This week Indiana holds the running of the Grade III Special Bid Stakes over 6 Furlongs on Dirt.The Special Bid Stakes is for 3yo’s with a purse of $100,000. This will be the first start for all these horses as 3yo’s being the first week of the year. It will be interesting this Year to see which horses haven’t gone on and which ones have improved and matured. Its always an interesting time of the year and luckily this race has attracted some very talented 3yo’s. You only have to look at the field with the #5 3yo in the Dirt Sprint Division. On top of that the majority of the rest of the field have very impressive records and look to be up and comers for the year to watch out for.
Quarter To Three is a 3yo Colt by Bustin Stones from the estreli barn. Like many in this race Quarter To Three has an impressive record of 3starts, 2 wins and a second. This horse has plenty of potential but its hard to stack him up against the other in the field. He likes to sit just off the pace towards midfield and has a good turn of foot that he used last time out to win an Allowance with an 84 Speed Figure. May surprise but a place chance at best.
Jumpin And Alert is a 3yo Colt by Jump Start running for trainer dqrsong. Another impressive race record this horse has with 4 starts, 3wins and a second. Trainer dqrsong has taken an effective patient route with this colt so far in his career. After winning his Maiden on debut and falling just short in an Allowance he was given two starts in Allowances to build up confidence and resulted in two wins by smallish margins but Speed Figures were above average. This is a very nice colt, I think a Ungraded Stakes may have been a better move but definitely a chance on his best form.
Jumping from barrier three is Click, who is by Indian Haven and runs for the michaelroy barn. This colt put three wins in a row together before a last start third in the Grade III The Los Angeles Prevue over 7 furlongs on dirt. Click is only a new comer onto the graded stakes scene but definitely up to the class of this race. He likes to come from the back so watch out for him late.
Out of gate four is Tourist Attraction a 3yo colt for trainer sledge by Sightseeing out of a Saint Ballado mare. He is a three time winner including a stakes win. He broke his Stakes duck two starts back leading all the way before jumping up in grade last start finishing a respective fourth in the Grade III The Los Angeles Prevue just behind Click who is also in this race. This is a quality stakes colt and I think Graded Stakes is beyond him at the moment this is a slightly weak field so he may be able to place.
Punch The Captain jumps from Barrier five and is at 20/1 for trainer racetrader. He is a son of Henny Hughes and a one time winner but I can’t rate him here. Most Allowances are won with a speed figure over 80 and this colt’s highest speed figure is 78. He is graded stakes placed but I can’t see him figuring here in anyway.
D Gann rides the 13/1 shot Projectionist who jumps from gate six for trainer seedly2. This horse is a bit of an unknown quality coming into this race. First of all she is a filly taking on the boys which his hard to judge and she has never ran on Dirt. Being by Excellent Art you would presume she is a turf horse which she has shown with two Grade I placings in her last three starts. You could say she is the best or at least one of the best horses in the races I’m just not sure she will handle the dirt.
The purpledaze barn’s entry in the Special Bid Stakes is a Gone West 3yo named Western Fury. Western Fury has had 5 starts for 2 wins and 1 second with earnings nearing $40,000. Western Fury broke his maiden in his second start stringing together two wins in a row. In his first stakes attempt he ran a gallant second not running out the 7.5 furlong trip but was still entered in the Grade III The Sam’s Town Delta Jackpot where he finished second last being outclassed and again not running out the 8.5 furlongs. Back to 6 furlongs is a smart move because its obviously where he runs best and it will be interesting to see if he leads or settles off the pace. Could be a chance here but hasn’t been tested in a sprint yet.
The big shot of the race is Any Given Cat trained out of Metallinut’s invasorstc stable. This 3yo Colt by Any Given Saturday has had 10 starts for 6 wins and 2 second with earnings over $400,000. Any Given Cat’s major advantage is his race experience which is much more than most in this race. He is ranked #5 in the Dirt Sprint Division for 3-year-old Males which is enough to put him as the top shot in the race. He won his first 3 starts including the Grade III Television Stakes in Kentucky one of the big early 2yo races. He placed in his next couple starts in Graded Company and even won another Graded Stakes before failing with the step up in distance. He failed miserably in 2 starts over 8 furlongs but trainer Metallinut knew how good a sprinter he is and switched him back to the 6 Furlong URC Day At The Races Allowance which he returned to form impressively with a Wire to Wire victory with a 92 Speed Figure. Any Given Cat hasn’t faced the top 3yo Sprinters since August, so its hard to line up his form. But he has a great sprinter and should be hard to beat here.
Candy Fleet is a 3yo Colt by Candy Ride trained out of the lionsfan barn. Candy Fleet has only managed 1 win from 6 starts and hasn’t won in awhile. This colt broke his Maiden in his second start but hasn’t had a victory since. He followed up with two Allowance placings but hasn’t responded to being thrown in the deep end. His last two starts were in Graded Company and he did manage a 5th over 6.5 furlongs but last time out he finished down the track. This horse definitely needs the sprint journey I just don’t think he is good enough to compete in this race.
Number ten is Spring Storms a 3yo Colt by Spring At Last and is a 7/2 equal favourite. In his last three starts Spring Storms has won two Graded Stakes including a Grade I three starts back. Last time out he put in an amazing run to lead all the way in the Grade III The Los Angeles Prevue with a 97 speed figure. In that race he beat two opponents in this race which is good form for this race. This colt has the class to beat any of these but I think 7 furlongs is his distance, not 6 furlongs. Despite that, I still think he is one of the better chances here.
Lay Over is a 3yo Colt by After Market out of a War Chant mare. This runner from the kody barn has had 5 starts, 3 wins and a second for earnings exceeding $100,000. Lay Over was an early bloomer, winning unimpressively on debut back in April but was definitely a bit green because he improved out of sight to win a Stakes with an 85 Speed Figure which was huge for a 2yo in May. He fell just short in the Montana Futurity but his two starts since then have been in Ungraded Stakes for a win and a second. No doubting this colt’s quality but the major concern is that he likes to roll along in the lead but can’t seem to finish his races often getting run down or nearly being run down. Good chance though.
From the widest gate is Larrythestableguy a 3yo Colt trained by cmd and by Medaglia Dóro. This colt has won two races from seven starts with earnings just under $30,000. His last three starts have been on dirt including a win over 4.5 furlongs and a stakes third. This colt doesn’t have the quality of many of these but isn’t the worst horse in the field. 11/1 is still under’s so I wouldn’t have my money on him today.
Selections
Spring Storms
Any Given Cat
Projectionist