Sweetnorthernsaint Wins Easily

The last time Sweetnorthernsaint ran a race, it was before a record crowd of 118,402 at Pimlico Race Course in the Preakness Stakes, when he finished second to Bernardini on the day Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro broke down.

Sweetnorthernsaint's comeback five months later didn't have quite the same sizzle, as he faced just two other runners yesterday at odds of 1-20 at Laurel Park. A few thousand fans, at most, were at the track, and not many ventured outdoors to see the best horse on the grounds gallop through what amounted to a glorified workout.

With four of seven horses scratched from the field in the $32,000 optional claiming race, Sweetnorthernsaint took charge on the backstretch and easily beat Terrific Tom by 4 1/2 lengths. It was another 66 1/4 lengths back to It'sallaboutyoulou . The final time of 1 minute 23.70 seconds for seven furlongs looked impressive, considering jockey Ramon Dominguez barely shook his reins at the winner.

"Very, very nice," Dominguez told trainer Michael Trombetta in the winner's circle after the performance. "He got to the top of the lane and was looking around. It wasn't like he was galloping out that strong, but when we got to the backside [after the race] he was still feeling strong."

In a year for very good 3-year-old colts, Sweetnorthernsaint has been one of the best. He broke his maiden at Laurel by 16 lengths, won the Illinois Derby by 9 1/4 lengths and went off as the post-time favorite in the Kentucky Derby. He finished a troubled seventh that day behind Barbaro and was no match for Bernardini two weeks later in the Preakness.

After that, Trombetta figured there was no reason to run Sweetnorthernsaint into the ground in the grueling, 1 1/2 -mile Belmont Stakes. Instead, he gave him 30 days off in his barn at Laurel and then another 30 at his farm in Fork, Md.

Since returning to the racetrack, Sweetnorthernsaint has had four workouts, and Trombetta said he considered yesterday's race a fifth before venturing out to tackle live horses and start chasing the big money again.

"I'm happy that I didn't need to run harder than I needed to run," Trombetta said. "Even in a three-horse field he stumbled leaving the gate. A loss would have been very hard to take, and I'd have to go back to work.

"Now, I'm going to see how he trains next week. Hopefully, that didn't take anything out of him and hopefully we move on."

Trombetta has no next race in mind, but with a horse as good as Sweetnorthernsaint, it likely won't be long.

-- John Scheinman