Wilson: Nysos, The Chosen Vron continue to impress
Something old, something new. They’re more than just part of the old wedding tradition of friends and family giving special items to the bride. There’s something special in old and new in the world of horse racing as well.
Case in point: The old, The Chosen Vron One, continued his winning ways last Saturday at Del Mar, uncharacteristically traveling virtually gate to wire to win the $100,000 Cary Grant Stakes by 2 3/4 lengths as the 1-2 favorite.
One day later the young, Nysos, showed he might be trainer Bob Baffert’s next big thing by winning the $100,000 Grade III Bob Hope Stakes off the pace by 8 3/4 lengths as the 1-5 betting choice. He’s won his two starts by a combined 19 1/4 lengths.
After Nysos, a 2-year-old Nyquist colt, won his debut at Santa Anita on Oct. 21, I asked Baffert if he had any juveniles we didn’t know much about that could turn into Kentucky Derby contenders. He asked me if I’d seen Nysos run. I didn’t because I was spending time with my family that day.
“Wow,” is all he said.
I went back and watched the replay, when Nysos won by 10 1/2 lengths while running the 6 furlongs in 1:08.97. My reaction? Wow.
“With this being the second time out you never know how they are going to react to it,” jockey Flavien Prat said following the Bob Hope when Baffert took off the blinkers in an effort to help Nysos relax early and rally for the victory. The move worked out perfectly.
“He was a real pro,” Prat said. “He broke well, relaxed well and showed rein on the lane. He kind of took a breather (early on), but I didn’t want to get myself head and head with everybody else.”
Baffert was pleased by the colt’s calmness in the paddock before the race and the way he responded to the removal of blinkers.
“I took the blinkers off him so he would relax,” Baffert said. “Last time he went out there (on the lead) and I didn’t want to see that again. He handled it like a pro and did everything right. It’s tough for a horse after a big race to come back and do it again.”
That’s one problem The Chosen Vron doesn’t have. The 5-year-old Vronsky gelding has won 14 of 19 after he won the Cary Crant for the second year in succession. The popular Cal-bred has won nine of his past 10 starts, with the only blemish coming in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint on Nov. 4 at Santa Anita when he finished fifth at 8-1 odds. He’s usually a heavy favorite.
Trainer Eric Kruljac thinks the gelding’s connections might have to rethink strategy.
“The horse was so lively today,” he said after the Cary Grant. “Maybe we’ll just let him roll early from now on. Once he started widening I felt pretty certain. What a blessing this horse is.”
Kruljac said he was a little nervous bringing The Chosen Vron back in two weeks after the Breeders’ Cup, but the move paid dividends.
“It’s something I’ve never done,” he said. “But he came back so well and so fast from the Breeders’ Cup.”
Hector Berrios, who’s ridden The Chosen Vron the past 11 races, didn’t hesitate when asked if the gelding is the best horse he’s ever ridden.
“Yes,” he said.
Is he fun to ride?
“Yes.”
Berrios said he didn’t know if The Chosen Vron would be up near the lead in the Cary Grant, unlike most races when he’s rallied from as far back as ninth.
“I didn’t know if I was going to be on the lead, but I was good either way,” he said.
The victory was the ninth stakes win for The Chosen Vron with Berrios aboard.
There figure to be more, for both him and Nysos.
Follow Art Wilson on Twitter @Sham73