Zito Sets Sights on the Travers

When the year began, Nick Zito had started 11 horses in the Belmont Stakes and 11 in the Travers without having won either race. He ended the Belmont skid when Birdstone foiled Smarty Jones’ Triple Crown bid in June, and today the New York-born trainer addresses the Travers with a three-ply bid at Saratoga.

Birdstone, who won the first race of his career by 12 1/2 lengths at Saratoga last year, is one of Zito’s threats in the $1-million, 1 1/4 -mile stake. The others are The Cliff’s Edge, second in the Jim Dandy at Saratoga three weeks ago but winless since the Blue Grass at Keeneland in April, and Sir Shackleton, who won the West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Park on Aug. 7.

“To have three legitimate horses in the Travers is a great feat,” Zito said.

Birdstone, who hasn’t run in two months, will try to become the first Belmont starter to take the Travers without a prep since Tompion in 1960. All of today’s six other starters have run more recently, including Purge, who won the Jim Dandy, and Lion Heart, who won the Haskell at Monmouth Park. Others entered are Eddington, who finished third, then was disqualified and dropped to fourth in the Jim Dandy, and Suave, who was second to Rock Hard Ten in the Swaps at Hollywood Park.

To be ridden by John Velazquez, who has all but clinched the riding title at Saratoga, Purge is the 2-1 morning-line favorite. Running for Todd Pletcher, who has made a runaway of the trainer standings, Purge is four for four in races that Smarty Jones skipped.

Here’s the field, with jockeys and odds, in post-position order: Eddington, Richard Migliore, 15-1; Lion Heart, Joe Bravo, 3-1; Purge, Velazquez, 2-1; Sir Shackleton, Rafael Bejarano, 10-1; Birdstone, Edgar Prado, 3-1; The Cliff’s Edge, Shane Sellers, 7-2; and Suave, Pat Day, 20-1.

Zito has finished second twice in the Travers, with Louis Quatorze in 1996 and Albert The Great in 2000. He had his first Travers starter in 1980.

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At Saratoga Friday, Azeri ran too fast early, staying in Roar Emotion’s shadow, and Storm Flag Flying overtook the 2002 horse of the year in the last sixteenth of a mile to register a 1 1/4 -length victory in the $400,000 Personal Ensign Handicap.

Azeri, the 3-5 favorite in the 1 1/4 -mile race, battled to the wire, but the fractions of :23, :46 1/5 , 1:09 3/5 and 1:35 4/5 took their toll. Storm Flag Flying, who paid $6.30 as the second choice under John Velazquez, finished third when Azeri won the Go For Wand Handicap at Saratoga on Aug. 1. Storm Flag Flying’s time was 2:03 3/5 . Nevermore finished third in the five-horse field.

“Pat [Day] got into the race a little more than what we would have wanted,” said Wayne Lukas, who trains Azeri. “She was trying to run and he let her run. I’m not critical of that.”

Storm Flag Flying, trained by Shug McGaughey, who was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame at Saratoga Springs on Aug. 9, carried 116 pounds, six less than Azeri. The two of them are likely to have a rematch in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff at Lone Star Park on Oct. 30.

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The Dan Hendricks barn, whose victory Wednesday at Del Mar was the first since Hendricks’ motorcycle accident on July 7, won another Friday at Del Mar, where Cozy Guy was first in the fourth race.

The wheelchair-bound Hendricks, who was left paralyzed from the waist down, said that he planned to return to training full-time when the Oak Tree meet opens at Santa Anita on Sept. 29.

Trainer Warren Stute, who’ll be 83 next month, reportedly suffered a stroke in the track kitchen Friday morning and was taken to Scripps Memorial Hospital in Encinitas.

Gary Stevens, who has been riding in France for five months, is returning to California and will ride at Del Mar during the final days of the meet. Stevens is booked on Fun House in the Palomar Handicap on Sept. 4 and has the mount on Laura’s Lucky Boy in the Del Mar Derby on Sept. 6