¡Viva Tomcito! - or, Is 2008 the new 1971? · 8.02.08
Over at espn.com, Bill Finley has found a mystery horse among this year’s 448 Triple Crown nominees.
Bred in the U.S. but racing exclusively in Peru until now, Tomcito (Street Cry / Inside or Outside, by Eastern Echo) was the top two-year-old in Peru last year. That might not seem like much, but one thing sets him apart from others in his crop:
Though only a 2-year-old, Tomcito had to race against 3-year-olds. Like everywhere else in the Southern Hemisphere, thoroughbreds are born in Peru during what are our summer months, starting in July. Since Tomcito was foaled in the Northern Hemisphere and was born Feb. 13, he was a few months older than South American 2-year-olds. Therefore, he could only run against horses who were 3 or older.
[Trainer Juan] Suarez placed him in the second leg of the Peruvian Triple Crown, the mile-and-a-quarter Clasico Ricardo Ortiz de Zevallos, for his fourth career start and Tomcito delivered a powerful performance, winning by 9 3/4 lengths. He returned four weeks later in the Group 1 Peruvian Derby at a mile and a half and again beat 3-year-olds, this time by 3 1/2 lengths.
To be honest, how Tomcito will fare here really is a mystery. The talent level in Peru is far below that of North America. Also, the tracks are slower there, so his ability to come from far off the pace might be compromised on faster, more speed-favouring tracks. On the other hand, he has already won at 10 and 12 furlongs as a two-year-old, and he’s a half-brother to Derby winner Street Sense with a pedigree that also includes the likes of Northern Dancer and Damascus on his dam’s side.
Steve Haskin at The Blood-Horse likes him too. In this week’s Derby Future Analysis he highlights Tomcito as part of the mutuel field, and asks semi-rhetorically: “Does Cañonero II live again?”
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