Farewell To A Legend
Every once in a while, a racehorse comes along that has something extra, that has the ability to transcend wins and losses and enter into the hearts and imagination of the racing public and join the ranks of “great” horses. Make no mistake, I use the word “great” in a careful sense: I’m talking about Enough Knock “great.” Storm Dog “great.” Cecil Roo, Joe Cayenne, Stormy Prospector “great.” The legends. Allied Assault belongs on that list, and some would argue that he belongs at the top of the list.
Today, Allied Assault will make his final start, defending a crown that seems so naturally his: for the third year in a row, he will attempt to win the G1 Penn Marathon. Trainer kingab has announced that this will be his final start; he is slated to be retired after the race.
Fittingly, Sunnybank Memorial and Rain God, Allied Assault’s two tried and true rivals, will be on hand to square off in a rematch of the epic that was the Breeders’ Bowl Turf. Jupiter’s Moons, a three year old with big dreams and high hopes, instead arrives in
A handicapper likely wouldn’t be picking Allied Assault to visit the winner’s circle today, but it’s a dangerous game, betting against greatness: do so only with the greatest of caution. That said, lets take a look at the entire field:
The Penn
Grade I
A mile and one half
Firm Turf
$1,000,000
All horses, 3 years old and up
PP | Horse ID | Horse | Owner | Jockey | Odds | Comments |
1 | EXBOURNE’S PHANTOM | 28/1 | This guy, while well bred, is at best suited to small stakes or classy allowance races. He’s helplessly overmatched when facing some of the most talented horses to travel the turf. | |||
2 | RAIN GOD | 3/1 | Long suspected by some observers to be the most talented of the “Big Three,” he justified his backers when he bested Allied Assault and Sunnybank Memorial in the Breeders’ Bowl Turf. The only problem was that a member of the younger generation, | |||
3 | WAY COOL JR. | 9/1 | Not that its impossible, its just extremely unlikely that a speed type over 8 furlongs of fast dirt is going to be able to handle 12 furlongs, on the lawn, against the best in training. The odds are ridiculously low in this case, especially with so much stacked against him. | |||
4 | CARELESS | 11/1 | If a three year old has an impact in this race, it will not be this three year old. As a speed influence, he’s most significant here as a de facto pacemaker for the big guns who will be coming late. | |||
5 | D. C. SAVAGE | 29/1 | Dancdstble was overheard saying “My horse has no chance but to finish up the track. However, to run in the last race a legend is in, is a dream of itself.” He accurately assessed his horse’s chances, and articulated the appreciation we all have for the big horse. | |||
6 | ALLIED ASSAULT | 3/1 | And here’s the big horse himself. 39: 22-11-2, for $9,208,640 and 12 G1 wins. He comes into this race off of three straight losses, but a loss like he suffered in the Japan Cup hardly seems significant enough to count him out of this one, especially considering how often these big horses have beaten each other over their long shared histories. Win, lose, or draw, this is Allied Assault’s day. | |||
7 | TITLE DUKE | 8/1 | Fits squarely into the 2nd tier of the turf division, but he’s a very obvious cut below the best, and he’s found nothing but the best here today. Look elsewhere for more vale or more realistic chances, but don’t forget to include this one to possibly step up to round out a trifecta. | |||
8 | SUNNYBANK MEMORIAL | 3/1 | Impressive even in defeat, he’s one of the most popular horses in training, and his rivalry with Allied Assault will not be soon forgotten. There’s no logic anymore to picking a winner out of the mess that is the top of the turf division, except to note that there are only four in this field with a realistic chance to win the race, and this is one of them. | |||
9 | JUPITER’S MOONS(IRE) | 5/1 | After playing second fiddle to Horseshoe Bay most of the year, he imitated that more prolific rival by trouncing the “Big Three” last time out in the Japan Cup, which, when taken in conjunction with his Japan Cup, put him squarely in the mix for this one. He’s a possible heir to Allied Assault’s position in the turf division, and should he again pull of the win, we would be witnessing a passing of the torch of kinds. |