If you want glitz, head to trainer Todd Pletcher’s residence in the Hall of Fame and skip the chubby 4-year-old stall Malathaat .
Daughter of Curlin won’t win the window dressing contest if you look back at her past performances. Her resume is impressive, no doubt. Seven wins in 10 career starts deserves more than a double.
Shadwell Stable’s Malathaat is definitely one of the standout names in the $200,000 Shuvee Staking (G2) program at Racecourse Saratoga, a 1/8-mile race pulls a four-person field. She must share the Shuvee sanctuary with Stonestreet Stables’ Claire Trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen.
Clairiere, also by Curlin, defeats Malathaat with a head in the Ogden Phipps Stakes (G1) at Belmont Park | BloodHorse.com track record “>Belmont Park on June 11th.
“It looked like a good race,” Pletcher said of Shuvee.
Back to Malathaat. She raced to the 1st division six times, winning three of them.
Last year, Malathaat won the Ashland Central Bank Stakes (G1) in Keeneland with a head. In the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1), the margin of victory is a neck. At Saratoga last summer, she lost to Coaching Club American Oaks (G1) by a head, then returned to take out Alabama Stakes (G1) by a whopping — for her — winning margin of 1. 1/2.
2021 Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1)? A third, hit half the length.
You get the idea. She does what she has to do. No more no less. Just barely making it
“She tends to get a little distracted even though her race record is good,” Pletcher said. “It seems, in her mind, when she’s done her job, she doesn’t have to. She gets hit on the head, she thinks that’s the end of the game.”
Against Ogden Phipps, Malathaat won the Baird Doubledogdare Stakes (G3) at Keeneland on her season debut on April 22 with 3/4 of the duration.
“She really rose above Doubledogdare,” says Pletcher. “In Phipps it’s a bit more subtle but Johnny (Velazquez racer) said that when she got close to the rope, she saw something. Could have cost her the race.”
Since Phipps, Pletcher has changed gear. In Shuvee, Malathaat, who will break lesson 3, will wear a flashlight.
“We’ve had that on our minds for a while,” Pletcher said. “We’ve worked with her a few times with them and she seems to have a little more focus.”
Claire, who will be ridden by Joel Rosario, has won two of three starts this year, but has yet to win at Shuvee. She has tried the 1 1/8 mile three times with her best being a 1/3 in the CCA Oaks last summer. She stands next to Malathaat in lesson 4.
Also imported into Shuvee is Phoenix Tho Roubred III’s Crazy beautiful and Louis Lazzinnaro’s Strange West .
Coached by Kenny McPeek, Crazy Beautiful, a gray daughter of Map of Liam was successful in 13 of her 18 career starts.
“She won over a million ($1,038,240),” McPeek said. “It’s been a really tough race but she’s a tough one. Unfortunately, she fell short of the 1st graders. This is 2nd grade, but should probably be 1st grade.”
Exotic West, by Spin hard , will be her 17th career start. Since arriving with coach Gary Sciacca, she has three wins, three seconds and a third in nine starts.
