By My Standards, Mr Freeze Battle in Oaklawn Handicap

For a stakes race for older horses as loaded as the $600,000 Oaklawn Handicap (G2) May 2, it has nearly as many question marks as entries.

Although 13 of its 14 horses are already stakes winners, 11 graded, nine are winless at Oaklawn Park. Seven lack local racing experience altogether, including some of the race favorites in Mr Freeze, Tacitus, Tax, and By My Standards. Half of the field is winless at the race's 1 1/8-mile distance, even its two grade 1 winners, Combatant, and Improbable.

What is not in question is the talent of the competitors. Four entrants are already millionaires—Bravazo, Mr Freeze, Combatant, and Tacitus—and Tax ($878,300), By My Standards ($921,910), and Improbable ($949,520) are flirting with making seven figures.

The Oaklawn Handicap provides an opportunity for By My Standards to establish his credentials outside Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, where all four of his victories have come, topped by the Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby (G2) in 2019 and New Orleans Classic Stakes (G2) in his last start March 21. Both of those stakes wins were at 1 1/8 miles.

Video: New Orleans Classic S. (G2)

Trainer Bret Calhoun, who trains the Goldencents  4-year-old colt for Chester Thomas' Allied Racing Stable, acknowledged that the change in surface has "been on his mind." 

"I really don't expect any problems in transitioning to it, but you just never know until you try it," he said.

Although By My Standards has lost his two races outside Fair Grounds, both were forgivable losses: a second in his debut at Churchill Downs in the slop in November 2018 and an 11th at Churchill in last year's Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1). 

Calhoun noted the horse trained well there prior to the Derby, giving him confidence that his colt is not strictly a one-track performer. He also praised the colt's recent breezes at Fair Grounds, the last of which was a bullet four furlongs in :47 April 25.

"His work this past Saturday was phenomenal. He worked a half-mile, went off easy, and finished up sensationally," he said.

Mr Freeze is another winner at 1 1/8 miles, though he is 1-2-1 from five such starts, while By My Standards is 2-for-2. Mr Freeze won the 2018 West Virginia Derby (G3) at 1 1/8 miles, though his stakes victories since have been in one-turn miles in the Ack Ack Stakes (G3) and Gulfstream Park Mile Stakes (G2), the latter in his most recent outing Feb. 29.

Video: Gulfstream Park Mile S. (G2)

Some of his defeats at 1 1/8 miles have been against some of the nation's best, such as when second to Mucho Gusto in the Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes Presented by Runhappy (G1) and when third and second behind Tom's d'Etat in the Clark Stakes Presented by Norton Healthcare (G1) and the Hagyard Fayette Stakes (G2), respectively.

"Tom's d'Etat, that son of a (gun) is a racehorse," said trainer Dale Romans. "If it wasn't for him and maybe two other horses, we would have made a whole lot of money with this horse."

Joe Talamo, represented by Romans' son Jake, picks up the ride on Mr Freeze, a 5-year-old by To Honor and Serve owned by Jim Bakke and Gerald Isbister.

Another horse that recently succumbed to Tom's d'Etat's closing kick was 4-year-old Improbable, who is looking for his first stakes victory since the Aug. 25 Shared Belief Stakes at Del Mar. He finished second to Tom's d'Etat in the April 11 Oaklawn Mile Stakes, caught in the final furlong after racing wide around both turns.

Jockey Martin Garcia will try to avoid another wide run with him Saturday, no small task from post 14, the second straight race he has drawn the far outside.

In the Oaklawn Mile, he acted up before the start, causing his jockey that day, Drayden Van Dyke, to remount him after getting jostled about in the starting gate.

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, who trains the son of City Zip for WinStar Farm, China Horse Club, and SF Racing, decided to keep the colt at Oaklawn after the race under the care of assistant trainer Jimmy Barnes, rather than return him to his main base in California.

"That gate crew is getting to know him really well, and I think that's going to help," Baffert said. "Jimmy said the starter has been working with things on him and they're going to figure him out. We'll see what happens."

Improbable was weighted by the Oaklawn Park racing office at 119 pounds, a pound more than both By My Standards and Mr Freeze. Tacitus, fifth in the Saudi Cup in his only race this year, is high weight at 121 pounds, just ahead of Combatant at 120.

The Oaklawn Handicap is the 12th race on a 14-race closing day card Saturday at Oaklawn, positioned between the two divisions of the Arkansas Derby. Post time is 6:04 p.m. CT.

Entries: Oaklawn H. (G2)

Oaklawn Park, Saturday, May 02, 2020, Race 12

• Grade II
• 1 1/8m
• Dirt
• $600,000
• 4 yo's & up
• 6:04 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Chess Chief (VA)	Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr.	114	Dallas Stewart	30/1
2	2Trophy Chaser (KY)	Samy Camacho	115	Juan Carlos Avila	12/1
3	3Bravazo (KY)	Miguel Mena	115	D. Wayne Lukas	30/1
4	4Mr Freeze (KY)	Joseph Talamo	118	Dale L. Romans	6/1
5	5Identifier (KY)	Stewart Elliott	116	Oscar M. Gonzalez	20/1
6	6Warrior's Charge (FL)	Florent Geroux	118	Brad H. Cox	8/1
7	7Combatant (KY)	Joel Rosario	120	John W. Sadler	4/1
8	8Sky Promise (KY)	Orlando Mojica	114	Robertino Diodoro	20/1
9	9Tacitus (KY)	John R. Velazquez	121	William I. Mott	9/2
10	10Captivating Moon (KY)	Julien R. Leparoux	113	Chris M. Block	20/1
11	11Tax (KY)	Kendrick Carmouche	117	Danny Gargan	15/1
12	12By My Standards (KY)	Gabriel Saez	118	W. Bret Calhoun	9/2
13	13Night Ops (KY)	Javier Castellano	116	Brad H. Cox	15/1
14	14Improbable (KY)	Martin Garcia	119	Bob Baffert	8/1