Call Sign Seven © Benoit Photo
Off at 60-1, Call Sign Seven defied the odds to win the Grade II $ 200,000 Seabiscuit Handicap going 1 1/16th miles on the turf. Trailing from off the pace second to last on the rail, Ricardo Gonzalez and Call Sign Seven bid their time to the turning for home, found a seam while in hand at the rail and burst through to win by a half length.
With favored El Potente (9-5) and Hector I. Berrios setting the early fractions to the top of the stretch, Astronomer (10-1) with Antonio Fresu aboard tracked the pace setter one length behind in third with Cabo Spirit pressing the pace in second up the backstretch. Coming to the top of the stretch, Astronomer waited for room and put in a bid with a sixteenth of a mile to go, held on for second by a head over third place finisher El Potente.
“I was running with a lot of horses,” said Gonzalez, “I was following Antonio Fresu (aboard Astronomer) and when I saw he opened up a little bit I shot right through it.”
After a seventh-place finish in an $80,000 optional claimer March 2 at Santa Anita going a mile on the turf, trainer Michael McCarthy gave Call Sign Seven, a seven month layoff coming into the Seabiscuit. Owned by Savio-Cannon Thoroughbreds, LLC, the four-year-old colt by Speightstown earned his first stakes win and improved his record to 6-3-0-0 with $190,500 in earnings.
“Coming off of an extended layoff I thought he’d be fresh to go ahead and bounce on out of there. I preferred to be closer than farther away from the pace. It always looked like he was traveling comfortably. Around the middle of the turn it looked like he was getting shuffled back but crossing the chute, he able to find some room. I’m certainly glad he did. I wasn’t real happy sitting behind a wall of horses but all credit to the horse and rider today,” said McCarthy.
Fractions on the race were 23.27, 47.11, 1:11.15, 1:35.56 for a final time of 1:41.71.
Call Sign Seven returned $139.00, $37.60, and $11.60 to his backers. Trained by Simon Callaghan, Astronomer paid $11.20 and $6.00. El Potente returned $3.20 to show. Call Sign Seven’s longshot victory triggered an Early Pick 5 carryover of $329,973 into Sunday, Closing Day of the Bing Crosby Meet there will be mandatory payouts in all wagering pools. The Early Pick 5 pool is expected to exceed $2 million.
RICKY GONZALEZ (Call Sign Seven, Winner) – “He had some time off, I started working him in the mornings, and Michael entered him. He said, ‘let’s take the shot’ and now look at him. I was running with a lot of horses. I was following Antonio Fresu (aboard Astronomer) and when I saw he opened up a little bit I shot right through it. The longer the better a mile and an eighth or a mile and a quarter. That’s right up his alley as long as he keeps improving.”
MICHAEL MCCARTHY (Call Sign Seven, Winner) – “Coming off of an extended layoff I thought he’d be fresh to go ahead and bounce on out of there. I preferred to be closer than farther away from the pace. It always looked like he was traveling comfortably. Around the middle of the turn it looked like he was getting shuffled back but crossing the chute, he able to find some room. I’m certainly glad he did. I wasn’t real happy sitting behind a wall of horses but all credit to the horse and rider today.”