Looking Forward

In the seventh race at Belmont Park today, a seven furlong race on the turf, Hot Money won his second consecutive start. Although he was favored to win, the race was quite exciting for us, as he came from eighth place at the top of the stretch to win by a head. The turf course was listed as yielding today and good on the day of his previous win, which means that he has yet to run on a firm turf course. Because Hot Money has a sprinter's speed combined with "a good turn of foot," i.e., the ability to accelerate quickly, his trainer, Christophe Clement, thinks that Hot Money will be at his best on a firm turf course. 

As horses compete above the level of claiming races, they are moved into progressively more difficult competition, with higher purses. Thus, even though Hot Money has closed fast to win both of his starts on the grass in impressive fashion, he will have to keep improving to keep winning. If he does indeed perform better on firmer turf courses, he may very well be able to keep moving up the competitive ladder. Meanwhile, he is doing for us what a promising young horse does for its owners: He is giving us cause to look forward to his races. 

Sacred Music is slated to run at Longchamps in Paris on June 16, and there is a race for W.C. Jones at Belmont Park on June 20. If two-year-old Backslider continues to progress, he may be ready to make his debut within the next few weeks. Mustang Island is recovering well from his curb, and should be ready to make the second start of his career within the next couple of months. As I approach my surgery, I am looking forward to all of these races.