Catholic Boy Stymies Analyze It Again in Belmont Derby
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Photo: Coglianese Photos/Joe Labozzetta
Catholic Boy wins the Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes at Belmont Park
There are prep races, then there's the Pennine Ridge Stakes (G3T).
Run June 2 at Belmont Park, the Pennine Ridge is considered the major steppingstone for the $1.2 million Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes (G1T) the following month.
As it turned out, not only did the 1 1/8-mile stakes prepare its top two finishers for their upcoming test, it mirrored the Belmont Derby in terms of a preview of who would cross the finish line first and how that 3-year-old colt would do it.
Five weeks after Catholic Boy set the pace and then re-rallied after being passed in the stretch to beat the previously undefeated Analyze It in the Pennine Ridge, the son of More Than Ready turned in an encore in the 1 1/4-mile Belmont Derby.
All that was missing was some of the theatrics of the Pennine Ridge, when jockey Javier Castellano snatched up Catholic Boy in midstretch, shifted outside of Analyze It, won by a neck, and survived a claim of foul by jockey Jose Ortiz on the runner-up.
BALAN: Catholic Boy Re-Rallies to Take Pennine Ridge
This time, the Belmont Derby was simply a classic stretch duel, as Analyze It opened a slim lead on the pacesetting Catholic Boy in the stretch but once again could not fend off his rival in the final few strides. Catholic Boy dug down and prevailed by a head for owners Robert LaPenta, Sol Kumin of Madaket Stables, Siena Farm, and Twin Creeks Racing Stables.
"Oh my God," said LaPenta, the majority owner. "He is such an amazing animal. His heart is huge. It's immeasurable. It's beyond comprehension that he came back to win again. I'm sure 99 out of 100 horses would have packed it in (during) the stretch (run)."
And now comes the tricky part for this "one in a hundred" horse. With a grade 1 turf victory to his credit, a natural spot for Catholic Boy would seem to be a race like the Secretariat Stakes (G1T) Aug. 11 at Arlington International Racecourse, but LaPenta and Kumin are both eager to return their 3-year-old to the dirt and target the $1.25 million Travers Stakes (G1) Aug. 25 at Saratoga Race Course.
"We'll see what (trainer Jonathan Thomas) says," LaPenta said as he crossed his fingers, "but if all goes well from here, the Travers is probably next."
Returning to the dirt is hardly far-fetched. Catholic Boy won the Remsen Stakes (G2) at Aqueduct Racetrack on the main track last year and finished second in the Sam F. Davis Stakes (G3) this season before his Triple Crown hopes ended with a fourth-place finish in the Xpressbet Florida Derby (G1). LaPenta said Catholic Boy bled in the Florida Derby, which prompted a two-month break and a return to turf, where he won the With Anticipation Stakes (G3T) and finished fourth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1T) during his juvenile year.
The Belmont Derby was Catholic Boy's fourth win in five starts on turf and clearly his most impressive of the quartet because of the international quality of the nine-horse field and another illustration of his tenaciousness in the stretch.
"What a stretch drive," said Thomas, who claimed his first grade 1 win. "My hat is off to Analyze It. He ran super. It was a hell of a horse race. (Catholic Boy) really has a lot of heart. I didn't expect him to fight back this time. I thought we were going to finish a real good second, (but) somehow he got it done."
Catholic Boy set the early pace, with comfortable fractions of :49.20 for four furlongs and 1:13.38 for three-quarters of a mile. Analyze It, the 2-1 favorite, tracked in second from the start, then collared Catholic Boy as they left the quarter pole. Analyze It edged away to a half-length lead at the eighth pole before a familiar scenario began to unfold and Analyze It's lead melted away.
"It's good for the sport to see the best 3-year-old horses on the turf run the way they did," Castellano said. "I'm very fortunate it went my way."
European shipper Hunting Horn finished third, 1 3/4 lengths behind Analyze It.
Catholic Boy, off at 5-1, covered the 10 furlongs on firm turf in 1:59.28.
"I'm so happy for Jonathan that he got that first grade 1 win. He's doing a terrific job," Kumin said. "This horse could run in the Travers. They think he's as good on dirt as he is on turf. He's also run unbelievably the last two times on turf, so we'll see what happens."
If Catholic Boy does opt for the Travers, it will be welcome news for Chad Brown, who trains Analyze It for owner William Lawrence.
"This horse that won earned it. He came back and beat (Analyze It). I don't have any excuse," Brown said. "It sure seems that (Analyze It idles), but I don't want to take anything away from the winner, because he still fought back and most horses wouldn't. I thought he ran a great race, the winner, but so did our horse. He just wasn't good enough."
Bred by Fred Hertrich III and John Fielding, Catholic Boy has five wins in eight starts, and the $650,000 winner's check made him a millionaire and brought his earnings to $1,172,000.
Channel Cat came in fourth and was followed by Kingstar, Maraud, Hawkish, My Boy Jack, and Encumbered.