Susie Raisher Photo

Mr Havercamp extends success north of the border to the Spa with G3 Forbidden Apple win

by Brian Bohl

Sean and Dorothy Fitzhenry’s Mr Havercamp started his 5-year-old campaign in impressive fashion, coming off a seven-month layoff by overtaking Gidu in the final furlong and outkicking Hembree for a half-length victory in the sixth running of the Grade 3, $150,000 Forbidden Apple for 4-year-olds and up on Friday at Saratoga Race Course.

The Ontario-bred Mr Havercamp settled in fourth position under jockey Junior Alvarado as Gidu led the 10-horse field through the opening quarter-mile in 24.15 seconds and moved up to third with the half going in 48.04 on the inner turf listed as yielding. 

Around the far turn, Alvarado tipped Mr Havercamp out, overtaking defending Forbidden Apple champion Voodoo Song before running down Gidu in deep stretch from the outside and finishing strong to the wire, completing one mile in 1:37.50.

“I knew that there were two horses with speed, and I was sitting right where I wanted to be. By the half-mile pole, I was pretty excited with where I was and where he was travelling,” Alvarado said. “I knew that I had a lot of horse under me, so I was pretty confident. As soon as we turned for home, he gave me a nice kick and was just all out right there trying hard.”  

The Court Vision gelding started his year with by winning his first race on American soil. Trained by Catherine Day Phillips, Mr Havercamp starred at Woodbine, where he won three stakes in 2018, including the Grade 2 Autumn on November 3 and the Grade 2 Play the King in August, with those efforts bracketing a runner-up effort to Oscar Performance in the Grade 1 Woodbine Mile in September.

Off at 13-1, Mr Havercamp returned $29.60 on a $2 win wager. He improved his career record to 8-1-0 in 13 starts and increased his bankroll to $673,886. 

“Junior gave him a perfect ride,” Day Phillips said. “He got a very good position coming out of the gate. Going into the first turn, I was a little concerned with the mile track on the inside - he'd never been on a tight track like that - but he handled it well for a big horse.”

Mr Havercamp finished on the board for the first time in four starts at an American racetrack. His only other Saratoga appearance was a fifth-place finish in the 2017 Grade 3 Saranac. 

Day Phillips, who won her second graded stakes at Saratoga and first since Jambalaya captured the 2005 Saranac, said the Grade 1, $1 million Woodbine Mile on September 14 remains a target following the success at the Spa.

“It's great to be back at Saratoga,” Day Phillips said. “We won the Saranac with Jambalaya. He was a very special horse to me and this horse has always reminded me of Jambalaya. We brought him [Mr Havercamp] here for the Saranac and he ran well but didn't quite get the job done, but he got it done today.

“He runs well fresh,” she added. “This was probably a little steeper of a first race than we really wanted, but the Woodbine Mile is our goal, so we're backing up and this is what brought us here this weekend. This race was here and Saratoga is Saratoga - it's great to be here."

Three Diamond Farm’s Hembree, trained by Mike Maker, notched his third consecutive runner-up finish, edging 2-1 favorite Qurbaan by a head. Hembree was also second in the Opening Verse in May at Churchill Downs and second to Gucci Factor in the Grade 3 Poker on June 16 at Belmont Park. 

“We had the perfect trip,” said Hembree jockey Luis Saez. “When we hit the straight, I thought I was going to get there but the wire was there first. He gave me a great effort.”  

Made You Look, March to the Arch, Doctor Mounty, Offering Plan, Voodoo Song, Gidu and First Premio completed the order of finish.

Live racing resumes on Saturday at Saratoga with an 11-race card, highlighted by the Grade 3, $150,000 Sanford in Race 3 and the meet’s first Grade 1 in the $500,000 Diana for fillies and mares on the inner turf in Race 9. First post is 1 p.m.