Champion Good Magic Installed as Haskell Favorite

The reigning juvenile champion climbed into the ring with the new divisional heavyweight and threw his best shot.

He absorbed the hardest hits and, though wobbled, stayed on his feet and made it a fight worthy of some drama. He emerged defeated but with his reputation intact. And once the toll of his battles mended, Good Magic showed his two-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer he still has more rounds in him.

He won't get another crack at Triple Crown winner Justify, whose retirement was announced July 25 and who all but cemented his first-place spots on Eclipse Awards ballots with his classic sweep, but in a credit to his own quality, Good Magic has emerged from his slugfests in May still standing.

Freshened following his fourth-place finish in the May 19 Preakness Stakes (G1), Good Magic will get back to some top-level business July 29 when he starts in the $1 million betfair.com Haskell Invitational Stakes (G1) at Monmouth Park. The champion son of Curlin  was installed as the 6-5 morning-line favorite out of post 6 in the field of seven entered and, if he brings his usual level of tenacity into the 1 1/8-mile test, he stands to reaffirm those who believe him to be the best 3-year-old male still in training.

If Justify was the undisputed king of such ranks, the efforts Good Magic put forth in the first two legs of the Triple Crown certainly give him the argument of being next in line.

The Chad Brown-trained chestnut colt came into the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) breathing fire following his victory in the April 7 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G2) at Keeneland, and he ran up to his camp's confidence—he just also happened to run into a wunderkind of historic proportions. After he finished second by 2 1/2 lengths to Justify on the first Saturday in May, Good Magic came back in the Preakness and, to Brown's dismay, ended up battling stride for stride with the eventual Triple Crown winner on the front end for the brunt of the 1 3/16 miles before he gave way in late stretch.

"It can take its toll on these horses when they're in a real battle with a great racehorse, and especially horses like Good Magic that give it their all and lay everything on the line trying to win," Brown said. "Thankfully, he's a real warrior, and he survived the Triple Crown, and he still looks good. Did it take its toll on him, two tough races against Justify? Sure it did. He lost some weight. He was body sore. He needed some recovery time.

"But it was up to me to observe him and see if he could keep going another round. And I did, and the horse responded. He's trained really well, and he's bounced back super, considering everything he's been through. And I think he's ready to go back into the ring again."

Owned by e Five Racing Thoroughbreds and Stonestreet Stables, Good Magic has been most effective when coming from just off the pace, as he did to win the Sentient Jet Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) at Del Mar in November. If no one presses the matter, though, Brown doesn't mind if the colt ends up on or near the lead Sunday, as long as he doesn't end up inside as he was in the Preakness.

"I don't mind being forwardly placed," Brown said. "In the Preakness, the real problem was being drawn inside Justify. I just didn't want to be there. I didn't want to be inside that horse at any point in the race. Unfortunately, he ended up there, and there probably wasn't much to do from that post other than end up there. I wanted Justify to have to clear my horse.

"I just don't want to be on the lead on the rail, and I won't be (on Sunday)."

The only horse other than Justify to compete in all three legs of the Triple Crown this year was Calumet Farm's homebred graded stakes winner Bravazo, the 3-1 second choice on the morning line out of post 5. The D. Wayne Lukas-trained son of Awesome Again  put in a respectful run to get sixth in the Kentucky Derby, then emerged from the fog to finish second in the Preakness, beaten just half a length.

Bravazo ended down inside in the Belmont and never mounted a serious challenge en route to a sixth-place finish. The hearty runner will make his seventh start of the year Sunday.

"Not every horse makes it through the whole Triple Crown unscathed," Lukas said. "He made all three races. He's a very tough, nice horse. He's actually getting better with maturity, and I expect a very good effort from him.

"We saw early on that he was one of those tough, durable horses who might make all of the races we wanted to make. We knew he would be competitive because he gets himself into races, to where he can be a threat every time."

The Haskell is used to having California invaders come in and leave the Jersey Shore with the goods (see: Bob Baffert's eight victories in the race). Trainer Peter Eurton would like to add to that history with the improving Core Beliefs.

Unraced at age 2, Core Beliefs broke his maiden third time out and then finished third behind Justify and multiple grade 1 winner Bolt d'Oro in the April 7 Santa Anita Derby (G1). The son of Quality Road  took another step forward when he finished second in the May 12 Peter Pan Stakes (G3) before he edged fellow Haskell entrant Lone Sailor by a nose in the June 23 Ohio Derby (G3). After debating between the Haskell and the July 28 Jim Dandy Stakes (G2), Eurton said owner Gary Broad decided the time was now to try and get his colt a win at the highest level.

"It just came down to—he's doing so well, how many opportunities at a grade 1 do you have?" Eurton said. "Obviously, Good Magic is an awesome horse, and the rest of the field is nothing to take lightly, but again, this is a once-in-a-lifetime type of thing."

Entries: betfair.com Haskell Invitational S. (G1)

Monmouth Park, Sunday, July 29, 2018, Race 12

• Grade I
• 1 1/8m
• Dirt
• $1,000,000
• 3 yo
• 5:45 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Lone Sailor (KY)	Joe Bravo	118	Thomas M. Amoss	5/1
2	2Navy Commander (PA)	Angel S. Arroyo	118	Robert E. Reid, Jr.	12/1
3	3Roaming Union (KY)	Albin Jimenez	118	Kelly J. Breen	10/1
4	4Core Beliefs (KY)	Flavien Prat	118	Peter Eurton	4/1
5	5Bravazo (KY)	Luis Saez	118	D. Wayne Lukas	3/1
6	6Good Magic (KY)	Jose L. Ortiz	118	Chad C. Brown	6/5
7	7Golden Brown (NJ)	Jairo Rendon	118	Patrick B. McBurney	15/1