Teuflesberg on Turf, with Prado Up

So maybe Jamie Sanders does have a plan…apparently as a prep for the August 25 G1 King’s Bishop Stakes (and because he is jumping out of his skin to run right now), Teuflesberg is entered in the $80,000 Glow Stakes at Saratoga on Saturday, set for one mile on the turf. He’s drawn post position 5 in nine-horse field, and regains the services of Edgar Prado who rode him to his dynamite finish in the G1 Blue Grass where he finished fourth, but just a neck behind the winner Dominican (and a head behind Street Sense and Zanjero).

I really like his chances here, at this distance and (considering his recent workout) on the grass. Also in this race are Todd Pletcher’s Mysterious Peintre who last finished fourth behind Summer Doldrums in the G3 Colonial Turf Cup, and Bold Start whose best graded stakes performance this year was his second place finish behind King of the Roxy in the G2 Hutcheson Stakes back in March. If he is on his game, clearly Teuflesberg is the class of this field.

You know, I really like this horse. His best finishes are always at one mile and under and he approaches each race in such a workman-like manner, so it’s somewhat disappointing that, as a three-year-old, the inevitable comparisons to “A” list horses like Street Sense, Hard Spun and Curlin don’t favor him due to the distance of Triple Crown races, but he is clearly the best of the rest. Thus, it’s nice to see that his connections didn’t bolt for the big money offered at Mountaineer for the G3 West Virginia Derby, at a distance clearly not suited for him, and instead chose to stay at Saratoga and experiment a little with turf.