Tip of the Week: Second Thoughts
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Photo by Eclipse Sportswire
There are horses who take a while to pick up on what they are supposed to do in a race.
Others are quick learners who only need a start or two to achieve their prime objective, which is to win a race.
While a strong effort in a horse’s career debut is usually a good indication of its talents, it becomes easier to back that runner in its second try if it can be extrapolated that there’s room for a horse to improve.
Truly Together surely had the look of a horse with a bright future when she was entered in the eighth race at Gulfstream Park on Feb. 10.
In her career debut on Dec. 20 at Gulfstream Park for trainer Michael Matz, the daughter of Smart Strike had finished third. But where she finished did not tell the whole story.
After racing in eighth in the early stages of that mile-and-a-sixteenth maiden turf race, Truly Together was forced to rally four-wide and lose ground on the final turn. Nevertheless, while fifth at the eighth pole, some 5 ½ lengths behind, she closed quickly only to fall just three-quarters of a length shy at the wire.
It was an impressive debut and when she returned to the races on Feb. 10 there were a few new reasons to believe that she would move forward.
One was the added distance in the Feb. 10 race, which was contested at a mile and eighth, giving Truly Together an extra half-furlong to collar the leaders. She was also adding a new medication, Lasix, which could make her even more formidable.
Jockey John Velazquez was also staying on board her, indicating there was something the Hall of Famer liked about her.
Put it all together and she was quite interesting at a morning-line price of 4-1.
Handicappers saw enough to like in Truly Together that they sent her off as the 3-1 second choice and they no doubt were thrilled when everything came together for her and her late kick carried her to three-quarters of a length victory, paying $8.20 for a $2 win ticket.
THE LESSON: As promising as a horse’s debut may have been, the addition of some positive factors for its second start can make it an even more compelling selection.