Shall we add Tiago to the Travers mix?

Question

After yesterday's win in the Swaps, I sure hope to see him in the mix for The Travers! John Shirriffs and The Moss' as much as admitted they won't be running him at Del Mar since those races are geared towards the turf.

After watching him close on the rail I was surprized. Such a lightly raced colt as this usually is not as courageous to go thru such a tight opening!

Answer 1

I think that Tiago should race in the Travers. He came in third to Curlin and Rags to Riches in the Belmont Stakes. I think that is something to respect. He did an excellent job in the Swaps by going through such a tight spot on the rail and then win by 2 1/2 lengths over Albertus Maximus! I was going for Tiago the whole time. He was ridden by such an excellent jockey, Mike Smith. He deserves to be in the mix in the Travers Stakes.

Answer 2

we need someone to come from the west coast, and face the giants of the east....i say go and make it a 4 horse photo....mike"S****y" Smitty

will love to steal the big race in the last jump

right on the wire....

Answer 3

Tiago is doing respectably but the level of competition in the Travers will be much higher than in the Swaps. Curlin, Street Sense, Rags to Riches are all being aimed for the Travers.

Answer 4

nope, cant afford

Answer 5

You mean he isn't in the Travers mix?  His trainer has said all along that it was the most likely goal.  Which is actually a bit surprising considering he did not do well in NYRA's detention barn at the Belmont Stakes.

Answer 6

d**n skippy, add him to the also ran mix just like Xchanger will be thrown to the wolves too.  Only 40 or so sleeps until my favorite day at the Spa

Answer 7

I hope we see him in the Travers. Mike has been high on this horse a long time and Tiago was one of the reasons he switched his tack back to California. As far as Saratoga goes the backstretch has a very country-like atmosphere and many horses really relax and do well up there so as this horse continues to mature as a racehorse both mentally and physically the detention barn may not pose the same problem as it did for the Belmont. The Travers was one of Shirriffs goals and  I think if he does decide to stay away from the detention barn scenario Tiago will probably pop up in the Haskell at Monmouth Park which would give him a race over the surface in preparation for John's  ultimate goal of the season for him "The Breeders' Cup Classic" which will be contested there this November.

Answer 8

sure we should...any time you see horses in each others running lines there is an outside chance you can get a nice exotics payoff when they run back...primarily because the betting public has both short memories and a what have you done for me lately mentality, some will not play horses that have been beat in similar races because they (for what ever reason) did not beat the same horses last time(s) and get handicapped as 'not the quality of' the others...this is where you can really get betting value by putting those horses in higher rungs on a few trifecta, superfecta, and pick 3,4,5,6 and'all' tickets...and yes, there are few golden opportunity races carded during the del mar meet for 3 year olds... there are some longer graded turf races for older horses, there are a few top sprint and route handicap races (the pacific classic being the top of those) and towards the end of the meet a few nice races for 2 year olds...good luck to all you players...see you at Del Mar...

Answer 9

Sure. I just watched the replay of the Swaps, quite an impressive ride by Mike Smith. I don't think Tiago will win the Travers, but he sure qualifies to be in it.

Answer 10

Tiago is a horse that has been improving steadily, and he's bred to love distance.  But the Swaps field was a very weak field, so Tiago's dominance there is deceptive in terms of giving a true picture of his talent relative to other three-year-olds.  I think he'd have to show some additional improvement to be a factor in the Travers if the other three-year-olds that have been pointing for it all make it into the starting gate.  I would rate Tiago as at least 10 lengths behind Curlin and Street Sense at this point.

Also, FWIW I think that Tiago is somewhat in the same style of running as his older brother Giacomo:  he's somewhat of a "grinder" in the sense that of coming from off the pace and just wearing the front-runners down, although he does have a lot better acceleration than Giacomo did.  I think that with a field of the class that's shooting for the Travers, Tiago would need the race to set up just right to have a shot:  front-runners burning each other up in a speed duel.  If someone sets a false slow pace, I don't think Tiago will be effective.

Also, before I would put any money down on the Travers, I'd want to know what the weather is going to be like.  Upstate New York in August can be rainy and if the track at Saratoga comes up muddy, I think that could really throw the form of all the contenders off.

Also, this is the time of year when horses are moving from track to track and you get a lot of coughing and fevers popping up that can throw a horse off training:  witness Rags to Riches being knocked out of the CCA Oaks with a fever.  

By all means let's see Tiago go for the Travers, but I wouldn't put money down on anyone this far in advance of the race, with so many variables.