{"id":1869,"date":"2006-03-15T17:29:13","date_gmt":"2006-03-15T17:29:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blacktypebugler.com\/?p=1869"},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","slug":"oldbtb_2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/?p=1869","title":{"rendered":"Equinics champ Cortez(IRE) conquers Hero(G3) followup"},"content":{"rendered":"

New South Wales<\/STRONG>–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Boom, boom!\u00a0 Out go the lights……\u00a0<\/EM>and plenty of bloody noses followed by the time Cortez(IRE)<\/STRONG> crossed the Grade 3 $125,000 Theregoesmyhero Stakes’<\/EM> finish line.\u00a0\u00a0 <\/DIV>
\u00a0<\/DIV>
A longshot winner on February’s Sim Equinics day, Cortez(IRE) had something to prove over this seriously competitive sophomore turf colt field.\u00a0\u00a0 Despite a stellar resume, the bookies still pegged the champ as the slight 3rd-choice in the field of 13.\u00a0 No matter though — trainer Slipknot22 had Cortez(IRE) markedly fit and the son of High Chaparral(IRE)\u00a0parlayed\u00a0a 4-week post-Equinics breather into a handsome 2 1\/4 length score.<\/DIV>
\u00a0<\/DIV>
Mighty frisky, the blood bay colt translated\u00a0his on the muscle<\/EM> post parade appearance\u00a0picture perfect.\u00a0 Jockey Phillippo Bangs suffered no unexpected problems whatsoever positioning Cortez for his usual midpack cruise.\u00a0 Up front, marusha’s stakes-placed longshot Rockabilly Rock(IRE)<\/STRONG> led the group\u00a0through modest fractions.\u00a0\u00a0 No one went with the Rock Of Gibraltar(IRE) youngster and it seemed like the stalkers would have to settle for money positions and the ignominy of an 11\/1\u00a0longshot upset.<\/DIV>
\u00a0<\/DIV>
But Cortez(IRE) thought otherwise.\u00a0\u00a0The colt eagerly jumped at Bangs’ command approaching the three-quarter pole.\u00a0 He picked up ground\u00a0in gobs and floated\u00a0three-wide at the top of the stretch.\u00a0\u00a0 Bangs had only to tap him a couple times and Cortez took off.\u00a0 In a gorgeous piece of\u00a0professionalism, the colt collared a now-tired Rockabilly Rock and\u00a0cantered under the wire much the best.\u00a0\u00a0Stevesutto’s stalker Devil’s King<\/STRONG> pocketed second money, winning a banged-up battle between\u00a0the forward-pack stalkers.\u00a0\u00a0<\/DIV>
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Final time for the nine furlongs over firm turf was 1:49 2\/5, a 97 SP#<\/STRONG> for Cortez(IRE).<\/DIV>
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With his 5th victory from 9 starts, Cortez(IRE) now ranks 5th in the 3YO Classic Turf division.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A dilemmna awaits his trainer:<\/DIV>
  • Should slipknot22 aim for the 8f Guineas?\u00a0\u00a0 He’s already proven determined over the Monster Mile.<\/LI>
  • Or should\u00a0Cortez continue according to pedigree (High Chaparral x Conquistador Cielo x Foolish Tanner (Foolish Pleasure)) and aim for the 12f Derby de English in June?\u00a0\u00a0<\/LI><\/UL>
    Good luck, Larry!\u00a0 \ud83d\ude42<\/DIV>
    \u00a0<\/DIV>
    \u00a0<\/DIV>
    \u00a0<\/DIV>
    Theregoesmyhero(G3) Notebook<\/STRONG>:<\/DIV>
    • Stevesutto’s Devil’s King(IRE)<\/STRONG> rebounded from his Equinics disaster.\u00a0\u00a0 The Refuse To Bend(IRE) colt wanted little to do with the yielding course on Equinics day and very much appreciated the firm turf this time around.\u00a0\u00a0 A good solid effort for the runner-up spot.\u00a0\u00a0 We’re gonna hear more from this colt — he’s still learning the ropes.\u00a0 <\/LI>
    • Mikehusker’s DelPenn Day winner Drop the Bomb(IRE)<\/STRONG> ran an admirable albeit even third.\u00a0\u00a0 But the Beat Hollow(IRE) son again\u00a0got kind of “caught,” losing a bit of ground\u00a0down the lane.\u00a0 \u00a0Could be due to class level… or distance limitations.\u00a0 The colt’s an improving miler already– jury’s still out though whether or not\u00a0he wants more ground.\u00a0<\/LI>
    • Fourth-place finisher Kepler Berzerk<\/STRONG> ran a herculean race, closing from over a dozen lengths out of it.\u00a0\u00a0Bobo’s Woodman son perhaps felt the effects of a heavy 3 races in 6 weeks<\/EM> schedule.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Also loose pacesetter too might’ve compromised\u00a0the racetime fave’s\u00a0winning chances.\u00a0\u00a0 Still, excellent effort from the son of millionaire mare Berzerk A.P. (36 lifetime wins!) and half-brother to recent Grade 3 winner Berzerk Gold.<\/LI>
    • Peeps had to be proud of his 5th-place finisher Zanzabar(IRE)<\/STRONG>.\u00a0\u00a0 The recent listed stakes winner by Galileo(IRE) merited well in his first step up in class.\u00a0 Honest 92 SP# after threatening the pacesetter early.\u00a0\u00a0 <\/LI>
    • Marusha’s pacesetter Rockabilly Rock(IRE)<\/STRONG>\u00a0came out of the race in good shape,\u00a0beaten only 5 lengths.\u00a0\u00a0It was his career best SP# in\u00a0only his 2nd try around two turns.\u00a0\u00a0 The colt’s bred to stay classic distance and more.\u00a0\u00a0 <\/LI>
    • Equinics also-rans Andy’s Choice<\/STRONG> (9th) and Yukon Hollandia(IRE)<\/STRONG> (13th) both repeated disastrous trips.\u00a0\u00a0 The latter was distanced and perhaps suffered injury.<\/LI>
    • Impressive\u00a0Fainting Goats Nightmares(G1)<\/EM> 3rd-place finisher Honeyimhome<\/STRONG> (10th) looked like a duck out of water.\u00a0\u00a0 The Came Home son\u00a0enjoyed a 6-week breather, but wanted no part of his\u00a0return to races.\u00a0\u00a0 Perhaps the 9f distance did him in and he’ll return to the mile or sprints for trainer torrential.\u00a0<\/LI><\/UL>
      Reporters Note:\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 My apologies for\u00a0missing this race’s preview.\u00a0 \ud83d\ude41\u00a0\u00a0<\/DIV>
      \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/DIV><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Slipknot22’s High Chaparral(IRE) son impressive again; Guineas or Derby trail?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":396,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1869","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1869","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\/396"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1869"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1869\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1869"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1869"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1869"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}