Evening star., 1954-11-04
Horse-of- Year Honor
Due for Fisherman
II He Wins Special
Continued From Page c-1o

NCOUtluuSQ TTOM rage C-4J
Stables Full Flight, Walmac
Farms Hasseyampa and A. L.
Birch's Timely Tip also are on
the select list Of invites. From
all indications most Of those
mentioned will run in the mile
and-three- -sixteenths race, and
the winner would have q solid
claim on the championship.
French Filly Impressive.
Fisherman might have stolen"
yesterdays top prize money Of
$4,000, for the experts were in
clined to credit Arcaro's riding
as much as the colts running for
the victory. Julien Decrion's
favored French filly. Banassa-
backed down to $3.50 to /, as
compared with $3.50 to / on the
second-choice Fisherman - fin
ished better than the winner
and was full Of run after the
line was crossed.
Many observers In the press
box thought the 35-year-old
Claude Lalanne lost the race on
Banassa because he made his
move too late. Lalanne, who also
lost his cap in the wind coming
through the stretch the first time,
allowed the 4-year -old fllly to go
along in sixth place for a mile.
Arcaro, meanwhile, had gone
ahead and, moving into the last
turn, let out on Fisherman, per-
mitting him to take a three
length lead.
Banassa's Rider Too Late.
Lalanne went to work on
Banassa as they came into the
stretch and the filly responded
willingly. Trouble was, however,
that Arcaro had judged the pace
exactly right for his colt, and
Lalanne was a trifle off in his
calculations.
AS predicted by the foreigners,
aware that the visiting horses
preferred to run waiting" races
and come from behind, the pace
was slow and was a factor in the
winners dull time.
Arcaro got every ounce of run
out of his colt, refusing to whip
Fisherman at the finish because
"he'd given everything he had
and had nothing left" It, was
a great display of courage by the
horse and skill by Americas No.
/ jockey. and the outcome left
the wind swept crowd of 20,562
limp With excitement. No doubt
about it. Americans got a thrill
out of seeing one of their horses
win for, the first time after being
disappointed in the first two
Internationals.
II the race did nothing else,
1t established the important fact
that foreigners will have to send
their best jockeys as we'll as their
best horses to future Interna-
tionals If they hope to win.
Yesterdays race might have
been an example Of matching
the wrong rider on the wrong
horse, for veteran observers
seemed to feel that If Rae john
stone of France, who rode the
Irish flly Northern Glean1l had
been up on Banassa, the French
filly might have taken all the
money. -. s
Cold Weather Cuts Crowd. III
Stanley Mikell's Brush Burn,
second half of the American
team and, like Fisherman. q
substitute, surprised almost ev-
terybody but his owner trainer
by finishing third. MikeI, who
offered to bet $4,000 his geld
ing could beat the winner of the
first international in a match
race, after Brush Burn failed to
receive an invitation, was con-
fident that he'd win yesterday.
But third. a f1alf-length in front
of Ernest Masurel's. wall-eyed
Norman, was the best Brush
Burn could do.
In the mutuel payoffs Fisher
man returned $3.50, 81. and $3..
Banassa paid $3.50 and $3.50,
while Brush Burn paid $3.50.
Statistically, the day was dis
appointing for Laurel. Due to
the cold weather, the attend
ance was far under last years
record of 31,100. Wagering on
the feature totaled $203,1o1 as
compared with last years 1884,
728. Fisherman's winning time
of 2:474s was II seconds slower
than the English Wilwyn's time
in the first International. But
Schapiro said he was very
pleased" with the outcome. 4
Considering the weather con-
ditiors, ! thought the crowd was
splendid" Schapiro said. "It was
a truly run race, but the thing
that pleased us most was that
we probably had the most rep
resentative group of outstanding
racing people here to see it.
Every one really interested in
racing was here"
The Laurel president, in a,
word, thought the race was a
huge sporting success, and in
that he was 100 per cent corr
rect.
whitney Merits Credit.
Whitney deserves the lions
share of credit for the success
of the race, for he had kept
Fisherman in training even
when it seemed that an invita-
ton woul dnot be forthcoming,
on the outside possibility that
he would be called on as an
alternate. Whitney doesn't need
L,eurel. The Eton blue and
brown colors made famous on
the turf by his father and grand
father are landmark on the
~s~