NYRA/Susie Raisher
By Sarah Mace
Team D’s lightly-raced 4-year-old Get Jets, who has done virtually everything right for his trainer Tony Dutrow, answered the call of 2-1 favoritism in a highly-competitive running of the $150,000 West Point Stakes Presented by Trustco Bank on Friday’s Saratoga New York-bred Showcase card. Unhurried early, the Scat Daddy colt unleashed an explosive turn of foot in the stretch and powered past the bulk of the field to get the win.
Get Jets broke with the vanguard, but took back by the time the field crossed the finish line the first time, settling in for a ground-saving trip in sixth. Meanwhile speedy 16-1 Black Tide — once again a horse on a mission after his “catch-me-if-you-can” win at Saratoga on July 30 — roared out of post eight to take command, leading 8-1 Changewilldoyagood by a length through early splits of 23.28 and 46.44.
Along the backstretch Get Jets cruised along in tandem with Kharafa, with only second choice Offering Plan behind them, and, by the far turn, had yet to begin his drive. Get Jets entered the stretch sharing the rear of the field with Offering Plan.
Up top, it seemed as if Changewilldoyagood got the better of Black Tide, but the pacesetter battled back in the stretch and held the lead until the final stages, when he was mugged the closers.
Seventh at the head of the stretch, Get Jets unleashed his powerful kick and shot past the field on his way to a decisive half-length victory. Offering Plan closed in Get Jets’ wake from the rear, and showed a thrilling turn of foot in his own right, but was out-finished and had to settle for second.
Kharafa, another late closer, completed the trifecta three-quarters of a length back, followed across the finish line by the game Black Tide. Next across the line in order were All Is Number, King Kreesa, Changewilldoyagood and Macagone.
After a half mile in 46.44 and eight furlongs in a sparkling 1:33.85, the final time for 1 1/16 miles over the firm inner turf course was 1:39.49, just .42 seconds off the course record. [VIDEO REPLAY]
NYRA/Lauren King
“I anticipated [Jose] Ortiz [on King Kreesa] going quick to the first turn which he did,” said winning jockey John Velazquez.
As to the later stages of the race, Velazquez said, “At least my horse was on the bridle today. The last time I rode him it took me a long time to get to the bridle so, by the time I got him running, I had nowhere to go. Today I made sure I got to the clear at the quarter pole and he responded right away and finished strong.”
As to the drama of the stretch run, Tony Dutrow said, “I was concerned, but when I saw Javy [Castellano on Offering Plan] doing the same thing on a horse that is very good through the stretch as well, I was feeling better, but at the top of the stretch, both those horses had a lot of work to do. These turf races, the last sixteenth of a mile, you have to be in full gear, and Get Jets was.”
Bred by Pat Pavlish and foaled at Akindale Farm in Pawling, Get Jets fetched a gaudy $300,000 purchase price at the 2015 OBS April sale of 2-year-olds in training. Consigner Cary Frommer bought the colt originally for $162,000 at the Fasig-Tipton New York-bred preferred sale in Saratoga.
Get Jets broke his maiden at first asking at Saratoga in 2015, finished second in the Bertram F. Bongard and won the Sleepy Hollow that autumn. It wasn’t until his sixth career start in October 2016 that Dutrow switched his charge over to grass, where he has been ever since.
“When I bought him, I knew there was a lot of turf in his pedigree,” said Dutrow. “He trained good on the dirt and he was successful up here for a few races. But then when he got beat one day, I was like, ‘That’s it, I’m going to turf now.’ And he’s been super over it. I don’t have any disrespect for New York-breds, because there’s a lot of good ones. But I think Jets is a better horse than a typical New York-bred.”
Get Jets has compiled a record of five wins and three seconds from 10 starts and built a formidable bankroll of $450,850. He is one of two winners from two foals to start out of Sunny, a winning New York-bred daughter of Dixieland Band bred by John Hettinger and a half-sister to multiple stakes winner and Grade 1 producer Wake Up Kiss. Also appearing in female family are Grade 1-winning millionaires Dare and Go and Go Deputy, and sire Quiet American.
Sunny has a 2-year-old colt by Caleb’s Posse named Ride to the Sunset who has not yet started, a yearling Broken Vow colt and foaled a Tapit colt on April 18. In the spring, she was bred back to Tapit.
