In Turf, Up to the Mark Faces Top International Runners

Trainer Todd Pletcher had a predicament ahead of the final entry day for the Breeders' Cup.

His talented trainee Up to the Mark   had enjoyed a stellar campaign leading up to Monday's entry box. The 4-year-old son of Not This Time   had blazed through three straight grade 1 victories at three different distances on the turf: a mile, 1 1/8 miles, and 1 1/4 miles. Up to the Mark had two options—the Breeders' Cup Turf (G1T) at the untested distance of 1 1/2 miles or the Breeders' Cup Mile (G1T), the distance at which he only just edged Master of The Seas  in Keeneland's Turf Mile Stakes (G1T) last time out.

Pletcher and the colt's owners, Repole Stable and St. Elias Stables, ultimately decided on the $4 million Turf, where the colt will take on European standouts Auguste Rodin , Mostahdaf , and King of Steel , as well as Japanese star Shahryar .

A top effort in the Turf could pay the biggest of dividends for Up to the Mark. In a year where United States racing has lacked a Goliath such as Flightline  , and consistency has been hard to come by, Up to the Mark's trio of top-level wins have landed the colt in the Horse of the Year conversation. 

"We just feel like the strength of his race in the Manhattan (Stakes, G1T) at a mile and a quarter and the firm ground in California that the mile and a half is what he's best suited for," Pletcher said. "Up to the Mark's running style over the grass has made him so effective.

"The real key is the way he settles. He was very relaxed in the Coolmore Mile early on, which allowed him to deliver that big kick. And he did the same thing in the Manhattan. And also the Turf (Classic Stakes, G1T) at Churchill. He turns off, he can gallop, and then he can accelerate. As long as he does that, going a mile and a half, we feel confident that he can get that distance."

Up to the Mark will start from the 8 post in a Turf field reduced to 11 with the scratches of Get Smokin  and Bolshoi Ballet . Four-time Eclipse-winning rider Irad Ortiz Jr. will be in the irons. Ortiz won the Turf in 2019 with Bricks and Mortar , a horse who also led a turf-driven campaign on his way to Horse of the Year honors.

Originally purchased with the intent to run on dirt, Up to the Mark broke his maiden on the main track as a 3-year-old at Saratoga Race Course in maiden special weight company. Following four sub-par performances on the dirt, Pletcher decided the new year would be the time to try the colt on grass.

Up to the Mark responded to the surface change with a scintillating four-length allowance optional claimer score at Gulfstream Park.

"I thought it was one of the most impressive first times on the turf for a horse that I've seen in a long time," Pletcher said. "He delivered a huge kick that day and drew away very impressively. From that point on we knew where his future was."

Since then, he's been 5-for-6 on the turf, with his lone loss coming in the Maker's Mark Mile Stakes (G1T) in April.  

"We don't buy too many to be turf horses. It's sort of a 'Plan B' in our stable," Pletcher said. "We've been blessed. He's had a remarkable season and once we put him on the turf he really excelled."