Halladay Strikes Out Rivals in Sunshine Forever
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Photo: Coglianese Photos/Ryan Thompson
Halladay wins the Sunshine Forever Stakes at Gulfstream Park
Halladay has always been a highly competitive runner who can be counted on to figure in the trifecta.
These days, the more relaxed speedster has developed a rather nice penchant for crossing the wire first.
The gray War Front 4-year-old made it two consecutive victories and three in his past four starts Saturday as jockey Luis Saez put him on the lead shortly after the start and Halladay took it from there, posting a frontrunning 1 1/4-length score in the $75,000 Sunshine Forever Stakes, the May 9 featured race at a closed-to-the-public Gulfstream Park.
"He's really found his groove now and is in a great rhythm," trainer Todd Pletcher said about a colt with five wins, two seconds, and four thirds in 12 starts. "He trained super coming into the race. He's learning to relax a little bit and ration out his speed, and that's helped him to get better and better."
Owned by Harrell Ventures, Halladay improved to 3-for-3 at Gulfstream Park. He took the Dec. 28 Tropical Park Derby on turf, followed by a trip to Tampa Bay Downs and a fourth in the Tampa Bay Stakes (G3T). After that, he returned to the Hallandale Beach, Fla., racetrack and won an allowance optional claimer. Saturday's victory against eight others came in a black-type race worthy of a graded stakes.
"He certainly likes this Gulfstream course," Pletcher said. "That was a graded stakes-caliber field, no doubt, and he ran like a graded stakes horse today."
Halladay has also developed a liking for Saez, who rode him for the first time in the April 4 allowance win. The jockey kept Halladay in front Saturday through fractions of :46.39 and 1:08.95, and the duo crossed the wire in a fleet 1:32.65 for the mile on turf.
"Saez gets along with him well," Pletcher said. "He did a nice job (Saturday) when (Halladay) didn't break super sharp to get him in the position we wanted to be in, and he got him to settle."
After bobbling a bit at the break, Halladay ($4.60), the 6-5 favorite, cruised along on a short, one-length lead after an opening half-mile in :47 and then hurled a fastball at the field by extending to a 1 1/2-length margin after six furlongs in a snappy 1:09.57.
"When they threw up (fractions of :23.71 and :47), for a horse of his ability to be in a comfortable rhythm at that point, I thought he'd be very dangerous," Pletcher said.
So dangerous that even though Aquaphobia, stablemate Social Paranoia, and Admission Office took a run at him in the stretch, they could barely cut into the lead as Halladay covered the 1 1/16 miles in 1:38.66.
"A final time like that is a serious race horse time, wherever you are," Pletcher said.
Out of the Tapit mare Hightap, Halladay was bred in Kentucky by Gainesway Thoroughbreds and Winchell Thoroughbreds. He is the first stakes winner for his dam and her fourth winner in five foals to race.
A $225,000 RNA at the 2017 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, Halladay was purchased privately through the work of agent Steve Young.
Paradise Farms, David Staudacher, and Hooties Racing's Aquaphobia, a 7-year-old Giant's Causeway horse coming off a fourth for trainer Mike Maker in the Muniz Memorial Classic Stakes (G2T), was second by 1 1/4 lengths over The Elkstone Group's Social Paranoia, who rallied from last in a field of 12 to win the Appleton Stakes (G3T) in his previous start.
"Social Paranoia turned in a good, solid effort. He kept trying to the wire," Pletcher said about the Street Boss 4-year-old. "He (carried 126 pounds) and gave away some weight to some nice horses. Maybe he wasn't as sharp as he was last time in his first race off (a 6 1/2-month) layoff, but sometimes when you run that big off a layoff, it takes time to climb back up. I was proud of him."
War of Will, who won the 2019 Preakness Stakes (G1), was entered in the Sunshine Forever but was scratched by trainer Mark Casse in favor of heading to Santa Anita Park for the Shoemaker Mile Stakes (G1T).
With New York racing suspended since March 15 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Halladay and Social Paranoia will be staying put in Florida for the immediate future.
"Right now, I'm playing it by ear like everyone else," Pletcher said. "We were hoping there might be a stakes in the first condition book at Churchill Downs so I could split these two up, but I didn't see anything that fit them. That's when we decided to run them here.
"We're keeping most of the stable in Florida," added the seven-time Eclipse Award winner, who would normally be based in New York at this time of year. "We know we have racing here. We'll take a few horses to Churchill and ship in some when they have races for them. We're keeping the horses ready to run here, and we'll send some of the babies and those that will take 45-60 days to get ready to Belmont Park."