Santa Anita’s Oak Tree Meeting : Capote Walks Off With Norfolk Stakes

In Saturday’s Daily Racing Form, there was a full-page advertisement by a Reno casino that listed Gulch as the 9-5 favorite in the $1-million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Stakes at Santa Anita Nov. 1.

Undefeated Gulch deserved the billing, having won all five of his races in New York, including the last two in major stakes.

But now the ad is like yesterday’s news. Gulch, skipping three Eastern stakes for the chance to run on the track that will hold the Breeders’ Cup, finished second Saturday in the $322,800 Norfolk Stakes before a crowd of 31,891. The race was won by 1 3/4 lengths by Capote, a well-bred but inexperienced 2-year-old making only his third career start.

Anyone who saw the Norfolk couldn’t be impressed by Capote’s time of 1:45 1/5 for the 1 1/16 miles, the same distance as the Juvenile Stakes. That was the second-slowest time in the 17 runnings of the Norfolk, and Balzac’s pokier 1:45 2/5 in 1977 came on an off track. Capote didn’t even run as fast as Sacahuista, who was timed in 1:44 3/5 in winning the Oak Leaf Stakes for 2-year-old fillies a week ago.

But Wayne Lukas, who became the first trainer to sweep the Oak Leaf and the Norfolk, thinks that Capote will improve, and so does Angel Cordero, the disappointed jockey who rode Gulch.

Laffit Pincay, who rode Capote to an 11-length win in his second start only a week ago, was in the saddle again Saturday. Capote, a rangy son of Seattle Slew and Too Bald who cost his owners--Bob French, Barry Beal and Gene Klein--$800,000 as a yearling, ran 11th in his first lifetime start in September at Del Mar. Lukas said the purpose of the Del Mar start was just to introduce Capote to racing competition.

“I told Laffit before the race that this colt might get tired legs, but he wouldn’t have a tired heart,” Lukas said after the Norfolk. “He had a right to be tired. This was his first time he’d ever been around two turns. He hadn’t even run two turns in the morning.”

Earning $193,680, Capote was the third betting choice and paid $9.40, $3.80 and $3.20. Gulch, the 4-5 favorite, finished three-quarters of a length ahead of Gold on Green and paid $2.80 and $2.40. Gold on Green was almost three lengths ahead of Qualify, the Del Mar Futurity winner, and paid $4.60. The field was reduced to six starters with the scratch of Persevered.

The Norfolk was also Gulch’s first start around two turns. “I thought he ran good,” trainer LeRoy Jolley said. “He needed the distance and I think he’ll be better next time.”

Horse Racing Notes

Seven horses, most of them with Breeders’ Cup aspirations, have been entered for Monday’s $75,000 Yankee Valor Handicap at Santa Anita. Included in the field are Precisionist and Tasso, who both won Breeders’ Cup races last year at Aqueduct, and Garthorn, who is undefeated in five starts on dirt. Others in the field are Dahar, Hopeful Word, Hatim and Ack Ack Heir. . . Twilight Ridge, who won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Stakes last year, made her first start since last March in Saturday’s third race and finished second, 4 1/2 lengths behind behind Waterside. Trainer Wayne Lukas has hopes of running Twilight Ridge in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff at Santa Anita Nov. 1. . . . Because he missed a workout, Phone Trick won’t oppose Groovy Wednesday in the Ancient Title Handicap at Santa Anita. Groovy, who handed Phone Trick his only loss earlier this year in New York, worked a half-mile Saturday in a sizzling :44 4/5 in preparation for the Ancient Title.