NEWS
Lookin At Lucky shrugs off trouble for strong Rebel win
Posted: Saturday, March 13, 2010 8:32 PM
LOOKIN AT LUCKY
Jeff Coady/Coady Photography
To view the Rebel Stakes, click here.
by Mike Curry
The saying “absence makes the heart grow fonder” has no place on the Triple Crown trail, where even a scheduled long layoff can lead to the champion two-year-old male losing his spot atop the THOROUGHBRED TIMES Road to the Triple Crown poll .
It took Lookin At Lucky less than a minute and 45 seconds on Saturday to prove he still is a main threat for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1). He overcame a stumble on the backstretch with a determined stretch drive to collar Noble’s Promise in the final strides of the $300,000 Rebel Stakes (G2) at Oaklawn Park.
The Smart Strike colt who Racing Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert refers to as a “franchise horse” returned from an 84-day layoff, made his first career start on dirt, and raced for the first time wearing blinkers in the Rebel. No problem for Lookin At Lucky, who steadily reeled in game runner-up Noble’s Promise to win for the sixth time in seven career starts for owners Karl Watson, Paul Weitman, and Mike Pegram.
Lookin At Lucky completed 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.06 on a track rated as fast under Garrett Gomez. His only defeat was a runner-up finish by a nose to Vale of York (Ire) in the Grey Goose Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) in November during the Oak Tree meeting at Santa Anita Park. His victories in the Best Pal Stakes (G2), Del Mar Futurity (G1), Norfolk Stakes (G1), and CashCall Futurity (G1), however, were more than enough to form an Eclipse Award-quality résumé.
Royal Express set the pace in the Rebel with Uh Oh Bango positioned in second and Noble’s Promise tracking from third through a half-mile in :47.70. Gomez reserved 11-to-10 favorite Lookin At Lucky off the pace in fifth, then sixth.
On the backstretch, 7-to-5 second betting choice Dublin advanced on the outside of Lookin At Lucky and Noble’s Promise shifted outside in front of him. Lookin At Lucky jumped heels and broke stride as Noble’s Promise and Dublin continued their bids. The champion recovered within a few strides and accelerated into contention on the turn.
Noble’s Promise took command in early stretch and shook free of Dublin near the eighth pole with what looked like a winning move. Lookin At Lucky closed from the outside, however, and overhauled Noble’s Promise in the shadow of the wire.
Lookin At Lucky answered any questions about his ability to handle a dirt track and boosted his graded stakes earnings to $1,390,000, more than enough to guarantee a spot in the field for the Kentucky Derby. A half brother to multiple Grade 2 winner Kensei, Lookin At Lucky is out of the winning Belong to Me mare Private Feeling.
For an Equibase chart, click here.
Mike Curry is a Thoroughbred Times TODAY editor
