Sunnybank Memorial looks to outclass the field in the Grade I Little Guppy

Forecast is calling for some rain this weekend at Paris, and the feature is the Grade I Little Guppy Classic, to be run at the marathon distance of a mile and three eights over the good turf. A solid group of twelve horses will be entering the gate for the $500,000 purse, let’s take a look at them:

1. SAVAGE FRONTIER (25-7-1-3) – Multiple grade 3 winner, he always gives a solid effort in his races. His best races have come when laying way back at the start and coming with a flourish at the end. He will not have to improve a lot to win against this field.
2. PJ TOTAL QUEST (31-9-6-3) – Multiple stakes winner, but still looking for his first graded score. He gets a nice five week rest and takes a cut back in distance. His SFs fall short against the best of this group, but he should be in sharp form for this event. Interesting play at 16/1 odds.
3. BXCVN (27-6-5-5) – Grade II winner last year. Although his last race was in a conditioned allowance, he is showing improvement in his SFs, and if he gets back to the form he showed in late 2004, he can be extremely dangerous off the pace.
4. WOODLY (41-10-5-6) – Very honest race horse, always chipping into a piece of the money. He is one of the stalkers of this field, and we realize he has to improve on his last efforts to be able to score here, but we can not discard him.
5. BLACK EYED LOIS (19-4-4-5) – This horse takes a considerable step up in class, and he has not posted any triple digit figure yet in his career. He is royally bred, but so far has not show he belongs with these,
6. SUNNYBANK MEMORIAL (36-21-4-5) – With thirteen Grade 1 victories in his illustrious resume, you can see he is by far the class of this field. He prefers a little bit more of distance, but at eleven furlongs he has scored also. Working great, four weeks rest, he should be a solid favorite.
7. ALEXEI ZHITNIK (21-7-3-3) – In his last race he posted his first Triple Digit SF of his career, in which he has faced allowance company consistently. He can be the speed of the speed, but the group now is much tougher than he is used to face.
8. BALERION (17-8-3-0) – He returned from a nine week lay off in his last race with a brilliant wire to wire win in a listed stakes race. He takes his stuff now to face Grade I company, and although he can not be considered one of the top choices, he is lightly raced and sharp for this weekend.
9. A RUB OF IRISH (29-10-8-5) – Much improved effort on his last race, but has been soundly defeated by the favorite. He will be in a stalking position and with some luck can be part of the exotics.
10. OTTO ROCK (IRE) (23-6-5-0) – Disappointing effort in his last race, but he encountered and off turf which was not of his liking. He has not been able to grab a graded score yet and against the big favorite he looks somewhat overmatched.
11. NEW STORM (21-8-8-2) – Winner of the Grade I Lord Higgins two races ago, showing great versatility. His best races have come in shorter distances, but we can not overlook the form he is showing lately. Will come flying from off the pace and is a mayor player here.
12. ITSTARTSASACOLONY (16-5-3-2) – Dirt specialist invading the grass reign against a tough group. He will have to demonstrate some affinity to the green stuff before recommending.

The race can be summarized as follows: If Sunnybank Memorial shows all his class, the race will be for second. If not, the race becomes a puzzle. Horses like PJ Total Quest, BXCVN, Balerion and New Storm can form nice exotics combinations, all of them paying nice juicy dividends.

Good Luck to all!!!