Occasionally, a highly anticipated horse race delivers exactly what fans expect, and the Grade 2 Pat O’Brien event this past Saturday did just that. The Chosen Vron was expected to perform strongly and he lived up to those expectations. The main challenge came from the 3-year-old colt Raging Torrent, who proved to be a formidable competitor.
By Sunday morning, all involved reported that the horses were in fine condition following the race.
“He looks phenomenal,” said Doug O’Neill, Raging Torrent’s trainer. “He finished his food, his legs are in excellent shape, he’s jogging well, and he’s a happy horse.”
Raging Torrent gave it his all to edge out The Chosen Vron, who briefly nosed ahead at the beginning of the stretch. However, Raging Torrent pushed back along the inside rail, reclaiming the lead before the sixteenth pole and maintained it through a tense finish.
“I’m not sure,” O’Neill commented on what’s next for Raging Torrent. “I need to discuss with Mark Davis, the main owner, and we’ll decide together. He seems to perform well with ample rest between races, so that will be a factor in our planning.”
The winner of the Pat O’Brien race secures a spot in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, and O’Neill confirmed that this is the target.
Despite losing, The Chosen Vron still looked impressive. The favored horse fought hard and only missed out by a neck.
“He appears to be perfectly fine,” stated Eric Kruljac, The Chosen Vron’s trainer, this morning. “The horse from O’Neill’s stable was exceptional. We closed in on him well, but he had more to give.”
While Kruljac would have preferred a win, his primary aim was to keep The Chosen Vron in top form for the upcoming Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Del Mar in November, and he believes they achieved that.
“I believe so,” Kruljac said. “We’re just grateful he’s unharmed. We’ll take it easy for a couple of weeks and then proceed from there.”
This defeat ended The Chosen Vron’s six-race winning streak. It was only his second loss in his last 17 starts since September 2022.
Señor Buscador, another horse in the race, finished fourth, three lengths behind the third-placed Big City Lights, who was 3 1/2 lengths behind The Chosen Vron. It was Señor Buscador’s first race after a four and a half month break.
“He’s looking good so far,” said Todd Fincher, Señor Buscador’s trainer, on Sunday morning. “He ran his usual numbers on a track with a speed bias and no pace, which forced him to the back and left him with a nearly impossible task. However, he finished strong, which wasn’t ideal under the circumstances.”
Like Kruljac and The Chosen Vron, Fincher feels that Señor Buscador achieved what he aimed for in the race.
“He got some exercise, had a run,” Fincher remarked. “We’re now aiming for the California Crown.”
The race was completed by Happy Jack, See Through It, Moose Mitchell, and Arrowthegreat, trailing the leaders. Raging Torrent finished the race in 1:21.17 and his victory payout was $10.80.
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