Nine Draw In For Mansur LeRoys Handicap

This week in California will feature the running of the Grade II Mansur LeRoys Handicap for three year olds and up. The race, held over a mile and one sixteenth on the dirt will be the fifteenth race on the card for Saturday’s racing. A field of nine horses have drawn into the race, with the track looking to be listed as fast at post time. Lets take an individual look at each of the nine entrants.

Drawing the rail is Damnation (Two Punch x Private Account x Reviewer), who is owned and trained by sdmf7. The light gray colt has had a total of twenty lifetime starts, including seven wins. His most recent start came over six furlongs in the ungraded Deputy Loving Cap in Ireland where he was held back in fourth and moved up to challenge the front runners later on in the race but got beaten at the wire and finished fourth. The colts most recent win came in early March during an allowance caliber race in Mississippi where the colt went wire to wire and won by three and one-fourth lengths. The colt has run in graded company before, his last start being in August of last year during the Grade II Shiny Gem Stakes where he finished ninth.

In at odds of 4/1 is The Green Felt (Rainbow Quest x Roberto x Caerleon), who is trained and owned by talented. The four year old bay homebred has had a total of twenty-one lifetime starts, of which six have resulted in wins. His most recent start came in late April in New York during the Grade II Eviscerator Stakes where he was held back far off the pace from the rest of the field in eleventh and turned up the heat in the stretch, flying towards the wire. But coming up short and finishing sixth. His most recent victory was just the month before, in the ungraded Your Pigeon Handicap where he again was held back and the rear of the field until just before the stretch where he made his move and went on to win by two lengths.

At 9/5 odds is Journeyman (Seeking The Gold x A.P. Indy x Deputy Minister), who is owned by kiri. The seven year old homebred veteran has been lightly raced with a total of thirty-one career starts and an impressive eighteen wins and career earnings amounting to over two million dollars. The horses most recent start came in April during the Grade II Kentucky Breeders Bowl Sprint where the horse was held off the pace in eleventh and never fired in the race, finishing a disappointing ninth despite running a speed figure of one hundred. The horses most recent win came in early February during the Grade III Whirlaway Cap where he was held off the pace in tenth but urged to go after horses much sooner in this start and went on win the race by two and one-fourth lengths with an impressive speed figure of one hundred eleven.

In the fourth post is Dornish March (Seeking The Gold x Nijinsky II x Blushing Groom (FR)), who is trained by jonsnow2. The four year old bay colt has been lightly raced with a total of nineteen career starts including six wins and four places. His most recent start came over eight and a half furlongs in Oregon during the ungraded Cornholio Neck Handicap where he stayed behind and stalked in second until just before the stretch where he took command of the pace and went on to win by one-fourth of a length. To date, the colt has won four races in a row; two ungraded stakes and an allowance caliber start in Germany, all over eight and a half furlongs on the dirt. This will be the colts first start with graded company.

Breaking mid-pack will be Tell Me When To Go (Medaglia D’Oro x Two Punch x Tom Rolfe), who is trained and owned by romeshome. The four year old light gray colt has been lightly raced with a total of fifteen lifetime starts. The impressive colts most recent start came here in California during a ten furlong allowance caliber race on a sloppy track. The colt broke decently and began to pick off other horses immediately, going on to take the win by three lengths with a speed figure of ninety-seven. The colt’s most recent graded start came in March, also here in California, during the Grade I California Handicap, where he finished a well beaten eleventh.

Next is Nagasaki (IRE) (Giant’s Causeway (IRE) x Fusaichi Pegasus x A.P. Indy), who is owned and trained by casino. The three year old chestnut has had a total of twelve lifetime starts with eight finishes on the board. His most recent start came here in California during the Grade II Chief Snow Handicap over nine furlongs in which he was pulled to near the back of the pack early on in the race and sent up to challenge the front runners in the stretch, taking the lead and winning the race by two lengths. His previous start, the Grade II Heat Less Stakes, also resulted in a win.

Longshot Bird Of Paradise (Empire Maker x Theatrical (IRE) x Fire Maker), out of the stakes running dam Allen’s Fire (IRE), is next. The five year old bay horse is owned and trained by resting and has had a total of thirty-six lifetime starts with a total of two wins. The horses most recent start came here in California during the twelve furlong Grade I San Francisco Captain Handicap on the turf where he was held back in eighth and only drifted back as the race progressed, finishing a well distanced eleventh, back by more then twenty-seven lengths. The horses most recent win came in May of last year during an off-track claiming race here in California where he was held closer to the pace in fourth and pressured to confront horses before the stretch, going on to win by three and one-fourth lengths with a speed figure of eighty-two.

Following is Death Alley Driver (Gone West x Northern Dancer x Buckpasser), who is trained and owned by sdmf5. The four year old bay colt has had a total of twenty races including five wins, all on the dirt. The colts most recent start came in New York in the Grade I Billy and Jimmy Stakes where he was held far off the pace back in twelfth and moved up just before the stretch to challenge the front runners, going on to win the race by one and one-fourth lengths with a lifetime best speed figure of one hundred nine.

Breaking from the far outside will be Chain Reaction (Mt.Livermore x Chief’s Crown x Icecapade), who is trained by zonabear. The four year old bay colt has been very lightly raced with only a total of six lifetime starts, two of which have resulted in wins. The colts most recent start came in North Carolina during an allowance caliber race over nine furlongs in which he was held back in eighth and began to pick off other horses early in the race, crossing the wire fourth, back by four and one-fourth lengths. The colts most recent win came in early March during an allowance caliber race in Mississippi where the colt was held closer to the pace in third and went on to challenge in the stretch, moving on to win by two and one-half lengths.