Nine Femmes Try Great Dane – G1
It’s funny what happens sometimes at the Sim’s virtual entry boxes…
Seems Denmark decided to put up half a mil and a Grade 1 trophy for older females, and almost nobody noticed! For a couple days, officials at Copenhagen Downs were wondering if they were going to have to call on the *CPU trainer to throw something into the mix. That embarrassment was evaded as a few entries trickled in; however, the field that was scraped up is quite a bit below the average in total quality for a big-money Grade 1 race.
Officials do have this to hang their hat on: #3-ranked WONT BE GONE LONG is here! A bit surprisingly, the CPU makes her a co-favorite at a lukewarm 5/2 with #51-ranked WOUNDED WARRIOR. WONT BE GONE LONG is the only Graded winner here, and she’s won five of ’em, all at this exact distance. Can anyone deal with that?
Well, eight others are here to try her and the fast track on for size… Let’s have a look at the field for the Grade 1 Great Dane Stakes.
HAYEK gets the rail and 12/1 odds, which should probably a good bit higher. What the heck was this owner thinking, putting this decent claim/allowance runner in a Grade 1? Well that nutty owner is me… And I have no idea what the heck I tried this for. The 5yo Arch mare resides in my ocalafarms stable and is sharp right now, but I’m clearly shooting for the moon. A top-half finish (and the hefty check that would come with it) is about the best I can hope for.
DECADENT DESIGN goes off at 6/1, and has been 1st or 2nd in 9 of her 12 career starts. Unfortunately, she has tried stakes racing twice, and missed the board both times. Trained by mtklaz, this 4yo Medaglio D’Oro filly looks overmatched. She’ll need to fire a big one to compete here. Is that 13th start a lucky one?
BILLY BLUE CANNON comes here on a hot streak, with three straight wins including her only stakes try. However, that stakes was light, with two of the three she beat now residing in the “Retired Mare” ranks. The 5yo High Chaparral mare has a lot to prove in the class department; the william flag-bearer gets 9/1 odds.
WONT BE GONE LONG is co-favored at 5/2, and is by far the most proven Graded competitor here, with five Graded wins, all at today’s 14 furlongs. The only caveat is the 5yo Awesome Again mare ran poorly in her last, though it was a quarter-mile shorter than what she sees today. Trainer supapogs7 has grabbed the top jockey for what seems should be an easy win for his fine runner.
WOUNDED WARRIOR is an up-and-coming 4yo Bernardini filly who will need her very best to live up to her 5/2 co-favorite status. The lenny2 trainee is tough and consistent, but takes on a real toughie. Very likely the best of the rest, however. She is ranked #51 despite having no stakes wins… Now I’m starting to wonder if this division is a bit thin at the moment.
NINE FOR FORTY ONE is a 5yo Rock Of Gibraltar mare who goes off at 10/1 for trainer bmoney. This is another stakes-racing virgin… One try, a decent third-place run. Running pretty well lately, but will have to fire a big one to compete here.
BERN NOTICE is a 4yo Bernardini filly who seems to be just now finding her best stride, but takes a huge class-ladder climb here. The theagakhan trainee has tried graded stock once, and it went poorly. That race was a tough 2-miler vs. some tough ones, so it might be excusable. She gets 8/1 odds here, and is not without a shot at a podium finish.
HALLOWEEN NIGHT may have finally found her best racing conditions, a long fast-track dirt stakes. The 4yo Point Given filly gets 8/1 odds for pornstar, and looks to better her solid run on the grass last time out where she didn’t back down at all while facing some established turf specialists. A good shot at the podium here, too.
STAR OF DESTINY is the only 3yo here, and the Montjeu filly has run fairly well vs. older in her last two tries. The super4 trainee is another with a strong chance at hitting the board if she finds the distance to her liking.
Okay… I’ve pretty much given away who I like to win this thing… If I had made the odds instead of the CPU, I’d have my choice WONT BE GONE LONG at even-money.
WOUNDED WARRIOR should be able to handle the rest and grab 2nd, and my choice to win the 3rd-place crapshoot is HALLOWEEN NIGHT.
Good luck all!