Servis: To Win Derby, Oaks Is ‘Incredible’

John Servis, who saddled Cathryn Sophia to win the May 6 Longines Kentucky Oaks (gr. I), said it'a unbelievable that he could add the filly classic to the Kentucky Derby (gr. I) he captured with the popular Smarty Jones   in 2004.

“That is the stuff I dreamt about when I was a kid,” said Servis, 57, a native of Charles Town, W.Va. “I never thought I would win a Derby and now to have both bookends. To be able to win both those races is just incredible.”

Servis said Cathryn Sophia, a 3-year-old daughter of Street Boss  , “seems really good and really bright” the morning after her Oaks victory, noting that the filly had eaten all of her oats.

“She came out of it no worse for wear,” Servis said. “She ate up, which is great. She has always been a picky eater. But coming into the race, not only had she been training well, but she didin't miss an oat.”

Servis, who just missed the Triple Crown with Smarty Jones   when the colt was passed in the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) by Birdstone   after having taken the Preakness Stakes (gr. I), said the Oaks victory in some ways is redemption for Chuck Zacney’s Cash is King Stable.

Cash is King, which owns Cathryn Sophia, won the Preakness and Belmont with Afleet Alex, the eventual champion 3-year-old male, in 2005.

“It’s a little of redemption for (Cash is King) because I believe Afleet Alex   was good enough to win the Triple Crown but he ran so big in the Arkansas Derby (gr. II). I think he regressed a little in the (Kentucky) Derby,” the trainer said.

Cathryn Sophia, whose only career loss was a third-place finish in the Central Bank Ashland Stakes (gr. I) at Keeneland, is expected to ship to Delaware Park May 9, with the June 11 Acorn Stakes (gr. I) at Belmont Park her possible next start.

“I don’t know; we’ll see how she is doing,” Servis said. “I’ll let her tell me. If she is happy, continues to do as she is or even go forward, then we will probably go to the Acorn. And the reason I say I don’t know is that after yesterday that happened to open up a whole lot of avenues. Now I’m starting to think, 'Wow, do I even want to shorten her back up to a one-turn-mile after that race?' There’s a lot to think about.”

Meanwhile trainer Doug O’Neill said second-place Oaks finisher Land Over Sea was “unbelievable” the morning of May 7.

“Her legs are ice cold,” O’Neill of the Bellamy Road   filly who closed from well back in the Oaks. “She cleaned up everything in her tub last night and she looks ready to go again. We’re very proud of her. She ran a terrific race.”

O’Neill said the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes (gr. II) May 20, a day before the Preakness, could be next for Land Over Sea.

“We want to see how things go today,” he said, alluding how Nyquist performs in the Derby. “We might be headed to Baltimore. We’ll see how it goes.”