BC Internationals: Mile contender Limato

Limato has had star quality from day one in Great Britain. If the gifted sprinter takes to the Breeders’ Cup Mile (G1) as well as I think he will, he’ll become a celebrity on world stage.

His trainer, Henry Candy, isn’t a household name in North America, but he’s compiled a successful career spanning four decades. His past pupils include the great mare Time Charter and Master Willie, and in recent years, he’s had such notable sprinters as Kyllachy, Airwave, and this summer’s Diamond Jubilee (G1) hero Twilight Son.

If it hadn’t been a wet Royal Ascot, Limato might have added another big win to the resume. He requires a better surface, however, so he didn’t get his chance to take on Tepin in a soggy Queen Anne (G1). At Santa Anita, we’ll get the eagerly anticipated showdown.

By Tagula, the sire of one of the better milers of recent years in Canford Cliffs, Limato went unbeaten as a juvenile – and looked a class apart every time. He capped his four-race campaign with a laugher in the 2014 Redcar Two-Year-Old Trophy. Watch how Limato emerges from the pack under a hold, and wins unextended:

 

Sticking to the sprinting game at three, Limato made it five in a row in the Pavilion (G3) at Ascot. He suffered his first loss when runner-up in the Sandy Lane (G2), and Candy reportedly feared that maybe the smallish gelding peaked at two.

But Limato would put those thoughts to rest with three top-level performances, although two came in defeat. In the 2015 Commonwealth Cup (G1) at Royal Ascot, he was best of the rest behind the flying Muhaarar, who would run the table versus older horses for the rest of the year. You don’t need to understand the Arabic racecall to see how well he ran: