Spotlighting High Demand Claimers (3/3 to 3/9)
I’ve been a bit busy lately working on an article for the BTB focusing on jockeys which required a lot more research than I anticipated. Thus, this segment has been shuffled to the sidelines for a while. Needing a break from the research, I’m spending a little time coming back to the claimers, and this covers March 3 to March 9.
Not a lot of double-digit claims, so I sprinkled in a bunch of others.
3/6/14 BANKABLE ASSET $4,000 claimed by Newmarket 11 claims
A five year old female that picked up her eleventh win in her 33rd start this week. She’s a definite breeding play coming out of Holy Roman Emperor x Sadler’s Wells. The 76 speed this week looks a bit low, but she won easily by 4 and did not need to overextend her effort. A month earlier it was a 74 speed, but that was a throw-away as she went two miles, too much to ask of her. A low claim price makes her eligible for the low-end starter allowance races and her past history has shown success in that class.
3/6/14 MAJOR DISDANE $45,000 claimed by Thedunc 9 claims
A first time runner that ran for a pricey $45,000 claim tag and drew quite a bit of interest from fellow trainers. This lady out of Daiwa Major x Giant’s Causeway is a two year old and went off as the 4-5 favorite in a larger 11-horse field. In the 5.5f race, she took the lead in the stretch but could not retain it and was beat by a quarter stride. Looks to have nice bloodline for grass, with strong support from Danehill as the DSS. Look for her in allowance races going forward.
3/6/14 CRAZY CANDY $15,000 claimed by Bizalls 6 claims
A six year old mare who made a rare shift over to the turf and winning a 10f event with a low 74 speed, but was the chalk choice and easily mastered the soft field. She comes out of Candy Ride x Woodman and has already been retired, ending her career with 7 wins in 32 starts, and $244 shy of hitting $200k in earnings. She has already bred LV Tippy Tap, who was sired by Tapit and had his first race as a two year old on a good track, finishing 10th as the second betting choice. Expect more children to come from Crazy Candy in years to come.
3/8/14 EXBOURNE’S URANUS $5,000 claimed by Shannon 6 claims
A fiver year old male out of Smarty Jones x Sadler’s Wells earned career win number 8 with a drop from the $75k claim level to $5k price tag. This follows a series of class drops after he raced in his only stakes event, dropping to allowance then the recent claim events. A good speed runner with 90’s and occasional 100’s for the good part of the last year and a half. Most coming in the allowance ranks. Starter allowance maybe a favorable option now as he should be competitive with these speeds with a possible option for any soft allowance fields.
3/8/14 INDIAN LORE $15,000 claimed by Ryga 13 claims
Gunning out of allowance to moderately priced claiming, this 5 year old mare from Indian Charlie x Street Cry drew in 13 claims in the box as she roared off to a three stride win running 11f. This was her 8th win of her 26 race career and the first time she ran for a claim tag below $40k. She has performed well in allowance company previously and more recently with smaller fields. My focus would be to bring her back to allowance and try to peg some races with soft or small fields.
3/8/14 UTMOST $10,000 claimed by Banditbuddy 6 claims
Racing in a field of ten, where six horses were claimed, this 7-year old mare from First Defence x Danehill was sent off as the co-favorite at 7/2 odds. Racing in mid-field, she surged late to win by about 1/4 –length, taking her second win in a row and her fourth in her last five starts. For a 7-year old, she is very lightly raced with only 11 starts and returning to the raceway last year after a 4-year absence. She has finished in the top five in each of her starts since returning and with a 91 speed in this race, looks to be a BP earner.
3/8/14 RIVRAVIN ROCKET $3,500 claimed by Darelsalam0 4 claims
A handful of trainers pursued this Pop Rock x Awesome again four year old filly as she stepped into claimers for the second time in her career. Facing a field of local breds, she wired the field on a good track, pushing earnings over $275k with her seventh win. Over half of her starts have been against local breds. She has never won a race in a field with more than five entrants and speeds rarely hit 90’s. Best opportunities seem to lie with smaller fields for this gal.
3/8/14 IRON FAMILY $15,000 claimed by Praise 6 claims
A nice runner out of Sky Mesa x Deputy Minister who concluded her racing career on a winning note. She went off as the heavy 1/10 choice and wired the field with ease. The win would be her eighth and final as she collected $193k in earnings over 29 starts. She had decent races in allowance level, but the bulk of the wins came in the claiming class. She has now been retired and awaits her breeding assignments.
3/9/14 LAFAYETTE HEIR $25,000 claimed by 4evry1 6 claims
A BP earner who has not failed to deliver and is a five year old Saint Afleet x Wildcat Heir mare. She’s owed her success to racing in small fields where she has won 12 out of 16 races, finishing in top three every start. The ITM record, along with the wins, brought in 6 claims with her transfer to the claiming ranks. Many of her races included CPU horses, which are historically easier foes to beat and my suspicion is that many of her starts were in trainer bought bid races. With that said, I’m not sold that her success will continue if she faces tougher competition.
3/9/14 NOTION BAILEY $3,000 claimed by Mikeydz1 4 claims
Winning with a speed of 45 is not spectacular. This 4-year old filly from Notional x Markella did just that when running in a $3k race going 15 furlongs and winning by 15 lengths. She faced a field of CPU horses and there was no need for speed in this route. She has won three times in 16 starts and speeds have topped out at 80, not indicative of a strong runner. I’m not seeing much with her, however, her best shot is in the small fields and probably low end claimers.