Buick Can Make Romantic Saturday Trip to the Big A Pay Off
The Flat Jockeys Championship concludes in a fortnight. William Buick, 35, is currently 25-plus winners clear of all rivals, and it would take something extraordinary for any of them to bridge the gap to Godolphin’s retained rider.
Rebel’s Romance pulls clear of Stone Age in the 2022 $4 million Breeders’ Cup Turf. The pair will meet again on Saturday in New York. ©Getty
This will be Buick’s second title, albeit, with Oisin Murphy’s 2021 antics, many would argue it should be his third. With his current advantage seemingly unassailable, Buick, with rides at Ascot on Friday afternoon and Wolverhampton on Monday, heads to New York to ride two horses on Saturday. Rebel’s Romance is, by far, the better-known of the duo.
A five-year-old, gelded before setting foot on a racecourse, Rebel’s Romance won two Group-1s in Germany during 2022 before taking the Breeders’ Cup Turf for Charlie Appleby in Keenland last November.
In Love With Romance
Rebel’s Romance has raced just twice since. A disappointing show in March’s Longines Dubai Sheema Classic prompted a lengthy rest. And a return to action in Saratoga during July proved disastrous as he clipped heels with a rival unshipping Richard Mullen, who was hospitalized with some nasty injuries.
Rebel’s Romance was uninjured and, as a prep race for his appointment with the 2023 Breeders’ Cup, his fortunes can change under William Buick at Aqueduct Racetrack at 6.40 pm (UK time) on Saturday. The venue is staging the meeting on behalf of Belmont Park, which is undergoing improvements. So, look out for ‘Belmont at the Big A’ when completing your betting slips.
The race is the Grade-1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Stakes. Rivals include the former Aidan O’Brien-trained Stone Age, who finished second to Rebel’s Romance in last season’s Breeders Cup (beaten over two lengths) and Pioneering Spirit, who raced once for Jessica Harrington at the Curragh.
Todd Pletcher initially trained Pioneering Spirit in the US, but since the spring, he has been under the care of Linda Rice. Rice, who was slapped with a $100,000 fine earlier in the week, has conjured three wins from four starts from the gelding, who is improving race-on-race.
But Rebel’s Romance form stands head and shoulders above all others. Appleby’s record in North America is superb, and Buick’s mount can reward the rider for his long journey to New York. In our opinion, it would be a surprise if Rebel Romance does not return to winning ways on Saturday evening.
👀 Measured Time, a well-bred son of Frankel, makes it three from three in the Bet With Jenningsbet Handicap and looks a very smart performer for the @godolphin team 🏇 @jenningsbetinfo pic.twitter.com/fu8gMhiBI3
— Newmarket Racecourse (@NewmarketRace) August 25, 2023
Time for a Big Step Up in Class
Buick’s second mount of the day is Measured Time in the 9.22 pm race, the Grade-3 Jockey Club Derby Invitational Stakes. The contest represents a big step up in class for Charlie Appleby’s horse. The three-year-old has won all three career starts: a maiden and a novice stake on Kempton’s all-weather circuit, followed by a 0-90 handicap at Newmarket.
The ease of his victories shows Measured Time has a big engine and, as a half-brother to Rebel’s Romance by super-sire Frankel, he could be a champion in the making. However, he has no experience of a circular track or one with turns as sharp as what he will encounter at Aqueduct.
With stacks of Graded form – including an eye-catching whirlwind finish in the Belmont Derby that suggests Saturday’s 11 furlongs will be within his compass – Javier Castellano’s mount, Webslinger, looks the obvious one to oppose Measured Time with.
However, if Measured Time is trading unduly short, an alternative and safer strategy would be to simply lay him on one of the leading betting exchanges.
