It was a whirlwind spring for the Arkansas Derby winners. Sandman And there is optimism that his connections and memorable triple crown season could serve as a springboard for sustained success later this year.
The 3-year-old Colt from the leading stallion Tapit points out the $500,000 Jim Dande Stakes presented by Mohegan Sun on the Saratoga race course on July 26th for his next start.
Of course, Sovereignty won journalism in the Belmont Stakes announced by NYRA BET on June 7, with Derby third-place finisher Baeza again in third place, following a 1½-length victory in the Kentucky Derby.
Sandman was third and third behind journalism in the Preakness Stakes of us and Canadian Hall of Fame trainer Mark Cass after focusing on 7th place in the Kentucky Derby.
“Our hope gives us a break for a while, maybe a little more grown and he can run in those top two, but he still has to prove it,” Casse referenced sovereignty and journalism. “He’s a very good horse. Those horses are very good and if we’re going to compete with those guys we need to move into that category.
“He will have to run the race of his life to compete with sovereignty and journalism, but he feels he can handle the rest.”
Sandman returned to business on June 8th, preparing for the second half of the year. He played half a mile at 50.90 at Saratoga in his first-time training since Preakness.
“The other day we worked with him with some inflammatory people. They made him a little more aggressive and perhaps a little more focused,” Kass said. “I haven’t decided 100% yet if I’m going to run him among them, but we’ll see.
“I want him to fill in his frame a bit, but he’s never going to be a big, robust horse that’s not the way he’s made. That’s not a tapith.”
Casse loves what he saw in his development pass with Sandman, from his 2-year-old season to early spring, and through the Triple Crown.
“He’s grown a lot from ages 2 to 3 to 3. He’s very tall and almost 17 tall. I felt that he needed more races during the winter.”
Sandman scored two of his 2-year-old five starts and ran third in the Street Sense stakes as he began to put things together, closing December 13th with a 1¾-length victory at Oak Lawn Park.
He spent the winter at Oak Lawn and continued to mature into an elite Kentucky Derby prospect, overcoming a brutal start to second place in the $1 million Southwest Stakes before finishing third in the $1.25 million rebels.
Sandman’s breakout race sent him to the Kentucky Derby as his second favorite on the 19-horse field, a 2½-long victory in the $1.5 million Arkansas Derby on March 29th.
“I’m extremely proud of him,” said DJ Stable, St. Casse, who trains Sandman for partnerships between EliasStable, West Point Sorlarbreds and CJ Stables, said. “If he’s a little lucky he’ll probably win the southwest. In the Rebels, Speed was playing pretty good that day. Unfortunately, we shuffled a little early.
Sandman passed 11 horses in the Kentucky Derby and finished seventh in the sloppy track sealed at Churchill Downs on May 3rd. Casse said mud kickbacks in the field of 19 horses presented problematic variables for people near the depths, like Sandman.
“Sometimes, it’s not just the surface. It’s one of those times when you run on a field of six or seven horses and get kickbacks from six or seven horses. When you get kickbacks from 18 horses, that’s another thing,” Casse explained. “He was given an experience he had never done before and I believe he didn’t run his race.
“Some people don’t like it.
The 64-year-old Kassé trained us and Canadian champions and classic winners on a long list of stable stars that have made it through his barn since his first starter in 1979.
Casse praised multiple factors in Sandman’s ascension against one of the sport’s most beloved thoroughbreds. Influencer Griffin Johnson, the owner of Sandman’s minority through the West Point Thoroughbred and the “A Stardom Stock” program, introduced a whole new audience to sports and horses. Sandman was also named after one of Metallica’s most iconic rock/heavy metal songs, “Enter Sandman,” in its history. Sandman happens to be quite special himself too.
“He’s a beautiful, beautiful horse. He’s prominent. He’s a great horse. He has a great personality. “I’ve received a letter and received an email. I recently answered a young woman who’s just graduated from high school. She said she loves him so much that she has a picture of Sandman in her hat.
