Eight contest EXBOURNE’S DANTE Memorial
An evenly matched crew of eight older horses make up the Saturday feature at Indiana. Many of these are searching for their first win of the year, so it should shape up to be an interesting race. They’ll travel a mile and three eighths over the main track with no rain in the forecast, so the surface should be in excellent shape for the EXBOURNE’S DANTE Memorial.
Exotic Code(IRE) breaks from the rail in this marathon journey. Freedominc brings this son of Tamure over looking for his first win of recent days. He hooked sloppy tracks in his two previous outings, which were decent money-earning finishes. A fast track, along with an extra furlong, could go a long way in improving the chances of this one today.
Turbo enters Turbo A.P., a good looking son of A.P. Indy. His form has gone sour lately, but those races were at 1 5/8 miles and 2 miles, respectively. The turn back to 1 3/8 miles appears to be a good decision, although this still may a bit out of his best range. As a 7 year old making his 45th start, this race will tell the tale of what direction to head with this one.
Yoko Bone O has been posting some decent numbers, mostly triple figures, at marathon distances. Trainer sirbarton brings this five year old son of Yokohama to Indiana riding a string of four consecutive in-the-money finishes. Much of the same appears likely today. He’ll be running down the lane.
Breaking from the center is Myvan from the barn of samsonfarm. A son of Rainbow Quest, this five year old is 11 for 19 on the board and has been performing well in similar company. He was a bit too far back in his last start, so look for him to be stalking a decent pace today. He’ll need his running shoes today, as there are some free-runners in this tough heat. However, a placing would not be a surprise for this ultra-consistent horse.
Two To Tango is one of a triumvirate of speedsters in this event. His lone “bad” race was a 10th place finish against Grade 1 foes, which he does not see today. This son of Cozzene uses speed to his advatange, but also has shown he can sit just off the leaders. Trainer oldgraymar sends out this twelve-time winner to try and prove that he can run a nice, tactical race. Look for this one to be ready to pounce when the field turns for home.
Slew Da Dragon, trained by betdahouse, looks a bit overmatched here. He’s been struggling against conditioned allowance foes, and this distance appears too far for this son of Skip Away. His only hope would be the race completely falling apart, or possibly picking off some tired ones late.
Pher sends Silver Canuck to Indiana for his first start off of a nice layoff. This son of Silver Deputy kept excellent company last year, competing exclusively in graded events. Back in November, he was up the track in the Grade 1 Sterile Mile and Breeder’s Bowl Classic. Before that, he was a decent fourth in the Grade 2 Windy City Gold Cup, and earlier won the Grade 1 Cal ‘Cap and was second in Dubai. This appears to be a decent spot for a return, but the distance and the layoff make him vulnerable.
Lone Start Deputy looks to be the controlling speed for trainer knightmare. He’s been the leader through the first calls of all of his starts on the form, and that appears to be his favorite place to be. He will be tough if he can back this field up and get an easy lead. However, that appears unlikely with some other speed in this race. This son of Deputy Minister may not get a breather if the expected pace develops.