Empire Dreams rallies from last to capture Commentator

by Bill Heller

Rallying from dead last in the field of six under Javier Castellano, West Point Thoroughbreds’ four-year-old gelding Empire Dreams wore down front-running Readthebyline to take the third running of the one-mile $200,000 Commentator Stakes by three-quarters of a length. Sent off at 4-1, Empire Dreams won in 1:35.42.

Readthebyline, who went off at 7-2 under Jose Ortiz, saved second by a nose over Saratoga Snacks, the 8-5 favorite ridden by Joel Rosario. Readtheprospectus, the 2-1 second choice with John Velazquez riding, finished fourth, five lengths behind Saratoga Snacks. Readtheprospectus won the initial running of the Commentator Stakes, named for trainer Nick Zito’s two-time New York-bred Whitney Handicap winner, by a length and a half in 2013, but finished seventh in last year’s edition to his stable-mate in trainer Chad Brown’s barn, Zivo.

Empire Dreams, a son of Patriot Act out of Ascended Dreams by Thunder Gulch who was bred by Pegasus Dream Stable and sold for $35,000 as a two-year-old in April, 2013, at Ocala, is trained by Tom Albertrani.

As a three-year-old, Empire Dreams captured the mile-and-a-sixteenth $161,000 New York Derby at Finger Lakes by 2 ¼ lengths as the 1-2 favorite. He made two more starts last year, finishing seventh in the $250,000 Albany Stakes at Saratoga and ninth in the $300,000 Empire Classic at Belmont Park. Both those stakes were at a mile and an eighth.

Albertrani stopped with Empire Dreams and targeted the Commentator Stakes. Empire Dreams prepped for that assignment with a strong-finishing second by a length and three-quarters at 25-1 in the six-furlong $100,000 Affirmed Success Stakes on May 3^rd in his four-year-old debut under Irad Ortiz Jr.

“We just decided to give him some time off at the end of last year and gelded him,” Albertrani said. “He came out of his last race really well, and he was pretty sharp coming into this race.”

Empire Dreams got away last Monday as Readthebyline set a pressured pace under Jose Ortiz. Summer Place to Be, who went off at 10-1 under Manuel Franco, took a stalking position on Empire Dreams’ flank, three-quarters of a length behind in an opening quarter-mile in :23.44 and a half-mile in :46.15. Readthebyline led by a length after three-quarters in 1:10.26 before Summer Place to Be weakened and both Saratoga Snacks and Empire Dreams roared into contention, two-wide and three-wide, respectively.

Readthebyline dug in and gamely battled both of the closers through the lane before weakening in deep stretch. Empire Dreams proved stronger than Saratoga Snacks and got the hard-earned victory. “I believe it was a good set-up today,” Castellano said. “There was a lot of speed in the race, and I think he had the perfect trip today. He’s an off-the-pace horse and they went pretty quick with a decent pace, so I took advantage. He gave me a good run in the last part of the race. I was looking forward to the late kick and he gave it to me.”

Albertrani gave credit to Castellano: “I think Javier had them measured.”

Empire Dreams now has four wins, five seconds and one third from 13 starts with more than $450,000 in earnings.

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2015/05/25/empire-dreams-commentator/

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