After airing in top fashion in Pimlico’s Lite the Fuse S. with a career-high 105 Beyer Speed earlier this month – his second consecutive triple-digit rating – the athlete 4 year old sprint in a row Sibelius (Not this time) is getting good at the right time.
Exactly how good is it? That question will be answered in the GII Stoll Keenon Ogden Phoenix S. ‘Win and You’re In’ by Keeneland on opening day October 7.
Coach Jerry O’Dwyer said: “I’m a big believer in horses being confident when they win. “When they backed it up, backing up like he did, he walked around there with his boobs and looked and felt good.”
Black tennis players Jun H. Park and Delia Nash ended a five-loss skateboarding with a sharp win over the next trio of winners while cutting back six stretches in the race for the option in Saratoga on 10, good for 100 Beyer, before his aforementioned 7 1/2 excursion in Baltimore on September 10.
The gelding chestnut also ran well in defeat on his previous two trips to post while finishing third with first blink behind then GIII Monmouth Cup winner High Motivation (Into Mischief ) traveled a mile at Belmont on May 28 and achieved the same position behind GISP Baby Yoda (Prospective) in upstate New York, extending seven times on July 16, respectively.
“He was a horse that we always liked and he always showed a natural ability,” said O’Dwyer. “I think now that he’s a four-year-old, he’s reaching his peak form, maturity and wisdom power. Mentally, he’s in a great place. He couldn’t have been more impressive in his final win at Pimlico. Just the way he jumps out and travels nicely and unfolds in his hand. After running a large number in Saratoga last time, you’d like to see them back it up to something comparable. He stepped up again, which was great. “
The six-hairy Lite the Fuse is Sibelius’ first attempt at the holdings since a trio of disappointing equity attempts last season, including a distant fifth in a sloppy facelift. of GIII Penn Mile S. in his first match with the winners last May . Before that, he was the big-fit maiden winner at the second question-and-answer session at Keeneland, this year’s GI Breeders’ Cup Sprint website.
“I think it took him a little while to regain his confidence,” O’Dwyer said. “His work at home has always been very good. You can tell that he has a lot of possibilities. I started to stretch him out a bit because in sprint races he didn’t move as hard on the reins as he does now. Even when we stretch him, he still runs super fast [finishing second] over a mile a turn at Aqueduct [Apr. 2].
O’Dwyer continued, “But then his compositions started to get a lot stronger and sharper. He is giving us all the right signals. We’re starting to gradually shorten him in distance and he’s showing us that he’s just a sprinter now. Super fast and sharp. “
With six starts at three and already eight trials under his belt this season, Sibelius is not the type of horse that needs to work a lot between starts. Currently residing at the Thoroughbred Training Center in Kentucky, Sibelius is scheduled to join South Florida-based O’Dwyer’s Keeneland series on Friday.
Bred in Kentucky by Taylor Brothers Properties LLC, Pollock Farms, Patrick H. Payne et al, Sibelius brought in $100,000 when KENOV was weaned. Then he did RNA twice – for $62,000 at KEEJAN and $75,000 at KEESEP. Aside from the underrated mare, Fierey Pulpit, he is a half-brother to MSP Dypsy (Broken Vow), the dam of MSW & MGISP Edwards Going Left (Midnight Lute). Sibelius is one of 22 promising young male stake winners Not this time.
“He was very outspoken,” O’Dwyer said. “He is not a strong horse. He looks very muscular and doesn’t have too much excess skin. He will get a lot from his gallop if you let him. So we kept him under wraps for a bit. He’ll have a loss on Friday, easily a half mile at: 49 or something like that. I’ll see how he does in the next few days. “
After starting his career as a jockey in Ireland and England, O’Dwyer traveled to the US to gallop for trainer Al Stall, Jr. He also worked with coaches Bill Mott, Michael Matz and Andrew McKeever before leaving separately in 2014. Shotski (Blame) became the first ranked winner for O’Dwyer with an upset win in the GII Remsen S. 2019 at the Aqueduct.
If Sibelius earns his way to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint via Phoenix next week, it will be a World Championship first for O’Dwyer.
“We want to be there on the big days,” says O’Dwyer. “We are lucky that he gave us a bit of a hit this year. We hope he can continue to do that.”
