Thousand Words Upsets Honor A. P. in Shared Belief
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Photo: Benoit Photo
Thousand Words wins the Shared Belief Stakes at Del Mar
This spring after dull performances from Thousand Words when he ran fourth in the San Felipe Stakes (G2) and 11th in the Oaklawn Stakes, Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert gave the dual graded winner a freshening, believing the colt had lost his will to perform.
That desire has apparently been regained. Racing Aug. 1 in the $98,000 Shared Belief Stakes at Del Mar, the 3-year-old Pioneerof the Nile colt pulled off a three-quarter-length upset of heavily favored Honor A. P., one of the leaders on the Road to the Kentucky Derby.
Though Thousand Words had never taken the early lead in six previous starts, he did Saturday under an aggressive ride from jockey Abel Cedillo. Breaking from the inside post in the field of four after the scratches of Uncle Chuck and Anneau d'Or, he set an easy opening quarter-mile in :23.89.
Sensing that Thousand Words was cruising up front, jockey Mike Smith on Honor A. P. sent his mount after the leader, and Honor A. P. advanced from fourth passing the grandstand into second leaving the first of two turns.
Midway down the backstretch, Flavien Prat on Cezanne let his colt come between the two, and in tandem Cezanne and Honor A. P. chased Thousand Words through a half-mile in :47.93 and three-quarters in 1:12.33.
Leaving the second turn, it was Cezanne who seemed to be traveling most effortlessly of the three leaders, but he weakened while Thousand Words responded under right-handed urging from Cedillo.
The winner, owned by Albaugh Family Stables and Spendthrift Farm, raced 1 1/16 miles on a fast track in 1:43.85, paying $20.40 for a $2 win wager.
Baffert "just told me to warm him up real well, then get him out of there. Then see what happens," Cedillo said. "He broke well, and I saw I could take the lead, so I did. He was going along there steady, steady, steady. Then we got it done."
Honor A. P. lacked his usual acceleration, coming under pressure from Smith early on the second turn and regressing from his performance in a Santa Anita Derby (G1) victory in June. Yet he never stopped trying and came on over the final sixteenth to grab second, edging longshot Kiss Today Goodbye by a half-length.
"He ran well, but we're disappointed he didn't win," Smith said. "I haven't been able to get on him in the mornings, and I think that's made a difference. He's just been going along there not doing much in the mornings. I need to be on him and get more out of him. But that's the way it is now; that's just the way it is. This distance is too short for him, too. Just not his day."
Cezanne, Baffert's other starter, came up empty late, running last of four starters though beaten just a length and a half for the win.
"Turning for home, I could tell that Honor A. P. wasn't running like he usually does," Baffert said. "Cezanne got really tired, but Thousand Words … I could tell when we got down here that he was a different horse from Los Alamitos. The real Thousand Words showed up today. His whole mind changed. His color has changed. He had soured out on me, but we got him going the right way. I think he earned his way to the Derby."
The Shared Belief was the third stakes win for Thousand Words, who picked up 50 qualifying points toward the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) at Churchill Downs Sept. 5. His overall tally of 83, some earned with victories in the Robert B. Lewis Stakes (G3) and Los Alamitos Futurity (G2) over the winter, ranks him seventh on the leaderboard.
Honor A. P. is third with 140 points, trailing only Tiz the Law (272) and Authentic (200).
Bred in Florida by Hardacre Farm, Thousand Words is out of the Pomeroy mare Pomeroys Pistol, a multiple graded stakes winner who was grade 1-placed. He was consigned by Brookdale Sales at the 2018 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, where he was bought by his owners for $1 million.
Due to the postponement of the Kentucky Derby due to COVID-19, the Shared Belief was the first time Del Mar hosted a prep for the race. In summers past, the race served as a post-Triple Crown opportunity for 3-year-olds. Last year, it was won by Improbable, the winner of the Whitney Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course on Saturday.