Five Show Up for Turf Event

A mile and one eighth
Firm Turf
$50,000
All horses, 3 years old and up

Stakes History:   First year offered

The names of some stakes events are both humorous and odd.  The thought of who was going to be named the “King Pimp” after this race kept drifting into my mind.  After pondering the reasoning for this event, I elected to keep it straight and less provocative. 

So with that in mind, let me begin by stating that – Five veterans will hook up in the KING WENCH(BRAZ) Memorial on Saturday at Volunteer Downs in Tennessee.

 KING WENCH(BRAZ)’s career, covered a span of five years and seventy-one career starts.  He collected over $130,000 in earnings, while racing mainly in claimers.

As for the 2005 Field for The KING WENCH(BRAZ) Memorial:     

Danzig x Seattle Slew x Mr. Propector

Being a winner of ten races in twenty- six starts, and closing in on the “half-million” in earning, one could say that SLEW CAN has met the expectations of his breeding.  Over the last half of this racing season, the talented four years old colt has put together a string of sub par performances.  His last outing was a 27 length defeat in the Grade I. The Crazy Horse Classic, and ownership is looking for signs that he is ready to bounce back to the form that captured seven races during the last twelve months.  As for this race, how SLEW CAN breaks out of the gate and his position at the first turn is important.  His best running is when he is sitting a couple of lengths off the pace.  Races that saw him fall further back during the early stages, usually ends up with an overall disappointing finish.  Comes into this race as the long shot, but IF he can return to that early 2005 performance level, he should be a strong contender.

Miesque’s Son  x Kris S.

2005 has not been rewarding for this six years old horse.  He has not won since late in the 2004 racing season, and one has to wonder if age has creep in and become a factor.  One must give the ownership of SANTA CLAUS II some credit.  He has not backed down from stiff competition.  Many of his defeats in 2005 have been to the hands of some graded stakes winners.  His running style is to come from mid-pack, but with only one of the entries showing any early speed, jockey-L Congieabner may choose to stay a bit closer to the pace.

Danehill x Jade Hunter

After a few sprint distance trips on grass, this nice four years old colt will be trying to stretch it out again.  This race has no obvious pace setter within the group of five, so DANE’S AFFAIR may find himself on the front.  He has shown a preference to be running “near” the front and coming from shorter trips, DANE’S AFFAIR may be eager to break.

Crafty Prospector x Seeking the Gold

He is a late runner that will be hoping for some pace on the front before he makes his charge.  I would suspect that he too will be lying closer to the pace than usual.  His last two races have been disappointing, but a return to earlier form, plus assistance up front could return him to the winner’s circle.

Touch Gold x Secretariat

Morning line favorite- BUT untested on the turf.  The distance has been a favorite of his in the past, but one has yet to see how the footing will affect his effort.  Breeding (Touch Gold) indicates a strong preference toward the dirt, so until he proves himself, I am a bit cautious on this pick.

No one stands out as the horse to catch in this event- which may benefit DANE’S AFFAIR.  SECRET’S UNTOUCHED is an unknown on the turf, so his morning line odds may prove to be off.  CRAFTFLY’S SEEKER is a late runner, so two scenarios may exist-  little speed and CRAFTFLY’S SEEKER may stay closer to the pace and pounce on the overall lack of speed, or he drifts back to several lengths back and his rally falls a bit short.   Even though the year 2005 has not been very good to SANTA CLAUS II, one must remember that he is still dangerous at this stakes level.  My selections are:

DANE’S AFFAIR      CRAFTFLY’S SEEKER       SANTA CLAUS

 -deajai