Thoughts on Chitu?

[dballard125]

In my opinion, his Sunland Derby performance was quite impressive. He broke from the 9 hole (far outside), worked his way up to rate right off of the leader with 23 & 46 fractions, dueled Midnight Hawk in the stretch, and pulled away in the final furlong to win with a time of 1:47.88. That final time was only .36 slower than California Chrome's Santa Anita victory. Now obviously the competition in the Sunland doesn't stack up to the G1 preps, but it's hard to dispute the time he ran.

Just curious what everyone thinks of his chances in the KD? He appears to certainly have the running style to be right in the mix down the stretch, and with a decent trip and a little luck on his side, who knows. One concern is can he get the distance, but he appears to have some decent stamina on his dam's side. He also galloped out well in the Sunland, so maybe the 1 1/4 mile won't be an issue.

Obviously post position for any of these horses is huge, and although I think Chrome is the class of this race, I'm looking for a live long shot to Place or Show...or even pull off a win. I'm thinking Chitu could be that horse.

What's your all's thoughts?

[RockHardTen1985]

I thought he was best 2 back vs Candy Boy. Candy Boy did not exactly come back and flatter him though. I thought his Sunland Derby was OK, the runner up needs a cutback though and is a 7-8f horse. I think Chitu is OK and has a chance.

[Rudeboyelvis]

A discretely raced son of Henny Hughes' getting the distance is a big question mark for me. Had Midnight Hawk won the IL Derby by open lengths as many had expected, I might be more interested, but frankly he hasn't beaten anything - I'll wait till the draw but right not he's not on my radar

[tanner12oz]

Horse does nothing for me...think he will be gasping at the turn

[RockHardTen1985]

Originally Posted by Rudeboyelvis

A discretely raced son of Henny Hughes' getting the distance is a big question mark for me. Had Midnight Hawk won the IL Derby by open lengths as many had expected, I might be more interested, but frankly he hasn't beaten anything - I'll wait till the draw but right not he's not on my radar

Beyer came back 101 though. So if he won by 10 w/ a 96 beyer, thats better? That 101 looks pretty competitive w/ everyone but Chrome.

[Rudeboyelvis]

Originally Posted by RockHardTen1985

Beyer came back 101 though. So if he won by 10 w/ a 96 beyer, thats better? That 101 looks pretty competitive w/ everyone but Chrome.

Yes.

[JDank34]

My money is on Chitu running in the Derby Trail. I think Baffert tipped his hand by putting Rosario up for his work this AM even though he's committed to General a Rod for the Derby.

[South Beach Luv]

Originally Posted by RockHardTen1985

I thought he was best 2 back vs Candy Boy. Candy Boy did not exactly come back and flatter him though. I thought his Sunland Derby was OK, the runner up needs a cutback though and is a 7-8f horse. I think Chitu is OK and has a chance.

Heard on HRTV today the Woody Stephens might be next for Midnight Hawk.

[RockHardTen1985]

Originally Posted by South Beach Luv

Heard on HRTV today the Woody Stephens might be next for Midnight Hawk.

That would be a great idea, and a really fun race. It will be solid without him, the Bayshore horses can all run.

[horseofcourse]

Originally Posted by RockHardTen1985

I thought he was best 2 back vs Candy Boy. Candy Boy did not exactly come back and flatter him though. I thought his Sunland Derby was OK, the runner up needs a cutback though and is a 7-8f horse. I think Chitu is OK and has a chance.

Midnight Hawk needs a cutback based on what? Based on the two fastest races of his career are at 9f? His 9f Beyers are 98 and 102 which quite frankly are as good as anything running in the Derby outside of Chrome. Perhaps you are right and the horse will be better at 7-8 furlongs. His 9f race yesterday was actually quite good however. I see no evidence of him being a 7-8f horse at this point. I think the evidence is pretty clear that as the distance has increased so has his performance to this point in his career. I think a large chunk of people are mis-interpreting Midnight Hawk maybe even Baffert!

[RockHardTen1985]

Originally Posted by horseofcourse

Midnight Hawk needs a cutback based on what? Based on the two fastest races of his career are at 9f? His 9f Beyers are 98 and 102 which quite frankly are as good as anything running in the Derby outside of Chrome. Perhaps you are right and the horse will be better at 7-8 furlongs. His 9f race yesterday was actually quite good however. I see no evidence of him being a 7-8f horse at this point. I think the evidence is pretty clear that as the distance has increased so has his performance to this point in his career. I think a large chunk of people are mis-interpreting Midnight Hawk maybe even Baffert!

I agree about his race yesterday, I said that 3 posts later. It came back fast, he still needs a cutback. He cant win 2nd tier races at 9f. Why not go 7-8f and possibly be a beast, because thats what I think he can be.