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| Sumita Pawar |
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Phil D'Amato, known for his expertise in training turf horses, has been presented with a new opportunity to train a 3YO dirt horse named Stronghold. Stronghold recently won the Gr.1 Santa Anita Derby and is now being prepared for the Gr.1 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on 4th May.
D'Amato has been a full-time trainer since 2014 and has won 123 graded stakes races, 79% of which have been with horses competing on grass. Most of these horses are European transplants raced in Southern California, with Obviously being a notable example after winning the 2016 Gr.1 Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint.
Stronghold is a departure from D'Amato's usual training style. He has been training the colt since the beginning of his career and has been with him through every step of his six-race journey, resulting in three wins and three second-place finishes. Stronghold, who is owned by Sharon and Eric "Rick" Waller, is sired by Hill 'n' Dale Farms stallion Ghostzapper and has earned $827,200 to date.
During a National Thoroughbred Racing Association teleconference on April 25, D'Amato spoke with reporters and explained why many of his horses are grass runners.
"Myself, I started dabbling in training more turf horses than dirt horses just by the pocketbook. It's a lot easier on the pocketbook to buy Europeans or grass horses," said the 48YO D'Amato, a multiple title-winning trainer in Southern California. "The demand for quality, well-bred dirt horses—it's just a lot more money.
"So, thankfully, in the last couple of years, we've been able to buy some more dirt horses, some more yearling prospects that will hopefully develop into some nice dirt prospects as well."
Stronghold has quite the travel history as compared to other horses in the Derby. He started his career by racing at Ellis Park and Churchill Downs in Kentucky. Interestingly, his maiden win at Churchill Downs on 1st October turned out to be a crucial race for the Kentucky Derby. Not just Stronghold, but even the 2-3 finishers of the race, Resilience and Track Phantom, have won Derby preps and are also part of the Kentucky Derby lineup.
According to D'Amato, Stronghold has already arrived in Kentucky earlier this week and is set to breeze on 28th April. Joe Talamo, who rode the colt to his maiden win last fall, will be the jockey for the breeze instead of Antonio Fresu, who has riding obligations this weekend in California, including some for D'Amato.