Summer Stakes @ Woodbine...she never was more than 1 length off the leader the whole race until she decided she was done playing with the boys.

There have been worse fillies who have faced the boys.

She's already faced them and beaten them, so that's definitely a mark in her favor, as all the other female Derby winners ran against colts before Derby Day.

For the past few years, everyone has talked about the BCJ Fillies winner taking on the colts (Storm Flag Flying, Halfbridled, Sweet Catomine, etc) and it never panned out, so let's not get our knickers in a twist yet, saying that Dreaming of Anna is going to be ruined when we don't even know what her first race is going to be.

Exactly....

the thing to remember to, for those who follow chicago racing with any regularity, is that Catalano is the trainer he is, and has the percentage he has because he spots his horses realistically. Many of his horses would show up in AOC races for many other trainers, but he'll drop them right back into claimers to get a win.

With that in mind, if they think Anna's got any shot (ie she races well this Spring), I've got to think they would send her there. But knowing how Catalano spots his horses, even with Calabrese breathing down his neck, I would be hard pressed to think they'd throw her to the wolves just for the sake of doing it. If she shows well this Spring, I imagine they'd send her, and if she's done well this Spring -- they'd have every reason to.

(have no idea how i ended up posting this in another thread!)

These posts are the best! It amazes me how pessimistic this board is.

When you see a horse spotted wrong for that stable rest assured Calabrese's ego has gotten in the way AGAIN. Catalano, didnt place Anna up at Woodbine, they got rained out of Calabrese's spot. I dont remember which stake, if you said it I would know. Anyway it rained and they were forced into a better spot. Calabrese had already entered the wrong spot, lucky for them they got rained out and went with Levings choice.

not sure of the mechanics, or accuracy, of your claiming the reasons for why things happened -- but they got rained on as the favorite in the Arlington Washington-Lassie, and scratched in favor of the race at Woodbine

100% accurate

Yeah, thats the spot they scratched. That was Calabrese's spot. The rain is why they got to run in the right spot, which was Leving and Catalano.

My point is if not for unforeseen circumstances she would have been were Calabrese wanted her. If he says Derby, its Derby.

I'm not being a jerk, but do you have any way to back that up, or is that just speculation?

I get that Calabrese would push to run her in other places (though the Lassie, after being won by Lisa M., likely would have been a romp in retrospect), but do we know whose spot is whose definitively?

Yes, Im 100 percent positive, I dont speculate. Ask Calabrese where he wanted to run her and he will tell you the Lassie. It rained and they took the spot Leving was pushing for in Canada.

Lets see how she does in her 2007 debut and then we'll take it from there.

Right on, just asking. She probably ended up being better served going there than the Lassie anyway, even though I'm pretty sure she would have won that one too.

aka a win, where does she go from there?

Yeah, Im not saying she wouldnt have won the Lassie either.

My point was just to show that Calabrese does call the shots. If he says Derby, he will push her in that direction. Leving does a fantastic job spotting those horses. When you deal with owners like Calabrese you are dealing with some huge egos, guys who arent used to being told how things should be done. Not that Leving doesnt have an ego, but he also has a clue.

Right and my point is that from following CHI racing, I can't believe that Calabrese is a TOTAL tool, or he'd be pushing his local horses above their head, which is not the case. Doesn't mean that once THE horse comes along that he might get a little bit ahead of himself -- but I doubt they are going to force her there if she doesn't show well this Spring.

ALL Calabrese cares about is WINNING. I have seen him out there with his family on the Friday before the Million and he took a 16k claimer and dropped him into 4k just to make sure his family was in the winner circle, horse won by about 40 lengths.

You are giving WAY too much credit to Leving. The whole Lewis Michael debacle was his fault, horse should have never been running at Colonial off that huge Belmont run and should have been pointed towards Arlington Mid Summer Classics, he could have ran 2nd to Showing Up in the Secretariat if he did. Running here was CALABRESE'S IDEA and Leving talked him out of it.....

Thats nothing, i can be far more pessimistic actually.

Would you guys like for me to call Wayne Catalano and settle this thing for you?

NC Tony

SHe's not in the class of Sweet Catomine, IMO. Not even close.

Ain't that the truth! :D :p

Yes Tony.