Trainer Shug McGaughey was initially non committal about running his three-year old colt Code of Honor in the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Santa Anita next month. After wins in the Travers at Saratoga and the Jockey Club Gold Cup by disqualification of Vino Rosso McGaughey seemed to hedge on whether he would send the three-year old out west or rest him for his four-year old campaign.
Shug has a history of being patient with horses, and allowing them to take him to the races as opposed to the other way around and that tells us all we need to know about how Code of Honor is doing following his last start in the Jockey Club Gold Cup. Code of Honor has propelled himself to the leader of the three-year old division with a decisive win in the Travers at a mile and a quarter, and a strong race against older horses at the same distance in the Jockey Club Gold Cup where he was beaten a nose by Vino Rosso but awarded the win by the stewards. Vino Rosso bore out in the stretch brushing the three-year old who continued on strong to the wire.
John Velazquez, his regular rider will have the mount in the Classic.
