The Jacob Hirsch
The third race on Saturday’s card in Maryland will be The Jacob Hirsch (G3) at six furlongs on the main dirt track. We’ve had quite a rainy week leading up to the second race of the Triple Crown and all the races on the card for the weekend look like they will be going off over a sloppy track. The Jacob Hirsh (G3) is set to go off at 1:20 PM EST. The purse being offered for this year’s race is $150,000, which has attracted a field of seven runners in a race restricted to three-year-olds only. Let’s take a look at the contenders.
- Ayla’s Harmony – darkhuntera – F. Gossett – 5/1
Drawing the inside rail in the race, this Kentucky-bred colt will be making his first start against graded company in this race. Sired by Maclean’s Music and out of the Grade I winning broodmare Whiro, the brown colt most recently started here in Maryland during a listed stakes race at seven furlongs. The colt was forwardly placed, running just off a couple of other horses out of the gate and crossed the wire second, setting a lifetime best speed figure of one hundred three. His prior start was the colt’s most recent win, this in a six-and-a-half-furlong race, also here in Maryland. The colt sat just off the pace in second out of the gate, taking the lead midway through the race and winning by a length and a quarter. The colt has never started over a muddy track.
2. Driven By Spite – peepsclaim – R. Wisniewski – 9/2
Making his second graded stakes start, and his first against graded company as a three-year-old, this bay colt is also bred in Kentucky and made his most recent start in a listed stakes race in West Virginia over five furlongs. The colt led the field gate to wire, winning the race by a quarter of a length with a speed figure of ninety-seven. He also won his prior start during an allowance race over six furlongs. The colt has one start on an off track, this in listed stakes over eight and a half furlongs in Delaware. The colt was again out on the lead, though was caught at the wire and finished second, however he posted his lifetime best speed figure in this race of ninety-nine, in his last race of his two-year-old season. The only graded start for the colt came in his second start as a two-year-old which was in the April Fools (G1) at six and a half furlongs in Vermont where the colt came home in seventh.
3. Predator Cacique (SAF) – safbb5 – C. Gerhke – 7/2
In the third post, this South African bred bay colt will be making his thirteenth lifetime start and will be returning to sprinting after his last venture at a mile in Kentucky. This race was the Bluegrass Derby Trial Stakes (G3) where the colt was uncharacteristically off the pace at the start, held back in eighth at the break. The colt would make up ground through the race and eventually cross the wire in fourth while setting a lifetime best speed figure of one hundred five. The colt’s only other graded start was in China during the Llama Enforcer Stakes (G3) at seven furlongs. The race was held over a good dirt track, and the colt was sent out closer to the pace, settling just off of it in third. He would rally in the stretch and cross the wire second. The most recent wins came consecutively for the colt in a pair of claiming races in his native South Africa at five and seven and a half furlongs respectively.
4. Exu Trombadina – warchyld – P. Haynes – 7/2
Making his graded stakes debut in this race, the Kentucky-bred colt by War Front most recently started in a five furlong listed stakes race in Vermont. The colt broke a few lengths back off the pace and settled into third early. He crossed the wire where he started, just a quarter length off the pace and set a speed figure of ninety-six. The most recent win for the colt came in a listed stakes race in New York over six and a half furlongs. The chestnut colt won this race by three-quarters of a length. The colt won his debut race as a two-year-old over a sloppy course in Kentucky.
5. Henny Hibiki (JPN) – natural – K. Ledwith – 9/2
Returning to graded company after a step down in class, the Japanese-bred chestnut colt most recently stared in Illinois during a listed stakes race over seven furlongs. The colt broke sharply and went straight to the lead, through quickly surrendered this spot to settle into second. The colt would cross the wire in in second, setting a speed figure of one hundred two, which is a lifetime best for the colt. His prior start was the colt’s only attempt at graded company in the Swale Stakes (G2) at six and a half furlongs in Florida. Breaking in third, the colt would be overtaken in the stretch to finish fifth with a speed figure of ninety-nine. The colt has never started over an off track.
6. Bejing Ghost – amir1646 – O. A. Haack – 18/1
The longshot in the weekends race, this bay colt by Ghostzapper is making a return to graded company for his three-year-old season. The most recent start for the Kentucky-bred colt came in California during an allowance race over eight and a half furlongs. Sent towards the front of the pack to settle just off the pace in second, the colt would fade in the stretch to cross the wire sixth, thirteen and three-quarter lengths off the pace, with a speed figure of eighty-six. The colt’s most recent win was in May of his two-year-old season where he broke his maiden at six and a half furlongs in Vermont. The only graded start for the colt was late in the two-year-old season during the Darling Squash Futurity (G3) at a mile where he would come home thirteenth. The colt has made three starts over off going on the dirt, never finishing worse than third in allowance and listed level races.
7. Unusual Pairing (IRE) – steppingstone – V. Jennings – 2/1
Rounding out our field, we have the only graded winner to come to the starting gate for this race. The Irish-bred colt will be making just his third career start over the dirt. By Dylan Thomas, the bay colt most recently started in France during a listed stakes race over eight and a half furlongs. Stalking a few front-runners out of the gate, colt would cross the wire in fourth, setting a speed figure of one hundred one. The colt most recently won late in his two-year-old season during The Santa Futurity (G3) in Colorado at a mile and one sixteenth. The colt was forwardly placed in the race, just off the pace in third, and went on to take the lead midway through the race to win by one and three-quarter lengths. The colt has won once over the dirt in an allowance race at six furlongs and then finished thirteenth in The Los Angeles Pervue (G3) at seven furlongs. The colt has made two starts over off tracks, both resulting on wins over the turf, and his connections are hoping his turf pedigree and aptitude for off tracks on the grass will translate to the dirt as weel.
Flrancho’s Picks:
Win: Unusual Pairing (IRE)
Place: Henny Hibiki (JPN)
Show: Ayla’s Harmony