El Gato Malo Grabs Lone Star
Gelding Who By-Passed Derby and Preakness Wins Texas for Dollase
El Gato Malo, who had early Kentucky Derby backers, by-passed the Triple Crown races to grab stardom at Texas' Lone Star Park in the Lone Star Derby for trainer Dollase.
Trainer Craig Dollase pointed his gelding El Gato Malo to Lone Star Park and the Lone Star Derby and came up with stardom as his charge handled all challengers to win the $400,000, 1-1/16 miles contest by a half length over Leonides. El Gato Malo covered the distance in 1:44.04, good time for the son of El Corredor.
Dollase's Previous Winner at Lone Star, Monterey Jazz
Dollase had just won the Texas Mile, a graded 3 event at Lone Star Park, with Monterey Jazz two weeks ago, which figured to influence his choice to bring El Gato Malo to Texas. The gelding won the San Rafael Stakes, a mile long graded 3, Jan.12, and was in the Kentucky Derby graded stakes earnings race for West Point Thoroughbreds, but finished fifth in the Santa Anita Derby, graded 1, in April.
Dollase reconsidered his options for El Gato Malo. Although the gelding had raced on California's synthetic surfaces and a switch to dirt for the Lone Star represented a risk, it was one that Dollase was willing to take. The gelding had trained well with the addition of blinkers.
Bejarano Gets El Gato Malo for First Time
El Gato Malo showed his willingness to chase the pace in the early going in the Lone Star. With jockey Rafael Bejarano riding the gelding for the first time, El Gato Malo stalked behing the four pacesetters, Samba Rooster, Leonides, Limestone Edge, and My Pal Charlie.
Texas Wildcatter poked into the foray at the outside, but Bejarano and El Gato Malo, ready to make their own move, forced their way past the invader, bumping, but unaffected. Garrett Gomez and Leonides gamed it out with Bejarano and El Gato Malo in the stretch. The gelding closed a two-length gap to grab the win.
Bob Baffert Wins at Lone Star, 13
Trainer Bob Baffert's Samba Rooster, runner-up to Behindatthebar in the Coolmore Lexington Stakes Apr.19, lost to Leonides' surge by a nose. Baffert was hard pressed not to enter a colt in the Lone Star Derby. He has traveled to Lone Star and won the race 13 times with 28 starters, while based in California.
My Pal Charlie, running for B. Wayne Hughes, finished as runner-up in the Louisiana Derby, graded 2; while Texas Wildcatter ran second in the Gotham Stakes, graded 3, for Starlight, Saylor & Lucarelli.
Hughes' El Gato Malo is out of One Bad Cat, by Mountain Cat, and was bred in Kentucky by Kenneth C. Roberts. The gelding pushed his earnings to $225,000, winning his fourth race from six starts.
