A strong 5 horse field in The DOWN IN A DEPUTY Handicap Stakes
The DOWN IN A DEPUTY Handicap Stakes
A mile and one eighth
Firm Turf
$65,000
Fillies and mares, 4 years old and up
Only 5 runners have entered this 9.5 furlong turf race but it looks like a particularly competitive heat. The top two in the betting look extremely tough but this is a field with some real quality so anything can happen. The runners are:
Mercy
Trainer: teamkeanna
(Merce Cunningham x Encino x Jeblar)
Odds: 75/1 Earnings: 290,614 Runs/Wins: 65/9
A scratch bred 9yo mare from Teamkeanna Stables originally bred by callaway. It’s rare to get such big odds in a 5 horse race – especially one who ahs won so much money in the past. I think we can safely say that her best years are behind her now and her entry here is simply to get the easy 5th place purse without causing too much damage or strain and I just hope she manages to finish before next weeks races are due to start because none of the other runners will show much mercy to her.
Forty Rahys(KY)
Trainer: wildfit
(Rahy x Galileo(IRE) x Forty Niner)
Odds: 7/5 Earnings: 169,024 Runs/Wins: 10/5
A 4yo filly bred by Silverny99 Stables from a G class mare. A good looking favourite who kicked off 2008 with a very comfortable stakes victory over this distance. All her racing was as a 3yo and I am sure that we can look forward to many more excellent runs over the coming year, though victory here is in no way assured.
Bald Reason(IRE)
Trainer: olebaldy
(High Chaparral (IRE) x Storm Cat x
Odds: 8/5 Earnings: 181,657 Runs/Wins: 18/5
A scratch bred 4yo filly from Olebaldy Stables. Slightly more experienced than the favorite and almost certainly the biggest danger to her. She certainly has looked pretty consistent and her 4th place in a G3 at the back end of last year certainly underlines her class. Her one run in 2008 was on an off track so I would expect a marked improvement here and a mighty battle between two fillies that have very similar running styles.
One Point Three(IRE)
Trainer: reevejohn
(Not Impossible (IRE) x
Odds: 3/1 Earnings: 131,322 Runs/Wins: 23/6
a 4yo filly from Hancock-McGaughey Stables and based by unreal on a B class horse (Carson And Dane). She has been a very busy young filly who has probably promised more than she has delivered and her original owner finally lost patience with her allowing her to eventually be claimed away for just $15,000 . She immediately rewarded her new stable with a nice allowance win, and later a starter allowance, but has still yet to reach those promised heights. She is sure to give a good account of herself here and seems to prefer these smaller fields, but I am not convinced that she will do enough to beat the top two in the betting.
Lufthansa Heist(KY)
Trainer: domedriver
(Kingmambo x A.P. Indy x Sadler’s Wells)
Odds: 4/1 Earnings: 80,025 Runs/Wins: 8/3
A scratch bred 4yo filly from Afc Stables. Though most of her 3yo racing was on dirt she has proved a revelation this year winning her first two allowance races of 2008. This however will be a very much stiffer task and she will need to produce something particularly special to break into the top 3 places, something she is well capable of. Her late running style may prove a little risky in a race without a natural front runner but she will definitely add a little sparkle to the final few furlongs.
Summary
With four very nice 4yo’s all capable of doing the business on their day this could be a thriller in the latter stages. On paper the favorite, Forty Rahys(KY), seems to have enough in hand to beat off all her rivals but it is still early in the year and there are a few cobwebs that need blowing off, so be warned.