Forte fights to win Jim Dandy

Forte had to survive a stewards’ inquiry, however, precisely because of his maneuver to get into the clear. Jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. forced open a seam between rivals in the stretch, and buffeting ensued. But the stewards ruled that the order of finish would stand, to the relief of Forte’s owners, Mike Repole’s Repole Stable and the St. Elias Stable of Vincent and Teresa Viola.

Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher was pleased that the blinkers had the desired effect – keeping Forte engaged early. He’d lost position in his past two races before regaining his impetus. That nearly cost him in the Florida Derby (G1), where Mage outmoved him, and Forte scrambled to catch him in time. 

The longtime favorite for the Kentucky Derby (G1), Forte had to miss the classic due to a foot bruise, and in his absence, Mage sprang the upset at Churchill Downs. Forte attempted the Belmont off a 10-week layoff, appeared to be beaten by the far turn, but rallied for an honorable second to Arcangelo. If not for his daydreaming at a decisive stage, perhaps Forte could have posed more of a threat. 

With blinkers on for the Jim Dandy, Forte secured a much better spot in a tactical race in the Saratoga slop.

“The one thing that seemed to help him was that he maintained his position in the far turn, which was one of the things that we didn’t like about the Florida Derby and the Belmont,” Pletcher said. “He had kind of put himself at a disadvantage in the far turn of those races, where in this case he held his ground. I think the blinkers helped to keep him more focused.”

Saudi Crown had the advantage of being lone speed in a small field, and the Brad Cox pupil nearly pulled off a wire-to-wire coup. Forte drafted right behind the front runner on the inside. Angel of Empire, another Cox trainee, flanked Forte much of the way and prevented him from getting out. 

Angel of Empire continued to travel well in a stalking position turning for home, and as a result, Forte was still bottled up. Ortiz opted to come off the fence and make his own room. In so doing, he scrimmaged with Angel of Empire, and arguably inconvenienced him. Meanwhile, Saudi Crown was beginning to drift across the track, adding to the messiness of the stretch run.

Forte drove through his hard-fought seam and gradually wore down Saudi Crown, completing 1 1/8 miles in 1:49.61. Angel of Empire was only a half-length away in third, in a race that didn’t set up for his preferred closing style. The final two across the wire, Disarm and Hit Show (Cox’s 10-1 outsider), couldn’t land a blow from off the pace. 

The Jim Dandy enhanced Forte’s career record to 9-7-1-0, $2,954,830, reflecting wins in last season’s Hopeful (G1), Breeders’ Futurity (G1), and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) as well as this term’s Fountain of Youth (G2) and Florida Derby. 

Forte will have an opportunity to state his case for champion three-year-old honors in the Travers. So will Mage, who would be meeting Forte for the first time since the Florida Derby, and Arcangelo.