by K. T. Donovan

After Market’s powerful shoulders and strong hips balance his height, and the four-year-old Storm Cat colt has brought that stature to bear, rolling off three consecutive victories heading into the Arlington Million Stakes (G1) on Saturday at Arlington Park.

Trainer John Shirreffs’s laid-back demeanor and horsemanship have helped, too.

“He’s a big boy, and he has that robust energy,” Shirreffs said. “Like a lot of Storm Cats, he likes to eat, which isn’t a bad thing in a racehorse. He’s a bit lackadaisical in the morning, but once he gets his adrenaline pumping, he’s ready. I have to keep him focused on his job.”

On Thursday morning, Pam and Marty Wygod’s homebred walked through the gate, and followed with a gallop once around the track on the Polytrack, a surface he has not liked at Del Mar.

After Market’s dam, Tranquility Lake, won eight stakes on turf, six of them graded, and was a Grade 2 winner on dirt.

Also campaigned by the Wygods, she was one of the top distaff performers of her generation, and at nearly 17 hands, gave After Market his height as well as his great mind. Because of her grass ability, and his lack of affinity for synthetic surfaces, After Market has not raced on dirt.

“It’s hard to find dirt in California,” Shirreffs joked, before admitting that with Storm Cat in his pedigree, the Breeders’ Cup Classic Powered by Dodge (G1) could not be ruled out as a possible target.

One cannot blame Shirreffs for his open-minded approach.

The Million will be After Market’s ninth different racetrack in 12 starts. Since coming to Shirreffs in February from the barn of Bill Mott, he has shown the ability to win at a variety of distances.

His last three starts have been successful ones, first going 1 1⁄16 miles in the Inglewood Handicap (G3), then 1 1/4 miles in the Charles Whittingham Memorial Handicap (G1)—defeating Lava Man in the process—and then at 1 1⁄8 miles in the Eddie Read Handicap (G1). He returns to 1 1/4 miles for the Arlington Million, and the untried leap to 1 1/2 miles for the John Deere Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1) is not out of the question, either.

“The 1 1/2 miles of the Breeders’ Cup is not too far with his style,” Shirreffs said. ”I think he’s one of those unique individuals who can go any distance.”

He also has an explosive kick that is difficult for rivals to resist, and yet he does not have to be far behind.

“I like how he kicks at the end,” he said. “He always surprises me, he has such amazing acceleration.”

The one thing Shirreffs is concerned about is the turf coming up soft.

“The only time he ran on it before [in the Kent Breeders’ Cup Stakes (G3) as a three-year-old], it was a total disaster,” he said of the colt’s tenth-place finish.

Shirreffs has his usual indifference toward challengers, including fellow California-based rival The Tin Man, winner of last year’s Million.

“I saw The Tin Man in the Shoemaker [Breeders’ Cup] Mile [Stakes (G1)] and he looked magnificent,” he said. “I was surprised by how good he looked at his age.”

While he does not usually pay too much attention to other horses, he nevertheless is glad that the competition is top-notch.

“I don’t mind running against the tough horses, because that’s how you see how he measures up,” he smiled. “Competition – that’s what horse racing’s all about.”

K. T. Donovan is a Thoroughbred Times contributing writer