In a related story, no word yet if anyone’s knickers were alternatively bocked.
But I digress.
Here\u2019s your New York feature, for 3yo and older fillies & mares 1 1\/8 miles on the firm turf course. A purse of $150,000 is available to the contestants, but I suspect the \u201cGP\u201d or \u201cGSW\u201d in the pedigree is what most trainers are aiming for. We\u2019ve got a field of 8 with no sophomores (3yo) and only a couple of mares who weren\u2019t scratch-bred.
The runners:
DREAMING OF LOVE 5yo mare Sadler\u2019s Wells x Mr. Prospector x Unbridled
PP 6 N.Lawton Morning Line Odds: 5\/2 db\u2019s odds: 7\/5
The superstar from snowchief land got back to the big-time in her last start, taking down the Grade I Yellow Submarine in a field that contained three other millionaires (she\u2019s banked over 1.5 mil herself.) The final time of 2:03 1\/5 wasn\u2019t all that impressive, but hey, it\u2019s a Grade I victory, which also finally earned her the coveted \u201cGrade A\u201d historical ranking. Chalk-lovers need not worry; she\u2019s most proficient at this distance with a stellar 17 5-4-2 record, all in stakes company. If she runs her race, the others will be Dreaming of Place money as her biggest obstacles figure to be Father Time and an unfamiliar New York turf course. I wouldn\u2019t bet against her, even with Lenny\u2019s money!
BUCK WILD 4yo filly Kingmambo x Northern Dancer x Buckpasser
PP4 C. Tool ML odds: 5\/1 db\u2019s odds: 9\/2
\u201cSpeak of the Devil, and he shall appear.\u201d Well, maybe I\u2019m being a little harsh, but uber-trainer Lenny sends out another one of his impeccably bred-minions here in the form of a speedy Graded Stakes winner. With 10 wins from 25 starts it\u2019s easy to figure out that this one likes to get in front and go buck wild on the competition \u2013 her speed figures are not world class but she\u2019s dangerous on or just off the pace. Consider her well-rested for this event (6 week hiatus) and capable of a minor upset. Probably prefers a slightly shorter race, but even Lenny can\u2019t always get what he wants! Don\u2019t ask me to prove that one, though.
CAROLINA DREAMING 4yo filly Point Given \u2013 Minski (Deputy Minister) x Nijinsky II
PP8 B. Child ML odds: 8\/1 db\u2019s odds: 5\/1
You know things are going well when a monster filly like this is the 2nd string female turf horse in the barn. High-class trainer congie5 scores well above the 20% win \/ 50% ITM threshold, diligently putting this girl through all her allowance conditions before tackling tougher company. Her momma won the 2000 edition of the Breeder\u2019s Bowl Juvenile Fillies on dirt, but Carolina Dreaming is more talented on the lawn. Recent efforts have earned her a listed stakes win and a couple G III placings, but not enough to supplant stablemate and division leader Thirteenth Date. Should appreciate the drop out of recent Grade I company, but needs to improve a bit to earn a winner\u2019s circle photo against this crowd\u2026and she\u2019s got the pedigree and the trainer to do it.
STAGE MAGIC 4yo filly Tale of the Cat x Norcliffe x Exclusive Native
PP 2 A. Sailor ML odds: 7\/2 db\u2019s odds: 6\/1
Scratch-bred theodore4 star has humble origins \u2013 she was claimed for a mere $20,000 before settling in as a solid routing prospect on turf or dirt. Looked ready to go center stage on the stakes scene this spring with a string of triple-digit speed figure results, but has developed a serious case of seconditis. At one point she finished 2nd in 5 out of 6 starts, all stakes. Can\u2019t complain one bit considering how she was acquired, but didn\u2019t appear to take to the NY surface in her last start. Throw in the layoff question (last raced 10 weeks ago) and the lack of Graded experience and you\u2019ve got yourself quite a puzzle if you\u2019re placing bets on her performance today. If I were using clich\u00e9d tag lines this week, I\u2019d consider her the \u201cDB Darkhorse\u201d play-of-the-day.
SAPPHIRE ROSE(GB) 5yo mare Diesis(GB) x Riverman x Busted(GB)
PP 7 N. Painter ML odds: 8\/1 db\u2019s odds: 6\/1
Lightly-raced annex8 charge is interesting in that she made her first start at 4, won her first race while racing against the boys, and only recently had her first win on the turf. She\u2019s now 4 2-0-2 on the green stuff and makes the jump from allowances right up to Graded Stakes company. Granted, the older filly & mare division is not as deep as it could be, but the SIM gods and their class levels must be respected! We know she\u2019s still got juice in the tank with only 15 lifetime starts, however, and she\u2019s got plenty of tactical speed which is always a plus. A threat to earn a placing in a well-balanced field.
STEAL EMPIRES 4yo filly Empire Maker \u2013 Lady\u2019s Dancer(Dodge) x Western Miner
PP1 S. Schauer ML odds: 21\/1 db\u2019s odds: 25\/1
Congaree3 takes a shot and enters his homebred hopeful into a relatively small field, at least for a race of this magnitude. She\u2019s definitely come a long way, being out of the sparsely-used DamSire Dodge (32% turf and 34% route production), and a DDS that I\u2019ve honestly never heard of (Western Miner \u2013 the sire of SIM Turf sprinter Metallic Sheryl). Morning line odds are reflective of past performances, in this case, as she perked right up with 2 wins on the dirt-to-turf move, but has been struggling against similar of late. A lifetime best could earn her a check, but we have to consider her an outsider for the win spot.
HONOR PROSPECT 6yo mare Ecton Park x Honor Grades x Northern Prospect
PP5 B. Dirks ML odds: 7\/1 db\u2019s odds: 15\/1
Grand-old-dame is a wonder of longevity with 62 lifetime starts, 30 ITM finishes and almost $300k in the coffers for original owner\/breeder gowand5. She flirted with this level way back in 2003 with a couple nice efforts at 8 \u00bd furlongs before developing into a \u201clong sprint on the turf\u201d specialist. She hasn\u2019t slowed down much at all over the years, but a quick glance at her PP\u2019s indicates that she doesn\u2019t like to run much father than 1600 meters. With the lack of such races in the SIM condition book, it\u2019s likely that gowand is looking for one last crack at Graded status before shipping her off to broodmare-land.
MASAI(IRE) 4yo filly Orpen(IRE) x Celtic Swing(GB) x Danzatore
PP3 P. Davis ML odds: 5\/1 db\u2019s odds: 9\/2
Obscurely-bred aotearoa pupil has really come to hand in recent weeks, most recently 2nd to BUCK WILD in a Grade III event in Spain. Her late kick was compromised by the lack of early speed in that contest and she essentially chased the winner all the way around. It appears that she should love this distance and should have decent fractions up front to set up a nice late charge coming for home. The ride will be key with 11% jockey Davis calling the shots in the irons. A soggy track certainly wouldn\u2019t hurt her chances, either (2 for 2 in good\/yielding turf routes). Weatherman says there\u2019s a 5% chance of rain, so it\u2019s not enough to get all -excited- about yet. Notice how I refrained from using the word \u2018wet\u2019 in a sentence that absolutely screamed for it. \ud83d\ude42 Clich\u00e9-o-tron says that she\u2019s the \u201clongshot special\u201d.
The picks:
DREAMING OF LOVE has these over the proverbial \u201cbarrel\u201d on class alone. Any reasonable effort by the #12 ranked mare should put her on top today.
CAROLINA DREAMING is still on her way up and has finally found a field that she can do some damage in.
MASAI(IRE) is also a work-in-progress who could benefit from a timely ride and some help from the heavens (precipitation, not divine intervention. But that\u2019s cool, too.)
BUCK WILD will move up if one of the others fails to fire, and her “win or run out” mentality lends itself to boom or bust results at the mutuel windows.
Good luck and thanks for reading!
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