Curlin Trainer Steve Asmussen Mulls Turf For Horse Of The Year

Posted on Sunday, June 15th, 2008

Curlin, Race Horse, Stephen Foster Handicap winner After a 4 1/4-length victory by Horse of the Year Curlin in the $1 million Stephen Foster Handicap (G1), horse trainer Steve Asmussen was looking toward the future for his champion and plans include working on turf.

Horse trainer Steve Asmussen has never shied from dreaming big things with Stonestreet Stable LLC’s and Midnight Cry Stable’s champion, and has occasionally mentioned the possibility of a trip to Paris to compete in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (Group 1), Europe’s greatest race for older horses, as a possible stop in the 4-year-old campaign for the son of Smart Strike.

Curlin came out of his romp in the Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs, in which he carried high weight of 128 pounds and defeated a strong field of nine rivals under a hand ride by jockey Robby Albarado, in good shape. And Steve Asmussen said the notion of a trip to the famed Longchamp Racecourse for the 1 1/2-mile turf test on October 5 was again on the table — but some foundation would have to be laid before the discussion between the trainer and Stonestreet owner Jess Jackson about that potential journey becomes serious.

“We’ve talked about it since last year, since the (Breeders’ Cup) Classic and he put him back in training,” said Asmussen.

The Stephen Foster Handicap victory improved Curlin’s record to 9-1-2 in 12 races and extended his winning streak to five races — a string that includes wins in the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) and the $6 million Dubai World Cup (G1).

The winner’s prize of $589,000 from the Stephen Foster Handicap’s record $1 million purse improved his career earnings to $9,396,800. The victory moved the Kentucky-bred Curlin closer to second-place Skip Away on American racing’s all-time earnings list. Skip Away earned $9,616,360 in his career, while Cigar remains atop the career earnings list with $9,999,815.

With an eye toward an Arc bid, horse trainer Steve Asmussen plans to work Curlin over Churchill Downs’ Matt Winn Turf Course, and then look for a turf race somewhere in North America on the weekend of July 12-13. He would prefer a race over an international style course, such as those at Arlington Park, Belmont Park or Woodbine.

Major turf races for older horses scheduled that weekend include the $500,000 Man O’ War (G1) at 1 3/8 miles at Belmont Park and the $200,000 Arlington Handicap (G3) at 1 1/4 miles at Arlington Park.

Asmussen said that if the champion turned in a “Curlin-esque” performance in that race, he would ship to France to train at Chantilly and would probably have one race prior to the Arc in France, most likely a traditional Arc prep like Longchamp’s Prix Foy (Group 2).

“If we don’t like how he works on the turf, then we’ll change plans and that will have to be discussed,” Asmussen said. “But right now we’re going to plan on working him on the turf, with the possibility of running him on the turf the weekend of the 12th.”

As Asmussen considers a possible Arc bid for Curlin, he has relied heavily on the expertise of his brother, retired French riding champion Cash Asmussen. Cash won the Arc de Triomphe in 1991 aboard Suave Dancer and won the French Derby four times.

“One of the things that gives me a great level of comfort about the Arc is Cash,” he said. “He gives me all the confidence in the world.”

Although Curlin’s margin of victory in the Stephen Foster Handicap was the second largest in the 27-year history of the race, Asmussen admitted to some anxious moments during the race. The champion broke a bit slower than expected from his rail post and was in a pocket behind horses heading into the far turn as early leader Barcola cruised along in fractions of :25.01, :49.28 and six furlongs in 1:13.41.

“Robby said he hit the side of the gate leaving there,” Asmussen said. “You’re concerned how fast the horse on the lead was going to sprint home after going :25 (for the first quarter). Then when you were watching the race you could see Robby’s confidence and knowing the horse, you could see how happy he was.”

Asmussen was also pleased with the return to form displayed by Winchell Thoroughbreds’ Pyro in his victory in Saturday’s $175,000-added Northern Dancer Stakes (G3) on the Stephen Foster Handicap undercard. The win under jockey Shaun Bridgmohan snapped a two-race losing streak that included a 10th place finish as the favorite over Polytrack in Keeneland’s Blue Grass Stakes (G1) and an eighth-place finish behind Big Brown in the Kentucky Derby (G1).

Pyro was doing well on the morning after his comeback win. Asmussen said the Pulpit colt would be pointed toward the $200,000 Dwyer (G2) at 1 1/16 miles at Belmont Park on July 6 and, if all goes well, the $1 million Haskell Invitational (G1) at 1 1/8 miles at Monmouth Park on August 3.

Edited form www.churchilldowns.com.

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Horse racing tags: Curlin, Pyro, Steve Asmussen

"Curlin Trainer Steve Asmussen Mulls Turf For Horse Of The Year" was posted on Sunday, June 15th, 2008 at 10:55 pm and is filed under Churchill Downs, Horse Racing Industry, Horses, Race Tracks News, Stakes Races, Trainers, USA Horse Racing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Leave a response, or trackback from your own site.