Smarty Jones Remains Perfect

Smarty Jones, who always wins, and The Cliff’s Edge, who hadn’t won lately, marched Saturday into the 130th Kentucky Derby with victories at Midwest tracks.

At Oaklawn Park, the undefeated Smarty Jones won for the sixth time by notching a 1 1/2-length score in the $1-million Arkansas Derby. Earlier, at Keeneland, The Cliff’s Edge buoyed the listing Nick Zito stable by winning for the first time this year, a half-length victory in the $750,000 Blue Grass Stakes.

Off his latest win, Smarty Jones could become the Derby favorite. There’s a short list of horses who went undefeated going into the Derby. The last unstopped horse to win the race was Seattle Slew in 1977. He also took a record of six straight wins to Churchill Downs.

Smarty Jones, running 1 1/8 miles in 1:49 2/5 over a track listed as muddy, sat close behind Purge until he made his winning move on the second turn. Borrego finished second, 1 1/2 lengths ahead of Pro Prado.

The rest of the order of finish was Harvard Avenue, Purge, Mambo Train, Shadowland, Every Advantage, Mr. Jester, Tricky Taboo and Hasslefree.

One of the few favorites to win a Derby prep this year, Smarty Jones paid $4 for $2. He was ridden by Stewart Elliott for trainer John Servis.

Smarty Jones, by winning two races in Arkansas along with the Kentucky Derby, would collect a $5-million bonus being offered by Oaklawn. Saturday’s win was worth $600,000.

Zito, who has trained two Kentucky Derby winners, has had a tough spring. One of his contenders, Eurosilver, was injured and sent to a farm to recuperate. Another, Birdstone, was scratched from the Blue Grass because of a high blood count.

But The Cliff’s Edge, ridden by Shane Sellers, was finally on his game, coming from seventh place to outfinish Lion Heart, the 9-10 favorite, at the wire.

“This colt is peaking at the right time,” Sellers said.

Lion Heart, ridden by Mike Smith, finished sixth lengths ahead of Limehouse. After them came Mustanfar, Breakaway, Action This Day, Preachinatthebar and That’s An Outrage. Lion Heart is still expected to run in the Derby.

The Cliff’s Edge was clocked in 1:49 2/5 over a fast track. He earned $465,000. Zito’s horse finished up his 2-year-old season last fall with two stakes wins at Churchill, but this year he had been a disappointment, running second at 1-5 at Tampa Bay Downs and finishing third in the Florida Derby.

Action This Day won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and was voted champion 2-year-old male, but this year he has run no better than fourth in three tries.

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Trainer Richard Mandella said he’s closely monitoring the condition of Halfbridled, who came out of her second-place finish in Thursday’s Beaumont Stakes with a high white blood-cell count.

“She’s got no temperature and no cough,” Mandella said from Keeneland, “but we’ll continue to watch her. Whether she can make the Kentucky Oaks [at Churchill Downs on April 30] depends on what we find.”

Mandella concluded that Halfbridled’s performance was compromised when Victory U.S.A. beat her by 8 1/4 lengths in the Beaumont. After going undefeated last year and winning the 2-year-old filly title, Halfbridled has been beaten twice this year.

Mandella was improvising in running Halfbridled in the Beaumont. She missed the Ashland at Keeneland on April 3 because of muscle cramps.