Just over a year and a half after retirement Charlie hot car —who earned nearly $6 million, the most of any horse sired by the 2013 Preakness Stakes (G1) winner Oxbow —Trainer Doug O’Neill is having success with another foal from the Calumet Farm stallion.
Jack is happy Owned and raised by Calumet Farm since Knock mare Tapestry won the Triple Bend Stakes (G2) on June 1 Santa Anita Park and races for O’Neill on July 27 in the Bing Crosby Stakes (G1) at Del Mar. The trainer also runs Ilium Stables’ Anarchist, winner of last summer’s Pat O’Brien Stakes (G2) at Del Mar and most recently, sixth in his season debut in the Kelly’s Landing Stakes on June 29 at Churchill Downs.
Happy Jack, a 5-year-old colt—two years ago finished 14th in the Kentucky Derby (G1) at Churchill Downs—has been performing like a rejuvenated horse this year.
Before winning the seven-furlong Triple Bend under Edwin Maldonado by 4 1/2 lengths, he was back behind the California star Vron is selected when returning from a nearly 10-month layoff in the 6 1/2-furlong Kona Gold Stakes on April 27. Both races were run in fast times, producing high-quality speed and performance.
O’Neill credited Calumet Farm’s patience after the horse needed time following two unsuccessful races at age 4.
“He came back a different animal and we all thought he was a Grade 1 horse, just running one lap,” said the trainer.
He is the second ranked/group winning sprinter for Oxbow this year, his son Tuz won the Dubai Golden Shaheen (G1) at Meydan in late March.
Now comes Happy Jack’s Grade 1 chance in the $400,000 Bing Crosby. The six-furlong race is a Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series event that offers the winner a berth in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1) on November 2 at Del Mar.
To win on Saturday, Happy Jack and Anarchist face the daunting task of trying to topple the race winner and likely favourite. Vron is selected who has compiled a near-perfect 13-14 record since September 2022. His only defeat during that stretch came when he finished fifth in the Breeder’s Cup Sprint (G1) last fall at Santa Anita Park.
But Happy Jack finished just three-quarters of a horse length behind him at Kona Gold without having raced in recent memory.
Speaking of The Chosen Vron, O’Neill said, “He’s a tough horse to beat if it’s just you and him looking at each other at the eighth post.”
He knows that well from watching the Anarchist fall behind The Chosen Vron in the 2023 Bing Crosby film.
Happy Jack trains ahead of the 2022 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs
Then, after an eighth-place finish in the 1 3/16-mile Preakness Stakes (G1), O’Neill began to steer the horse toward shorter races. He was fairly successful for the remainder of his 3-year-old year, underachieving in two starts at age 4, and now looking better than ever at age 5. He has a 3-2-3 record in 13 career starts for earnings of $445,560.
While Happy Jack has not been tested at Del Mar, O’Neill and Anarchist have not. Anarchist’s two starts last year were both excellent, and O’Neill, 56, is a six-time leading trainer at the coastal track. The fourth-winningest trainer in Del Mar history behind Baffert, John Sadler and the late Mike Mitchell, he enters this race week tied atop the trainer standings with Michael McCarthy, Baffert and Mark Glatt with three wins. O’Neill recorded his three wins on July 21 after winning a race at Sacramento the day before.
Earlier this year, he topped the Classic Meet standings at Santa Anita.
(LR): Trainer Doug O’Neill and assistant Leandro Moro in the winner’s circle after O’Neill topped the Classic Meet trainers standings at Santa Anita Park
In addition to running Happy Jack and Anarchist at Bing Crosby in Del Mar on Saturday, O’Neill also brought R3 Racing Katonah from the bench in the San Diego Handicap (G2). He has not started since winning the Pleasanton Mile Stakes more than a year ago.
“Del Mar is always a tough place to win races, like Saratoga, right? Everyone is fresh and coming down, and everyone wants to win at Del Mar or Saratoga,” O’Neill said. “So we’re grateful to get three wins on Sunday and hopefully we can keep it going.”
