Casa Creed Repeats in Fourstardave

Times have changed so that longevity, class, and success are becoming rare qualities in any sport.

Especially Thoroughbred racing.

So on a day when the New York Racing Association honored the memory of the famed gelding Fourstardave, a multiple graded stakes winner who posted wins in eight straight years at Saratoga Race Course during a 100-race career, it was fitting that for the second year in a row a horse cut in the mold of the stakes' eponym captured the $500,000 Fourstardave Handicap (G1T) Aug. 12 at the Spa.

No, LRE Racing and JEH Racing Stables' Casa Creed  will not match Fourstardave's streak of winning years at the Spa, but his three-quarters of a length victory Saturday for trainer Bill Mott cemented the 7-year-old's reputation as one of the handful of stars who have reached the upper levels of their abilities year in and year out at Saratoga.

"He loves Saratoga and he's a great champion. This horse should be remembered for a long time," said sports talk radio icon Mike Francesa of JEH racing Stable. "He has always been an ultra-consistent performer. He might not  be as beloved as Fourstardave and he's always been underrated. But he deserves the acclaim. He is a brilliant performer and a great racehorse."

In running in the Fourstardave for a fourth straight year—while chalking up consecutive wins and a second straight free "Win and You're In" spot in the Breeders' Cup Mile (G1T)—Casa Creed was sent off as the 9-5 second choice to runner-up and 6-5 favorite Annapolis  in Saturday's mile test on the inner turf course. Considering that Casa Creed beat Annapolis in the July 15 Kelso Stakes (G3T) at the Spa, all of the attention on Annapolis did not sit well with LRE Racing owner Lee Einsidler.

"I was looking at the Daily Racing Form for today and Casa Creed was not on the cover. Annapolis was," Einsidler said. "So I took the Daily Racing Form to the barn this morning at 5:30 and I showed it to 'Casa.' I told him 'You're disrespected again.' He looked at me and winked and said, 'Don't worry, boss. We'll get them today."'

Aside from being a winner of nine of 33 career starts—with five wins and two thirds (both in the Fourstardave) in eight Saratoga starts—the son of Jimmy Creed   bred by Silver Springs Stud is apparently a horse of his word.

"He's a good horse, very special," Mott said about the two-time winner of the Jaipur Stakes (G1T) and $2.46 million earner. "How can you ask for anything more? He's improved with every year he's raced. He's as good now as he ever was."

Besides setting up Casa Creed for a fourth straight appearance at the Breeders' Cup, the win gave Mott a third graded stakes win at the meet from 7-year-old Casa Creed and 9-year-old Channel Maker .

"They keep a poor old trainer going," he said.

In the Kelso, also at a mile on the Spa's inner turf course, Casa Creed got first run on Annapolis and forged to the lead in the stretch to post a length victory over trainer Todd Pletcher's grade 1 winner and 4-5 favorite.

The script was flipped in the Fourstardave, with Annapolis pressing the pace and taking the lead entering the stretch.

"It didn't matter," Mott said.

No, it didn't. While Annapolis and jockey Irad Ortiz were able to put away the pacesetting My Sea Cottage , they could not fend off the late bid from Casa Creed and Luis Saez. Fourth after an opening half-mile in :46.57 on good turf, Casa Creed ($5.70) motored past in the final sixteenth to stop the teletimer in 1:34.20.

"As good as the performance was last time, being that we had to get (Annapolis) this time and he is a grade 1 winner, this victory was even more impressive," said Einsidler, who was joined by fiance Aimee Brisson. "The story keeps getting bigger and bigger. We may have to bring him back next year."

Mott said he was uncertain of plans for Casa Creed, except that some rest is in order.

For Bass Racing's homebred Annapolis, the 2022 Turf Mile (G1T) winner at Keeneland moved his record to six wins and four seconds in 11 career starts. The 4-year-old son of War Front  's only unplaced start was an 11th in last year's BC Mile when he lunged at the start.

"No excuse. (He was) second best," Ortiz said. "He fights but the other horse was better today."

Gary Barber, Wachtel Stable, and Peter Deutsch's Ice Chocolate, a son of Goldikovic  trained by Mark Casse, rallied from seventh and last and was another half-length back in third.

The Kentucky-bred Casa Creed is out of the Bellamy Road mare Achalaya, whose yearling filly by Authentic   sold for $725,000 to Live Oak Plantation from the Paramount Sales consignment at The Saratoga Sale, Fasig-Tipton's New York Sale of Preferred Yearlings. She also has a 2023 Curlin   filly.

Casa Creed, bought for $105,000 from the Kelli Mitchell consignment at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale, is the first of his dam's seven foals and a half brother to grade 3 winner Chess's Dream .

Video: Fourstardave H. (G1T)