Espresso Shot looks to give jolt to Busher on Gotham Day

Espresso Shot recorded her final breeze before the $250,000 Busher on March 9, working five furlongs in 1:02 flat amidst snow flurries on the Belmont training track Friday morning.

Owned by NY Final Furlong Racing Stable and Maspeth Stable, Espresso Shot will make her sophomore debut in the 40th running of the Busher for 3-year-old fillies, a Kentucky Oaks qualifier offering 50-20-10-5 points to the top-four finishers for the prestigious race at Churchill Downs on May 3.

"She breezed really well and came out of it good so far, so we're still on target," trainer Jorge Abreu said.

The Mission Impazible filly will be coming off a two-month layoff after capping her juvenile year with a 3 ¼-length win in the East View on December 29 at Aqueduct. Abreu sent Espresso Shot to Palm Meadows Training Center in Boynton Beach, Florida to rest and train after a 2-year-old season in which she went 2-1-1 in five starts.

"After the race, I sent her to Florida for three weeks and she came back to New York a couple of days ago," Abreu said. "I didn't want to work her right away, so I gave her a couple of days before the breeze. So far, she's doing everything well."

Espresso Shot will be returning to open company for the first time since running 13th in the Grade 2 Jessamine on October 10 at Keeneland. Facing fellow New York-breds, she ran second to Sassy Agnes by 1 ¼ lengths in the six-furlong Key Cents on November 23 at the Big A. Stretching out to the Busher distance of the one-turn mile on the same track, Espresso Shot rallied from sixth to outkick Shelly Ann in the East View, earning a personal-best 78 Beyer.

"We know she likes Aqueduct and she can handle the mile just fine," Abreu said. "The only question is, 'will she be able to handle open company instead of just New York-breds?' I feel that the horse is really training well, so the rest will be up to her. She's sound, she's healthy and she's doing everything right heading into the race."

Abreu said jockey Eric Cancel, who was aboard for Espresso Shot's last two starts, will have the return call.

"I'm not going to give Eric any instructions, he rode her perfect both times," Abreu said. "You just have to get a little lucky with the post and in the race."