Steve Asmussen’s barn must be a lot quieter right now. The Breeders’ Cup buzz has diminished, the Big Brown rivalry has been shelved as one more story for “what might have been” and, in general, the racing season is over. The only visitors to his barn are most likely straggling reporters seeking news on if and when Curlin might race one last time.
Word came on November 15 from Curlin’s majority owner, Jess Jackson, that Curlin would be retired to stud at the end of the year. “Curlin has proven himself across two continents with 16 starts, the honor of 2007 Horse of the Year, and the greatest North American money-earner in racing history,” Jackson told the press.
“He always gave it his all and has done everything we have asked of him. I am proud to announce that he will start a new career in 2009 and contribute his soundness, stamina, durability and athleticism to the breed. I am looking forward to seeing his foals compete and possibly exceed his unequaled racing record.” Jackson has not reached a decision on where Curlin will stand at stud, saying “Stonestreet Farms will consider offers from stallion stations as well as possibly standing Curlin [himself].”
If he’s to be retired at the end of the year, this means Curlin will only be able to race one more time, one final start of his career. But that’s a big “if.”
Asmussen has already ruled out any chance of the reigning Horse of the Year to enter the Grade II Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs, where Curlin is currently stabled. Blood-Horse quoted the trainer, “With the pot dropping (from $500,000 to $400,000) and the weather being bad, it’s not going to happen. The track was closed [Monday] too, so it’s just not working out. … The opportunities are not falling into place right now.”
This is grim news for fans of the valiant son of Smart Strike. Curlin has already missed the boat for Japan, where the $2.4 million Japan Cup Dirt will be run on December 7. And with the Clark ruled out, the only option would be for a race to be created for Curlin; and if his connections are finicky about the weather, it would have to be at a track in Louisiana or Arkansas, where dirt reigns the supreme surface. I personally would love to see Curlin make his final start at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, where he won the Rebel Stakes and Arkansas Derby with resolute margins. This was the sight of Curlin’s rising star, where he emerged as an undefeated three-year old and cemented his place as a major contender for the Triple Crown races.
But the prospect of North America’s first $10-million earner to race again looks bleak because he has yet to work out since his defeat in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. A horse needs consistent workouts every week to prepare for a race, and Curlin’s absence at the track is a sign of what may come.
And so I say this to Jackson and company: Let Curlin go out in style. Let him feel the dirt track beneath his hoofs, let him have the race on his terms, and allow him to grace that winner’s circle one last time. He has given us so much; we can at least give him this honor. He doesn’t deserve his final race to be one where the surface, not horses, defeated him. In a perfect world, he would have won the Classic, but that was not in his cards. He is not a grass or synthetics horse, but he is a purely American dirt horse, of a kind we haven’t seen in nearly a decade. Losing Curlin from the game will create a huge void in the competition. There is no horse that will be able to fill his shoes. And there might not be one forthcoming for another decade.