Dads Caps / Joe Labozzetta Photo

Large field of sprinters clash in Friday's Tale of the Cat

by Dave Litfin

A field of 11 older sprinters will contest Friday's $100,000 Tale of the Cat over six furlongs on Saratoga Race Course's main track. 

The Tale of the Cat will be the ninth of 10 races on Friday with post time scheduled for 5:40 p.m. 

A handful of contenders in the sprint possess high early speed. The most accomplished of the speed merchants is Dads Caps, who won back-to-back renewals of the Grade 1 Carter Handicap in 2014 and 2015.

Bred and owned by Vincent Scuderi, Dads Caps has subsequently surpassed $1 million in earnings for trainer Rudy Rodriguez, but the 6-year-old son of Discreet Cat shoots for his first win in 16 months. In his penultimate start - and his most recent on a fast track - Dads Caps led most of the way in the Grade 2 True North and finished second, beaten a neck. He exits a third-place finish in a high-end optional claimer on a muddy track. He will break from the outside with jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr.

"I think [the Tale of the Cat] is a very good spot for him," said assistant trainer Gustavo Rodriguez. "He's training very, very good. He came out of his last race very good, so hopefully we can get lucky and take it from there."

The pace figures to be hotly contested, as Big Guy Ian, Chief Lion, Easy to Say, Green Gratto and Lewys Vaporize are high-octane types as well. Moreover, they all arrive to the Tale of the Cat in sharp form.

Big Guy Ian has returned from a year on the sidelines with four steadily improved efforts for Michael Dilger. He will exit post 9 with Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez 

Chief Lion, a $62,500 claim by owner-trainer David Jacobson, won three straight at Santa Anita, Penn National and Belmont Park before arguing fast fractions in the Grade 2 Smile Sprint at Gulfstream Park. Jacobson also entered Stallwalkin' Dude, who won last year's Tale of the Cat in a three-way photo. He will leave post 7 with Jose Ortiz in the irons. 

At Monmouth Park in early summer, Easy to Say came off a 53-week absence to garner a front-running allowance win for new trainer Jason Servis, who is off to a terrific start locally with six wins. Paco Lopez will be on the saddle out of post 3.

Followers of the New York circuit need no introduction to Green Gratto, the 2015 Fall Highweight Handicap and Gravesend winner, who exits a gutsy score in the Hockessin Stakes at Delaware Park and drew the rail with jockey Kendrick Carmouche.

At the first call, Lewys Vaporizer has been first or second without fail in 14 career starts, and he arrives in town after two wins at Indiana Grand by a combined 12 lengths. Javier Castellano will have the mount out of post 5.

Should a pace meltdown occur a la last Saturday's Test Stakes, that could work to the advantage of Gorgeous Bird and Viva Majorca, a pair of Marylou Whitney Stable homebreds trained by Ian Wilkes.

Both will be cutting back in distance, Gorgeous Bird off a win in the 6 1/2-furlong Don Bernhardt Memorial Stakes at Ellis Park and Viva Majorca off a one-mile optional claimer on turf at Belmont.

Three of Viva Majorca's four previous Saratoga outings were in Grade 1 races. He was sixth in the 2014 Travers, and last year ran fifth in the Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap before finishing third in the Forego. He will exit post 6 with Shaun Bridgmohan in the irons. 

Completing the field are No Hiding Place, who has won four of five lifetime starts; and The Truth Or Else, who beat Dads Caps in the mud at 28-1 four weeks ago.