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Carl Spackler aces Grade 1 test in FanDuel Fourstardave Handicap

by Mary Eddy

Despite a change of plans after heavy rainfall twice forced the rescheduling of the Grade 1, $500,000 FanDuel Fourstardave Handicap, multiple graded stakes-winner Carl Spackler made it look easy when claiming his first top-level score in Sunday’s one-mile inner turf test for 3-year-olds and up at Saratoga Race Course.

In victory, e Five Racing Thoroughbreds’ Irish homebred earned a “Win and You’re In” berth to the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Mile in November at Del Mar. The win also provided four-time Eclipse Award-winning conditioner Chad Brown an elusive first score in this event, further shortening the list of prestigious races the conditioner has yet to win at the Spa.

“It felt good. It’s a perfect time for everything, my family and my parents are here, who brought me to the track growing up,” said Brown, a native of nearby Mechanicville. “We bet on this horse [Fourstardave], I was telling Acacia [Clement], ‘There’s only a couple sure bets when I was a kid growing up here, Bill Mott’s birthday, and Fourstardave winning at the meet.’ To win this race, it is really special to have everybody here. I haven’t won it because it is a hard race to win, so that makes it even more special. It is a very challenging race to win.”

The Lope de Vega 4-year-old had previously won two graded events on good Spa turf, annexing last year’s Grade 2 National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame and Grade 3 Saranac ahead of an eight-month respite that ended with a victorious comeback in the Listed Opening Verse on May 2 at Churchill Downs. He followed with an uncharacteristic fifth in the Grade 3 Poker in his lone loss over the Spa green, but bounced back with aplomb last out to take the Grade 3 Kelso on July 13 here.

Jockey Tyler Gaffalione has been aboard for the colt’s last five outings, and again provided his services from post 3 in the six-horse field, guiding Carl Spackler towards the front to sit second off the pace set by Strong Quality, who marked an opening quarter-mile in 24.79 seconds over the good footing.

“The six [Ottoman Fleet] didn't show much speed. I think he stumbled coming out of there. Everything kind of went to plan though,” Gaffalione said. “The one [Strong Quality] set a nice tempo and my horse relaxed beautifully. When I called on him, he really finished up. He got a hold of the turf great.”

The field raced in an orderly line down the backstretch with Major Dude in third and post-time favorite Ottoman Fleet tracking just to his outside, well ahead of More Than Looks and Money Supply, who broke in the air and trailed the field. Strong Quality slowed the pace a touch and maintained his advantage through the half-mile in 49.24 as a patient Carl Spackler loomed 2 1/2 lengths back.

Dylan Davis let Strong Quality out a notch rounding the turn and put some added distance between them and Carl Spackler, but Gaffalione shook his reins to make his move outside of the pacesetter and seized command at the top of the stretch. Carl Spackler showed an impressive turn of foot after three-quarters in 1:13.58, and was quickly well in front at the eighth pole as Ottoman Fleet was asked for his best from third.

More Than Looks made steady progress from well off the pace and moved up to second position under Irad Ortiz, Jr., but Carl Spackler was inside the leather as he coasted through the final sixteenth under a hand ride, crossing the wire 3 1/2 lengths front in a final time of 1:36.63. He returned $6.10 for a $2 win ticket.

A valiant More Than Looks was a clear second 1 1/2 lengths ahead of Ottoman Fleet with Strong Quality rounding out the superfecta. Major Dude and Money Supply completed the order of finish. Master of The Seas was scratched.

Brown said the fan-favorite colt had been showing signs that he was ready to deliver a big performance.

“The more I looked at his numbers going into the race, it sort of looked like there were a lot of them together, but this sure looked like the horse that was sitting on the big number,” said Brown. “He was capable of it, he had flirted with running a monster number before. He wins. I had a feeling today, and then with just a little bit of cut in the ground, I think he’s even just a little bit better, or sometimes with soft turf races, it is that the other horses can’t handle it is the issue, which really makes the ones that can stand out. I really felt today would be his day and it was."

With three months until the Breeders’ Cup, Brown said he would ideally have Carl Spackler race again before heading to California.

“I have the horse in a good rhythm now to sort of do what I want with him. You go to a race like the Breeders’ Cup Mile, I’ve had some success in that race, you really got to go in there ready,” said Brown, who won the Mile in 2019 with the mare Uni. “I don’t know if a long layoff would be the right thing, so I will look for a race for him.”

The win was meaningful for all involved as Gaffalione is the son-in-law of e Five Racing Thoroughbreds’ Bob Edwards, who also campaigned Carl Spackler’s dam Zindaya to a Grade 2 victory with Brown.

“This is why we do it. For us, it is a family affair. Tyler now is part of the family and to be on a horse that we bred; my son-in-law wins a Grade 1 in Saratoga - the Fourstardave,” said Edwards. “Our lawn jockey gets put in front of the Fourstardave, it's special. I get to see it for another year. It's just an unbelievable event for us.”

Gaffalione, who won 10 races this week at the Spa, shared Edwards’ emotions, and said the family connection is beyond words.

“This is special. To cap it off with a win like this and to be able to celebrate with family, it’s amazing. This is why we do this,” Gaffalione said. “This is the place we want to be and to accomplish these things here is truly amazing.”

Cherie DeVaux, trainer of More Than Looks, did not originally enter the More Than Ready 4-year-old in this race, but called an audible when last week’s restricted Fasig-Tipton Lure was moved off the turf, and supplemented him here to make his first start off a nine-month respite. The conditioner praised her colt’s effort to earn his first Grade 1 placing.

“I’m proud of the performance he put in and as long as he comes out of it OK we should have another race and then the Breeders’ Cup,” DeVaux said. “It’s not what we wanted to do for ‘Plan A’ but it’s great, we finished second in a Grade 1 and [we were] really not targeting it. He was closing and I think he wants a firmer turf course than this, but I’m not taking anything away or making any excuses.”

Live racing resumes Wednesday at Saratoga with a nine-race card, featuring the Grade 1, $150,000 Jonathan Sheppard [steeplechase] in Race 1 and the $125,000 Suzie O’Cain in Race 5. First post is 1:10 p.m. Eastern.

Saratoga Live will present live coverage and analysis of the Saratoga Race Course summer meet on the networks of FOX Sports. For the broadcast schedule and channel finder, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule/.

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