Week In Review: Vinnie Viola's Unlikely Derby Contender

There's virtually no chance that Vinnie Viola would have bought a horse like Rated by Merit (Battalion Runner) at the sales. That's where he goes every year to spend big bucks in search of a star. At this year's Keeneland September sale alone, Viola bought 18 horses for $9.1 million.

Rated by Merit is undefeated at 3-for-3 after winning Saturday's Affirmed S., the second leg in Gulfstream's series for 2-year-olds by Florida-based sires. An overachiever, he is by a stallion who stands for $2,500 and out a mare who was 1-for-11 in her career. He wouldn't have checked any of Viola's boxes.

All of which is why it is so ironic that Rated by Merit, a homebred by Battalion Runner (Unbridled's Song), has been Viola's best 2-year-old this year and is a horse who will likely be pointed to next year's GI Kentucky Derby.

“This goes to show you that good horse can come from anywhere,” said Monique Delk, who is the director of racehorse development for the Viola stable.

Delk and Vinnie and Teresa Viola had plenty to celebrate last Saturday as they were on hand at Gulfstream Park to watch Rated by Merit win the Affirmed S. Though he has yet to face open company, he has been ultra impressive in his three career stats and the Beyer numbers suggest he can compete at any level. He was given a 99 in the Affirmed, the fastest number given to any 2 year-old this year.

“The story has everything to do with the fact that Mr. Viola loves this sire, Battalion Runner,” Delk said. “He owns him outright and purchased him with Jimmy Crupi. Battalion Runner was a really, really good horse and Vinnie just grew very fond of him.”

Delk will tell you that Battalion Runner never lived up to his potential on the racetrack. After he broke his maiden in his lone start as a 2-year-old, he won an allowance race and then finished second in the GII Wood Memorial. He ran just twice more, finishing third in the Grade III Dwyer S. and fifth in the Smarty Jones S.

“This was the same year that we had Always Dreaming,” Delk said. “They were always kind of neck-to-neck together and then Battalion Runner kind of stubbed his toe along the way and wasn't able to proceed. In all of our minds, Battalion Runner was every bit as good but just had some bad luck.”

Viola, who owns the Stanley Cup champs, the Florida Panthers, is a shrewd and successful businessman.  But, apparently,  he is not immune from putting his passions ahead of the bottom line.

“A lot of this about how this horse tugged at Vinnie's heartstrings,” Delk said. “He owns Battalion Runner outright and stands him privately at Ocala Stud. It is a little bit of a passion project. We purchased 12 or 13 mares to breed to him. So far, he has had very small crops. To have a horse this good by this stallion is a dream come through for all of us.”

Battalion Runner has had 30 foals of racing age and just 17 starters.  Rated by Merit is by far the best horse he has produced.

The dam, Banner Waving (Speightstown), is another who didn't figure to be a success as a broodmare. She was purchased by Viola for $19,000 at the 2020 Keeneland November sale.

Delk appreciates the irony, that Viola's best horse in training is the homebred without the fancy pedigree or price tag.

“We go to the sales and we buy a lot of horses but we're as excited about this horse ands much as we have been with any horse,” Delk said. “We are very humbled and grateful that we have him.”

In someone else's hands Rated by Merit might have wound up in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile. Instead, Viola, Delk and trainer Michael Yates have decided to stay in Florida and point for the next leg in the series, the Nov. 30 In Reality S. Delk said they will try Rated by Merit against open company as a 3-year-old with their sights set on races like the GI Florida Derby.

“There is no pressure here, so we were able to do the right thing by the horse and let him develop in his own time,” Delk said. “We landed on Michael Yates, who is a seasoned horseman and a humble, honest guy who does a great job. We placed the horse with him and in Florida and we figured we would just see what happens and let him develop in his own time.”

The Breeders' Cup Juvenile has come up.

“There was some talk after his first race that he should be in the Breeders' Cup.” Delk said. “The horse had run one time and to fly him to New York, California or Kentucky for one of these preps, would that have been in the horse's best interests? I don't know.  I do know that I love the path Mr. And Mrs. Viola have chosen for him. It's allowed him to develop at his own pace. With expensive horses you buy at the sales you sometimes can't do that.”

The In Reality is a $300,000 race. With a win, Rated by Merit's career earnings increase to $400,000.

Machado's Gaffe

For misjudging the finish of a race last week, Luan Machado was suspended for three days and fined $2,500 by the stewards. Considering that he simply made an honest mistake, the punishment seems fair.

As much fuss that his ride has caused, it will never overshadow what Bill Shoemaker did in the 1957 Derby. Aboard Gallant Man, he misjudged the finish, likely costing his horse a Derby victory.

“If I could change anything, it would be missing that finish line on Gallant Man,” he told the New York Times decades later. “If you're going to make a mistake, they say, make a big one.”

Shoemaker's penalty was far worse than what was handed down to Machado. He was suspended for 15 days. Gallant Man's trainer, John Nerud told the New York Times that the suspension was as lengthy as it was because Shoemaker wasn't honest with the stewards. Nerud told the Times that Shoemaker originally contended that the horse took a bad step, but he relented after being confronted by the stewards.