John the Beer Man withstands every challenge in Troy scuffle

Michael J. Caruso and Michael Dubb’s John the Beer Man came out on top of a rough, three-way stretch battle in Sunday’s $300,000 Troy (G2), then had to survive an inquiry and objection. But the colorfully-named sprinter beat the rap in the Saratoga stewards’ room to keep his hard-fought win.

The stewards did disqualify the second across the wire, Waralo, for interfering with the tough-beat third, Doncho, who was pinballed trying to rally between horses. In addition to an inquiry, Doncho’s jockey, Ricardo Santana Jr., claimed foul against both John the Beer Man on his inside and Waralo on his outside. 

John the Beer Man appeared to be responding more to the unbalanced Doncho than causing the issue himself. Waralo was judged the culprit and accordingly was demoted to third, elevating Doncho to second in the official result. 

The scrimmaging shouldn’t obscure the front-running performance of John the Beer Man, a lightly-raced five-year-old who is an emerging talent in the turf sprint division. Coming off a grudging third in the course-and-distance Jaipur (G1) in his stakes debut, the Rob Atras pupil again flashed bright speed along with resolve.

With Kendrick Carmouche back aboard, John the Beer Man grabbed the early lead through an opening quarter in :21.28 on the firm Mellon course. Waralo and Doncho were both camped in tracking spots, and they rallied in tandem passing the half in :43.50.

John the Beer Man dug in to meet their challenges as they grappled in line abreast formation. For a few strides in midstretch, Doncho looked to have momentum, until he barged with Waralo and John the Beer Man. Despite being knocked about, he lost by two heads, and a clear passage might well have made the difference.

Yet John the Beer Man did not yield an inch himself as he sped 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:00.97. The More Than Ready gelding returned $8.92 as the 3.46-1 second choice.

Twenty Six Black, the 1.48-1 favorite, reported home 1 1/4 lengths behind the dueling trio in fourth. Coppola, Dancing Buck, Works for Me, and Rezasrolex rounded out the order of finish. Determined Kingdom was scratched. 

Carmouche chalked the scuffle up to competitive race-riding.

“It was a little bumpy. I thought I kept a straight path because I was in front, and they came to me and bumped me,” the winning rider told NYRA publicity. “As you can see, once I pulled my horse off of them, he accelerated again, so right then and there, you know it wasn’t my fault. It was just race riding a little. It happens. This is why we come to Saratoga – we’re very competitive, we all want to win. It happens, it’s part of the sport.”

Doncho’s trainer, Michelle Lovell, commented on his effort while hampered. 

"The inside (John the Beer Man) came out, the outside (Waralo) came in hard. Santana said he thought he was a winner for sure. He was just waiting for that spot to come through. He had many, many steps getting bounced around hard – not just little bitty bumps, we're talking significant. He's still my champ.”

Jose Lezcano, who rode the demoted Waralo, believed that Doncho was the real instigator.

“My horse got bumped by the number three the whole stretch. He (Santana on Doncho) was trying to make his own hole. I don’t know what he was doing.”

At least Carmouche knew exactly what he was doing aboard John the Beer Man. 

"I left everything up to Kendrick,” Atras said, “and he broke running. It didn't look like Doncho was really intent on the lead, and Kendrick said, ‘I took it.’ I was happy. He looked like he was comfortable, and then down the lane, it's almost like he waited on them, and then he reengaged. It was a tough inquiry and a little scary there, but I think we were good.

“I didn't really look at the fractions,” the trainer continued. “I was just watching him and seeing how he was doing it. Kendrick looked like he was comfortable, and that was the main thing. Down the lane, I had a few anxious moments where it looked like maybe he was getting tired, but Kendrick said he was waiting on them.

 “He did that last time (in the Jaipur). He jumped a little bit for a second, and then he picked up the bridle again. Today, he didn't do that (jump or shy away), which is great; I'm thrilled. He came back. I thought he was beat. I thought he ran third, and he battled back.”

Carmouche also noted that John the Beer Man’s determination overcame his brief loss of focus.

“He done it last time – when he spooked at the hedge, he rebroke again. As soon as he felt them, and I reengaged him and pointed where I wanted to go, he went right back at it again. Some horses are like that. Some horses will go backwards instead of forward, but we’re glad John the Beer Man wanted to go forward,” Carmouche summed up. “That will to win, just like me.”

It’s fitting that there is a real story behind the name. The authentic “John the Beer Man” is John Soler, a friend of co-owners Dubb and Caruso.

“I met Mike (Dubb) when I was 13 years old at wrestling camp,” Soler said. “This guy (Caruso) is a three-time national champion, and we've been friends ever since. It's such an honor to be part of this and the fact that they named the horse after me."

The equine John the Beer Man proved that he can handle a wrestling match himself. Sidelined for 22 months after his maiden win as a sophomore, the chestnut has won three of four on the comeback trail this season. His overall record stands at 7-4-1-1, $373,750.

“I'm really thrilled with this horse,” Atras said. “What a Godsend.”

Despite his down-to-earth name, John the Beer Man is a blueblood bred by the Phipps Stable. His dam, Trophy Wife, is a daughter of Giant’s Causeway and 2005 Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1) romper Pleasant Home.