Catching My Eye at Colonial Downs Week 9

Jason looks back at closing week at Colonial Downs with some horses who caught his eye. 

Even though the meet at Colonial Downs is now over, that doesn’t mean we can’t have some trip horses and horses who caught my eye for going forward. Big thanks to everyone who joined us reading this column this season and who played the races at Colonial Downs. It’s a really fun track and doing this column for me made me excited about following some of these horses. 

Isivunguvungu

I feel like this horse was the star of the show on Saturday’s big Virginia Derby day card. I don’t know that I’ve ever called a South African shipper in my career, and a few friends told me this horse might well be very good before his effort in the Da Hoss this past Saturday. He broke just a hair slow and the replays I’d seen from him, he liked to be up on the engine. But he found a good spot under Manny Franco early, and the seas really did part for him at the top of the stretch as he got a huge run up the rail. I thought at that point he might win easily, but the eventual runner-up Nothing Better was ultra-game and made him work to the wire. But for a first domestic start and first run in eight months, I thought it was pretty impressive. 

Deep Satin

One of two winners of the Virginia Oaks, I thought Deep Satin’s effort was worth noting. She actually got a better trip of the two winners, but to me it really looked as though Style Points was going to run by her late. But she really dug in and battled back to get the dead heat for the win. It was just the fourth career start for this horse and her first start against winners. I think there’s room for continued moves forward and she showed a lot I thought with her heart down the lane. 

Turk and Wendy 

This horse was a debut runner back on Thursday’s card who showed some real late interest in a maiden special weight event. In fact he and third-place finisher King Express both started really rolling late to hit the trifecta behind the eventual winner El Tinmarin. The pace ahead of them wasn’t super fast but it was honest and it certainly was contested, so they both did benefit from that. But I also think more experience should have them a little more forwardly placed next out and both could be dangerous at a similar level on the turf, be it at Laurel or Penn National or somewhere else in the mid-Atlantic. 

Charlottesapproval

I actually wrote about Charlottesapproval in a column a few weeks back as one who caught my eye, and her comeback start saw her get beat by a neck last Wednesday. She spotted the leaders a lot of ground and came with a really strong run. I maintain that she has some real ability on grass and might even have a future in listed stakes races on the lawn.