Combatant Steady in Half-Mile Work for Kentucky Derby
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Photo: Anne M. Eberhardt
Combatant prepares to work April 30 at Churchill Downs
Combatant's connections always know what they're going to get.
They know he'll be solid in his workouts, if not overly flashy. They know he'll show up in the afternoons and not embarrass himself and that, if not for a bad post here and an off track there, he might have more than just a maiden victory as his only win to date.
As usual, the son of Scat Daddy went out and did his job April 30, putting in an easy half-mile work over the Churchill Downs track in preparation for the May 5 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1). With his consistency well established, his human counterparts now hope the bay colt can pulled off a shocker of sorts in the first leg of the Triple Crown.
"He needs some luck I think," said David Fiske, manager of Winchell Thoroughbreds, which co-owns Combatant along with Willis Horton. "I think he's been kind of victimized his last few races by lone speed, off tracks, and bad draws, so we'll see."
In his first timed move since running fourth in the Arkansas Derby (G1), Combatant put in a typical week-of-the-race move for trainer Steve Asmussen, rolling through a solo four-furlong breeze in :49 3/5 Monday morning.
The steadiness of the colt's workout was on par with his race record to date. Though he only has the one win in seven starts, he has not been worse than fourth and has hit the board in four stakes tests.
He's had a bit of a bridesmaid complex, running second in the Remington Springboard Mile Stakes, Smarty Jones Stakes, and Southwest Stakes (G3), and also put in a third-place effort behind Magnum Moon in the Rebel Stakes (G2). While he hasn't yet gotten over the hump in a big spot, he is one of the more seasoned members of the sophomore class, with four starts this year alone.
His pattern is not all that dissimilar to that of stablemate Lookin At Lee—the horse who emerged from the Oaklawn Park series last season to run second in the 2017 Kentucky Derby at odds of 33-1.
"He does have an extremely similar personality as Lookin At Lee, and Lookin At Lee did a great job to make the most of his 1 post last year (in the Derby)," Asmussen said. "That is what we are trying to recreate is the run 'Lee' put in last year with a very similar horse.
"I think the best is definitely ahead of him, whether it's this Saturday in the Derby or a date following that."