Count Again Rallies to Seabiscuit Score
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Photo: Benoit Photo
Count Again (left) outduels Flavius to the wire in the Seabiscuit Handicap at Del Mar
After spending the past three months specializing in races at classic distances, a return to his roots in turf racing worked out pretty well for Count Again in the $203,500 Seabiscuit Handicap (G2T).
Racing for the first time in California and for trainer Phil D'Amato Nov. 28, the Canadian import's stamina bubbled to the surface at the end as he closed fastest of all from last in a field of 12 to surge past Flavius and prevail by three-quarters of a length in the 1 1/16-mile stakes at Del Mar.
"He came with a monstrous run," D'Amato said.
An Ontario-bred owned by Agave Racing Stable and Sam-Son Farm, the much traveled 5-year-old Awesome Again gelding has now raced in the West, Southeast, Midwest, and Canada for four different trainers in his eight starts at distances that have come full circle.
In his first three turf races, he raced between a mile and 1 1/16 miles in maiden and allowance races before he was stretched out to 1 1/4 miles at Woodbine by trainer Gail Cox and responded with a neck loss in an allowance optional claimer, followed by a victory in the Sept. 19 Singspiel Stakes (G3T).
In his last race before leaving his native Canada and heading west to D'Amato's barn, he was fourth in the Northern Dancer Turf Stakes Presented by Pattison (G1T), finishing 2 1/4 lengths behind in the 1 1/2-mile test.
Jockey Juan Hernandez guides Count Again to the winner's circle after the Seabiscuit Handicap at Del Mar
Clearly, the cutback in distance did not faze him Saturday. If anything, it brought out the best in him.
"Gail Cox delivered this horse to me in excellent condition, and I was really glad to have him. She got him going really good and had his confidence up as well, and I just kind of trained on from that," D'Amato said after his third Seabiscuit win.
Rallying five wide worked out well for both Count Again and Flavius as it kept them out of a messy traffic jam that started early on the final turn when the frontrunning One Bad Boy was pulled up and backed into longshots Camino Del Paraiso and My Boy Jack.
On the turn, Juddmonte Farms' Flavius and jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. got the first jump on Count Again, moving up from ninth after a half-mile in :48.27 and forging to the front leaving the eighth pole.
Following him was Juan Hernandez and Count Again, who was last after the opening quarter-mile and 11th after six furlongs but smoothly moved outside of Flavius in the stretch and flew past him in the final few strides.
Count Again ($18.80) was clocked in 1:40.84 while winning for the fourth time and pushing his earnings to $271,165.
He was bred by Sam-Son Farm out of the Red Ransom mare Count to Three and is a half brother to grade 1 winner Ransom the Moon.
The runner-up finish by the 123-pound highweight, Flavius, a homebred son of War Front who broke from post 11, cost New York-based trainer Chad Brown a sweep of the three graded turf stakes at Del Mar. The four-time Eclipse Award winner captured the Jimmy Durante Stakes (G3T) with Fluffy Socks and the Hollywood Derby (G1T) with Domestic Spending on Saturday's card.
Next Shares, an Archarcharch gelding who won the 2019 Seabiscuit, was three-quarters of a length back in third, rallying along the inside to finish a length ahead of 2-1 favorite Anothertwistafate, who was fourth in his turf debut.