If any of his eight rivals are to upset Cody's Wish in the June 10 Metropolitan Handicap (G1) at Belmont Park, they will have to do something no horse has been able to do yet: beat him at a mile.
Godolphin's ace hombred—named after Cody Dorman, a teenager who has a rare genetic disorder known as Wolf-Hirschhorn Syndrome—is 6-for-6 at a mile, a record that includes a triumph in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) last fall at Keeneland. Dorman and his family have been in attendance for some of the horse's biggest wins.
All but one of his mile victories came around one turn—the exception being in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile—further suggesting the 5-year-old son of Curlin is an imposing force in the one-turn Metropolitan Handicap, a race long referred to as the Met Mile. Still, he faces some potential obstacles, having drawn the rail and spotting his rivals four to seven pounds apiece as the 126-pound highweight under regular rider Junior Alvarado. Cody's Wish often rallies from midpack or farther back.
"In different races, he's been a little closer than others, but he's not one to be right up on the pace," trainer Bill Mott said. "He just gets his feet under him and comes with a pretty good run."
The Met Mile is a rare major stakes race that has eluded his Hall of Fame trainer. Mott said the Met Mile is on his "bucket list" of races he would like to win.
Cody's Wish's foes include Repo Rocks (122 pounds), Zandon (122), Dr. Schivel (121), Charge It (120), Doppelganger (120), Slow Down Andy (120), White Abarrio (120) and Hoist the Gold (119).
Like Cody's Wish—a return 4 3/4-length winner of the seven-furlong Churchill Downs Stakes (G1) May 6, Kentucky Derby Day, at Churchill Downs five weeks ago—many are in top form this year.
Incredible!
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) May 6, 2023
Cody’s Wish wins The Churchill Downs. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/PaU7qSLrHA
Repo Rocks has four wins from five starts this year, including the May 5 Westchester Stakes (G3) at Belmont Park over Zandon; grade 1-winning sprinter Dr. Schivel stylishly took an allowance in his lone outing of 2023 at Santa Anita Park last month; and Charge it, Doppelganger, and White Abarrio are others with victories this year.
Doppelganger surprised at 17-1 odds in the April 8 Carter Handicap (G1) at Aqueduct Racetrack for owners SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert Masterson, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, Catherine Donovan, Golconda Stable, and Siena Farm. His victory was his third straight since he joined the barn of Maryland-based trainer Brittany Russell.
The Into Mischief 4-year-old gave Russell and jockey Jevian Toledo their first grade 1 victories.
"I think the Met Mile is a time-honored trophy piece, isn't it? But I think for this horse, if he could be in the frame for the Met Mile, it further legitimizes his ability, it legitimizes his Carter and it propels him into potentially a Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile-caliber animal and it opens a lot of doors," said SF Racing's Tom Ryan, managing partner for the ownership group.
Though Russell believes Doppelganger should appreciate the added furlong of the Met Mile, she acknowledged Saturday's competition is more accomplished than what he faced last out. Just six horses went to post in the Carter after grade 1 winner White Abarrio was scratched due to an announced fever.
"Look, we know it's going to be a war," Russell said of the Met Mile.
Double B Racing Stables' Repo Rocks, a Tapiture gelding, is 5-for-his-last-6, with the Carter being his only defeat since November for trainer Jamie Ness. His five victories came in ungraded or grade 3 company.
Parx Racing-based rider Ruben Silvera, who rode him in the Westchester, returns in the irons.
Dr. Schivel, a dual top-tier winner who captured the 2020 Del Mar Futurity (G1) and the 2021 Bing Crosby Stakes (G1) for Red Baron's Barn, Rancho Temescal, Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, and William A. Branch, races beyond seven furlongs for the first time. The Violence 5-year-old invades New York from California for trainer Mark Glatt.
White Abarrio (Race Day), who took the 2022 Florida Derby (G1) for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr., makes his first start for recently re-licensed trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. after his owners expressed concerns regarding Joseph's eligibility in New York. After the colt's scratch from the Carter, he was scratched from the Churchill Downs Stakes after two of Joseph's horses perished at Churchill Downs from sudden deaths during the track's first week of racing.
Jeff Drown's Zandon, who took the Blue Grass Stakes (G1) last year at 3, shoots for his first victory since that April 2022 race, though he has run well on multiple occasions, such as when third in the 2022 Kentucky Derby (G1) and second in the Jim Dandy Stakes (G2). The son of Upstart ended last season with a fourth in the Cigar Mile Handicap (G1) before his runner-up finish in a swiftly run Westchester.
Belmont Park, Saturday, June 10, 2023, Race 10Entries: Hill 'N' Dale Metropolitan H. (G1)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Cody's Wish (KY) Junior Alvarado 126 William I. Mott 7/5 2 2Slow Down Andy (CA) Mario Gutierrez 120 Doug F. O'Neill 10/1 3 3Dr. Schivel (KY) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 121 Mark Glatt 10/1 4 4Hoist the Gold (KY) Luis Saez 119 Dallas Stewart 30/1 5 5Charge It (KY) John R. Velazquez 120 Todd A. Pletcher 6/1 6 6Zandon (KY) Flavien Prat 122 Chad C. Brown 5/1 7 7Repo Rocks (VA) Ruben Silvera 122 Jamie Ness 4/1 8 8Doppelganger (KY) Jevian Toledo 120 Brittany T. Russell 20/1 9 9White Abarrio (KY) Tyler Gaffalione 120 Richard E. Dutrow, Jr. 10/1
