Nicanor by 15!

Barbaro's full brother Nicanor won his turf debut by 15 lengths on Wednesday at Delaware Park, much to the delight of his legions of fans.

Has a maiden ever had a more loyal, rabid following?

Although the three-year-old Dynaformer colt ran well (and fairly fast) in his previous dirt races at Gulfstream Park, he clearly relished the move to turf and two turns in his fourth career start.

After pressing a first quarter in a reasonable :24.34 while three-wide, Nicanor and jockey Anna Napravnik took control of the race before the field hit the backstretch. Nicanor gradually pulled away in :49, 1:14.35, 1:39.86, and 1:46.31. (the course was rated firm, but it must have been a little on the deep side)

Neither the final time nor the final 5/16 in :31.96 seem particularly fast at face value, so the quality of the field he was facing probably played a big role in that margin of victory.

Still, it was a very nice effort, and Nicanor did everything that could have been expected and more. He is a stakes candidate now, and the rich summer turf races for three-year-olds are calling.

Trainer Michael Matz took a conservative stance immediately after the race, saying he would like to aim for a non-winners allowance race. see story

While there will be comparisons made between Barbaro's debut victory on the turf, which also came at Delaware, I wouldn't rate this performance on that level.

Barbaro pressed fairly quick fractions and flew home in :23.66, a fast final quarter for any turf horse, much less a front runner making his debut.

Of course, very few horses will ever live up to what Barbaro did in his seven-race career. But with the potential Nicanor showed today, and his dam La Ville Rouge spitting out good-looking full siblings to Barbaro each year, race fans can dream.

Nicanor's debut race replay

Barbaro's debut race replay