Argentinian Idolo Porteño Gradually Acclimating in KY

Argentinian Idolo Porteño Gradually Acclimating in KY: Every year we see South American horses with some talent in America, but rarely do we see horses with the abilities of the Argentinean-bred Idolo Porteño, the last winner of the Gran Premio Carlos Pellegrini (GI), the most important race in South America.

Idolo Porteño is a son of Jump Start (USA) out of Idealidad (ARG), by Roy (USA), who was trained in Argentina by Alfredo Gaitán Dassié and finished his campaign in Argentina with four wins in ten starts, including the Gran Premio Dardo Rocha (GI) over 1½ miles on the dirt and the aforementioned Carlos Pellegrini (GI) over 1½ miles on the turf.

After his victory in the Carlos Pellegrini, Idolo Porteño took a well-deserved rest before trying the Gran Premio Latinoamericano de Jockey Club (GI), a race in which horses from all over Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, and Peru participate. Even though he was coming in off a layoff, he was able to finish fourth, just 3¾ lengths behind the winner, the Peruvian Liberal. After that race, the decision was made to travel to the United States to continue his campaign.

To learn more about Idolo Porteño’s current condition in America, we contacted his new trainer Ignacio Correas, who kindly welcomed our inquiries. “The horse spent two months acclimating on Dreamland Farm in Kentucky; he arrives tomorrow to our barn,” Correas said.

Idolo Porteño’s connections are certainly carefully managing his campaign for the future because of the quality of the horse. “He’s such a nice horse to push him. We’ll start with some slight jogging. Only the horse will tell us when he is ready,” Correas stated.

In fact, there’s currently no race on the horizon for Idolo Porteño as all efforts are going into the horse’s recovery. “If we talk about a target, it’s getting him in shape for the spring-summer season. He’s a horse who has won on turf and dirt at all the distances, including a win over one mile in 1:33 at Palermo, so there’s no rush,” Correas explained.

Ignacio Correas has had some nice horses in the past, including stakes winners in Argentina, but never a horse with the credentials of Idolo Porteño. “I have won the Distaff; however, it is the first time I have a Pellegrini winner in my barn,” Ignacio Correas added.

Actually, Idolo Porteño is a versatile horse who can run over all surfaces. He also has tactical speed which should help him a lot in American racing. He is definitely a horse to dream big about, so patience should be the key to success for him.

Lady and the Track would like to thank Ignacio Correas for taking the time to talk to us. We look forward to seeing Idolo Porteño giving his best on the track.