Full field for The GIII Count Fingers Sprint
A full field for this G3 dirt sprint with a variety of running styles and a close finish promised. There are a number of front runners so it should be a furious battle from the start, but look out for those late bombers over the last furlong. The runners are:
Forty Yard Bomb
Trainer: chibound
(Forty Niner x
Odds: 6/1 Earnings: 189,717 Runs/Wins: 27/10
A 5yo horse from Fabman Farms and bred from an F class mare. An experienced horse that has really begun to fly this year winning all 3 of his races so far. This is his first graded start so it will be interesting to see if he can maintain that form when it counts. As a blistering front runner he will be very hard to pin back.
Thunder Cass
Trainer: zortrails
(Rahy x Caerleon x Cassaleria)
Odds: 23/1 Earnings: 61,884 Runs/Wins: 17/5
A 7yo scratch bred horse from Ajm Racing. Very inexperienced for his age and he hasn’t even had a stakes run before taking on this major challenge. He’s had a decent start to the year but this will probably be his undoing.
Trainer: honeyj
(Storm Cat x Mr. Prospector x A.P. Indy)
Odds: 10/1 Earnings: 205,840 Runs/Wins: 15/10
A 4yo scratch bred colt from Bob123g Stables. He won his last 4 races as a 3yo but has found life a little tougher in 2008, despite a couple of good place performances. His last race went very badly by his standards, so he will need to do something special to enable him to bounce back. He’ll be tracking the leaders hoping for a clear run come the straight.
Lightbeam
Trainer: gradeone
(Storm Cat x Allen’s Prospect x Majestic Light)
Odds: 9/1 Earnings: 200,812 Runs/Wins: 32/9
A 5yo horse from More Evil Than The Evil Empire! and bred from a G class mare by cdragon. A consistent allowance performer who has failed to make the leap into stakes racing in the past. He’s dipped his toes into graded races once before with no success, but on a positive note he comes here in good form and could make the places with a little good fortune.
Chick Webb
Trainer: drbydude
(Distorted Humor x Gilded Time x Forty Niner)
Odds: 9/1 Earnings: 176,033 Runs/Wins: 22/5
A 5yo horse from Kiddman Stables and bred from a D class mare. A mare who comes here in reasonable form. Her only run of 2008 was perhaps a little disappointing over 7 furlongs but I think she prefers this shorter distance so may improve a lot for that run. Likes to make a late run but needs a jockey with good timing,
Scat Brat Cat(KY)
Trainer: alroman
(
Odds: 5/1 Earnings: 197,640 Runs/Wins: 23/6
A 4yo colt from Alroman Stables and bred from a G class mare. The favourite in this race and he has the figures to justify it. He won his last run with a very late run so the speed horses here will hold no fears for him – though he should be very careful not to underestimate them. Connections will be expecting at least his first top three showing in a graded race this time.
Top Notch Hero(KY)
Trainer: tmaria
(Distorted Humor x Capote x Cure The Blues)
Odds: 16/1 Earnings: 177,060 Runs/Wins: 25/6
A 4yo scratch bred colt from Boogie Woogie Stables. His trainer still seems to be unsure of his best distance after 25 runs and so he has not really spent as much time over this trip as his number of runs may suggest. He’s another late runner and could find himself seriously outpaced in the early stages and I’m not convinced he will be able to make up the ground needed.
Ripleys’s Sunday
Trainer:
(Tale Of The Cat x Sunday Silence x Nijinsky II)
Odds: 25/1 Earnings: 34,597 Runs/Wins: 14/4
A 5yo horse from Lexington Stables and based on a C class horse (Georgia Nijinsky). There’s a lot to like about this horse who will probably improve in this race, however that may not be enough on the day. His previous 2 graded starts were unremarkable and he may suffer again at the hands of some pretty fast sprinters here again. He’s only had 14 runs so there will be plenty more chances in the future.
Echelon(KY)
Trainer: sdmf1
(Woodman x Sunday Silence x Storm Cat)
Odds: 12/1 Earnings: 171,702 Runs/Wins: 18/4
A 4yo colt from Black Label Stables and bred from an E class mare by pg48. He did a good job in allowances for his previous trainer never failing to get a check in his first 11 runs … and then was inexplicably put in the auction just as he seemed to be improving. I don’t know how much he cost his new owner but I am sure he was delighted with the purchase, although the colt hasn’t quite performed as well as he may have hoped. With just one win for his new stable so far, he’s looked fairly consistent but is perhaps a bit too one-paced for the big races. If he’s looked after he may well start coming good later this year, or maybe like some others in this race, as a 5yo.
Sobron(KY)
Trainer: palmisland
(Unbridled’s Song x
Odds: 9/1 Earnings: 219,890 Runs/Wins: 22/8
A 4yo scratch bred colt from Rafa. Another interesting 4yo colt who put in his best performance over 6 furlongs towards the end of last year but has been racing over longer since. He could be a real threat to the more fancied runners and could be there to pick up the pieces if they should relax too soon. He’ll be closely tracking the leaders until the straight – so watch out!
Delta Breeze
Trainer: sansanfarm
(Gulch x Unbridled x Nearctic)
Odds: 9/1 Earnings: 169,622 Runs/Wins: 27/6
A 7yo scratch bred mare from Sansanfarm Stables. The second mare in the race and another runner with very good place chances – if not overall victory. She won her first race as a 2yo but pretty much missed out when she was 4 and 5, running in just 4 races. Whatever the problem was seems to be far behind her now as she finished off last season in brilliant form. Whether she can carry that form over to 2008 is, for me, the big question as I feel she may have benefited from a prep race before being thrown into a graded challenge. A fast starter who, if all goes right, will be in the top 2 places for the majority of the race.
Cherokee Chief
Trainer: bearcub
(Cherokee Run x Raise A Man x Bold Owl(IRE))
Odds: 17/1 Earnings: 127,265 Runs/Wins: 30/5
A 5yo horse from The CVBear Racing Empire and bred from a G class mare. A respectable allowance runner who gets his first graded run – in fact he hasn’t competed in a stakes race for over 18 months. Had a nightmare over 7 furlongs in his only race so far this year and looks to be a little outclassed here too.
Haloatrical(IRE)
Trainer: sjmeola4
(Theatrical(IRE) x Halo x Fappiano)
Odds: 6/1 Earnings: 412,222 Runs/Wins: 26/10
A 5yo scratch bred horse from Sjmeola Racing. A very successful runner who has been concentrating on turf of late, although he has won a stakes race on dirt in the past. He has won his last two runs and was particularly impressive last time, and although this switch to dirt looks a strange move he has managed to handle it well in the past. Yet another front runner who will look to dominate his opposition from wire-to-wire.
White Raiment(IRE)
Trainer: revelation
(Refuse To
Odds: 11/1 Earnings: 183,357 Runs/Wins: 15/7
A 4yo scratch bred colt from Revelation Stables. Consistency seems to be this colts middle name as he has managed 7 straight 100+ SP’s in a row, and has notched up 4 wins in the process. He may find himself a little stretched in his first graded run but could be the sleeping giant of the race as he doesn’t seem to mind coming from slightly off of the pace if necessary. .
Summary
I tried to keep track of the runners and their chances on my fingers but found that 5 simply weren’t enough.- so talking my toes into account I reckon this will be a close finish but Haloatrical(IRE) may just have enough gas in the tank to hold off all those late challengers.