A horse in Todd Pletcher's stable can advance from the junior varsity to the first team overnight, sometimes after a breakout performance at Oaklawn Park.
One Liner put himself on the Road to the Triple Crown with a 3 1/2-length triumph Monday in Oaklawn's Grade 3 $500,000 Southwest. With Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez aboard, the Into Mischief colt made a successful two-turn debut and remained unbeaten in three starts.
"You always feel that Todd will have one ready," said Velazquez, an infrequent Oaklawn visitor but the winning jockey aboard Forever Unbridled (for trainer Dallas Stewart) in last year's Grade 1 Apple Blossom Handicap.
One Liner handled the class hike, longer distance and travel issue after clearing his first allowance condition going six furlongs Jan. 26 at Gulfstream Park. A $150,000 Keeneland yearling purchase, One Liner was ready at first asking last July at Saratoga, winning by a length and a half with Velazquez up.
"I'm very pleased with his race," Pletcher said by phone Monday from south Florida. "He handled things very professionally. He shipped and settled in well. It looked like he finished strongly and may have left something in reserve, which is encouraging."
Breaking from post 10, One Liner settled nicely into fourth position down the backstretch, moving up on the turn while favored Uncontested took the 12-horse field through a brisk opening half in 46.55 seconds.
"The instructions were actually pretty basic: just come out running," said Velazquez. "We knew he would come out running with this being his first time around two turns. I just wanted to save something for the end, and I didn't want to rush him. He broke real well, and once he got around the first turn, he relaxed for me.
"By the time we got to the three-eighths pole (midway on the final turn), I had to get aggressive with him and let him know it was time to get busy. Then he got aggressive and then he got competitive. From there, I knew we had it won."
Carrying 115 pounds under allowance conditions, One Liner went the fast-rated mile and sixteenth in 1:41.85 and paid $8.80, $5.40 and $3.40. Besides earning $300,000 for owners WinStar Farm LLC, China Horse Club and SF Racing LLC, One Liner earned 10 points for a possible start in the May 6 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.
"Everything is in play" for One Liner's next start, said Pletcher, Oaklawn offering the Grade 2 $900,000 Rebel March 18 and the Grade 1 $1 million Arkansas Derby April 15.
"We still have time for two more races if that's the path he continues on," said Pletcher, a four-time Arkansas Derby-winning trainer (most recently in 2014 with the lightly raced Danza, who subsequently finished third in California Chrome's Kentucky Derby).
Petrov finished a stakes-placed second for the third consecutive race, this time by 8 1/4 lengths over Lookin At Lee. Petrov chased Uncontested down the backstretch, as in the Smarty Jones Jan. 16, this time putting away the even-money favorite before collared by One Liner in the stretch.
"I just told (jockey Jose Ortiz) the track was favoring speed today, so I knew we had to be closer," said Petrov co-owner and trainer Ron Moquett. "I told him that he's an awesome jockey and have confidence in your horse and do what you think it takes to win this race."
Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen called the Southwest third "a good starting spot for the year" for Lookin At Lee, fourth in the 2016 Breeders' Cup Juvenile. Staying at Oaklawn, where Asmussen won the Arkansas Derby last year with Creator, is "100 percent the plan" with Lookin At Lee, the trainer said.
Previously unbeaten Silver Dust ran fourth, two spots ahead of Uncontested.
"Everything went like we wanted to until the end there," said Uncontested trainer Wayne Catalano. "He just didn't answer the call. You've got to answer the call."
Sports on 02/21/2017