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Walden hopes 3-year-olds ready to give final answer

By BRANT JAMES

© St. Petersburg Times, published March 22, 2001

Elliott Walden thinks he might have a couple of Kentucky Derby horses. He will have a better idea Saturday afternoon after Meetyouathebrig and Camden Park complete the Grade II $600,000 Spiral Stakes at Turfway Park.

Both have something to prove, but for different reasons.

Meetyouathebrig raised considerable interest as a 2-year-old by beating a field including Hero's Tribute and Keats in the Grade III Iroquis Stakes at Churchill Downs in November. He flopped in his first test as a 3-year-old, however, failing to contend and finishing eighth in the Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream Park.

Camden Park, making his first stakes appearance, has developed so methodically that Walden did not bother to nominate the son of A.P. Indy for the Triple Crown during the initial phase, when the fee was $600.

Camden Park last raced Feb. 17. He finished third in a Gulfstream allowance.

After watching Menifee and Victory Gallop make slow trips to successful careers, Walden said he is willing to wait.

"While I'm still guessing about Meetyouathebrig and Camden Park, that doesn't scare me because I know that over the next two months is when it really counts," he said. "It doesn't matter where you are today; it matters where you are in two months from now. So, while I'm still guessing with how inconsistent Meetyouathebrig is and will he step up and run a big race, and is Camden Park good enough, those are questions that need to be answered in April and late March ... instead of February."

Meetyouathebrig doesn't have to answer his questions this weekend, but he needs to offer clues, Walden said.

"He needs to be right there," Walden said. "On paper (the Spiral) is a competitive race, but if he can't beat those horses, then I don't think he needs to be going on to Louisville."

OBS STAKES: Saint Damien, under Edgar Prado, held off Saved By The Sword by a 13/4 lengths Monday to win the $100,000 Ocala Breeder's Sales Championship Stakes at OBS' 12th annual Day of Champions racing program.

Saint Damien finished fourth to Burning Roma in the Sam F. Davis Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs on Sunday.

Sea Mist won the $100,000 co-feature for 3-year-old fillies, outdueling Miss Annie Bea in the upper stretch and drawing off under Jorge Chavez to a 61/2 length victory.

Chavez became the top rider in the series for OBS graduates with eight wins, riding three winners in consecutive years.

SPRINTER DESTROYED: Tayseer, scheduled to run in the $2-million Dubai Golden Shaheen in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on Saturday, was destroyed Wednesday after fracturing a leg during a workout.

Tayseer, from David Nicholls' stable, had won eight races, four of them -- including the Bunbury Cup and Stewards' Cup -- since joining Nicholls.

"He was X-rayed, and following confirmation of his injury, he was put down," Tom Morton, the Dubai World Cup's chief veterinarian, said.

WORLD CUP: Bob Baffert got the kind of draw he wanted for favorite Captain Steve in the $6-million Dubai World Cup: on the outside.

Baffert, who won the Cup in 1998 with Silver Charm, drew the 11th gate.

"This is good for Captain Steve," he said. "But the draw does not matter so much as the break is very important. When the turn (at Nad Al Sheba) comes, I hope he is in the right place."

The field was reduced by one after Andre Fabre pulled out Kingsalsa, who was sore after a morning workout.

The seven-race card Saturday is worth a total of $15.25-million, making it the richest race meeting in the world.

-- Information from other news organizations was used in this report.

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