I Want Revenge, one
of the top 3-year-olds of 2009 who was injured the day before the Kentucky
Derby, is expected to continue his comeback at Monmouth Park
on Saturday, Aug. 21, when he goes in the 76th running of the
$300,000 Philip H. Iselin Stakes (G3).
The 4-year-old I
Want Revenge, a son of Stephen Got Even, has made just one start this year for
trainer Rick Dutrow Jr., running third behind Haynesfield and Convocation in
the Grade 2 Suburban Handicap at Belmont
on July 3. The colt’s chances were compromised when he bobbled after the break
and then had a wide trip throughout.
That was his first
start since he won the Wood Memorial (G1) at Aqueduct on April 4 last year.
That victory, plus an easy score in the Gotham Stakes (G3) just prior, meant he
was going into the Kentucky Derby as the morning line favorite.
I Want Revenge
became the first Derby
favorite ever scratched on the morning of the race when he had swelling in his
right front ankle. Tests revealed ligament damage, and the colt spent nearly a
year on the sidelines before he resumed training early this summer.
Other likely Iselin starters include Duke of Mischief, Gone Astray and
Sir Whimsey.
Duke of Mischief,
who finished fifth behind Rachel Alexandra in last year’s Haskell Invitational,
came out running as a 4-year-old this season, winning the Fort Lauderdale (G3)
at Gulfstream and the Oaklawn Handicap (G2) at Oaklawn Park.
Last out, the David
Fawkes-trained colt by Graeme Hall finished second behind Gone Astray in the
Grade 3 Salvator Mile here.
The Salvator was the
first win of the year for the Shug McGaughey-trained Gone Astray. The
4-year-old Dixie Union colt finished third in the Skip Away Stakes here just
prior to that. Last year, Gone Astray was beaten just a head by Our Edge when
second in the Coronado’s
Quest Stakes at Monmouth.
Steve Asmussen
trains Sir Whimsey, a 6-year-old son of Jump Start who won his most recent
start, the R.R. Carpenter Memorial at Delaware Park
on July 17. Sir Whimsey finished second to Cool Coal Man in the Skip Away here
in June, nearly four lengths in front of Gone Astray.