[RHT2004]

Originally Posted by RolloTomasi

Gladiator King displayed his sprint prowess amid his muddled and butchered form, underscoring the tall order Hidden Scroll had in dueling with him in the FOY.

Nevertheless, it's only an excuse, because unlike horses like Justify (with Grade 1 sprinter Promises Fulfilled) and Rachel Alexandra (with Eclipse champion Big Drama), Hidden Scroll did not survive the duel...even if you want to say he "buried" Gladiator King.

Turning to the Florida Derby, we see that in all likelihood, Hidden Scroll will now have to face another front-runner in Maximum Security, whose performance in a 7-furlong starter closely mirrored Hidden Scroll's maiden in speed-figure and visual terms.

The sheer fact that Maximum Security is in the Florida Derby and not the Hutcheson (how would he have fared in the latter?) should make you rethink the whole "lock" thing.

If he has taken to Mott's attempt to wrangle him back off the pace (and visually it doesn't appear the horse is particularly willing to do so), we could see an Unbridled's Song-type performance. If not, we might see a Coronado's Quest-type effort at worst, or a Lil's Lad-type effort (he survived a duel, lugged out, and was DQ'd) at best.

Fair