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Sim Trainer Stats Sim Race Stats |
NEW SLEW Owner/Trainer: liam Record: 92-21-16-6; $5,578,344
Win: Jockey Guild Gold Cup-G1, California Handicap-G1, Oaktree Handicap-G1 (2x), Maryland Special Handicap-G1, Out of the City Handicap-G1, CA Classic-G1, Glenn Handicap-G1, Willing and Able Stakes-G2, Bertrando Handicap-G2, Kiwi Memorial Cup-G2, Statewide Pinhead Guild Stakes-G2, Azirae Handicap, The Native Royalty Stakes, Athlone Stakes, The Dear Mike Handicap, Pia Star Handicap, Kinglike Special, General Holme Stakes, Maxxed Platinum Plate Cup. Place: California Handicap-G1, Gotta Fix the Sprinklers Classic-G1 (2x), Queen of the County Stakes-G3, Free State Stakes, The North Star III Stakes, The Tropique Handicap, The Gin Tour Challenge, Ide Special. Show: Tinseltown Cup-G1, The Bill Naskra Tribute-G1, Cosmopolitan Handicap-G1. The five year old horse by Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew was quick to display all of his daddy’s class and heart. He broke his maiden in his first start, beating a bad field by 6 ½ lengths in good time. New Slew was moved immediately into stakes competition, where he finished second with a 107 SF for the mile. Stretched out an additional furlong, the dark bay quickly became a stakes winner in the Maxxed Platinum Plate (now a G3 event), defeating Person Roger with a 113 SF. Encouraged by his charge’s talent, and ability to respond to every challenge, liam then sent New Slew to compete against Grade 1 competition in the Glenn Handicap. It was only the fifth start of New Slew’s career, and he faced talented horses like Lever Sparky, Skilled Sum, and Slew Collecting, but the colt acted like a seasoned pro, making a move in the final turn to win the race by 4 3/4 lengths, with a fleet 1:47 1/5 (121 SF) for the nine panels. That effort took its toll, or perhaps the Florida heat did, as he would finish off the board in his next two starts. Sent west, New Slew promptly won the G1 California Handicap by 5 ½ lengths after scorching past pacesetter Again Darn in the stretch, and posting a 116 SF for the classic 1 1/4 mile distance. Again, the efforts from that performance took their toll, and so after a dull outing next time out, New Slew was ready to make amends. He did so in style, capturing the G1 Oaktree Handicap by two lengths. Unfortunately, New Slew was injured in his next start, and sat the next three months on the sidelines. The star handicapper returned with a facile nine length win in the General Holme Stakes before returning to the limelight. That race came in the G1 Tinseltown Cup, but New Slew wasn’t quite back up to par, having to settle for third behind Bored Gulch and Person Roger. An unsuccessful turf debut followed, then a prep race to kick off the fall campaign, which New Slew won by six lengths. The G1 Jockey Guild had attracted the many of the best horses in training, with U Bull, Project Glen, Person Roger, Mississippi Gulch, Dusty Dance, Pan Jay, Seattle Hit and Opal Slew among those answering the call to the post. Sent off the 7/1 fourth choice, New Slew once again rallied in the stretch to win by a length, and earned a 113 SF for the 10 panels. New Slew had essentially wrapped up divisional honors with that win, and briefly made a tilt at Horse of the Year honors, but a poor showing behind Gatling Gun in the Breeders’ Bowl handed the title to his younger rival. New Slew finished the year with a record of 16-8-1-1, $2,201,590 and an Eclipse Award as Champion Older Horse. After that grueling campaign, New Slew was given a nine week freshener, and it showed in his seasonal debut, as the six year old stormed home a two length winner in the G2 Kiwi Memorial Cap over Pan Jay, posting a 118 SF along the way. Next came the G1 Glenn Handicap, but the champ ran inexplicably poorly, barely getting into the race he had won so impressively a year ago. Another dull effort followed, but then New Slew got back on track in the G1 California Handicap, showing his normal kick in the stretch, but had to settle for second behind Writer Orange. New Slew confirmed that he was back in his next start, when he pulled out a second consecutive victory in the G1 Oaktree Handicap, defeating Oliver Plus Pit, Enough Knock, Bored Gulch, Senior Dancer and Writer Orange, while besting his time of a year ago by 4/5 of a second, good enough for a 111 SF. Mine Forest and Enough Knock would finish ahead of New Slew in the G1 Bill Naskra, as it was too little, too late in the stretch. Shipped to Dubai, the desert, much like Florida, did not agree with the champ, but returned to the States, New Slew would turn in one of his finest performances in the G1 Maryland Special. The dark bay streaked past the pacesetting Orphan A.P. to win by 5 3/4 lengths, while Writer Orange could only manage second. Final time for the 9 ½ panels earned New Slew a 117 SF. Dropped back to a mile, New Slew was a hard closing third (116 SF) in the G1 Cosmopolitan Handicap, but simply ran out of ground. After two back to back monster races, the tank was tapped, and so New Slew showed little in his next three races. But, the old spark was back in the G1 Gotta Fix the Sprinklers, with New Slew and Mine Forest battling down the stretch, New Slew gradually whittling away at his rival’s lead, but couldn’t quite get there, having narrowed the lead down from 3/4 length to 1/4 length at the wire. New Slew used the turf to dirt angle to catapult himself to yet another G1 win, this time in the CA Classic, where he defeated One the Naked by 1/4 length, with Mississippi Gulch, Dusty Dance and Pan Jay also in his wake (Mine Forest was injured in that race). Again, it would take a race or two for New Slew to recover from a big performance. Unfortunately, that would not be in time for the Breeders’ Bowl Classic, where New Slew would finish sixth, almost seventeen lengths behind Stormy Prospector. One the Naked would go on to earn divisional honors, while New Slew went on to win a minor stakes in a disappointing finale after a very promising start to the season. Still, New Slew had added three G1 wins and a G2 victory to his resume that year. Once again, New Slew started the year on a bright note. This time, the now seven year old won the G2 Willing and Able Stakes by six lengths over Junior Rule. Despite being unchallenged in the stretch, the dark bay posted a sharp 114 SF for the 9 furlongs. Unfortunately, after that promising start, a long dry spell would follow. Four off the board finishes; and then, signs of life with a game second place finish in the G2 Bertrando Handicap behind Mississippi Gulch, and another second, again versus G2 competition. Two lousy efforts followed, but then, out of the blue, dismissed at 9/1, New Slew would win the G1 Out of the City Handicap by a half length over Pan Jay, with Dusty Dance several lengths further back in third. New Slew was becoming more inconsistent in his old age, but when he felt good, look out. Again, he would bounce in his next start, but made amends during a gutsy performance in the G1 Gotta Fix the Sprinklers. Once again, New Slew lost a heartbreaker in that race, putting up a monster 117 SF, defeating Dusty Dance and a host of others, and yet, it wasn’t good enough to catch Again of the Dance. Dropped into the Native Royalty Stakes after that tough beat, New Slew romped home nearly six lengths in front. But, it wasn’t quite enough when back in graded stakes competition. After losing his next four starts, New Slew would win the Azirae Handicap by five lengths, then finished second in his last three starts of the year, two stakes and a G3 event. The age and the miles were beginning to add up, but on his good days, New Slew was still graded caliber. New Slew would never hit the same heights again. After finishing off the board in his first five starts of 2002, he was dropped to ungraded stakes, where he finished second in a pair of blacktype events. Those would be the last stakes events of his storied career. The rest of his nine year old campaign was spent in the allowance ranks, where he was competitive, and finished second or third on several occasions in good time. At age 10, New Slew was still capable of mustering a solid performance. While he raced exclusively in allowance company, he finished his seven start campaign with two victories in his final three starts of the year, earning a 102 SF and a 103 SF, a remarkable achievement for the 86th and 88th career starts, and better than most racehorses’ career best speed figure. In 2005, at age eleven, the wheels finally came off, as New Slew would beat only one horse in his last five starts. New Slew was one of the sim’s first superstars, with an impressive string of victories in the early days of the sim. He wasn’t always the most consistent performer, but he also didn’t duck anyone, and on the right day, he was capable of producing a powerful performance, and that was true well into the twilight of his career. |
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