SKIMMING REPEATS IN Gr.2 SAN DIEGO H.
Skimming (5, b. h. by Nureyev out of Skimble by Lyphard) won the
Gr.2 San Diego Handicap on 7-29. Skimming won the race in 2000 in
preparation for a victory in the Gr.1 Pacific Classic, a race he
won, defeating 2000 Horse of the Year Tiznow.
In the 2001 edition, under jockey Garrett Gomez, Skimming set
fractions of :23.02 for the quarter and :45.98 for the half. At the
top of the stretch, Futural inched closer to Skimming but the
front-runner dug in, holding on to win by a length. On a fast
track, the winner completed the 1 1/16 miles in 1:41.62. ‘I heard a
horse (Futural) come up outside me near the five-sixteenth pole and
so did Skimming,’ said Gomez. ‘He responded to the other horse,
more so than he did to me. He’s a fighter, he’ll dig in when it is
time to fight. You don’t want to choke this horse down. I know that
for sure now. He’s a free-running horse. He doesn’t necessarily
have to have the lead, but he wants to be allowed to run his
race.’
The win marks the fourth graded stakes win for Skimming. He earned
$150,000 for his seventh win from 18 starts. Juddmonte Farms bred
Skimble, a daughter of Lyphard and Nimble Folly. Skimble was a
multiple Graded SW for Bobby Frankel. Skimble’s full sister Flit
produced the 1,000 Guineas winner Wince in 2000 and her ¾ sister
Nimble Feet has produced Gr.2 SW and Gr.1-placed Eltish and three
other SWs. Skimble has a two-year-old filly by Woodman named Tree
Pipit in training with Barry Hills and a yearling filly by Gone
West.
Date:
02 August 2001