Oaklawn Report #1: Discreetness Takes the Smarty Jones

Three Stars of the Week

– 1st Star: DISCREETNESS – It looks as though locals Jinks Fires and Jon Court are back on the Kentucky Derby trail!  These two hooked up a few years back with eventual Arkansas Derby winner Archarcharch, and now look to have another talented colt in Discreetness.  Physically Discreetness definitely looked the best in the paddock, and ended up running the best on the track as he edged by Gordy Florida to win by a head.  The race gives him two straight stakes victories as the race before he was able to edge Suddenbreakingnews to take home the Springboard Mile at Remington Park.  It’s obvious this horse is developing a nose for the wire, and if he can continue to develop he will have a say in things come April in the Arkansas Derby.

– 2nd Star: STREET STRATEGY – This horse just loves Oaklawn Park!  Street Strategy has been known around the Hot Springs area for quite some time, and has had a lot of success since bursting on to the seen a couple years back.  Saturday he put his dismal Breeders Cup Mile effort behind him, and was able to get up just in time to win the Fifth Season Stakes.  Street Strategy and multimillionaire Departing were side by side for much of the race, but Street Strategy found a way to edge by him in the late stages of the stretch.  The win sets Street Strategy up for races like the Essex Handicap or Razorback Handicap, but you know those races will only get tougher as we progress down the road with the possibilities of shippers invading for the bigger races.

– 3rd Star: WHITMORE – He didn’t win a stakes race over the weekend, but Whitmore may have done something even more important…he threw himself into the three year old picture at Oaklawn Park in a big way by dominating an allowance field in the last race on Saturday.  At the stop of the stretch Whitmore seemed to be hemmed in behind a wall of horses, but angled out quickly and flew by the rest of the overmatched field.  Trainer Ron Moquett said moving him back to two turns will “most likely” be the next step.  One has to wonder if the mile and one sixteenth Grade 3 Southwest Stakes might be the race they are looking at.

Flop of the Week

– TOEWS ON ICE – It’s been a long time since we’ve seen a Baffert horse run this bad at Oaklawn Park.  After being bet down to heavy favoritism in the Smarty Jones Stakes, Toews on Ice never threatened.  Perhaps the cold or the shipping bothered him, as he didn’t even come close to living up to his resume.

Preview to Next Week

• Saturday, Jan. 23 – $100,000 American Beauty – Fillies and mares, 4-year-olds & up, 6 furlongs