Bluegrass Cat
 

Looked plenty good to me.
Bernardini might have a tussle coming his way in the Travers.

Agreed. Considering that he was washed out in the post parade, I was completely impressed with his performance. He looked awesome...

He was about four wide from the half. Sure, that track plays well there, but you sacrifice a length or more running out there.
When Bravo saw him coming at the top of the stretch, my guess is that he knew it was all over. BGC won by seven...coulda been more with a tighter trip.

-3 Thoro, easy. 20 days back. Tough to do.

Yes he did look terrific. I was going to bet Strong Contender but I was down so much I needed more than 2/1 to get out.

I liked Strong Contender a little also. But just like you, that was too chalky to take.

"Big Day" Todd back
 

more impressed with BC's Haskell
than Bernardini's Dandy
where is Jazil pointed?
Sweetnorthernsaint?
Bluegrass Cat can/will defeat Bernie in Traver's!
I see Hurley's still living off songandaprayer

Ya Randall, but stupid me keys Running Dog and Artie in picks and doubles. If it wasnt for Neil Howards 1st time turfer, that might have been my last day for a while. Worked out okay but Kazoo losing in that gutty effort really hurt. I put quite a bit on him today.

Jazil's hurt- should resume training in September I think

haven't heard anything about SNS. . .with his pedigree I wouldn't be suprised if they needed to lay him off for a long while to recooperate. . . if he wasn't gelded I doubt he'd race much more

Lemme tell you what!!! That race was a stunner. His sheet number will be incredible. Lets get it on!!! bernadini fans must have watched and said oh wait, there may be a challenger yet!!!
he was insanely good and I can't even imagine his fig. By the way, Depuy Glitters was beaten a football field!!!!:)

I took one look at him in the post parade and thought he was toast.

Mike, I was really impressed with the Cat today- he's always been kind of one paced, but not today. The race was over as soon as he made his move.

I'm really looking forward to the Travers this year. I have all the confidence in the world in Bernardini because I think he could be a great one, but if I am wrong, I will come here and take my lumps. It's only fair after all the yapping I've done about him!

I thought Bluegrass Cat was a wash out in the post parade as well but the best-bred horse in America showed what he was all about. In my opinion, much more impressive on this day than Bernadini has shown. From a breeding standpoint, this colt is the best stallion prospect that's proven his worth on the track. Only problem is with Storm Cat-Indy-Mr. P right after another, its going to limit the mare population this guy sees.

That was an awesome performance today. If nothing else, this will definetely help Bernardini's win price in the Travers.
At least it wont be a total runaway.

I wasn't intending to bet Bernardini in the Travers simply because I don't care about winning money; I just want this horse to win. However, if I'm going to get a square price on him, I'll wager as much as I can afford to lose. I really just hope it's a fast track so no one has any excuses

Not sure what happened to Strong Contender. A buddy of mine said he was fast enough to be on the lead if teh jockey wanted the lead, but he broke last.

Anyone have a take on how he ran? I watched the race at Saratoga and they had no sound where I was, and just an awful picture.

You tell Albertrani that a guy name Pletcher is looking for him. lets get it on!!!!!!!!

Da Cat does impresive things without looking impressive. A overwhelming winthat untill you look back at it, you just assume he was the best horse in the race and won like he should. After looking at the race you wonder how any horse horse could have won against him in this race. This should grade out one of the most powerful 3yr old performances this year. Wondering if he dosent turn back and run against Bernadini, where will he run and prepare for the BC. Does it make sense to wait for CD and make his BC prep there. The 20 days coud be the big factor and not evading the compition. Also The Bright Onne might have entered the mix with his nice showing in the undercard.

Dang, I'm trying to load some pics that my friend sent me from Monmouth today, but I'm basically puter illiterate.
If anyone knows how to do it, pm me with your e-mail and I'll forward them to you.

That field he beat didnt suck either. He would have probably beaten a lot of fields too. Total mind bet for me in that race on Strong Contender. If he was slightly higher I would have jumped in and gotten very beat.

The thing I wonder about is how much did this race take out of Bluegrass Cat? Because the Haskell is a grade 1, $1 million race, you can't use it as a prep for the Travers.........and Pletcher didn't. Can BC improve off of this? He could bounce big time, if you believe in that stuff. On the other hand, the Jim Dandy was clearly a prep for Bernardini and he absolutely jogged home under restraint. As Jerry Bailey and Randy Moss pointed out on that telecast, Castellano clearly was trying to save horse for the Travers because Bernardini needs that race to have a chance at the Eclipse. I believe even more improvement is forthcoming for that colt; can we say the same for BC? I'm not sure. This race had to take a lot out of him. Boy, these are going to be the longest three weeks. I'm ready for the Travers now.

Gander,
I thought strong contender ran his typical race. He lunged toward the rail out of the gate and altered his path a couple of times before settling into midpack around the turn. After that he simply just was not fast enough to keep up with BC. All in all an average perfomance, but he was not going to catch BC.

bluegrass cat hadn't run since the belmont, that was his first off a layoff...scary, huh? i say that because most think a top performance is second off...
meanwhile, bernardini, who ran a stunner, will be wheeling back on the least amount of a break he's ever had.

i'm ready for the travers as well. should be one to remember.

Is there any hope of Corinthian going in? Anyone know their schedule now that he didnt show much in that allowance? Maybe im a sucker, no comments please :) , but he showed me just as much talent as any 3 yo in the beginning of the year. Could end up being a VERY contentious race if he shows up to form.

lookout travers here comes the CAT!!!!!!!!!

BC will have to run at least as well, I think, to beat Bernardini. To be honest, I really think Bernardini can handle anything thrown at him. I don't see any reason why he couldn't race off of "only" a four week layoff, but then I've been made a fool of before by horses, lol. This is what sports is all about - if you want to be the best, you have to beat the best. The Travers will be a test for lightly raced Bernardini and now we'll see what he's made of. It doesn't get much better than this.

I agree with most your points. I must say, I went from zero to ten on the excitement level for the Travers!

That was a very nice run, but Bluegrass Cat has nothing for Bernardini..

I have to admit that I was practically giving the Travers to Bernardini, and looking forward to the win, but I hadn't figured on other colts improving so rapidly. Nonetheless, at some point Bernardini was going to meet stiffer competition (although he already proved to me what he could do when he won the Preakness.......but that's another story), so why not now? Actually, this will be a good thing for him as he starts to run against older horses. At the very least, the Travers may toughen him up; thus far, he's had it easy because he's just incredibly talented. I wouldn't want him to run against the likes of Invasor off of races that haven't mentally prepared him for the tough road ahead.

Well, aren't we lucky to get to see two awesome performances. What a race the Travers is shaping up to be. I can't wait!

Nice to see Bluegrass Cat run nicely. The field that he beat wasnt all that good, but it wasnt all that bad. If was suppose to win the race, but I didnt think he would win like he did. I still think that Cat will be overmatched in the Travers. Bernardini has a win over the track in impressive style. Also Bernardini is going to have 1 more week of rest. I think those two things coupled are going to make Bernardini the winner.

Gotta be careful when the one-turn hot-shots go two turns. Some make the transition okay, but going against a proven class two-turn horse like Bluegrass Cat, you'd want better odds to back him.

You keep telling yourself that. That was an awesome performance yesterday.

Yeah that is great huh? Boy was I not expecting that!!!!!! I mean I had conceded the Travers to Bernadini(reluctantly) and on the far turn yesterday I screamed wow this race is over!!! I didn't expect that tactical speed from the 8 pp and talk about easy, wow. When they turned for home those ears were pricked and he was having the time of his life. This is most definitely a new and improved version of Bluegrass Cat. That was not the same horse who ran in the Tri Crown races.

LOL So now Bluegrass Cat wins the Travers in a walkover.......Bernardini does the same thing in the Preakness and yet the race doesn't count (in only his 4th start, first around two turns no less), but Bluegrass Cat is awesome? I am not knocking BC (see my posts, obviously), but I do find the attitude amusing.

Who said that? I don't recall anyone saying that.

He definitely ran the race of his life yesterday, but the Bluegrass Cat that ran in the TC races was pretty good too. He beat a lot of quality horses in the derby and was beaten only by a genuine superstar. Then he was ridiculously wide in a 12f race and still beat decent horses like Stepenwolfer and Sunriver and was right there challenging the leader at the finish.
The horse he was battling down in Tampa this winter/spring (Deputy Glitters) proved in the Ohio Derby that he can run a pretty good race when he feels like it, and the only reason DG turned the tables on him in the Tampa Bay was because BC threw a shoe. The horse has been a solid competitor all year. Now he has simply taken the next step. If he and Bright One are both healthy enough to make it to the Travers it should be an interesting betting race.

Betsy I find you amusing as well. Noone said anything about BC winning the race in a walkover. I don't see any posts referring to that made by anyone. I think you are way to hypersensitive to Bern. Ok, so now he has a true competitor in the Travers, you think after that performance yesterday that its off base to say that? Look Betsy, one horse won easily against Ministers Bid and Hemingways Key. The other agaisnt Strong Contender. I don't see any difference between the two and quite frankly even with three weeks would rather have Pletcher in my corner. Bernadini is obviously more established and more talented at this point. But its no longer a walkover for him. Bright One is pretty special as well and will provide pace. No damn way Berandini outruns him early, none. Bright One is a very fast animal. And no way does he not get a challenge in the lane from BC. Bottom line is this, hes gonna get tested early, in between and late in the Travers and will have to work to win it. If you feel that these statements are off the mark then it is you that I find amusing.

Great, only three more weeks of this debate to go!

Question: is it certain the BGC will run in the Travers? I thought I heard Pletcher make a remark that 20 days was a little tight.

Yeah miraja but he had gears yesterday. He also was thrilled to be doing what he was doing. He wasn't all out being scrubbed on to give his best. Ears were flipping and pricked and he was having a ball and looked to truly enjoy the hell out of what he was doing. Something turned his attitude around.