Helmsman Is Out of Classic

Helmsman, the Strub Stakes winner who had been expected to face Cigar in next Saturday’s $1-million Pacific Classic, will miss the race because of a back injury, clearing the way for Luthier Fever to collect a $500,000 bonus just by running in the race.

Helmsman, fourth in the Santa Anita Handicap and third in the Hollywood Gold Cup, accrued eight points toward the MGM Grand Classic Crown bonus for those finishes. Luthier Fever, second in the Santa Anita Handicap and last in the Gold Cup, has seven points, and he is the only horse left with a chance to run in all three races, a bonus requirement. Had Helmsman been able to run in the Pacific Classic, he and Luthier Fever would have shared the bonus, with $333,350 going to the horse with the better finish.

Now, Luthier Fever, winless since November and expected to be the longest shot on the board, can show up and earn $100,000 less than the $600,000 that goes to the winner of the Pacific Classic. If Luthier Fever could somehow finish among the first three, he would earn more than the winner. Two bonuses--$2 million for a sweep of the series and the $500,000 secondary awards--were created to lure Cigar to California, but he missed the Santa Anita Handicap and the Hollywood Gold Cup because of foot injuries.

Luthier Fever barely reached the wire in the Gold Cup, being eased by his jockey, Kent Desormeaux, after he was hopelessly beaten. To win the bonus, a horse is required to run in the races, not necessarily finish them.

Wally Dollase, who trains Helmsman, announced Sunday that the 4-year-old colt would miss the Pacific Classic. Helmsman has a pulled muscle in his back.

“He actually did it some time ago,” Dollase said. “Probably in the Gold Cup [on June 30]. We gave him some time off and we thought he was O.K. We were training him back, but after the [July 27] workout, he was sore again. If he’s not 110%, I don’t want to run him. It’s very tempting, with the bonus, to run him around the track, but I don’t want to do that. He’s too good a horse and has been too good to us. He’ll be back.”

Helmsman’s defection reduces the number of opponents for Cigar to four probables and two possibles as the 1995 horse of the year shoots for his 17th consecutive win, which would be one more than Citation’s streak. Expected to run are Tinners Way, the Richard Mandella-trained duo of Siphon and Soul Of The Matter, and Luthier Fever. Dramatic Gold, second to Cigar in the Arlington Citation Challenge on July 13, also might run, and Mandella said he would run Dare And Go if either of his other horses don’t make the race.