Going Global

 

This is the second of two stories written about Global Campaign by Jesse Johnson. 

In the time between the 2019 Jim Dandy Stakes and an allowance race to knock off some rust, Global Campaign remained sidelined for about six months after the Jim Dandy, but the racing staff at Sagamore Farm believed he could heal and continue his promising racing career.

“We intended to give him 90 days … That became more like 120 days, so we decided to bring him down to Florida where I was and he slowly came back to himself,” Stan Hough, the head trainer for Sagamore, said.

  • Global Campaign returning to his training in Florida.

By allowing the horse to rest and continue his physical development, he had returned to form like it never left. In addition to his physical presence, his mental perseverance is something that has earned praise from those who have worked with him.

“He likes to do different things and he likes to be challenged,” Rankin said. “You get the feeling that he loves the game and that’s hard to find in a horse.”

Global Campaign’s return to racing action after his lay-up was in an allowance race at Gulfstream Park in Florida, where he placed first. Even though the horse had a hiccup in his next race at the Blame Stakes, he bounced back and won his next two races in the Grade-III Monmouth Cup and the Grade-I Woodward.

  • Global Campaign wins the G3 Monmouth Cup

  • Global Campaign taking first place in the G1 Woodward

Rankin said the 2019 Peter Pan race was a big deal for Sagamore and for Global Campaign, who would claim his first Graded stakes win in that race. But the Woodward was the most memorable race for Global Campaign, he said.

“You look at all of the horses who have won that race, some of the greatest horses of all time have won that race,” said Rankin. “For him to be with that list of horses is amazing.”

On November 7, Global Campaign will race in the Grade-I Breeder’s Cup Classic. In addition to Global Campaign, the field includes three horses trained by Bob Baffert including Authentic, who won this year’s Kentucky Derby. The staff who have worked with Global Campaign are excited to see him run and are thankful he could make it to this point in his career.

Omar Ramos, a foreman at WinStar Farm, said even though Global Campaign is no longer at the farm, he still follows it just as he does with many of the others he’s worked with.

“My wife got this app that we use to keep following horses that we’ve bred or we’ve had,” Ramos said. “Even if we’ve sold them, I always like to see what they do.”

Horacio De Paz, one of the horse’s former trainers, said people probably won’t bet on Global Campaign but rather bet some of the more logical horses in the field, setting Global Campaign up to be an underdog.

“He’s healthy, people might dismiss him a little bit for certain reasons,” De Paz said. “He’s got confidence, he got two races underneath him and if he’s healthy, he’s going to be tough.”

Assistant Trainer Lazaro Cruz said he’s happy to get Global Campaign to this big stage, but with the horse’s physical capabilities, this also serves as a question mark while training him.

“It’s a nervous wreck when you run him,” Cruz said. “Even in the barn when you walk him in the afternoons, he’s feeling so good but any little thing will make him jump around.”

  • Global Campaign walking before a race at Keeneland.

  • Global Campaign galloping at Keeneland

After the Breeder’s Cup, Hough said the plan is for Global Campaign to retire to stud at WinStar Farm, something he said they have always hoped for because of his rich family lineage.

“Probably after this will be his last race,” Hough said. “Then he’ll go to WinStar and hopefully live happily ever after.”