By Joe Bianca
The brilliant and consistent McKinzie (Street Sense) will clash with the ascendant Higher Power (Medaglia d'Oro) in Saturday's GI Awesome Again S. at Santa Anita, a “Win and You're In” race for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic.
'TDN Rising Star' McKinzie has won seven times in 12 starts and was second, beaten less than a length, in four others, with his only dull effort being a 12th-place run in last year's Classic. Bouncing back from that with a dominant GI Malibu S. conquest, he was a close runner-up in both the GII San Pasqual S. and GI Santa Anita H. to start his 4-year-old season before dominating the GII Alysheba S. May 3 at Churchill. Stuck in traffic for much of the stretch of the GI Runhappy Metropolitan H. June 8 at Belmont, he still finished fast to complete the exacta behind streaking Mitole (Eskendereya), and the bay earned a career-best 111 Beyer when taking down the GI Whitney S. last out Aug. 3 at Saratoga.
Higher Power was a middling allowance horse over the winter at Fair Grounds, but his fortunes changed when selling to Hronis Racing for $250,000 at Keeneland April. Running a new top when fifth in the GI Gold Cup S. here May 27 in his first start for John Sadler, he annexed an optional claimer on the local grass June 14 before finishing second in the Wickerr S. July 21 at Del Mar. Switched back to the main track, he produced a staggering 5 1/4-length triumph in the GI TVG.com Pacific Classic Aug. 17.
Looking to bounce back from a non-factor seventh in that event is Chuck Fipke's Seeking the Soul (Perfect Soul {Ire}). The Grade I winner captured just one of his six starts last year, but ran a big second at 34-1 in the GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational S., beating champion Accelerate (Lookin At Lucky) in the process. No match for McKinzie when third in the Alysheba, he rallied into a slow pace to capture the GII Stephen Foster S. June 15 at Churchill before his Pacific Classic no-show.
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