Common Threads Tie Accelerate, City of Light in Pegasus

About 2,200 miles away from Gulfstream Park, only a short walk apart in the Santa Anita Park barn area, reside the two favorites for the $9 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1).

In Barn 56 is Hronis Racing's Accelerate , and in Barn 59 is Mr. and Mrs. William Warren's City of Light , and the pair share more than a couple of common threads.

Both are entering the final contest of their racing careers off Breeders' Cup wins—Accelerate in the Classic (G1) and City of Light in the Dirt Mile (G1)—and both will be off to Lane's End for stallion duty after the Pegasus.

Both are multiple grade 1 winners and have done the majority of their earning (more than $5 million for Accelerate and more than $1.4 million for City of Light) in 2018, but the Pegasus will serve as a tiebreaker of sorts in what has been a short but notable rivalry.

Accelerate and City of Light have met twice. The first round went to the Michael McCarthy-trained City of Light, a year younger at 4, in the April 14 Oaklawn Handicap (G2). Only a neck separated the two at the Oaklawn Park wire, and the result was the only loss on Accelerate's 2018 résumé.

BALAN: City of Light Edges Accelerate in Oaklawn Handicap

Six weeks later, and at a longer distance (1 1/4 miles compared to 1 1/8 miles), the John Sadler-trained Accelerate turned the tables in his Gold Cup at Santa Anita Stakes (G1) romp, when City of Light finished 5 1/2 lengths back in third.

BALAN: Accelerate Pulls Away Late in Gold Cup Victory

"It's always fun to go against another really good horse," Sadler said Dec. 20 from the Santa Anita grandstand as he watched morning workouts. "I have a ton of respect for (City of Light). He's a really good horse, but I'm kinda glad we have another crack at him. I don't mind that a bit."

Sadler had a chance to get a look at his competition Thursday as City of Light breezed a half-mile in :47 2/5 on a crisp morning at the Arcadia, Calif., track. McCarthy, after observing City of Light's drill, said with a smile that the Quality Road  colt has "moved forward" off his 2 3/4-length Dirt Mile score.

"The horse has come back and worked forwardly," McCarthy said after City of Light's drill in company with maiden stablemate Irish Spirit. "He couldn't be happier with himself right now."

Both trainers shrugged off the importance of the Pegasus' 1 1/8-mile distance as an advantage to either horse, but while Accelerate has been most impressive at 1 1/4 miles this season, his only loss and slimmest winning margins (although not really that slim) outside of the Breeders' Cup have been at nine furlongs this season.

"He's rightfully in the running for Horse of the Year, so he handles a mile and an eighth fine," McCarthy said of Accelerate.

"I don't know that we're at a disadvantage, but (Gulfstream) is a little bit of a quirkier track compared to (Churchill Downs)," Sadler said. "It can be speed-favoring, but I don't think it's playing that way right now, and there's that short run-up (to the first turn in the 1 1/8-mile setup). So the things you worry about a little bit more there is the draw and the run into the first turn, but that's tactical stuff that you really won't know until it happens."

Accelerate is scheduled to put in his next work at Santa Anita Dec. 22, and Sadler said he expects the son of Lookin At Lucky  to stay on a Saturday breezing schedule until his final race.

"He's really doing well," Sadler said. "We're not going in with a horse just to take a fling at it. We want to go out just like Gun Runner  did."