After Landing a One-Two Punch in the Lecomte, DeVaux is Excited About Her Derby Prospects

[Wandering Eyes]

Although Cherie DeVaux sent out the first and second choices in the wagering, the trainer knew that her horses had something to prove in Saturday's GIII Lecomte Stakes at the Fair Grounds. Both Golden Tempo (Curlin) and Mesquite (Union Rags) had done nothing more than win maiden races and both seemed to be horses that still needed time to mature and develop.

That may still be the case. But after Golden Tempo and Mesquite ran one-two, with Golden Tempo winning by three-quarters of a length, DeVaux knows she has two horses that are stakes quality colts who are likely to get better.

“I don't feel either one of them is even close to their top yet,” said DeVaux. “We have time. Going into a race like the Derby, you want them peaking at that time. Also, in these races, you always want to win, but if they run a big number then they are probably going to regress the next time they run. Showing improvement each time and getting there and winning is the best case scenario.”

For the DeVaux pair, the race developed as most handicappers expected it would. Neither horse showed any early speed in their prior starts, and the story was the same in the Lecomte. In a 10-horse field, Mesquite was seventh early and Golden Tempo was ninth. Mesquite, who was six-wide on the far turn, moved first under jockey Flavien Prat, and made his way into contention in the upper stretch. Meanwhile, Golden Tempo, after weaving his way through traffic on the turn, was taken to the inside by Jose Ortiz and closed relentlessly for the win.

“[Golden Tempo] broke out of the gate fine,” DeVaux said. “He just doesn't have any early foot. The most impressive aspect was that he had to go inside, had to spilt horses, and then it seemed that he idled coming down the stretch for a couple of strides. But then he kicked clear. I was really impressed with how he handled everything.”

The final time for the mile-and-a-sixteenth race run over a fast track was 1:44.98. Golden Tempo earned a modest Beyer figure of 81. When the Thoro-Graph and Ragozin sheet numbers come out, Mesquite may get the better figure of the two because of his wide trip.

That Golden Tempo was the 5-2 favorite, while Mesquite was the 4-1 second choice, may have had something to do with the fact that Ortiz had ridden both in their prior races and had, apparently, chosen to ride Golden Tempo. That wasn't necessarily the case. DeVaux said that Ortiz liked both horses so much that he couldn't make up his mind and left the decision up to the trainer. DeVaux said she put Ortiz on Golden Tempo for no other reason than that the jockey had ridden him in a more recent race.

DeVaux said she will wait a few days before deciding on the next races for the pair, but definitely plans to keep them apart between now and a possible start in the GI Kentucky Derby.

“That was the plan, to run them both back here right out of their stalls at the Fair Grounds,” she said. “We will definitely try to separate them. We will probably keep Golden Tempo here where he's only run. Mesquite has now run at three different tracks and has handled everything fine. There are plenty of races all over the country for him.”

The news on Saturday at the Fair Grounds was not all positive for DeVaux. In the Silverbulletday Stakes for 3-year-old fillies, she also sent out what appeared to be a formidable pair in Atropa (Into Mischief) and White Smoke (Essential Quality). Atropa finished third as the 1-2 favorite and White Smoke finished last in the six-horse field.

“I really try to forget about what happens previously and I try not to get too down,” DeVaux said. “It was not the results we wanted, for sure. The race just didn't unfold favorably for us. You take it race by race and regroup. I am trying to enjoy what we are doing and not get lost in the pressure and nervousness of it all.”

Of course, it didn't take long for DeVaux's mood to lift. The Lecomte was one of her finest hours.

“It was really exciting,” she said. “Everyone has Derby dreams, Oaks dreams. We all dream of participating on the biggest days of our sport. Looking back, around the middle of last summer, I knew that if we didn't have something in the Derby that I would be let down because we did have a lot of really nice, Classic-type horses. The physicals were there, the pedigrees were there, and then they all started training and checking the boxes. I like to manage my own expectations. I don't like to feel like I let myself down or take the wind out of my sails. But this has continued to be exciting. It's so exciting and it's fun to look to the future.”

It's not just her 3-year-old colts that have DeVaux excited. She is the trainer of Nymue (War Front), the last foal out of the great Zenyatta, and one that has shown DeVaux unmistakable signs of talent. The 3-year-old has finally shown up on the work tab. On Friday, she breezed three furlongs at the Fair Grounds in :38.20.

“Nymue has really matured physically and mentally,” DeVaux said. “She's so big that we had to give her time to let her body develop on its own timeline. I really noticed a difference in her this time around. We gave her a real easy work to start and then  in her last work I put her against a colt who is on her same time -line and has the same physical constitution. She was really engaged in the work. They didn't go that fast, but she's probably not going to be that speedy by nature of who she is. She was moving really well.  Physically, she has just blossomed. She's got a lot more muscle to her and a lot more condition. It was coming along during the summer, but that was lacking. She's finally starting to get there. But she is a June foal. Patience has always been the key with her.”

DeVaux said that she is hopeful that Nymue will make her career debut before the end of the Fair Grounds meet on Mar. 22.

 

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