The big debate now, is where to run next. Lane Way’s efforts this year have warranted his consideration for the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint but it will require him to face the toughest competition of his career.
The Pros
Lane Way is arguably in the best form of his career and if he can overcome the cons (below), he has the opportunity to pick up a significant check in a $1,000,000 race.
The Cons
Despite running extremely well at the five-furlong distance twice this summer at Del Mar, is he good enough to go 5 1/2 furlongs against the best in the world?
Nine logical contenders have run 100+ Beyer Speed Figures of late, compared to Lane Way’s career-best 95 BSF. Some will argue, California's turf BSF's are inconsistent versus other parts of the country. On the Ragozin sheets (the lower the number, the better), Lane Way has run an 11 1/2 (most recent), 13, and 13 this year. He certainly is on an improving trend and could run his best figure of the year next start...and he will need to.
Quite a few runners like Golden Pal, Bran, Campanelle, Oceanic and Arrest Me Red have all run fairly consistently in the single digits this year. Lane Way will also have to ship for the first time in his career along with the possibility of running on softer ground (pending weather) and Kentucky can be wet in the fall.
Regardless of his recent efforts, Lane Way is highly dependent on a good trip at the distance as we have seen, and in a full field of 14 horses that will come on Breeders’ Cup day, the chances of having to overcome adversity increase and a clean trip is certainly not guaranteed.
Lastly, will he get into the race?
Being that he has not won a graded stake*, his rating to get into the Turf Sprint will naturally be lower and it’s possible he would not gain a starting berth in a race that could overfill.
[*NOTE: Though he has not won a graded stakes, Lane Way has run 2nd in 3 graded stakes races:
1) the Green Flash Handicap(G3) at Santa Anita on September 4, 2022 to Lieutenant Dan
2) the Eddie D Stakes at Santa Anita (G2) on October 1, 2022 to Whatmakessammyrun
3) the Joe Hernandez Stakes at Santa Anita (G2) on December 31, 2022 to (Eclipse's) Air Force Red]
Trainer Richard Mandella is game to take a shot in the Breeders’ Cup but this is not something him nor our team have committed fully to just yet. Lane Way will still have time for one additional work and we will continue to debate the decision and will keep his partners in the loop. The deadline for pre-entries for the Breeders’ Cup is Noon ET on Monday, Oct. 24th. We'll keep you posted!
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| Lane Way winning the Clocker's Corner Stakes January 29, 2023 |
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