Battle of Midway, Girvin to See Each Other in Oklahoma Derby

The last time we saw Battle of Midway he was headed to the Shared Belief Stakes out at ole’ Del Mar, coming off a rugged, rough, and ragged 6th place finish in the Grade 1 Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park.

It was the first time — and, to date, the last time — that the talented son of Smart Strike has ever missed the top three finish placements.  And, it was after then that trainer Jerry Hollendorfer fitted the colt with blinkers for the first time.

With a tap of the wand and a smack of the whip…presto….

Whether it was a magic touch from a magical trainer; softer company; a return to more familiar surroundings; or whatever — Battle of Midway suddenly resembled the colt that ran third in the Kentucky Derby; that ran second to Gormley in the Santa Anita Derby; that won the Affirmed Stakes.

In the Shared Belief, Battle of Midway ran away with an impressive 61/4-length victory over many — including the aforementioned Gormley — for his second Stakes victory and his seventh In-The-Money finish out of his first eight career starts.

Now, he will tackle the 11/8-mile, Grade 3, $400,000 Oklahoma Derby, to be hosted at Remington Park.  And, now equipped with his new pair of glasses, he is expected to be the one to beat.

But it will not be easily done. After all, the field will include the likes of:

Girvin: who, after running second to Irap in the Ohio Derby, closed with a flurry to nip McCraken in the G1 Haskell Invitational.  He will try to erase a poor showing in the G1 Traves in his last out.

Colonelsdarktemper: who ran second to Irap in the Indiana Derby, after running a game second to McCraken in the Matt Winn at Churchill Downs.  He is coming off an impressive wire-to-wire victory in the West Virginia Derby for trainer Jinks Fires and son-in-law rider Jon Court.

Untrapped: who ran back-to-back thirds to Irap in both the Ohio and Indiana Derbies, after a poor run in the Kentucky Derby for trainer Steve Asmussen.  This one has been training well for a return to the races at Churchill Downs.

McCormick: who ran a very game second in the Iowa Derby before catching a very deep track and sustained some cuts and abrasions in the West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer.  He has been training well for his return for trainer Ian Wilkes.

B Squared: who was second to Battle of Midway in the G3 Affirmed back earlier this summer at Santa Anita.  He is trained by “upset specialist” Doug O’Neill and will be ridden by Mario Gutierrez.

Here is a look at the entire field: