Exactly what happened to Olympiad in the Whitney Stakes (G1) could be one of those great racetrack mysteries.
Maybe it was humidity, which trainer Bill Mott pins it on. Maybe it was some wetness that accounted for a heavier-than-normal track, over which he finished a puzzling fourth, a little more than nine lengths behind winner Life is Good , in his first loss in six starts this year.
But that really doesn't matter anymore.
Olympiad emphatically put that Aug. 6 blemish behind him as he bounced back with an impressive two-length victory in the $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) Sept. 3 before a crowd of 32,063 on the final Saturday of the meet at Saratoga Race Course.
"It was good to see him come back. The other day was almost too bad to be true, considering the form he had been in during his previous five races," Mott said. "I liked the way he looked after we put the saddle on today. He was on his toes. He was a little quiet the other day when it was so hot. He kinda had his head down and was a little too quiet. I think everyone was moving a little slow that day, but today he looked like he had a little extra energy and a little extra bounce in his step."
If heat is indeed a nemesis for the son of Speightstown, that likely will not be a problem next time out when Olympiad runs in the Nov. 5 Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Keeneland. Though the Jockey Club Gold Cup was a Breeders' Cup Challenge stakes with a free "Win and You're In" spot in the Classic, Olympiad previously won the WAYI Stephen Foster Stakes (G2) to cover his Breeders' Cup fees.
Instead, what the JCGC gave the connections was proof that Olympiad can handle the 1 1/4-mile distance of the Classic.
"He answered the mile and a quarter question today," said Everett Dobson of Cheyenne Stable after Olympiad's first try at the distance. "We love that the Breeders' Cup is in Kentucky at Keeneland. We have a lot of friends there, and we are very excited about going."
Had Olympiad performed better in the Whitney, he likely would have prepped for the Classic in a race like the 1 1/8-mile Woodward Stakes (G1) at Aqueduct Racetrack, leaving him a question mark at 10 furlongs heading into the Breeders' Cup.
"To Bill's credit, four or five days after the Whitney, Bill said, 'The horse is doing fantastic. Let's not rule out the Jockey Club Gold Cup just yet.' It wasn't even on the radar before that," Dobson said.
After Olympiad won for the eighth time in 11 starts Saturday, claiming his first grade 1 win, the money, and the stakes will be dramatically higher next time. By virtue of his victory, he joined the list of top contenders for the $6 million Classic, and should he prove best at the World Championships, it could see him claim the title of Horse of the Year.
"The Breeders' Cup kind of dictates everything," Mott said. "There are some good horses in the division, and I'm glad that we're up there with them."
The Jockey Club Gold Cup victory illustrated why heads were scratched after the Whitney when Olympiad was the 9-5 second choice. Prior to that, his five-race winning streak included three grade 2 wins.
Olympiad broke sharply and chased frontrunning 21-1 longshot Tax from second on the backstretch through slow fractions of :24.54 and :49.70. As Tax faded on the turn, jockey Junior Alvarado guided Olympiad to the front, leading by a length at the quarter pole.
Though China Horse Club's and WinStar Farm's Americanrevolution , who beat Olympiad last year in the Cigar Mile Handicap Presented by NYRA Bets (G1) and was the 2-1 second choice Saturday, took up the chase from an up-close stalking position, he was unable to put a dent in Olympiad's lead as the 4-year-old bred by Emory A. Hamilton was timed in 2:02.11 for the 1 1/4-mile test.
"Junior gave him a great ride. Everything worked out great," Dobson said about the 8-5 favorite, who paid $5.40 to win.
The New York-bred Americanrevolution (Constitution ), one of four starters trained by Todd Pletcher, was 1 3/4 lengths ahead of First Captain, a son of Curlin trained by Shug McGaughey.
Pletcher's other three starters were fourth (Untreated), fifth (Keepmeinmind ), and sixth (Dynamic One).
"Americanrevolution got stuck three-wide all the way around there. Olympiad got the jump on him at the quarter pole, and he was playing catch up from there," Pletcher said. "We'll see what we do between now and (the Breeders' Cup). From what we saw (when he won the Suburban Stakes, G2), Dynamic One, in a different scenario could fit. I think Americanrevolution showed today that a mile and a quarter is within his range."
Olympiad, who has earned $2,007,500, was bought on behalf of the ownership group for $700,000 by Solis/Litt Bloodstock from the Gainesway consignment to the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. He is the third foal from the Medaglia d'Oro mare Tokyo Time and her first graded stakes winner. She also has a 2-year-old War Front filly and a yearling American Pharoah colt.
