Seize the Grey finished fourth of six in the Jim Dandy on Saturday with a pretty good trip and no obvious excuses.
He broke cleanly, and was guided into a rail spot by Jaime Torres to sit fourth down on the fence as they went an average pace. He had every chance heading for home, but just never got going from there.
While he had been closer to the pace in his last few races, we did not mind that ride at all and don’t think showing more speed early would have resulted in a better finish. Longshot Pony Express was hard-ridden to the front (but later finished last), and Fierceness figured to be piloted aggressively as well (and was), so forcing the issue would’ve only gotten Seize the Grey involved in a potential speed duel.
Jaime had been instructed to let Seize the Grey find his own rhythm and put himself where he wanted to be, and that’s what he did. He felt what we saw—they were in a great spot nearing the lane, but just didn’t fire.
Ultimately, Seize the Grey was a bit flat again and once again just didn’t run back to his big effort in the Preakness.
We’ll see how he comes back, huddle up with the team and share the game plan when we have it.
Our Recap
Of course, this was a major disappointment for us in that "Ceasar" didn't run much more competitively. He seemed primed for a huge effort, but was really bothered by the kickback when he didn't go to the lead, and this is not the first time that has happened. He's won at Saratoga before, and that was going right to the front and never taking any kickback. He won the Preakness at Pimlico the same way.
It may be that Ceasar simply needs to have the lead when kickback is going to be an issue, and that hopefully he can handle any speed duels that develop on the front end.
A change in distance has also been suggested, but we don't see the scenario playing out any differently if kickback is involved.
We'll see where he goes from here.
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