A close finish in the 2006 Gotham Stakes
A close finish in the 2006 Gotham Stakes
March 18, 2006
The $200,000 Gotham Stakes (G3) on Saturday afternoon at Aqueduct saw 36-1 longshot Like Now lead at every call, and hold off the late move of 8-5 second choice Keyed Entry to win by a neck in 1:43.17 for the 1 1/16 miles over the fast inner dirt track. It was just a half-length back to third place finisher Sweetnorthernsaint and another half-length to Greeley's Legacy in fourth.
Results chart
Like Now returns after winning the Gotham
Winning jockey Fernando Jara said, "I was not surprised I was all alone on the front. I knew the kind of horse I had and he's a very good horse. I knew that (Keyed Entry) was the horse to beat coming into the race. I was just so comfortable with my horse and he responded gamely. I knew I had a lot of horse left. He is getting better and better with each race and I hope he goes to the Kentucky Derby and he wins."
Like Now in the winner's circle after the Gotham
Winning trainer Kiaran McLaughlin said, "We thought he would be successful stretching out, but you never know until you try. I thought we would out-break (Keyed Entry) and beat him to the first turn, and that was important. If he wanted to go past us, it looked like Edgar (Prado) had the horse to pass us, but he decided to sit off of us. He's a sound horse and he's never missed a day of trainer and Jules is not a sprint sire." McLaughlin will start Like Now in the Wood Memorial next.
Second place finisher Keyed Entry in the paddock
Seth Benzel, assistant trainer of second place finisher Keyed Entry said, "This sets him up nicely for the Wood, if that's what Todd (Pletcher, trainer) wants to do. We came in today with a question of whether or not he could rate or how he could take two turns, and he answered a lot of those questions. Leading up to a race like the Kentucky Derby, a win isn't always the most important thing." Jockey Edgar Prado added, "He rated beautifully and he took good position and then when I called on him, he responded, but the horse in front of me had something left. The most important thing is that he raced very kind and finished strong. He has a lot of potential and he should improve."
Beaten favorite Achilles of Troy in the post parade
3-2 favorite Achilles of Troy stumbled badly at the start and was never in contention, failing to issue a response when asked at the top of the stretch, finishing fifth. Jockey Ramon Dominguez said, "He completely missed the break and after that, the trip wasn't much smoother. He checked entering the backside, but I don't know whether that was a combination of having a bad trip and also the way horse came back. I was concerned from the get-go because after breaking bad, he was picking it up on the backside and when I raced to the 3/8 pole, I realized it was going to take more than he was giving me." Dr. Anthony Verderosa, NYRA's Chief Examining Veterinarian, said, "He seemed a little sore in his right-front. We'll check on him tomorrow morning and talk to their vets. At this point, there was nothing we could see or feel."
Wild Gams wins the 2006 Cicada Stakes
In the $100,000 Cicada (G3) for three-year-old fillies, 5-2 second choice Wild Gams sat in third, 2 lengths off the brisk early pace set by 2-1 favorite Celestial Legend for the backstretch run, then at the top of the stretch, found running room and powered away from the field to win by 3 1/2 lengths in a time of 1:09.66 for the 6 furlong undercard feature. It was 2 1/2 lengths back to Oprah Winney in third and 5 1/4 more to Swap Fliparoo in fourth.
Results chart
Winning jockey Eibar Coa said, "She actually did better today than her previous two victories. Today, she ran against better horses and she proved she has been improving. Today, I was very happy with the way she ran. The last two times, she was in better position than she was today because today she was stuck inside and I had to wait. But when I pointed her, she just responded and that was good."
Dale Capuano, trainer of second place finisher and beaten favorite Celestial Legend said, "She ran great; we just got out-run. She ran as good as she can run. She's pretty quick, so when she broke well, I knew she would be in front." Jockey Erick Rodriguez added, "She tried very hard. We tried to win the race, but she was just second best. She ran some fast early fractions, but the filly that beat her is really good. She really tried, but she just couldn't be the winner today."
March 18, 2006
The $200,000 Gotham Stakes (G3) on Saturday afternoon at Aqueduct saw 36-1 longshot Like Now lead at every call, and hold off the late move of 8-5 second choice Keyed Entry to win by a neck in 1:43.17 for the 1 1/16 miles over the fast inner dirt track. It was just a half-length back to third place finisher Sweetnorthernsaint and another half-length to Greeley's Legacy in fourth.
Results chart
Like Now returns after winning the Gotham
Winning jockey Fernando Jara said, "I was not surprised I was all alone on the front. I knew the kind of horse I had and he's a very good horse. I knew that (Keyed Entry) was the horse to beat coming into the race. I was just so comfortable with my horse and he responded gamely. I knew I had a lot of horse left. He is getting better and better with each race and I hope he goes to the Kentucky Derby and he wins."
Like Now in the winner's circle after the Gotham
Winning trainer Kiaran McLaughlin said, "We thought he would be successful stretching out, but you never know until you try. I thought we would out-break (Keyed Entry) and beat him to the first turn, and that was important. If he wanted to go past us, it looked like Edgar (Prado) had the horse to pass us, but he decided to sit off of us. He's a sound horse and he's never missed a day of trainer and Jules is not a sprint sire." McLaughlin will start Like Now in the Wood Memorial next.
Second place finisher Keyed Entry in the paddock
Seth Benzel, assistant trainer of second place finisher Keyed Entry said, "This sets him up nicely for the Wood, if that's what Todd (Pletcher, trainer) wants to do. We came in today with a question of whether or not he could rate or how he could take two turns, and he answered a lot of those questions. Leading up to a race like the Kentucky Derby, a win isn't always the most important thing." Jockey Edgar Prado added, "He rated beautifully and he took good position and then when I called on him, he responded, but the horse in front of me had something left. The most important thing is that he raced very kind and finished strong. He has a lot of potential and he should improve."
Beaten favorite Achilles of Troy in the post parade
3-2 favorite Achilles of Troy stumbled badly at the start and was never in contention, failing to issue a response when asked at the top of the stretch, finishing fifth. Jockey Ramon Dominguez said, "He completely missed the break and after that, the trip wasn't much smoother. He checked entering the backside, but I don't know whether that was a combination of having a bad trip and also the way horse came back. I was concerned from the get-go because after breaking bad, he was picking it up on the backside and when I raced to the 3/8 pole, I realized it was going to take more than he was giving me." Dr. Anthony Verderosa, NYRA's Chief Examining Veterinarian, said, "He seemed a little sore in his right-front. We'll check on him tomorrow morning and talk to their vets. At this point, there was nothing we could see or feel."
Wild Gams wins the 2006 Cicada Stakes
In the $100,000 Cicada (G3) for three-year-old fillies, 5-2 second choice Wild Gams sat in third, 2 lengths off the brisk early pace set by 2-1 favorite Celestial Legend for the backstretch run, then at the top of the stretch, found running room and powered away from the field to win by 3 1/2 lengths in a time of 1:09.66 for the 6 furlong undercard feature. It was 2 1/2 lengths back to Oprah Winney in third and 5 1/4 more to Swap Fliparoo in fourth.
Results chart
Winning jockey Eibar Coa said, "She actually did better today than her previous two victories. Today, she ran against better horses and she proved she has been improving. Today, I was very happy with the way she ran. The last two times, she was in better position than she was today because today she was stuck inside and I had to wait. But when I pointed her, she just responded and that was good."
Dale Capuano, trainer of second place finisher and beaten favorite Celestial Legend said, "She ran great; we just got out-run. She ran as good as she can run. She's pretty quick, so when she broke well, I knew she would be in front." Jockey Erick Rodriguez added, "She tried very hard. We tried to win the race, but she was just second best. She ran some fast early fractions, but the filly that beat her is really good. She really tried, but she just couldn't be the winner today."
