Originally Posted by RolloTomasi
Good to know we have such astute horsemen that racing offices across the country can carve up the 3yo crop into dedicated sprinters, routers, dirt horses, and turf horses this early in the year; especially with so many major races coming this spring aside from the Kentucky Derby (don't know what they are, but they are there apparently...)
I don't know what FL trainers with a good 3yo did when Hialeah had their 3yo races up and running around the same time, but it used to be a lot more straight forward at Gulfstream.
Hutcheson...Fountain of Youth...Florida Derby...Blue Grass or Wood Memorial.
If you had a late starter, the Swale was on the FL Derby undercard which would segue into either the Gotham/Wood or Jim Beam/Blue Grass. Chief's Crown, Seeking the Gold, Easy Goer, Creme Fraiche, Cherokee Run, and Summer Squall were among those that used the race.
This silly Preview Stakes that originally ran AFTER the FL Derby is now a major prep called the Holy Bull that destroyed the sanity of starting off the season in an extended sprint (the Hutcheson). Ironically, Holy Bull ran in the Hutcheson not the Preview in 1994. The Preview was won that year by Go For Gin, one of 3 Derby winners that have come from the race (also ran Funny Cide and the ill-fated Barbaro are the other 2). Aside from those, none of whom had consistently productive careers afterwards, the race has been a joke in terms of highlighting colts that would go on to great careers. Frosted tossed in 1 or 2 monster efforts amid a bunch of disappointing races; Tiz the Law ran through a solid streak of races before petering out with a profound whimper.
Meanwhile, the Hutcheson got Forego, Spectacular Bid, Swale, Holy Bull, Unbridled's Song, Fly So Free, Coronado's Quest, Creme Fraiche, Forty Niner, Gone West, Housebuster, You and I, Gold Fever, Cat Thief, and More Than Ready before becoming an unimportant "sprinters only" affair.
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