NEWS
Behrens back in winner's circle
Posted: Saturday, March 04, 2000
Behrens wins Gulfstream Park Handicap for second straight year, recording first victory since July
Seven Months. That is how long it had been since William Clifton Jr.'s and Rudlein Stable's Behrens had visited the winner's circle.
Seven months. Four consecutive defeats, three of the defeats coming when Behrens was favored.
Gulfstream Park H. (G1)
Gulfstream Park, February 26, $350,000, 11/4 miles, fast, 2:01.79
1-BEHRENS, h. 6, Pleasant Colony-Hot Novel, by Mari's Book.
2-Adonis, c. 4, Kris S.-Dixie Card, by Dixieland Band.
3-With Anticipation, g. 5, Relaunch-Fran's Valentine, by Saros (GB).
"I was getting a lot of gray hairs," said H. James Bond, trainer of Behrens. "When you're expected to win and you don't, everyone dislikes you."
And everyone begins doubting you.
After losing two consecutive races at Gulfstream-he was the beaten favorite in both the November 6 Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) and February 5 Donn Handicap (G1)-Behrens walked onto the track on February 26 in the $350,000 Gulfstream Park Handicap (G1) needing "to win a race," Bond said.
And that is exactly what Behrens did.
Facing five opponents, though just two graded stakes winners, Behrens ran away from his suspect rivals to win the Gulfstream 'Cap by five widening lengths over Paraneck Stable's Discovery Handicap (G3) winner Adonis. Augustin Stables' pacesetter With Anticipation finished third.
"There was a lot of pressure on me today," said Bond, who watched Behrens cover the 1 1/4 miles in 2:01.79 on a fast track while carrying highweight of 120 pounds, conceding five pounds to the runner-up. "He was supposed to win today."
Other than Adonis and multiple graded stakes winner Best of Luck, Behrens was facing little opposition. Bettors knew this. Behrens was sent off at odds of 3-to-10. Despite Bond voicing concerns earlier in the week about Gulfstream's speed-favoring surface-"It's hard to keep running over a brick road," he said-this was a race Behrens figured to win.
So, from the start, jockey Jorge Chavez made sure Behrens was in contention. After falling too far back in the Donn after being steadied entering the first turn, Chavez wanted to avoid any such problems in the Gulfstream 'Cap. While With Anticipation and jockey Edgar Prado moved to the front leaving the gate, Chavez put Behrens into second and stalked the leader past fractions of :23.24, :47.60, and 1:11.77.
"I talked it over with (Bond) and we knew (With Anticipation) had speed and a low weight (113), so he would be in front," Chavez said. "I was just trying to be close behind through the first part."
Bond said his only directions to Chavez were to loosen Behrens up before the race, and, because Gulfstream was speed-favoring, "you have to be right there (near the front)."
Behrens never trailed With Anticipation by more than two lengths. Around the final turn, Behrens tugged Chavez toward the front and pulled alongside the leader. In a matter of seconds, Behrens was on the lead. With Adonis eight lengths behind and With Anticipation beginning to tire, Behrens and Chavez were all by themselves. They entered the stretch with a 2 1/2-length lead and never looked back.
"Behrens has speed, but not that quick speed," Chavez said. "In a long race, he's better stalking."
Dubai a possibility
Trainer Nick Zito, who saddled Stephen Got Even to victory in the Donn, was pleased with the performance of Adonis.
"He ran big," Zito said. "It's like (Paraneck Stable's) Ernie (Paragallo) said, this is a nice feather in his cap."
Unfortunately, the Gulfstream 'Cap was probably the last race for Calder Derby winner Isaypete. Second in the Broward Handicap (G3) on January 8 to Horse Chestnut (SAf), Stonerside Stable's Isaypete pulled a tendon and suspensory in his right front leg.
"It isn't life-threatening, and he doesn't need surgery, but I doubt he'll ever be able to run again," trainer Claude R. "Shug" McGaughey III said. "We'll take it a day at a time right now."
That was the same philosophy taken earlier this year by the connections of Behrens. The six-year-old son of Pleasant Colony, purchased as a yearling at the Keeneland July sale for $225,000, has now won nine of 22 races and more than $3-million. For Clifton, the day was about redemption and knowing he, Rudder, and Bond had made the right decision in bringing Behrens back at age six.
"(Bond) knew if the horse was sound, we wanted him to come back," Clifton said. "Our first love is the racing business, but the vets had to give him the okay. But we were hoping to prove a six-year-old could run in North America. There's not a lot of people going that way, but we saw an opportunity."
Besides, Clifton said, after going to the Breeders' Cup Classic twice and losing, after being a victory away from possible Horse of the Year honors in two of the past three seasons, Clifton felt as if "we were at the lip of the cup and couldn't putt."
"I've been to the Breeders' Cup Classic three times and finished seventh all three times," Clifton added. "We'd like to change that."
For Behrens, the Gulfstream 'Cap was a step in the right direction. His next step could come on March 25, as Bond and Clifton confirmed that they are considering the $6-million Dubai World Cup (UAE-G1), a race in which Behrens finished fifth behind Silver Charm in 1998.
"Right now he's carrying a lot of weight and spotting a lot of weight," Bond said. "Over there (in Dubai), it would be equal weights. It's not like there's a Cigar or a Silver Charm. We'll do a lot of studying over the next few weeks. But for second (in Dubai), you get $1.2-million. That's a $6-million race, and the one at the end of the year (the Breeders' Cup Classic) is $4-million. So, why should we beat him up like we did last year running him a lot more times?"
Bond fell silent for a moment.
"There's a lot of reasons to look in that direction," he said of Dubai. "There's six-million reasons to go."
Bella Chiarra's Rampart
Patrick Byrne remembers the first time he spoke with owner-breeder Jack Mandato. "He called me up and said, ÔSo, I heard you're good with Phone Tricks,' " recalled Byrne, a smile creasing his face. He certainly knew a thing or two about training Phone Trick's offspring; he guided Favorite Trick to an undefeated two-year-old season and Horse of the Year honors in 1997.
Rampart H. (G2)
Gulfstream Park, February 27, $200,000, 11/16 miles, fast, 1:43.27
1-BELLA CHIARRA, m. 5, Phone Trick-Bannockburn, by Count Brook.
2-Lines of Beauty, m. 5, Line In The Sand-Duper, by Garthorn.
3-Up We Go, f. 4, Waquoit-Flags R Up, by Private Account.
Mandato had a Phone Trick offspring, his homebred Bella Chiarra, and he entrusted her to Byrne several months ago. The first significant payoff from that decision occurred on February 27 when Mandato led Bella Chiarra into the winner's circle after a gutty victory in the $200,000 Rampart Handicap (G2).
After pressing pacesetter Lines of Beauty through brisk fractions, Bella Chiarra and jockey Shane Sellers gained control a sixteenth of a mile from the finish line and won the Rampart by 1 1/4 lengths. Bohemia Stable's Up We Go finished third.
Bella Chiarra, a five-year-old by Phone Trick out of the Count Brook mare Bannockburn, covered the Rampart's 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.27. McKee Stable's Sabin Handicap (G3) runnerup Roza Robata finished fourth, Sabin winner Brushed Halory was fifth, and Eugene Melnyk's Test Stakes (G1) winner Marley Vale finished sixth.
For Mandato, there is a lot of history in Bella Chiarra. Mandato raced Bannockburn, who won six times and has produced ten winners from ten foals. Meanwhile, Bella Chiarra, based during most of her career on the West Coast, was the last filly that Racing Hall of Fame trainer Charlie Whittingham saddled before his death last year.
A winner of more than $300,000 entering the Rampart, Bella Chiarra had run well on dirt and turf in California. But Mandato wanted Bella Chiarra shipped East because "there are so many more opportunities to run your horses here," he said.
After winning an allowance race on November 17 at Churchill Downs and finishing third in Turfway Park's My Charmer Stakes on December 4, Bella Chiarra landed at Gulfstream. On January 21, she won a front-running victory on the turf, and Byrne was beginning to think her next race would be in the Suwannee River Handicap (G3) on February 13. But when Bella Chiarra was assigned 118 pounds against eventual race winner Pico Teneriffe, Byrne decided to try the Rampart.
Under Sellers, Bella Chiarra broke well from the rail and pressed Lines of Beauty through fractions of :23.07, :46.43, and 1:10.34 for the first six furlongs. Entering the stretch, Lines of Beauty held a half-length advantage on Bella Chiarra. Inside the sixteenth pole, Bella Chiarra took the lead from Lines of Beauty and carried Sellers to the winner's circle.
Byrne said he was not sure when Bella Chiarra would start next, but "it'll most likely be Keeneland," he said.
NOTEBOOK-John Oxley's Laurel Futurity (G3) runner-up Scottish Halo prepped for the Florida Derby (G1) by running against older horses on the turf on February 27. The Jolie's Halo colt, who had not run since finishing fourth in the Remsen Stakes (G2), finished fifth. ... Demoiselle Stakes (G2) runner-up March Magic won her three-year-old debut on February 27, winning by a neck over Eliza Stakes runner-up Lucky Livi while running six furlongs in 1:10 2/5. ... Caesar Kimmel's and Ronald Nicholson's Alotabull made an impressive three-year-old debut on February 26 when he recorded a front-running victory over seven furlongs in 1:23.12. ... Trainer Flint S. "Scotty" Schulhofer said he will run his three-year-old colt Postponed one more time at Gulfstream before taking aim at the Blue Grass Stakes (G1) at Keeneland on April 15.
Dave Joseph is the Turf writer of the Fort Lauderdale News/Sun-Sentinel.
