SARATOGA SPRINGS — Trainer Mark Casse had a gut feeling about Coinage, a 2-year-old New York-bred colt who was trying a lot of new things Wednesday.
And the Hall of Famer was right.
Coinage and his jockey Junior Alvarado spurted to the lead and never looked back, winning the featured Grade III, $150,000 With Anticipation on a cloudy, rainy afternoon at Saratoga Race Course. This was the first time Coinage tried open company, the first time he went around two turns and the first time he ran on turf.
Casse's instincts were right as Coinage, a son of Tapit, looked more than comfortable on the grass. And perhaps the most important thing was this: Coinage was good enough to do exactly what he did in the 1 1/16-mile turf test.
"I told my wife Tina this morning, 'We'll see if they can catch him,'" Casse said in the winner's circle while a drizzle fell from the sky. "I seldom say this, but I told Junior to take no prisoners and go. He's a good horse. He has high cruising speed."
Alvarado did as he was told and let Coinage roll. He was able to set moderate fractions (25.66 seconds for the quarter-mile and 50.65 for the half) and then glided home to a two-length victory.
Coinage provided his believers with good coin as he went off as the 6-1 fourth choice in the wagering and paid $15.80, $6.70 and $3.10. The final time for the 1 1/16 miles was 1:43.69.
In his first three starts – all on dirt – Coinage had a maiden win and two third-place finishes. In his latest race, the Rick Violette at the Spa on July 21, he was third as the 6-5 favorite.
"I thought he was an underachiever," Casse said. "You've heard me say it a million times. Training horses is like putting a puzzle together. You have to keep trying the pieces until you figure out where they fit. We figured it out today."
Coinage is owned by Chester and Mary Broman, stalwarts in the New York breeding game, and D. J. Stable, LLC, run by Leonard Green.
"I told Mr. Broman and the Greens that this horse was something, and I said that four or five months ago," Casse said. "We got up here (to New York) and he won (at Belmont) but never showed the same as what I thought I had seen before."
The more Casse thought about it, the more he thought the future for Coinage was on grass.
He certainly showed that on Wednesday. Coinage gave a hint he might like the grass as he worked twice on the turf course on the Oklahoma Training Track and did well on it.
"I thought he moved good on the dirt, but the way he moves on the turf, it's a hundred times better for sure," Alvarado said. "This was easy for him."
The grass course, despite the rain, was listed as firm. Portfolio Company, trained by Chad Brown and ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr., finished second, 3 1/2 lengths ahead of the favored Limited Liability and jockey Jose Ortiz.
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Coinage strikes from in front in With Anticipation - Times Union
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