When Stryker Phd takes to the track on Sunday to defend his Longacres Mile title, he’ll have more than just jockey Leslie Mawing on board.
The 6-year-old gelding – owned by Larry and Mona Hour and trained by Larry Ross – will be carrying the hopes of the Washington-bred Thoroughbred community on his back as he vies to repeat against a field stocked with gifted invaders.
Last year Stryker Phd turned in a magnificent last-to-first finish in the 79th running of the $200,000 Grade 3 Mile, catching and passing Oregon-bred Boyett to win by a half-length.
In that race, Stryker Phd flirted with a track record, posting a 1 minute, 33.67 second time, just off the 1:33 set by Sky Jack in 2003.
This year the field is thick with talented competition – 11 from Kentucky, four from California and nine graded stakes winners.
Top among them are: the Bob Baffert-trained Bayern, winner of the 2014 Breeder’s Cup Classic (Grade 1); Sahara Sky, winner of the 2013 Metropolitan Handicap (G1); and Warren’s Veneda, winner of the 2015 Santa Margarita (G1).
For Stryker Phd and Mawing, as talented as the field is, it’s just more horses to chase down.
“He’s got a closing style,” Mawing said.
“His style is he likes when there are targets in front of him,” he continued. “His heart gets bigger and bigger. That’s just his style; he prefers those targets in front of him. No race is easy. If they were, we’d all be winning every time. But as long as there is a lot of speed, which there should be, there are always going to be frontrunners. And as long as they are there, we’re going to run a good race.”
Stryker Phd comes into the race carrying a six-race winning streak, including a six-length rout in the Mount Rainier Handicap this past month.
But as good as he ran in last year’s Mile, Mawing – who has ridden the horse for Ross since last season – says he’s even better now.
“He’s definitely big, and he’s bigger this year,” Mawing said, “It’s just getting on him. He’s very confident and very quirky. It was really just a matter of getting along with him and finding the right rider. You need a little patience with him. If you get impatient, he’ll pull his tricks with you and freeze up and back up. So you have to be a little patient. I guess I was just the right fit with him.”
Mawing continued:
“In the mornings I’ll backtrack him, and he’ll get bored really easily, so if you fight him too much, he’s going to be more of a challenge, should I say. I know how far to push him and when to let up. ‘He’s 1,200 pounds, and I’m 115, so I’m not going to win that fight when it comes to it. So I just try to go along with it.”
In addition to praise from most track insiders, Stryker Phd has become a fan favorite, even boasting his own Facebook page.
But none of that really matters.
It all comes down to what happens on the track, and according to Mawing, Stryker Phd is ready to defend his crown and become the first horse to repeat in the Mile at Emerald Downs.
“I like our chances,” he said. “I’m 150-percent confident in myself and his ability.”
The 80th running of the $200,000 (G3) Longacres Mile is this Sunday at Emerald Downs in Auburn.
