DPCD7 Penn Oaks
‘Twas the night before Champions Day, when all through the stall
Not at thoroughbred was stirring, not large nor small
The bridles were hung in the stable with care,
With hopes that winner’s roses they soon would wear.
The jockeys were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of the finish line danced in their heads;
And AFC in his cap, the day’s generous host,
Had just settled down with coffee and toast.
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
He sprang from his chair to see what was the matter.
Away to the window he flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash
When, what to his wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh and eight tiny reindeer.
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
He knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.
More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;
“Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! on Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!”
And then, in a twinkling, AFC heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As AFC drew in his hand, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;
A bundle of goodies he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.
His eyes — how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.
As St. Nick walked up and down past each horse
sugar cubes, carrots and apples appeared in stockings of course,
St. Nick whispered to each as he passed,
“Be strong, start quick, race hard, race fast.”
Thirteen horses were in slumber getting ready to race
Against many ranked horses, tough competition they face.
Each filly with hopes for her career best
To be the winner of this 12 furlong test.
Finishing he lay his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;
He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, as he drove out of sight,
“Happy Racing to all, and to all a good-night.”
PP 1 VILLA DE LA ROSE (AUS) (TESTA ROSSA (AUS) x UNBRIDLED’S SONG x NIJINSKY II) bred and trained by appower (Shamrock Stables, 13%) Odds: 20 to 1
First up we have Villa De La Rose, ready and able,
owned and trained by Blazing Saddles founder MTK, of Shamrock Stable.
Wait, the introduction is done, I don’t have to rhyme anymore. J This lightly raced three year old is making her second attempted in graded company. Her first attempt was at the Equinics where she finished ninth in a 9 furlong race. She has finished in the money in both of her overnight stakes attempts, but is still looking for her first stakes win. She also is looking for her first triple digit speed figure, which will likely be needed to win this race. Her last time out was in a conditioned allowance race at this distance and she finished second. Villa De La Rose is the third ranked horse for sire Testa Rossa’s 2007 crop and he hasn’t produced a graded winner since his 2005 crop. A lot will need to happen for this one to win.
PP 2 MONOTHEIST (IRE) (PEINTRE CELEBRE (IRE) x WOODMAN x SEATTLE SLEW) bred by zledwith and trained by simhispano (Simhispano Stables, 23%) Odds: 41 to 1
Next we have another long shot in the field with Monotheist. This three year old daughter of Peintre Celebre has only finished out of the money 4 times in her 15 race career; twice on dirt tracks and once at a distance she didn’t seem to like. She knows how to get the job done. Late last summer her trainer tried adding almost a half mile to her race distance and she really blossomed with a nice jump in speed and two stakes wins in a row. Her last race was a full two miles and she didn’t care to go that long. Her slow speed in that race is contributing to her long odds here. Dropping her back down to 12 furlongs for her graded debut looks to be a good decision. She was just shy of the century mark in both her stakes wins. All but one of her wins have come wire to wire, so a post position close to the rail should suit her.
PP 3 PELENNIOR FIELDS (KY) (ARAGORN (IRE) x GALILEO (IRE) x NIJINSKY II) bred by lasthope1 and trained by stormboot2 (Dixiedotco Racing, 26%) Odds: 9 to 1
Next we have the first of our 7 top 20 horses in the field. This number 2 ranked offspring of Aragorn is also ranked number 2 in the turf long route. She had a beautiful 5 race win streak for starts on firm turf at the beginning of the year, including a victory at the G1-Adelaide Oaks. Her winning streak ended at the Oaks de English where she finished behind the number one ranked long turf router, Day of Triumph (the only top 5 horse not in the field today). Unfortunately she hasn’t won since her streak ended. She has put up some impressive speeds and faced tough competition, but has only been in the money twice in the last 6 months. She likes the early lead and will need a great start out of the gates here.
PP 4 FINANCIAL IMPACT (DEEP IMPACT x DEPUTY MINISTER x BUCKPASSER) bred and trained by okiedokie (Red Dirt Runners, 10%) Odds: 5 to 1
Out of fourth position we have Financial Impact, ranked fourth in the 3yo long route division. In her 12 career starts she has 3 stakes wins, a G1 win, and an impressive third place finish in the G1-Breeders Bowl Turf Distaff. There are 4 other horses that were in that BB race and this daughter of Deep Impact was the top finisher. She put up her career high of 112 in that race and held her own against very tough competition. She has a very versatile racing style, she can run just off the pace, she has shown she has some late speed, although she should be wary of getting too far back and she has even wired two fields. The way this race is shaping up so far racing just off the pace might be her best option. Let the horse inside of her fight for the lead, but not get too far back. This one looks to be in good form and could be the one to beat.
PP 5 SISSON’S LIGHT (KY) (NORTH LIGHT (IRE) x LEAR FAN x NIJINSKY II) bred and trained by deathstar (Binzama Stables, 12%) Odds: 8 to 1
Next is Sisson’s Light, a daughter of North Light. She is one of the more experienced racers with 22 career starts. She has finished first or second almost three fourths of the time and has three stakes victories. Unfortunately her two worst races were the two times she tried graded company, so she may be struggling with the step up in class. In May she tried the G1-Adelaide Oaks where she finished behind 4 others in today’s field. In August she tried a 9 furlong G1 in the Equinics and the distance could have been more of a factor than the class. Like many in the field she likes the early lead, but doesn’t need it. She is coming off a win at this distance, but seems to be alternating triple digits speeds with those in the 90s and if she follows that pattern she won’t be hitting the century mark today.
PP 6 MENOZOBERRANZAN (ENG) (SAKHEE x RAHY x NIJINSKY II) bred by gr8bigsea and trained by lopo34 (Winterfell Racing, 16%) Odds: 9 to 1
Menozoberranzan had a nice win streak going this fall, three wins in a row including in her graded debut, the G3-Freiermuth Stakes where she put up her career high speed of 111 (one of the highest in the field) in her wire to wire victory. All of her 6 career victories have come wire to wire and with so many in the field wanting the early lead that could be quite a hurdle for her. She has only raced this distance once, but it was one of her more decisive wins, over three lengths ahead, so I think she likes the added distance. It took quite a few races for Menzoberranzan and her trainer at Winterfell Racing to decide if she would be a sprinter or a router, but once she found her grove in routes she has shown great improvement.
PP 7 FEAR ME COMING (KY) (WAR CHANT x SATTLE SLEW x HAIL TO REASON) bred and trained by pincay (Qwikvett Stables, 11%) Odds: 10 to 1
Fear Me Coming, the first of two daughters of War Chant in the field is next. She was an early bloomer. By her sixth race she had 3 wins, including a stakes victory and 2 seconds. Unfortunately she has only won once since then in a soft allowance sprint last summer. That win also came on a yielding turf track, which she won’t have here. In her four races since that win she has come close, with two thirds and a close second at the G1-QE2 Challenge so there is definitely hope that she wasn’t just a 2 year old racer. She is able to come from behind and in a race with a lot of early speed that is a huge advantage for her. This will be her first try at this distance, but experienced jockey J Caves should be able to help her know when to make her move.
PP 8 SAKE (KY) (DYNAFORMER x DANZIG x ALYDAR) bred and trained by 2tohold (More Evil Than The Evil Empire, 15%) Odds: 9 to 2
Post position 8 is the More Evil Than The Evil Empire’s Sake. This scratchbred bred daughter of Dynaformer is the 7th ranked filly in this division. She finished ahead of 3 others in the field in her 5th place finish at the Breeders Bowl, but behind Financial Impact. She has proven herself in this class winning graded once and finishing in the money two other times. She has also proven herself on the surface and distance, her last two wins were 12 furlongs on turf. She can close or race towards the front, but in this field a late move might be just what she needs. Hard to argue with is favorite.
PP 9 INFLAMMABLE (GER) (MONSON (GER) x COZZENE x CAERLEON) bred by pygmalion and trained by aredneck (Aredneck Stables, 18%) Odds: 41 to 1
Inflammable is making quite a jump in class today. Not only is this her graded debut, but she hasn’t raced in overnight or listed stakes either. Since her third start where her trainer at Aredneck Stables switched her to turf she hasn’t finished out of the money and has won over half of her races. Her trainer has been slowly stretching her out and she has handled each increase with ease. Today will be her first time at 12 furlongs. She has won all of her races wire to wire, so not only will she have to contend with others wanting the lead, but also the jump in class. Could be quite a challenge for her.
PP 10 CAVALIER CHANT (KY) (WAR CHANT x KINGMAMBO x CAERLEON) bred by grandarmee and trained by aggots (Braint Breeding & Racing Empire, 11%) Odds: 12 to 1
Next we have the fifth ranked filly in the division, Cavalier Chant. This is the second filly in the race who is a daughter of War Chant. She had a very successful 2 year old campaign, never finishing worse than second on her turf tries. In 2008 she has been exclusively racing in stakes and graded company except her last time out. She has 5 stakes wins and one graded win so far in 2008. When racing on turf she has only finished out of the money three times, unfortunately two of those three times were in the last three months, so she might not be in the best form coming into this race. She definitely likes this distance, the majority of her wins we are this distance, but she is another early speed horse and will have a lot of horsesto fight for the lead out of the gates. She has won quite a few wire to wire, but doesn’t need the lead and can run just off the pace. That should help her in this field.
PP 11 ZANDRAMAS (IRE) (SADLER’S WELLS x KINGMAMBO x SEATTLE SLEW) bred and trained by ceclaim9 (Royal Belgian Kempen Farm, 16%) Odds: 16 to 1
Zandramas is the least experience in the field, making only her 10 career start here. After debuting as a three year old she made the jump to the G1-Adelaide Oaks on only her fourth start. Although she finished sixth, it was a good race for such a jump in class. In fact that race and another G1 over 2 miles are the only times this daughter of Sadler’s Wells has finished out of the money. A overnight or listed stakes might have made more sense here, but her career high and last time out speeds are right in the mix with the rest of the field, so if she can handle the class jump this time she could definitely be in the mix. One huge thing in her favor with this field is her ability to close late. In her last race she was 10 lengths back at one point and she blazed down the stretch for the win. With another race like that she could be the surprise winner here.
PP 12 VAANDA (KY) (HENNESSY x ALLEGED x NASHUA) bred and trained by zoshka (Rafa Stables, 14%) Odds: 5 to 1
Tied for second favorite is Vaanda, ranked 15th in this division. She is coming off two overnight wins, both at 14 furlongs. She has only finished out of the money three times in her turf tries, but those all came in graded attempts, so class might be an issue for her. She does have a second place finish in the G2-Bluto Cup last July, so she can be successful at this level. Coming off two stakes wins I think the jump to graded this time should provide better results. She has been racing at distances ranging from 8 to 14 furlongs and she seems to like the 14 furlong length. She has been winning by over 3 lengths and I don’t think the decreased distance will bother her here.
PP 13 FLAMMEN SEHEN (GER) (MONSUN (GER) x IN THE WINGS (GB) x SHIRLEY HEIGHTS) bred and trained by reacher (Given Stables: Fire and Blood, 22%) Odds: 7 to 1
Last we have Flemmen Sehen, the highest ranked filly in the field at number 2. This filly is a lightly raced daughter of Monsun who is hoping for a change of luck this race. She has been successful at the graded level, winning a G1 and a G2, but her last two races, two G1 tries, were not good, finishing ninth and tenth with a combine total of 30 lengths back. If she can break out of her funk she could definitely win this. She has the class, the speed, the experience in this class and at this distance. And best of all, she is a closer and there are not many in this field. If she is on her game she will be hard to beat.
Morning Line: Sake, Financial Impact and Vaanda (tied), Flammen Sehen and Sisson’s Light
Divisional Ranking: Flammen Sehen, Pelennor Fields, Financial Impact, Cavalier Chant, and Siison’s Light
Last time out speed factor: Financial Impact, Sake, Sisson’s Light, Vaanda, and Cavalier Chant
Career high speed factor: Flammen Sehen and Financial Impact (tied), Menzoberranzan and Vaanda (tied) and Sake
Kloie’s picks: Flammen Sehen, Financial Impact, Sake, Zandramas and Pelennor Fields