Sixteen sophomore colts, many with dreams of competing in the Derby in three months\u2019 time, are set to compete in the Oldtimers-G1.\u00a0 Will one of them capture both Olympic Gold to go with Derby roses?\u00a0 Only time will tell.\u00a0 Faced with a deep and contentious group, the handicappers have literally thrown up their hands, putting odds of 13\/1 to 17\/1 on the majority of the competition.\u00a0 The majority of the colts will be competing at 9 \u00bd furlongs for the first time in their careers.\u00a0 In addition to Olympic gold, the lion\u2019s share of the rich $1 million purse awaits the winner.\u00a0 Without further adieu, here are the sixteen hopefuls, in post position order:<\/p>\n
PP1. Mission Changed<\/strong>, (Mission Impazible x Tale of Ekati), Vermont PP2. Petrol<\/strong>, (Curlin x A.P. Indy), East-West Connection PP3. Box of Trouble<\/strong>, (Bernardini x Montjeu), DelPenn PP4. Hit N Miss<\/strong>, (Medaglia d\u2019Oro x Deep Impact), Queensland PP5. Outback Curium<\/strong>, (Awesome Again x Kingmambo), Midas PP6. Gold Medal Round<\/strong>, (Stay Gold x A.P. Indy), Blazing Saddles PP7.\u00a0 Magnifique Mahe<\/strong>, (Distorted Humor x Tapit), City Race Rhein-Main Turf Club PP8. Maximum Overdose<\/strong>, (Street Cry x Awesome Again), EAAA Racing PP9. Mark the Point<\/strong>, (Kitten\u2019s Joy x Street Cry), GR Simsters PP10. Una Aventura Mas<\/strong>, (Awesome Again x Seattle Slew), Sim Hispano PP11. B.O. Western Gypsy<\/strong>, (Western Winter x Mogok), South African Racing Association PP12. Rotflmao<\/strong>, (Distorted Humor x Storm Cat), Comedy Central PP13. Uno Dos Adios<\/strong>, (Awesome Again x Distorted Humor), Minnesota Testbarn PP14. Universal Empire<\/strong>, (Empire Maker x Awesome Again), Universal Racing Club PP15. Mob Wars<\/strong>, (War Front x Street Cry), Empire State Racing PP16. Stupefying<\/strong>, (Bernardini x Awesome Again), All-Stars Racing Good luck to all of the horses and their connections!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sixteen sophomore colts, many with dreams of competing in the Derby in three months\u2019 time, are set to compete in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":438,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[16],"class_list":["post-18660","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-previews","tag-equinics-2014"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18660","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/438"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=18660"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18660\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18815,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18660\/revisions\/18815"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=18660"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=18660"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=18660"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nThe leggy grey son of Mission Impazible is a homebred campaigned by kallor<\/em>.\u00a0 He took a while to grow into himself, but has been unstoppable since being stretched out to routes.\u00a0 Mission has won four straight, with improving speed figures, capped off by a 4 \u00bd length romp against open company at 1 1\/16 miles (97 SF).\u00a0 His speed figures are competitive, and he gives every indication that he will relish the additional distance.\u00a0 Gets a class challenge on Saturday, but looks well equipped to take the step to the next level at odds of 13\/1.<\/p>\n
\nBred and trained by horsechic7<\/em>, this imposing copper colt is going to have to answer some class and distance questions here in this event.\u00a0 Still, you have to like what you\u2019ve seen so far of him.\u00a0 He\u2019s won three of four starts at a flat mile, and was a hard-charging second in the third.\u00a0 With this guy\u2019s running style, he should appreciate the extra distance, and his pedigree screams 1 \u00bc miles.\u00a0 Petrol took another step forward in his latest, improving his best speed figure to a 95.\u00a0 If he can rise to the challenge, he will reward his backers with 15\/1 odds.<\/p>\n
\nOne colt who is already proven over a distance of ground is super27\u2019s<\/em> royally bred entry.\u00a0 He won a listed stakes at 10 \u00bd furlongs under a handride, hitting the wire 4 lengths ahead of the runner up.\u00a0 The speed figure wasn\u2019t much, but he was previously a fast-closing fifth in the Ransom S-G2 at 9 furlongs, posting a 93 SF in the process. If anything, this distance may be a bit shorter than he wants to go.\u00a0 His dam was a G2 winner at 9 furlongs, and she is a full sister to G1 Artemis and Apollo, who was a multiple G1 winner and did her best running from a mile to 9 furlongs. Offers some value at 15\/1.<\/p>\n
\nThis pale grey son of Medaglia d\u2019Oro has floated across the track like a ghost in his morning workouts.\u00a0 The ditriot<\/em> homebred is in the best form of his career, having gobbled up eight lengths in his last race to fall short of the win in the Mary Wanna Smoke Dirt Juvenile (96 SF).\u00a0 That effort came at 1 1\/16 miles, so there\u2019s no question that this deep closer will benefit from the extra 1\/8th of a mile.\u00a0 In addition, the winner of that race, Closet Junkie, is no slouch, having won six of seven starts to date.\u00a0 Like many in the field, Hit N Miss is on the improve and should appreciate the distance.\u00a0 Hit N Miss is a half-brother to one of the top 3yos last year:\u00a0 Ram N Raid, who won the Vermont Is 4 Lovers-G1 and was fifth in the Derby itself.\u00a0 Their dam, Smash N Grab, took a while to hit her best stride, but ultimately became a G3 winner at 1 1\/16 miles. Offers odds of 15\/1.<\/p>\n
\nRegally bred colt campaigns for outback5<\/em>.\u00a0 Lightly raced colt has only four starts under his belt, but has already shown talent to go with the pedigree.\u00a0 Stretched out to 1 1\/16 miles, he had a stylish \u00bd length win in the Rhibus Dirt Juvenile Stakes (93 SF), before putting forth a monster effort in the Club Stakes-G2, closing from 12th to 2nd, and finishing \u00bc length behind Hymn of Winter.\u00a0 That performance resulted in a 102 SF, and things should only go up from here.\u00a0 Odds of 10\/1 on this guy appear to be somewhat of a gift.<\/p>\n
\nSigns of foreshadowing with the name?\u00a0 His morning line odds are 9\/1, but hunch bettors should drive the odds down by post time.\u00a0 The depark<\/em> homebred sports six wins from eight starts, including a victory in the Blazing Saddles Breeders Showdown Juvenile at 1 1\/16 miles that resulted in a 98 SF.\u00a0 Had an easy tune-up for this race with a wire to wire score in an open allowance with a 95 SF.\u00a0 In a field full of deep closers, may have the edge with his front-running, free-wheeling style.\u00a0\u00a0 Lots to like at 9\/1.<\/p>\n
\nThis light dapple grey colt is campaigned by gaudi<\/em>, and is one of the more experienced horses in this field, with 10 races already.\u00a0 Like many of the others in this field, the colt has continued to improve with age and distance.\u00a0 He won an N2L at 1 1\/16 miles with a 92 SF, and made a late move to close from 12 \u00bc lengths back to finish second, beaten 1 \u00bc lengths by Offthechartssmarts in a 9 furlong allowance last time out with a 91 SF.\u00a0 His dam was a stakes winner at 1 1\/16 miles, and while Magnifique’s speed figures are a little lighter than some of his competition, but it wouldn\u2019t take that much to put him in the thick of things late.\u00a0 The bookies have set his odds at 17\/1.<\/p>\n
\nThis rugged colt\u2019s pedigree screams Derby from top to bottom, and is the first foal out of the stellar racemare Terminal Velocity.\u00a0 She won the California Oaks-G1 before finishing fourth in the Bluegrass Oaks-G1, and clearly, his connections are hoping for classic glory.\u00a0 Owned and bred by tees<\/em>, the massive bay showed promise in his first few starts, but kept running out of racetrack.\u00a0 Once he got to 1 1\/16 miles, the big colt was able to get rolling in time, and closed from the back of the pack to win by 1 \u00be lengths.\u00a0 Since then, he won an N2L, and fell 1 \u00bd lengths short in the Invasor Stakes in mid-December, finishing behind Giant of Komarr.\u00a0 With each start, his speed figures have continued to improve, with his current best a 99 SF.\u00a0 His two best races have come over a sloppy track, but he has also won over a fast track, so the going isn’t as much of a concern as it otherwise might be.\u00a0 Has every right to love the extra distance, and offers some value at 11\/1.<\/p>\n
\nSurprisingly, despite being by Kitten\u2019s Joy, this guy has yet to try the turf for lenny11<\/em>.\u00a0 That said, he\u2019s been doing just fine on the main track, and that’s probably due to the influence of his dam, Fire Them Bones, who was a multiple graded stakes winner from a mile to 1 1\/8 miles.\u00a0 Mark’s granddam, Rapid Fire, also produced Wild Cat Tales, who earned almost $2 million and was a multiple G1 winner; Delta Delta Delta, a multiple graded stakes winner going 1 1\/2 miles on the lawn, and Queue the Music, who was decent on the track, but is better known for producing Middle Jewel S-G1 and Breeders’ Bowl Classic-G1 winner Jeepster. \u00a0 The eye-catching roan boasts the fastest speed figure of any horse in the race, a 106 SF, which he earned last time out when winning a listed stakes at 9 furlongs.\u00a0 The way he won indicates the extra 1\/16th should be no problem, and this guy has a tactical advantage here.\u00a0 Most of the competition are deep closers, while this guy likes to stalk the early pace in midpack.\u00a0 In a full field, that early jump may make a critical difference, especially in a big field where traffic problems can and do happen.\u00a0 Hard to overlook, and the handicappers agree, listing him as the co-favorite at 7\/1.<\/p>\n
\nYet another colt by Awesome Again in this field (and there are quite a few more with him as the dam-sire).\u00a0 The diminuitive bay is full of attitude in the barn, and has backed it up on the racetrack for trainer triscay<\/em>.\u00a0 The main knock on this guy is that he has been soundly defeated in his two attempts in graded company; however, he has been improving with distance and age, and the third time may prove to be the charm here.\u00a0 \u201cMas\u201d coasted home after opening up a huge lead in a 9 furlong allowance prep for this race while posting a 104 SF, the second-best in this field.\u00a0 The horse he defeated in that race?\u00a0 Fellow Equinics hopeful Universal Empire.\u00a0 In a field with not much early speed, this guy has plenty, and if he can shake loose early, the closers may never catch back up to him.\u00a0 May be the value play at 9\/1 if the pace scenario unfolds his way.<\/p>\n
\nBy top South African sire Western Winter, who sadly died this past September, B.O. Western Gypsy has acquitted himself well over both dirt and the polytrack for safbb4<\/em>.\u00a0 His dam, Gypsy’s Warning, was a stakes winner sprinting, but her son has adopted a come from the clouds running style, lagging last in 20 horse fields before starting to roll in the stretch.\u00a0 In his most recent start on dirt, Gypsy rallied from 19th to finish second, missing by a head in the Sara Breeders Juvenile at 1 1\/16 miles.\u00a0 The 90 SF earned by the fawn colored bay is among the lighter in the field, but he is eligible to improve, and appears to want more distance, as shown by his improved SFs at a route.\u00a0 The relative longshot in the field at 41\/1.<\/p>\n
\nName is definitely a play on both the sire and the residency, but laugh at this horse at your peril.\u00a0 Touched’s<\/em> homebred is no joke, as he showed in winning a listed stakes at 1 1\/16 miles last time out, with his best speed figure to date, a 93 SF, defeating Malibu Minister in the process.\u00a0 Has continued to improve with experience and distance, and importantly, has raced well near the lead and stalking just behind the early leaders.\u00a0 In a full field, that handiness may give him a bit of an edge.\u00a0 Was pulling away in his latest, so again, there’s no reason to think the extra distance will be a problem.\u00a0 If he pulls off the mild upset, his backers will be laughing all the way to the bank at 15\/1.<\/p>\n
\nThe third son of Awesome Again in this field, this guy has a strong female family to boot.\u00a0 His dam competed successfully in stakes from 12 to 16 furlongs on both turf and dirt, and is a half-sister to Badbadstella, who won the 9 furlong Canada Stakes-G2.\u00a0 Their dam, Bad Stella, was a solid marathoner, competing in stakes from 12-16 furlongs, and she was a half-sister to the brilliant turf mare Compelling Grace, who won over $900,000 in her career, capturing graded stakes from a flat mile to 10 furlongs, and popped an amazing 125 SF at a mile.\u00a0 The singleall<\/em> trainee has been facing some tough competition and has been knocking on the door.\u00a0 He was second to Summer in July in the Charcoal Breeders’ Cup Stakes-G2 (92 SF); that rival subsequently ran third in the Breeders’ Bowl Juvenile-G1.\u00a0 More recently, he closed to finish third in a residency stakes, also at 1 1\/16 miles.\u00a0 The chocolate bay with a slash of a blaze tends to stalk just off the pace, and with this family, the farther the better.\u00a0 Look for him in the longer races this summer, as he’s bred to go forever.\u00a0 Still, he has a legitimate shot at Saturday’s “shorter” distance, and could reward his backers with 13\/1 odds.<\/p>\n
\nLike fine wine, Universal Empire has been getting better with age and distance for metallinut<\/em>.\u00a0 The imposing golden bay colt towers above most of the field in height, and is steadily growing into that huge frame.\u00a0 The colt was light enough on his feet to do well at shorter distances, but appears to be coming into his own, as shown by his determined second at 9 furlongs last time out with a 102 SF, losing to fellow Equinics hopeful Una Ventura Mas by 1 \u00bd lengths.\u00a0 His dam was a G2 winner sprinting, and competed in the 2010 Equinics, finishing 11th.\u00a0 Universal Empire looks to live up to his sire, and the extra distance should only be a bonus.\u00a0 Getting good at the right time, and the oddsmakers are all over him, making him the second choice at 8\/1.<\/p>\n
\nNo question this guy can fly, as evidenced by his 103 SF last time out.\u00a0 The ecr<\/em> trainee has won twice, and has been a bit unlucky in his two starts routing, having to settle for second both times.\u00a0 He has the class and the talent; the only question mark for the Mobster is distance.\u00a0 When Mob Wars took the lead at the head of the stretch in the 1 1\/16 mile Sam\u2019s Town Delta Jackpot-G3, he was ultimately passed in the stretch and lost by 2 \u00bd lengths to Bear Crossing, who wheeled back to win the Legoland-G3.\u00a0 This race will give a better indication as to whether the compact bay is a router, or a very talented miler with a late kick.\u00a0 His odds are 7\/1.<\/p>\n
\nAnother royally bred colt, and the second son of Bernardini in this field, this guy has the least amount of experience in the field, with only two races to date. Still, he has shown some serious ability for trainer teamasr<\/em>.\u00a0 The lanky dark bay was a determined half-length victor in his debut with a 90 SF for a flat mile, and was a fast-closing second in his stakes debut after cutting back to seven panels.\u00a0 Bred for a distance, as his dam, My Sweet Lord, was a G3 winner going a marathon 16 furlongs, he\u2019ll be flying in the end.\u00a0 Appears to have the talent, but spots a lot of experience to his rivals.\u00a0 Offers 15\/1 odds.<\/p>\n