Rock Hard Ten Disappoints

So much for all those who thought Rock Hard Ten was going to step to the front of the 3-year-old division with the recent retirement of Smarty Jones.

Four weeks after his easy win against a suspect field in the Swaps Breeders’ Cup at Hollywood Park had his bandwagon filling up again, Rock Hard Ten disappointed as the 4-5 favorite in Sunday’s $1-million Haskell Invitational Handicap at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J.

Close to the pace early under jockey Corey Nakatani, the son of Kris S. had nothing to give late, finishing sixth in a race won wire-to-wire by 19-10 second choice Lion Heart.

The runner-up to Smarty Jones in the Kentucky Derby, Lion Heart, a Tale Of The Cat colt owned by Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith, held 20-1 shot My Snookie’s Boy safe through the final eighth of a mile to win by a length in 1:48.95 for the 1 1/8 miles.

This was the fifth victory in eight starts for Lion Heart and his second in as many tries at Monmouth. In a Haskell prep and in his first outing since he finished fourth in the Preakness, Lion Heart had won the Long Branch Breeders’ Cup on July 17, beating My Snookie’s Boy by only a head.

“He’s a nice, nice horse,” said jockey Joe Bravo, who has been aboard for both of the colt’s victories in New Jersey. “It was one of the easiest wins of my career. Horses like him make jockeys look good. I’m just glad to be part of the team.”

After Rock Hard Ten finished off the board for the second time in his last three starts, Nakatani wondered whether the grind of the Triple Crown -- the colt ran in two of the three legs -- and a cross-country trip might have taken their toll on the colt. “I know the real Rock Hard Ten would have beaten these horses,” he said.

*

As impressive as Lion Heart was, Purge was even more so in the $500,000 Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga. The two will almost certainly get together in the $1-million Travers on Aug. 28 in upstate New York.

Content to sit second, but well off the fast pace set by 2-1 second choice Medallist, the 3-year-old Pulpit colt took over on the far turn and went on to beat 17-10 favorite The Cliff’s Edge by 4 1/2 lengths.

Ridden by John Velazquez, Purge, the 5-2 third choice in the field of six, completed the 1 1/8 miles in 1:47.56. He has won four of seven for Jack and Laurie Wolf’s Starlight Stables, Johns Martin and Paul Saylor and trainer Todd Pletcher.

Eddington finished third, but was disqualified for interfering with Niigon, the longest shot in the field at 24-1, and was placed fourth. Niigon, the winner of Canada’s Queen’s Plate in June, was moved up to third.

*

A trainer and a mare who were both winless in 2004 teamed to score a big upset in the $300,000 Clement L. Hirsch Handicap on Sunday at Del Mar.

Miss Loren, the longest shot in the field in the Grade II at 34-1, rallied wide under jockey Jon Court to win going away in 1:42.93 for the 1 1/16 miles.

Trained by Luis Seglin for Liers Corp., the 6-year-old daughter of Numerous had won 10 times in her native South America, but was winless in her first two starts in this country. Her last victory had come in a Group 1 in Argentina on Dec. 6.

House Of Fortune, making her first start against older females, finished second; Royally Chosen, the pacesetter, held third, and Star Parade, who was seeking her third graded stakes victory of the year, was fourth.