It\u2019s press conference time in Maryland and all the jockeys for the Eruption Handicap are filling into the room. That\u2019s fourteen tiny athletes in brightly-colored silks here to talk about their chances to steer their juvenile colts to victory on the one-mile dirt course. They\u2019ll be speaking in order of post position.<\/p>\n
First up is Shaun O\u2019Brian, who\u2019s wearing Marineboy<\/i>\u2019s white and red. \u201cI\u2019m telling you, lads and lasses, I\u2019ve a nice little colt who\u2019s not getting the respect he\u2019s due. Held Two Ransom<\/b> has won his last two and he\u2019s ready to try a graded race. No, he\u2019s not run as fast as some of the others here, but he hasn\u2019t had to. He\u2019s as versatile a fellow as I\u2019ve seen and can run near the front or from behind. Don\u2019t matter to him. He\u2019s been trained right and I think he has a good run in him.<\/p>\n
Maryland\u2019s top jockey, Victor Elliott, then steps up to the mike. \u201cYou know, I could\u2019ve had my choice of any colt here, but it was easy to choose Whitetiger<\/i>\u2019s colt High Mesa<\/b>. He\u2019s an easy-to-ride horse — just gun him to the front and let him go. I love how he won the Grade II Club Stakes by daylight last time out and I love that he posted the highest speed figure this field has seen. He\u2019s never been off the board and he just looks better as he stretches out. He\u2019s a terrific youngster and I look forward to riding him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chuck Gerhke then steps forward wearing the Superstables<\/i>\u2019 Silks of Evil. \u201cHi, folks. I\u2019m glad the Superstables have done me the honor of riding their colt, Broadway Dancer<\/b>. He won two graded races, including the World Cup, before he faded a bit in the Breeders\u2019 Bowl. He still brought home a paycheck in that one, though. He\u2019ll need to improve off his best a bit in this very tough race, but I think he has it in him. We\u2019ll probably sit a couple of lengths back and try to pick off High Mesa at the end. The favorite\u2019s a real threat, but I think we have a chance.\u201d<\/p>\n
A very youthful looking jockey heads to the mike. \u201cGood morning, everyone. I\u2019m C.V. Behr. I\u2019m thrilled to have a ride in this race during my first season here at Maryland. Alberta Oil<\/b> isn\u2019t a favorite at 10\/1, but I think he has a lot of heart. He\u2019s a stakes winner and he\u2019s only been out of the money once. That was in his only graded start, but he ran very green and he\u2019s done a lot of working in company since then. He\u2019s matured a lot. He has some improving to do, that\u2019s for sure, but his trainer, Homestretc<\/i>, and I are looking forward to doing our best in front of those big crowds this weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another young jock steps up next. \u201cT. Waters here and I\u2019ll be aboard Zz2912<\/i>\u2019s Get Well Lids<\/b>. He\u2019s one of the longer shots here at 17\/1, but he always tries hard and has always brought home a paycheck after 7 starts. I thought he ran a good third in the World Cup and he\u2019s been improving. He might not have it in him to win Saturday, but I think he\u2019ll continue to earn his keep.\u201d<\/p>\n
A jockey steps up in Fastvett1<\/i>\u2019s flame-on-black silks. \u201cI really like Road Critter<\/b>,\u201d says Kit Eckloff. \u201cThis will be his first graded race, but he\u2019s earned the chance and has been looking impressive. His best race was a fast second in an overnight stakes last time out. Some will say he lacks the credentials to do well here, but if you look at his numbers he could step up enough to run well here. He doesn\u2019t know how to quit and has been off the board only once in seven starts. We\u2019ll stay well back and out of trouble early, then I\u2019ll help him steer clear of trouble in the stretch. We\u2019re looking forward to the opportunity to prove ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n
N. Lumpkin, or \u201cThe Lump\u201d as he\u2019s called in the jockey room, comes up to discuss his mount. \u201cYeah, Rahy\u2019s Song<\/b> is a longshot, but you never know with these youngsters. He ran a good second in a stakes last time out. This is his first graded race and the competition\u2019s really stiff, but like I said, you never know. He\u2019s improving nicely with experience. Last I heard, Bandinni<\/i> wants me to try to steal the lead from High Mesa. We\u2019ll do our best and if we can put that colt away, maybe we can hold off everyone else.\u201d<\/p>\n
V Cline walks up hesitantly. \u201cI don\u2019t always get mounts for these big races so I appreciate the chance, especially with a colt as nice as Jsimpson<\/i>\u2019s Brave Birdie<\/b>. He hasn\u2019t won a stakes yet, but he\u2019s finished second in a grade one and a grade two, so we know he\u2019s up to running with the big boys. His only times off the board can be tossed \u2013 one was on the grass and the other was on an off track. He\u2019s been improving nicely and if he can keep that up with another little bump up, he\u2019ll be right there at the end. I\u2019m concerned that there are some stellar speed horses in this race, but right now we\u2019re just planning to let this guy run his race. If that means taking on High Mesa early, that\u2019s just the way it is.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ty Dillin comes to the podium in the Superstables<\/i>\u2019 silks. \u201cHi, folks. I didn\u2019t manage to land the premier Superstables horse for this weekend, but I still have a nice one. Pantalaimon<\/b> has been on the board in three of four starts so far. His only miss was in his only graded attempt. He has some questions to answer about whether he can handle a field like this, but he has some good experience under his belt now and I think he\u2019s earned another try. He likes to come from a couple of lengths back, so we\u2019ll just see how the race develops and make our move whenever the time seems right. He had a terrific race last time out and we\u2019re hoping he can improve on that just a little.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nat Prescott is the tenth jockey to address the room. \u201cWow, I\u2019ve been really fortunate to pick up an exciting colt for this race. Cvbear<\/i>\u2019s Jesus Walks<\/b> is second choice in the betting and he\u2019s just looking amazing right now. He\u2019s had five races and has been improving beautifully. Last time out he won the Grade 3 Upper State at a mile and posted a stellar 99 fig when he did it. It took some grit to win that one \u2013 we\u2019re really pleased with what a tough horse he\u2019s shaping up into. He\u2019s fit and rested and he\u2019s improving with distance, so watch for us to really tear up the dirt coming down the track Saturday.\u201d <\/p>\n
B Ironmike comes up to talk about Jakematt<\/i>\u2019s colt, Barb\u2019s Biscuits<\/b>. \u201c We\u2019re the longshot for sure in this race, but I have a lot of faith in this young colt. He\u2019s been running really well in allowance company, but hasn\u2019t had as much luck in stakes fields. Still, he\u2019s been working really well and is super fit right now. I think he\u2019s set up to run a big race, so we\u2019ll just have to see if his training has paid off and he\u2019s ready to run with the big boys.\u201d<\/p>\n
R \u201cColonel\u201d Clink steps up in Triscay<\/i>\u2019s colors. \u201cUrban Storm Cat<\/b> is such a terrific colt. Just look at his record \u2013 two wins and two seconds in four starts, including a very tough second to Jesus Walks in the Upper State. That was his first graded race, so we\u2019re hopeful that he can run even better this time. He\u2019s one of only a few here that\u2019s run a 99 speed figure. He\u2019s improving with distance and he\u2019s a closer in a field with a lot of speed. I think we have a terrific chance to earn a lot of money this weekend and the bettors, who\u2019ve put us at 6\/1, seem to agree.\u201d<\/p>\n
C Culpepper is next, and the jockey looks terrific in Eddieboo<\/i>\u2019s green-and-lightning silks. \u201c This race will be a big test for Fall Out Boy<\/b>, but I think he\u2019s ready for it. He\u2019s improved with every one of his six starts and was off the board only once, on the turf. He capped all this off with a very speedy win in an ungraded stakes. This will be his first time playing with the big boys, but he\u2019s been so fast and so successful so far, he\u2019s earned a chance. We\u2019ll come from way back, which suits us just fine.\u201d<\/p>\n
Last but not least, R Tartar comes to the podium wearing Willow<\/i>\u2019s blue-and-star silks. \u201cAck Loch<\/b> is a real longshot at 19\/1, but his trainer decided to take a chance here and I don\u2019t disagree. This colt was doing just okay as a sprinter, then he routed for the first time in a stakes last time out. He won with a tough come-from-behind run and showed a ton of improvement as he stretched out. Now, he\u2019ll have to improve a lot more to be really competitive in this race, but I figure if your horse is running well and you qualify for DPCD, you jump at the chance. I\u2019m looking forward to helping this colt put his best foot forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
The track steward comes forward as all the jockeys file out of the room. \u201cThis is the one to watch, folks! This is the race that could help clinch an Eclipse title, and even more importantly, show us who the major players might be for Derby Day. Thanks for coming and enjoy the show.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DPCD Eruption Handicap<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":106,"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":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5226","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-previews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5226","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\/106"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5226"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5226\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5226"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5226"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5226"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}