David Jacobson claimed Our Entourage for $65,000 from Sunday's 6th at Saratoga. It may be a very long time until we see another a 3-year-old with so much going for him in for a tag again. This horse just does not look to me like he belonged in a claiming race (the race was actually a newfangled starter/optional claimer, where he only got to run by utilizing the tag. So he wasn't so much in a claiming race, as in for a claiming price).
Despite some of the captious comments I make here, I'm actually a nice person, and at least when I'm playing Monopoly, I'll give the person I'm dealing with more than a fair deal. That's what Our Entourage in for a tag looked like; as if Mike Repole was recklessly acting against his self-interest by running him. As if this was a gift to other owners. An attempt to become more popular.
With four straight off-the-board finishes before Saturday's race, although three in stakes and none by as many as 6 lengths, Our Entourage's stock was not where it was after he took a February 25 allowance at Gulfstream on the heels of competitive 5ths in the Remsen and Breeders' Futurity. But he had worked twice since his race four weeks before, and twice after his race five weeks before that. He's by Street Cry out of millionaire grade I winner Sand Springs.
Certainly, there have been plenty of 3-year-old claimers as fast as Our Entourage in for a high-priced tag before. He ran 2nd in the race on Saturday, and was only a 2-1 favorite.
I guess what sets him apart for me is the class he seems to have. That can be a hard thing to put ones finger on, and if it's that subjective, I suppose I shouldn't react quite so strongly. But to me, this horse in a claiming race is like batteries inserted the wrong way. It just looks funny. If Our Entourage is an an allowance horse and not a claimer, he's not guaranteed to turn into a stakes horse. But for aspiring stakes owners, an allowance horse is a better place to start than a claiming horse.
No comments:
Post a Comment