Gomez rides Ace, JV rides Ivan

[Nostradamus]

Garrett Gomez will ride Ace Saturday’s Arlington Million, and John Velazquez will ride Ivan Denisovich in the Secretariat Stakes.

[Scurlogue Champ]

I think Gomez messes up on Ace....

Off the Board

[Gander]

I'm not all that hip on the international scend but I have a feeling Ace wins this race and Gomez on it only makes me more confident.

This would be a nice feather in Garret's cap.

[AeWingnut]

When Garrett rode at Arlington he won plenty of races. Especially on the turf.

Globe Form picks Ace on top.

I haven't looked at the race but there is no reason in the world to say that Garrett Gomez gives a bad ride.

it's not like he's Mike Smith

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by Gander

I'm not all that hip on the international scend but I have a feeling Ace wins this race and Gomez on it only makes me more confident.

This would be a nice feather in Garret's cap.

Gomez won 3 races today at Saratoga but he actually should have won 4. He got into a ton of trouble on that first-timer Imperial Reign. I think she would have probably won with a clean trip. He made a bad decision. He normally swings out wide when he has a lot of horse, but this time he inexplicably tried to come between horses. He didn't find room until the 1/16th pole and at that point it was too late.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by DaHoss9698

I think the Shug horse was long gone regardless. Imperial Reign was very green, and didn't seem to want to go through the hole. I think Ace has a HUGE shot in the Million, at a possible decent price.

I don't think she really had any room until they hit the 1/16th pole. She had a horse directly in front of her and horses on both sides of her. Gomez had so much horse approaching the quarter pole, that he looked like he could blown by everyone and open up a couple lengths if he went outside.

When she finally got clear, she wasn't making up that much ground, so I can't say that she would have definitely won, but I think she would have. It's tough for a first-time 2 year old to win with a trip like that. She was trapped for so long and was taking a ton of dirt in her face.

I've seen both her and the winner work before. There was no comparison as to who had more ability. Five Star Daydream looked like a decent horse. I watched her work an 1/8th of a mile in :10 3/5 at the Fasig Tipton Calder Sale. She looked like she could run but didn't look like she would be anything spectacular. Imperial Reign was absolutely spectacular. I watched her work a quarter in :21 1/5 at the Ocala March Sale. She had an absolutely beautiful way of moving. She looked like she would definitely be a stakes horse. She ended up going for $1 million which is a lot of money for an Indian Charlie filly. I think she will turn out to be a much better filly than Five Star Daydream. We will see.

[Gander]

For such a bad and overated jockey, Garret Gomez surely wins a lot of races. Important ones too. Many grade ones and always flying places, like Chicago this weekend, to get on great mounts for super trainers.

What are they so blinded by? His resume of grade ones and his top placing in jockey standings?

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by DaHoss9698

She probably will turn out to be a better filly. I just watched the replay a few times, and like you said, once clear she really didn't make up any ground, which is why I thought the winner was gone. SHe appeared to be zig zagging a little though, and I don't think it helped that the filly to her outside was trying to lug in. Isn't betting babies fun? I'm sure she wins by a pole next out, at about 3-5. The winner could be a neat little sprinter though. Her first race was pretty good, as she had a tough trip, and ran second to the Rusty Arnold firster, by Storm Cat out of Victory Ride, I can't remember her name. I also know Imperial Reign scratched a few weeks back, so she might just have been a little short here.

Yes, you are exactly right. She should win easily next time but will probably be 3-5 or so.

As you said, she was entered on July 27th and she scratched that day. She had a little gap in her works before that. I wouldn't be surprised if she was sick for a few day or something like that. She could have been a little short today.

If Gomez wins, anyone on Ace could have done it. If Gomez loses, rider's error. The guy may not be the smartest jock, but how can one not see how talented he is. So in any race he is dangerous. You just count discount him.

[jpops757]

in Baseball the best hitters fail to reach base around 2/3 of the time.