Horses to Watch in the Holy Bull

The road to the Kentucky Derby makes a stop in Florida this weekend at Gulfstream Park. The grade 2, Holy Bull Stakes is slated to be run on Saturday at 5:49, Eastern time. Ten coveted points toward the Kentucky Derby will be awarded to the horse that crosses the wire first in this 1 1/16 mile event.

A field of eleven is lining up to do battle in the Holy Bull Stakes, and there are quite a few standouts among the group. The headliner of the race is the regally bred and highly promising colt, Enticed. I have been particularly interested in this colt for a very long time because of his royal bloodlines. He is by Medaglia d'Oro, and out of the ultra-talented, multiple graded stakes winner, It's Tricky. The colt was bred to do big things, and so far he is on the right path.

Enticed made his debut in a six-furlong race at Saratoga as a two-year-old. The track was muddy that day, but Enticed didn't seem to mind. He broke from the gate and casually tracked behind his rivals, waiting for his moment to pounce. Enticed was calm, cool, and collected until his jockey gave him the command to go, and then the young colt turned it on.

With a bold and powerful kick, Enticed launched forward and began sweeping past his rivals. One by one he picked them off until he found himself in front. The classy colt was untouchable as he cruised to the wire. It was a very professional and impressive win for such a young horse, indicating that he had serious potential.

Enticed took a major step up in class in his next start, when he entered the grade 1, Champagne Stakes. It was his first time in a stakes race, and his first time taking on winners, but Enticed still managed to put fourth an admirable finish. He ran third that day, but looking back now, that third place finish is even more impressive than it first appears. The horse that beat him that day was Firenze Fire, who was already a graded stakes winner. Since then, Firenze Fire has come back to win the Jerome Stakes, proving that his win in the Champagne was no fluke. But the depth of the field didn't stop with Firenze Fire. You see, the horse that ran second in the Champagne was none other than Good Magic, who went on to capture both the Breeders' Cup Juvenile and Champion Two Year Old honors. When you consider the fact that Enticed competed with such talented horses in what was only his second start ever, and still managed to run so well, it leaves little doubt that he possesses true talent of his own.

Enticed proved his class once again in his third start, the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes. It was perhaps his largest challenge yet, and Enticed handled it with nothing but courage and determination. Enticed met a formidable rival in Tiz Mischief, and when his foe refused to give up the lead in the stretch, Enticed was more than willing to fight for it. In dramatic fashion, the pair dueled tenaciously down the stretch, fighting each other tooth and nail with every stride. Neither horse was willing to back down, so the pair continued their battle all the way to the wire.

No matter what Tiz Mischief did, he couldn't shake free of Enticed. The duo was locked together in a battle that would come down to pure determination and grit. Neither horse was caving under the pressure, and with the wire looming ahead, it looked like the win could go either way.

Enticed strained his neck out as far as it would stretch, desperately reaching for the wire. He gallantly matched every move his rival made, and at the end, he found an edge. Enticed threw his head down and kept it there, right when they reached the wire. The win was his, and what a well-earned win it was.

So far, Enticed has shown that he can handle an off track and a fast track. He has shown that he has what it takes to run with a star studded field, and that he is not afraid to fight for a win. The unflappable beast has been gifted with speed, determination, and courage. His breeding suggests that he will only get better as the races get longer, and having already won at the 1 1/16 mile distance, I think that he will have no problem in the Holy Bull Stakes on Saturday. I think that Enticed has a world of promise, and I am excited to see what he does moving forward.

Another standout in the Holy Bull stakes in none other than Tiz Mischief. He was incredibly valorous in defeat to Enticed, and now the gutty youngster is back for another try against his foe. The tenacity and courage that this horse displayed in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes was a sight to behold, and there's no reason to think that this plucky youngster won't fire another big run. In fact, he has yet to run a poor race, having finished a game fourth in his debut, followed by a second, a first, and then another second in what was his stakes debut.

It is hard to consider Tiz Mischief 's second place finish in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes a loss. He ran such a game race, and finished right at the wire with Enticed. It was a winning effort that unfortunately was just a nose short of glory. Maybe Tiz Mischief will find the strength that it takes to close that minor gap this time around, or maybe Enticed simply is the better horse. Either way, Tiz Mischief is a major contender in the Holy Bull Stakes.

There is a long shot entering the Holy Bull Stakes that you would be wise not to sleep on. In my opinion, he is a very live and dangerous contender. That horse is Mississippi. This bay son of Pioneerof the Nile has shown nothing but potential in his last two starts, and while he may not be quite as talented as Enticed or Tiz Mischief, he does have a very real chance of hitting the board.

Mississippi ran fourth in his debut as a two-year-old. After that, he went on to break his maiden in style going one mile at Churchill Downs. After that, he entered an allowance race at Gulfstream Park where he faced a group of fast, quality horses. After doing all the dirt work on the front end, Mississippi began to weaken in the final stages of the race. After being hounded by the talented, Nobel Indy in the stretch, Mississippi had to settle for second best that day.

Mississippi may have run second in his last start, but it was a solid effort that leads one to believe that the will to win in strong with this colt. He ran his heart out, trying his hardest until the race was over. This horse has the pedigree to compete at a high level, and the attitude to go with it. It was obvious in his last race that he can handle the surface of Gulfstream Park, and I expect him to give it his all once again on Saturday. His biggest hurdle will be overcoming the tricky outside post that he has drawn, but if he can make it out of the gate in good order, he may just outrun his odds at a big price.

I have two honorable mentions for the Holy Bull, and they are Free Drop Billy and Hollywood Star. To be honest, I'm not quite sure what to expect from these two on Saturday. Both of them showed a lot of promise at the beginning of their careers, and both of them threw in major clunkers in their latest races.

Free Drop Billy broke his maiden at first asking as a two-year-old, and then went on to run solid seconds in the Sanford Stakes and Hopeful Stakes, respectively. He then stretched out around two-turns in the grade 1, Claiborne Breeders' Futurity at Keeneland, and once his jockey turned him loose, he blew away the field. He looked brilliant as he romped down the stretch, and being by Union Rags, it made sense that a two-turn race would be the key to help him reach his full ability. However, as magnificent as Free Drop Billy looked that day, it was a performance that has yet to be duplicated. He ran a lackluster ninth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, looking like a completely different horse than he was before.

Just like Free Drop Billy, Hollywood Star broke his maiden on his first try, and then went on to place in two graded stakes races, the Saratoga Special and Iroquois Stakes. The horse looked quite promising, that is, until he entered the Breeders' Cup Juvenile and ran a distant sixth.

After what went down in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, it doesn't appear that Free Drop Billy and Hollywood Star will have the ability to run with the likes of Enticed or Tiz Mischief. However, I cannot count them out entirely because in the past, they have shown serious potential. Every horse has a bad day at some point, so I can't dismiss them based off of one poor effort alone. If Free Drop Billy or Hollywood Star can find a way to return to their top form, then they are in with a chance. But to me, the class of this race lies within Enticed, Tiz Mischief, and the daring long shot, Mississippi.

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