Harlem Rocker Returns
 

8th (4:06)

7 Furlongs | Open | 3 Year Olds And Up Allowance Optional Claiming ($100,000) | Purse: $56,000

Post # Horse Jockey Weight Claim Price Equip. Med.
1 Mutadda Albarado R J 120 L
2 Success Success Castanon J L 120 $100,000 LA
3 Cosmic Borel C H 124 $100,000 LA
4 Timbucto Prescott R 122 LA
5 Harlem Rocker Velazquez J R 120 LA
6 Agastache Court J K 124 LA
7 King of the Roxy Maragh R 124 LA
8 Cassoulet Thompson T J 122 LA

That's the Todd Pletcher Retread Stakes. King of the Roxy will be making his fourth start off a 17 month layoff and most recently ran fourth in an Ohio-bred stakes race at Thistledown.

Does he have no lead in his pencil cause he's not a gelding? I just don't get why he's running, especially in Ohio-bred races. I also don't get why Harlem Rocker is running here when his favorite track in the world is open in Ozone Park, NY.

NT

You think this is a prep for the Cigar Mile, which will be 2 weeks after? Or is that too much, too soon?

I think its a prep and he wanted to go 7 instead of a mile off the bench.

I just read its a prep for the Hals Hope to be run the first day of the Gulfstream meet.

As much as horses like him are good bet againsts, whcih one of these goats can beat him?

I think it would be difficult to get a race to fill in NY under the conditions this horse would qualify for. A prep for the Cigar Mile was mentioned. Harlem Rocker has not raced since last years Cigar Mile and it would be asking a lot of this horse to come back so quick are being out this long. Hopefully he can get back in form and be a quality race horse as a 5 year old.

Rocker has had some health issues all year, spent a lot of time on the farm at Adena South in the spring, then went to NY. He ended up having upper respiratory surgery at Cornell in July, then was at Adena in Canada for a while. Then he was back in NY until he flew to CD on Monday.

He's pointed towards the Hal's Hope on Jan 3 if he does well Saturday.

http://www.drf.com/news/article/108892.html

I hope to get down there if he runs. On the 2nd of Jan there's a QH stakes race at Hialeah, so it may be an interesting trip.

It's not a bad race for a $Alc/OptCl. Mutadda has run well at CD and might move up 2nd off the layoff. He won a stake at FG last winter.
Cosmic (the former Phipps horse o/o Heavenly Prize) is 2 for 2 here and though his race at LaD last time was dreadful his two prior (before they layoff) were OK.
I thought that Cassoulet might be a nice one when he was with Motion at 2. He never really panned out but seemed to get good last winter/spring at OP. His last to were awful but like Cosmic he's back at a track he's run well on for a trainer that's good off a layoff.
If HR is not at his best or not asked for his best there are a few decent options that may offer some value.

Cosmic?

They brought him back from injury when they were unable to get a "suitable" stallion deal for him. The OH-bred races were available to him given his state-bred status. I would not be surprised to see him standing in LA or TX next year, from what I've heard.

I would be surprised if Harlem Rocker is not at or near his best for this return, knowing that this is a prep. Though I certainly understand why someone would want to take him on today I don't believe this is the situation if one is thinking he still might be suspect healthwise.

If anyone is interested, he has quite a fan-base.

http://www.harlemrocker.com/

I'll say this his workout on Oct 31 with Quality Road, should be considered a prep itself. Saying that I guess you can never discount a Tommy Amoss trained horse at CD but from a health standpoint I would have very little worries about him.

I'm sure HR is in pretty good shape, but, if you can catch a major stakes horse returning off a long layoff forced by a series of ailments and injuries prepping in allowance company, it seems like a ripe spot to find an overlay elsewhere. If HR strolls home by 10 I will not be shocked, but if Cosmic, Mutadda or Cassoulet beats him that wouldn't surprise me either. I'll wait and watch the board.
In this market King of the Roxy has no stallion potential so why not keep him going. If he's eligible for OH breds, why not? He's never going to make a stud prospect anyhow. beside that as I looked at his PP's, I noticed that his Futurity win is still on there. He's 5 now, so that doesn't speak very well to his soundness.
As for HR, he's here because if they can't get the Stuyvesant to fill in NY they sure wouldn't have been able to fill a race for Harlem Rocker in spite of all the reasons he MIGHT be beatable today.

Yes, Cosmic.