With a dominant 4 1/4-length victory by reigning Horse of the Year CURLIN
(Smart Strike) in Saturday’s Stephen Foster H. (G1) behind him, trainer Steve Asmussen
was looking toward the future for his champion on Sunday morning, and seriously
considering a switch to the turf.
Asmussen has never shied from dreaming big things with his four-year-old
champion, and has occasionally mentioned the possibility of a trip to Paris to
compete in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (Fr-G1), long considered Europe’s
championship race.
Curlin came out of his romp in the Stephen Foster, in which he carried high
weight of 128 pounds and defeated a strong field of nine rivals under a hand
ride by jockey Robby Albarado, in good shape. And Asmussen said the notion of a
trip to the famed Longchamp racecourse for the about 1 1/2-mile turf test on
October 5 was again on the table — but some foundation would have to be laid
before the discussion between the trainer and Curlin’s majority owner,
Stonestreet Stables’ Jess Jackson, about that potential journey becomes serious.
“We’ve talked about it since last year, since the (Breeders’ Cup) Classic
(G1) and he put him back in training,” Asmussen said.
With an eye toward an Arc bid, Asmussen plans to work Curlin over Churchill
Downs’ Matt Winn turf course, and then look for a turf race somewhere in North
America on the weekend of July 12-13. Asmussen said he would prefer a race over
an international style course, such as those at Arlington Park, Belmont Park or
Woodbine. Major turf races for older horses scheduled that weekend include the
$500,000 Man o’ War S. (G1) at 1 3/8 miles at Belmont Park and the $200,000
Arlington H. (G3) at 1 1/4 miles at Arlington Park.
Asmussen said that if the
champion turned in a “Curlin-esque” performance in that race, he would ship to
France to train at Chantilly and would probably have one race prior to the Arc
in France, most likely a traditional Arc prep such as Longchamp’s Prix Foy
(Fr-G2) at about 1 1/2 miles on September 14.
“If we don’t like how he works on the turf, then we’ll change plans and that
will have to be discussed,” Asmussen said. “But right now we’re going to plan on
working him on the turf, with the possibility of running him on the turf the
weekend of the 12th.”
As Asmussen considers a possible Arc bid for Curlin, he has relied heavily on
the expertise of his brother, retired French riding champion Cash Asmussen. Cash
won the Arc de Triomphe in 1991 aboard Suave Dancer and won the French Derby
four times.
“One of the things that gives me a great level of comfort about the Arc is
Cash,” he said. “He gives me all the confidence in the world.”
Curlin’s potential bid at the Arc is rare for an American-based runner but
not unprecedented. Career Boy, champion turf horse of 1956, finished fourth
behind the legendary *Ribot in the 1956 Arc and 18th the following year. Carry
Back, the champion three-year-old colt of 1961, finished 10th in the 1962 Arc,
while Tom Rolfe closed out his three-year-old championship campaign of 1965 with
a sixth-place effort behind the brilliant *Sea-Bird. More recently, the multiple
Grade 1 winner El Senor finished ninth behind Suave Dancer in the 1991 Arc.
Although Curlin’s margin of victory in the Stephen Foster was the
second largest in the 27-year history of the race, second only to the 6
1/2-length triumph of Street Cry (Ire) in 2002, Asmussen admitted to some
anxious moments during the race. The champion broke a bit slower than expected
from his rail post and was in a pocket behind horses heading into the far turn
as early leader Barcola (Old Trieste) cruised along in fractions of :25, :49 1/5
and 1:13 2/5.
“Robby said he hit the side of the gate leaving there,” Asmussen said.
“You’re concerned how fast the horse on the lead was going to sprint home after
going :25 (for the first quarter). Then when you were watching the race you
could see Robby’s confidence and knowing the horse, you could see how happy he
was.”
The Stephen Foster victory improved Curlin’s record to 12-9-1-2 and extended
his winning streak to five races — a string that includes wins in the Breeders’
Cup Classic and the $6 million Dubai World Cup (UAE-G1). The winner’s prize of
$589,000 from the Stephen Foster record $1 million purse improved his career
earnings to $9,396,800. The victory moved the Kentucky-bred Curlin closer to
second-place Skip Away on North American racing’s all-time earnings list. Skip
Away earned $9,616,360 in his career, while Cigar remains atop the list with
$9,999,815.