Well, it's Wednesday. In the horse racing world, that means only one thing - stakes entry draw day! This Saturday, two key preps - the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct and the Santa Anita Derby at, er, Santa Anita - will occur. These races have put good colt against good colt, and some interesting rivalries will be played out this weekend. But first...
At Keeneland, Tesseron worked six furlongs in a leisurely 1:16.20.
Texas Bling went five furlongs in 1:01.60 at Oaklawn Park.
West Hills Giant worked a half mile in 49.10 at Belmont Park.
After the jump, we'll dissect the fields for the stakes races on Saturday:
The Wood Memorial entries are as follows:
1. Chrisandthecapper (KY), J. Lezcano, J Servis, 30-1
2. Normandy Invasion (KY), J. Castellano, C C Brown, 5-1
3. Quinzieme Monarque (KY), I.Ortiz Jr., T Albertrani, 30-1
4. Elnaawi (KY), E. Castro, K P McLaughlin, 12-1
5. Vyjack (KY), J. Rosario, R R Rodriguez, 4-1
6. Mr Palmer (KY), J. Alvarado, W I Mott, 12-1
7. Always in a Tiz (KY), C.H. Borel, D A Schettino, 15-1
8. Verrazano (KY), J.R. Velazquez, T A Pletcher, 4-5
9. Go Get the Basil (NY), J.L. Ortiz, R A Violette, Jr., 30-1
10. Freedom Child (KY), E. Trujillo, T Albertrani, 30-1
So the first thing that comes into your mind has to be the matchup between Vyjack and Verrazano. These two colts are undefeated and have enough points to qualify them for the Derby now. However, I think their trainers want to a) get some more points to further solidify their entry in the Derby and b) give them another good prep before the race. Which I'm totally fine with...this race is going to be awesome.
Vyjack, last time out, won the mile and a sixteenth Gotham Stakes really nicely. However, he is by sprinter Into Mischief and out of a mare by Stravinsky, so the longer distances going forward might affect him. This bay gelding, with a proper training job and enough heart, might just outrun his pedigree.
He'll have to get past Verrazano, though, both here and in the Derby. It can be argued that this horse has the most talent of anyone out there. His Tampa Bay Derby win was a thing of beauty. However, he has distance problems as well. While his female family is pretty strong, he is by More Than Ready, a sprinter, and is inbred to horses like Mr. Prospector and Blushing Groom...not exactly pillars of distance. Same as with Vyjack, though...this horse may have enough class to go the distance.
Third choice on the board is Normandy Invasion, a Tapit colt who needs to bring his A game to run with the favorites. Tied at 12-1 are Elnaawi and Mr Palmer. The former is Elnaawi, who was third last time out in the Gotham. His pedigree suggests that he should have no trouble with distance. Mr Palmer, too, looks good for this distance. All of them are far behind the two favorites, however. It will be an interesting race to watch.
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1. Flashback (KY), G Gomez, B Baffert, 9/5
2. Hear the Ghost (KY), C Nakatani, J Hollendorfer, 5/2
3. Power Broker (KY), R Bejarano, B Baffert, 5/1
4. Tiz A Minister (CA), J Talamo, P Aguirre, 6/1
5. Goldencents (KY), K Krigger, D O'Neill, 6/1
6. Super Ninety Nine (KY), B Baffert, M Garcia, 6/1
7. Summer Exclusive (FL), E Maldonado, P Miller, 20/1
8. Storm Fighter (CA), G Stevens, B Headley, 20/1
9. Dirty Swagg (KY), T Baze, M K Cho, 50/1
I must admit, I swore a little when I saw Flashback had snatched the rail. I can't imagine what Baffert's reaction must have been.
Nevertheless, this should be a fun race. Goldencents and Flashback have probably both been trained to try to rate, so there shouldn't be a pace melt-down again. However...who inherits the lead, out of the two of them? It will be a dance between Gomez and Krigger to see who gets that early speed and tries to hold on for the finish.
Super Ninety Nine is back after a disappointing effort in the Rebel. I wonder how this race will treat him. Also, if the pace is slower, I wonder if Hear the Ghost can get the momentum he got in the San Felipe to win. He might just sit closer than what he did in his last start.
I don't have much else to say about this race except I very much look forward to it!
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