Ron Correll
Senior columnist
Tracksideview.com

Two-year-old champion Lookin at Lucky had to overcome a lot in his 2010 debut as he got up in the final yards to win the Rebel over a very game Noble’s Promise on Saturday at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark.

The son of Smart Strike came into the race off a three-month layoff, picked up blinkers for the first time and also was running on real dirt for the first. All that still doesn’t include the trouble that he ran into in the race itself. Lookin at Lucky and jockey Garrett Gomez got cut off at the half-mile and had to take up, losing a couple of lengths as the real running was just beginning.

Oh yeah, he also got squeezed back at the start as several horses came together as the latch was sprung on the gate to begin the race. After the colts sorted themselves out, Royal Express had the lead going into the first turn with Cardiff Giant, Uh Oh Bango and Noble’s Promise following. Dublin, Lookin at Lucky and Pleasant Storm were bringing up the rear.

Royal Express and Cardiff Giant stayed together as the quarter went in 23.64 and the half in 47.70. Just past that point is where Lookin at Lucky ran into trouble again. Noble’s Promise and Dublin appeared to come together in front of Lookin at Lucky, forcing Gomez to take up. By the time Gomez got Lookin at Lucky in stride, Dublin had made a sweeping move on the turn and was sitting outside of the leaders.

Noble’s Promise came up the rail and got past Dublin before the eighth pole. By this time, Lookin at Lucky had moved into third. He got past Dublin at the sixteenth-pole, but it did not look like he was going to catch Noble’s Promise.

Gomez was furiously working on his colt and urging him on. Robby Albarado had Noble’s Promise all out in the final yards, but he could not hold off Lookin at Lucky. And it took a photo to prove it. The margin of victory was a less than a head.  Dublin held on for third. The final time for the mile-and-a-sixteenth race was 1:43.06.

Lookin at Lucky is owned by Karl Watson, Mike Pegram and Paul Weitman. He is trained by Bob Baffert. It was the colt’s sixth win in seven lifetime starts and his only loss was to Vale of York in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile by a head after another less than perfect trip.

Earlier Saturday, No Such Word won the Honeybee for three-year-old fillies. Beautician was second and Tap Tap Tapping was third.