Shanghai Bobby wrapped up the two-year-old championship with a determined victory in the BC Juvenile but his Kentucky Derby 2013 contender stock plummeted, along with the rest of the Juvenile field.
To be blunt, this was an ugly renewal of the BC Juvenile. It was the
third slowest Juvenile ever and the BSF came back a modest 82, the
lowest of the 2-day, 15-race BC programs. The lasix-free colts staggered
through the stretch, getting the final quarter in a pedestrian :27.50
seconds…yikes!
Shanghai Bobby figured to regress in longer races. After all, trainer
Todd Pletcher started him at 4.5f in April of his 2-year-old season,
hardly a sign of confidence from a well-known Derby barn, and his
pedigree hardly screams nine panels let alone ten on the first Saturday
in May. The deserving 2yo champ clearly has determination and a nose for
the wire but his luck will almost certainly run out next spring and
beyond. He drops out of my top ten.
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