Milky Way Stakes
Milky Way Stakes
Grade II
9.5 F
Firm Turf
Fillies and Mares, 3 years old and up
Welcome to New Mexico as we prepare for the Milky Way Stakes. There are really talented young mares running in this one trying to take down the graded win. The field is made up of 12 capable horses and trainers that are looking to add or make history. With no clear front-runner it seems guaranteed we will have an interesting and fun race. Without further ado let’s meet the field.
1) Kepler Of Rainbow – 5/1 – bobo
Out of gate number 1 we have the well bred Kepler Of Rainbow (Rainbow Quest X Sadler’s Wells X Red Ransom) . In the last year she has notched 8 wins, including 3 graded stakes. The mare ran her career best speed of 107 at 9.5 furlongs earlier this year. She last ran in the G1 Yellow Submarine Stakes finishing 5th with a speed of 104 at 10 furlongs. Kepler Of Rainbow will likely make a late move in the race and sneak into the money to add to that 1.4 plus million earnings.
2) The Witching Hour – 5/1 – buffy8
This lightly raced mare has ran in 9 straight races with a speed of 100 or better. While she has only raced in 18 races she has managed to win 9 of those and earn just better than $890,000. In her last race she raced in the G1 Demona Handicap and had a disappointing finish of 7th with a speed of 101. This mare tends to do very well when she gets out early in the race, when she falls behind early she never makes a push. Look for The Witching Hour to get out early and have a serious shot at taking down another graded stakes win.
3) Desert Theatre – 12/1 – chloedawg2
Desert Theatre has yet to win beyond the allowance level. She has notched 4 wins in 21 races and has three 2nd place finishes at the graded level. In her last race she ran in the G1 Queen Ascot Stakes finishing 8th with a speed of 93 at 8 furlongs. She has only raced over 9 furlongs once and failed to perform well in that race. It seems like this will be another race where she has trouble competing to get in the money.
4) Rocky Performance – 7/1 – anzstable
This mare is making her graded debut. She has still yet to nail down that first stakes win, but with routine 100+ speeds and finally finding her distance it doesn’t appear to be too far off. Her best speeds have come at 8-9 furlongs so it will be interesting to see how she handles the bit of extra distance. In her last race she won an allowance with 104 speed which was at 9 furlongs. She will make a late push, but I doubt it will be enough to get her in the mix.
5) Vintage Smoke – 25/1 – acote2
This good looking 3 year old mare is still searching for the distance that makes her tick. Last time out she found 10 furlongs and her graded debut too much to handle. She ran in the G2 I’m Lost Handicap and finished 6th with a speed of 94. Her top speed of 101 at 9 furlongs will need to improve to give her a real shot at finishing in the money. All signs point to her still looking for her first graded finish in the money.
6) High Zafonic – 7/1 – webdesign
Every time High Zafonic runs at 9.5 furlongs on turf she always finishes in the money. She has only attempted it 3 times (her last 3 races), but they all led to speeds over 100. In her last race she ran in The Smart Cobra Challenge finishing 3rd with a speed of 106. She also won her first stakes race at 9.5 furlongs and is now chasing her first graded win at the same distance. Trainer webdesign certainly hopes to be rewarded for extending this horse out slowly to get her to peak at the right time.
7) Cosmic Heights – 10/1 – kool4katz
This filly’s niche really seems to be at 9.5 furlongs. She has never run well at 10 furlongs and at 9.5 she will put up some nice speeds, but not good enough to compete consistently at the graded level. In her last race she ran in The Smart Cobra Challenge finishing 9th with a speed of 92 at 9.5 furlongs. In her only graded race, which was at 10 furlongs, she finished with a speed of 87. She will find this field much too fast and will likely be near the back of the pack.
8) Lufthansa Heist – 6/1 – domedriver
This mare is beginning to come into her own at the turf routing races. Last time out she ran a blazing speed of 108 to get her 6th career win out of 17 races in an allowance race. If that type of speed is repeated she is a serious threat to win her graded debut. She has been a bit hit and miss with her speeds, but it looks like the 9-10 furlong distance will be her forte. I suspect the 108 will be difficult to repeat, but if she can come anywhere close to that speed she will be running towards the front.
9) Muncie Mambo – 7/1 – simonlee
In gate 9 we have Muncie Mambo the A.P. Indy mare that is making her graded debut. Last time out she notched her 2nd career stakes win in The Mother Wendy Challenge at 8.5 furlongs with a speed of 106, however it was an off track. She has not run well other than off conditions on the turf longer than 8.5 furlongs. She likes to make a late push at the end of the race, but she will come up short in this race.
10) Bad Kicks – 10/1 – verona
This mare is a former G1 winner. In her last time out she tried dirt again at 16 furlongs and it did not go well. She finished 11th with a speed of 86 in the G1 The Birthday Bash. The return to her routine distance and turf should serve her well. The three previous races on turf were all at 10 furlongs at which she topped the 100 speed mark every time. Bad Kicks should have enough speed to have a shot at sneaking in the money.
11) Drunk In Dixie – 16/1 – jbfarms
Drunk In Dixie has only broke the 100 speed mark once in her career. Last time out she ran in The Starke Ham Stakes and finished 5th with a speed of 95 at 13 furlongs. She has never won on the stakes or graded level. In her two graded races the best she has finished was 5th. She will need to find her stride to have a shot in this one. She will likely fall behind early and not be able to catch up to this much quicker field.
12) Fantastic Karie – 12/1 – beamnreasn
This Sadler’s Wells mare is making her graded debut. She has yet to win a stakes race and has only won 3 times in her 26 races. In her last race she ran a 97 to finish 2nd in an allowance race that was 9 furlongs. She has only topped the 100 speed mark twice in her career. She will struggle to keep up with the field as she likes to try and get out early and will be passed sooner rather than later in this one.
With that outstanding field it was tougher this week to make my picks, but nonetheless here they are. My picks are led by none other than Kepler Rainbow, the outstanding mare is looking to add to her graded stakes wins this year and seems poised to do so. My second pick goes to High Zafonic , she is lightly raced and rapidly improving, a combination that rarely fails. My last pick goes to Bad Kicks as she makes her return to the turf where she will run better and challenge the frontrunners in this one. The horses and trainers will make sure that this is a race to be remembered.
As always good luck to all the trainers involved in the race!