When a child is 2 years old, Craftiness owned by Repole Stable, St. Elias Stable and Gainesway Stable, had a solid teen season.
The son of Realistic jokes won two of last year’s four starts, including Sanford Stakes (G3) at Racecourse Saratoga in his second start. He would go on to finish second in the Hope Stakes (G1), also in Saratoga, and then third in the Champagne Stakes (G1) in Belmont Park behind the horror Jack Christopher and stable friend Command performance .
In his second start at the age of 3, he challenged Jack Christopher again, finishing fourth, overtaking 14 long runs in Woody Stephens Stakes presented by Mohegan Sun (G1) in Belmont on Belmont Stakes day .
On August 5, Wit will try something new when Hall of Fame coach Todd Pletcher takes him to the field for the first time. Wit was one of nine horses entered to run in the $200,000 National Racing Museum (G2T) Hall of Fame.
The reason for the surface change is easy enough to understand.
Pletcher said: “It looks like he’s a bit pushy on the ground. “He was out of a Medaglia d’Oro mare and we said, ‘You know what? Give him a breeze on the grass and see how he gets there. ‘ He really seemed to like it. “
Wit worked on the turf of the Oklahoma Training Road in Saratoga for the first time on July 22 and went four times with a record: 47.95, the fastest of 63 recorded long-distance runs. . He also worked on the Oklahoma lawn on July 30 and went for four more furs at 50.29.
Pletcher doesn’t think the National Museum of Racing Fame is an ambitious venue for his pony, who will have to face established athletes on the field.
“He’s been racing for classified money since his maiden break,” says Pletcher.
Wit will be ridden by Jose Ortiz, who has been on board for two starts, both winning. The other four races Wit participated in, his brother Irad Ortiz Jr was the test driver.
Also participating in the courtyard mile race, in the following order of placement, Wit .’s stable friend Chanceux , owned by Harrell Ventures; By Michael McLoughlin Dowagiac Director , trained by Tom Amoss; Craftiness; Jeremy Brooks’ Wow Whata Summer who won Penn Mile Stakes (G2) at Penn National odds 83-1 June 3; Three Diamonds Farm and Deuce Greathouse’s The facility is stolen , trained by Mike Maker; Jerry Crawford’s Donegal Racing’s Ready to Purrform , trained by Brad Cox; Calumet’s Farm Double Clutch , coached by Rusty Arnold II; Stuart S. Janney III’s Celestial City , coached by Shug McGaughey; and Sherri McPeek’s Magdalena Racing’s Tiz the Bomb Trained by Kenny McPeek.
Tiz the Bomb has won two of its four grass starts. He won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1T) at Del Mar through elimination. Since then, he has raced on synthetic and dirt surfaces, finishing 9th in the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (G1).
In his final warm-up, the son of Hit It a Bomb finished ninth in the Caesars Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes (G1T) on July 9.
