What's Next for Buddy's Saint?

Last weekend we saw so much. We saw sweet redemption, we saw explosive upstarts, and unfortunately we saw surprising upsets. Among the upsets we saw Ron the Greek, winner of the LeComte, fall victim to a dawdling pace, that negated his late rush. Others that were promising, heading into the Risen Star, yet were dismantled were Dosselmeyer and Stay Put. The biggest shock of the weekend, however, came in the Fountain of Youth. Buddy's Saint, who had previously headed many Derby lists, finished a tired and defeated ninth.

In case anyone didn't hear about the race, I will get you up to speed. Breaking from the gate, Buddy's Saint got away in good order, and seemed content to let the frontrunning speedsters do battle. All seemed to be going well, until Buddy's Saint was moved inside and was sent through a hole near the rail. Lengthening his stride, Buddy's Saint moved forward without hesitation, but upon entering the turn, the colt drifted out ever so slightly and collided hard with Aikenite. From there it was a game of pin ball, as Buddy's Saint bounced back over into the rail, back into Aikenite, then back into the rail again. After that ordeal, the winner of the Remsen Stakes had little left to offer, never ever mounting any sort of rally.

This, as most of you know, was Buddy's Saint's debut. It was suppose to be an easy race, just to help tighten the screws a bit. The race did anything but help the colt get ready and probably set him back even more. It was the definition of a horrible debut, because not only did he get nothing positive out of the race, but he probably loss a lot of confidence in the process. He went from being unbeaten, to being kicked around like a rag doll, and that is anything good for a young horse's confidence. The question now is, what happens next?

Personally, I would have the colt run in easy allowance or an overnight stakes. An easy race would help boost his confidence back up and give him at least some of the tightening he was suppose to get out of the Fountain of Youth. Without a race, even if he did, somehow, manage to not be mentally affected, he would probably be a short horse come Derby day, since he would virtually be running on one prep race. He is a lightly raced colt, so I doubt one allowance or overnight stakes would take too much out of him, before his final prep, likely to be the Wood Memorial.

Buddy's Saint is without a doubt one of the most talented three year olds this year. He has the build, the raw ability, the pedigree, and may still have the mind of a Derby winner. Giving him a quick confidence boost in an allowance is a very easy fix. As mentioned, it shows him that he still can win and it will keep him from being too short in the Wood Memorial or the Derby. Either way his connections choose to go, I will trust, but this would seem, to me, the best way to fix the mess the nightmare Fountain of Youth created.