As much as the $200,000 Peter Pan Stakes (G3) is viewed as a prep race for the June 7 Belmont Stakes (G1), trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. views it as educational for his two starters, Captain Cook and McAfee.
For St Elias Stable's Captain Cook, in particular, the May 10 1 1/8-mile stakes for 3-year-olds at Aqueduct Racetrack should be quite revealing. A 9-5 favorite in the Wood Memorial Stakes (G2) at the Big A, Kentucky Derby (G1) plans were derailed when he finished fourth, 6 3/4 lengths behind Rodriguez, and failed to both gain enough qualifying points and convince Dutrow that the son of Practical Joke could handle a mile-and-a-quarter distance against the best 3-year-olds.
"He's doing good. He's happy, training good. I thought he ran as good as he could in the Wood. I haven't seen an issue since the race. (Jockey Manny Franco) never complained about anything during the race. I think he just ran his race. (Rodriguez) took off turning for home and we couldn't hang with him," Dutrow said. "He tried as hard as he could and ran as fast as he could."
All of which makes Dutrow uncertain if the 1 1/8-mile Withers Stakes winner's future rests with two-turn or one-turn racing.
"After watching his last race I feel he might have a distance limitation when it comes to running against the good ones. That's what I saw in the Wood. So to run farther is not what I am dreaming about. But if he runs a mind-boggling race on Saturday who knows what could be next? We're all into this race and not thinking about what's next," Dutrow said. "I feel shortening him up, that might be his best game. But I don't know for sure. That hasn't been proven yet."
Black Type Thoroughbreds, Swinbank Stables, Judy Hicks, and Scott Rice's McAfee, who was fifth in the Wood, 1 1/4 lengths behind Captain Cook, is also facing some distance question marks. The Cloud Computing half brother to 2024 Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna was previously fifth in the mile Gotham Stakes (G3).
"We're very happy with him but again, we don't know what his game is," Dutrow said. "I felt he has run as good as he can every time I put a saddle on him. I don't know if two turns is his game, but the owners want to take another shot, They feel this may be the spot for him to move up. I feel in his future he'll be a one-turner but I'm praying he also runs a mind-boggling race on Saturday and things change for him."
Trainer Todd Pletcher will also send out a duo in WinStar Farm and Repole Stable's Uncaged and Team Penney Racing's Vassimo. Uncaged (Curlin ) is coming off a win in an April 6 allowance optional claimer at Aqueduct while Vassimo (Nyquist ) was sixth in the Louisiana Derby (G2).
"The mile and the addition of blinkers seemed to help Uncaged last time. He has the pedigree to go longer so we're expecting a good performance from him," Pletcher said. "We're trying to get Vassimo back on track. We want to get him more involved early and get him into the flow of the race."
Another top threat in the field of 10 is Amo Racing USA's Hill Road (Quality Road ) who was third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) and also third in his debut for trainer Chad Brown and lone race at 3, the Tampa Bay Derby (G3).
Brown has also entered Earle Mack's debut winner Lordship (Gun Runner ), who is cross-entered in the Long Branch Stakes at Monmouth Park the same day.
Belmont at the Big A, Saturday, May 10, 2025, Race 11Entries: Peter Pan S. (G3)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 Vassimo (KY) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 118 Todd A. Pletcher - 2 Happily Delusional (KY) Paco Lopez 118 Louis C. Linder, Jr. - 3 Surfside Moon (PA) Junior Alvarado 118 James L. Lawrence II - 4 Hill Road (KY) Flavien Prat 118 Chad C. Brown - 5 McAfee (KY) John R. Velazquez 118 Richard E. Dutrow, Jr. - 6 Uncaged (KY) Kendrick Carmouche 118 Todd A. Pletcher - 7 First Pitch (NY) Jose Lezcano 118 Jose M. Jimenez - 8 Captain Cook (KY) Manuel Franco 120 Richard E. Dutrow, Jr. - 9 Brereton's Baytown (KY) Marshall Mendez 118 Paul McEntee - 10 Lordship (KY) Dylan Davis 118 Chad C. Brown -
