The Cup of Life Grade III
No we are not here in Kentucky, no we are not here for the Breeders Cup, but today we have a race that will be just as special as any for nine trainers looking for their horse to capture the Grade III The Cup of Life race here in Japan. These horses, all three years old and up, will be going a mile and an eighth on the firm turf. Let’s now meet our runners for today’s race.
In line first, we have 9/2 shot Wunderkid. This 5 year old, owned by sdmf2, will look to make it two in a row after winning an Allowance last time out. SP’s have been on the rise for this horse in his past three races, as he has gone from a 104 three races back to a 109 last time out. Two races back this guy ran a 94 SP, but probably could be blamed on the conditions as the track was sloppy for that race. Jockeying him today will be R. Duffy who owns a 10.0 career winning percentage.
Next out of the gate will be the 10/1 shot Indy Bold. This 7 year old son of AP Indy is going to continue on the turf after going 1 for 2 in his two turf tries in his last two races. This guy did switch to dirt a while back, and came back with a 107 SP win in a turf allowance race, two races back. Avalanche will look for this guy to improve his SP’s on the dirt after showing he could possibly run on both surfaces. Jockey L. Fenner will look to add to his 11.7 winning percentage when he rides Indy Bold today.
In the three hole today, we have Waki’s A.P. This 5 year old horse, out of trotter4 stables, will look to break the ice in Graded attempts. His last four races have been a Grade I, Listed Stakes, Grade I, Listed Stakes. His finishing’s have been the 2nd, 14th, 2nd, and 5th. SP’s have remained fairly constant in the mid to upper 100’s although he did run a 95 three races back. C. Roser will look to ride this 9/2 shot into the winners circle today, as Roser holds a 14.1 career winning percentage.
Batting cleanup today is the young gun Passelande. This four year old out of the sangster stables will look to continue running SP’s over a hundred, while trying to finish in the top three. He has ran back to back 101 SP’s, but only has a 4th and 5th place to show for it. Those have come in a Grade II race, and also a listed stakes. This 6/1 Irish bred will get B. Parker in the saddle today. Parker owns a 10.5 winning percentage.
Back to back Irish breds here as we take a look at the 5th horse in today’s race, and that is Angevin King. This 4 year old young gun has run three straight races on the good turf, and also has 2 wins to show for it. Last time out he ran one of the lowest SP’s of his young career, running a 96 SP and earning 5th place. Owner devil01 will look for this guy to continue running in the mid 100’s R. Scharf will get the start on this colt, who is an 8/1 shot. Scharf owns a 9.3 winning percentage.
In the six spot we have the favorite Gavotte. This 4/1 shot out of the tcrowell stable has not run under a 100 SP since July 25th of last year. He will look to continue to run 100 SP’s, while trying to come up with a win as he has not won since June 13th of last year. He has been hitting the board though, and has three 2nd place finishes, and three 3rd place finishes in that time. Jockeying him today will be G. Arnold, and he holds a 17.1 winning percentage.
We don’t have porky pig here today to say that’s all folks, but we do have something just as good as the 6/1 shot Zaps All Folks. Astin is hoping he can say that after today’s race, as this 4 year old colt is trying to make it 4 for his last 4. That’s right this guy is undefeated in his last four, but some may criticize the allowance races he was in saying that it is a big jump to a Graded race. That is true, but my answer is summed up with three letters… SP’s. SP’s have been great for this guy in his last three outings, as he has run two 107’s and a 112. W. Lloyd will look to continue to help this horse with his winning ways, as he owns an 11.1 winning percentage.
Tizgood is feeling good about today’s long shot Tissy Ghost. This 6 year old out of Ghostzapper has been running consistently in stakes company, and will look for a jump in SP’s in today’s Grade III. In his last race, this boy ran a 99 SP, and earned himself a second place finish. This was his highest SP since running his 100 SP back in September of last year. A Bryant will ride this 14/1 shot in the race, as Bryant owns a 7.8 winning percentage.
Finally in line we have the 5/1 shot Mine is Dangerous. David77777 is hoping that this colts bite continues to be as dangerous as his bark, as he has ran a 109 and 110 in his last two races, earning himself a first and second place finish. With only 9 career races, this horse has a lot of time and races left in him, and with 5 wins already in his first 9, he could see a lot more winner circles in his time. He will be ridden by K. Ledwith who owns a 28.7 career winning percentage.
So we have two different sets of runners in today’s race. We have the young guns, the youngest of them is 4 years old, but one has as few as 9 lifetime races. We also have the veteran horses who have been running competitively for 6 or more years. Who will come out on top? For me, I like the youngins in today’s race, as I feel that they have been running more competitively in recent races. I will take horses 5, 7, and 9 in no particular order. Will this be the day that the four year olds take control of a Graded race. We shall soon find out. I want to thank you for taking time to read this pre race article for the Grade III The Cup of Life race here in