Backwards as it may seem, I probably derive more pleasure from studying maidens and allowances than stakes races, so that’s where I will direct my commentary today. I guess I’m from the school where as soon as I’ve seen a new graded stakes winner, I’m striving to discover the next one.

Drosselmeyer: Gulfstream, 1/31

One of several good Distorted Humor 3-year-olds is Drosselmeyer, who won a nw1x allowance at 1 1/8 miles by 1 ¾ lengths. We already knew he could stay, having run a mile or more in all four of his previous races (all maidens), and hitting the board each time. But on Sunday, he ran a really fast race, too: 1:49.52, good for a 1:34 4/5 (1:34.98) equivalency. Whether he’s near the top of the 3-year-old class is still an open question, however, because he didn’t beat much, and he didn’t beat them by that far. Bluntly put, the disparity between the time and the beaten lengths and previous figures of the others in the race looks like a textbook example of a case where we can’t trust the time. Runner-up Prince Will I Am was 42-1 off Beyers of 58 and 67 in his two starts; at least he’s distance bred, being by Victory Gallop out of a Dynaformer mare. Best Actor, 3rd by 3 ¼, has a lot going for him, but hadn’t run a Beyer better than 74 entering the race.