I've avoided this thread because I'm a HUGE Any Given Saturday fan, as I was completely taken by his allowance win at Keeneland last fall.
As far as yesterday's performance I knew there were a number of built-in reasons to discredit it. The first and foremost was that the field really wasn't good. I made James Wilfred the 2nd best in the race but was not surprised to see him beaten pretty handily despite finishing 3rd. However, it is imperative to remember that this was a February stake race at Tampa where a solid Pletcher horse was pointed to for a while- did you think anybody with a well-meant horse would show up?
I think, all in all, the performance was about what you'd expect off a layoff. Was it dynamic? No. Did it make me think he was a solid pick or worthy of the low price he went off last week in Pool 1? No. Most importantly, do most Derby winners make themselves clear in February? No.
It's the first step on a three-race plan to get him to the big day and I think he did what the connections would have wanted.
NT
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