PRINCE OF THIEVES TAKES CATALINA\Trainer Lukas admits error with 3-year-old in earlier race.Byline: Kevin Modesti Daily News Staff Writer One of trainer D. Wayne Lukas' league-leading 17 Triple Crown nominees broke out of the pack Sunday, literally and figuratively, to become California's top 3-year-old. It wasn't the Lukas colt you've probably heard of, Dr. Caton, the son of Seattle Slew Seattle Slew (foaled 1974) U.S. Thoroughbred racehorse. He was the first unbeaten racer ever to win the Triple Crown (1977). In his racing career of 17 races, he won 14, was second twice, and fourth once. He was retired to stud in 1978. who finished third in his long-delayed debut. It was Prince of Thieves, who bounced back from a sixth-place allowance finish to win the $104,250 Santa Catalina Santa Catalina (săn`tə kăt'əlē`nə) or Catalina Island, S Calif., one of the Santa Barbara Islands, off Huntington Beach, Calif. It is a resort island, 22 mi (35 km) long and 1 to 8 mi (1.6–12. Stakes by three widening lengths over Charlie Whittingham-trained Smithfield and Hollywood Futurity The Hollywood Futurity is an American Grade I race for thoroughbred two-year-olds race horses. Run in December at Hollywood Park Racetrack, it's the last major race for two-year-olds. winner Matty G. Six-to-five favorite Alyrob finished fourth in the 1 1/16-mile race. Prince of Thieves, by Hansel han·sel n. & v. Variant of handsel. and the eighth stakes winner out of the mare Fall Aspen, broke his maiden by a distance at Aqueduct in November but flopped as the favorite in a Jan. 12 race won by Alyrob. Lukas blamed himself. "He was training awfully well earlier in the year," the trainer said. "I thought maybe he was coming too quick and I made a very, very bad tactical mistake by backing off him. . . . I told Gary (Stevens, the jockey) in the paddock, 'We'll correct it today.' " Said Stevens after winning in 1:42.94 on a "good" track: "He's got a lot of class and I'm pretty excited about him." Stevens rode Lukas' Kentucky Derby Kentucky Derby One of the classic U.S. Thoroughbred horse races. It was established in 1875 and run annually on the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs track in Louisville, Ky. With the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes, it makes up U.S. racing's coveted Triple Crown. winners, Winning Colors (1988) and Thunder Gulch (1995). Prince of Thieves is a three-quarter brother to Timber Country, the 1995 Preakness winner. Lukas wasn't giving up on the May 4 Derby for Dr. Caton, who had an easy trip on the outside of 64-1 Ya Ya Sure, led on the second turn, then was swallowed up by Zanferrier and Super Mining. "I was pleased," said Lukas, who has talked up Bob and Beverly Lewis' $325,000 yearling yearling an animal in its second year of age, e.g. yearling cattle, yearling filly, yearling colt. yearling disease rinderpest in wildebeeste in the Serengheti. since last year's Derby, but couldn't race him until now because of a hock hock: see wine. fracture. "In light of the (tiring) track, he didn't buckle under at any point in the race." Lukas said another two-turn maiden race would be next. |
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