Aqueduct: Agave Kiss likely to skip Dearly Precious in favor of Cicada

Adam Coglianese/NYRA

Trainer Rudy Rodriguez says he is hesitant to bring back Ruthless winner Agave Kiss too quickly for next weekend's Dearly Precious.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – If trainer Rudy Rodriguez gets his way, his undefeated New York-bred sprinting filly Agave Kiss will skip next Saturday’s $75,000 Dearly Precious Stakes at Aqueduct and await the Grade 3 Cicada on March 10.

“I think I’m going to pass the race,’’ Rodriguez, who trains Agave Kiss for Viane Lizza’s Flying Zee Stable, said Friday morning in his barn office at Aqueduct. “She’s good, she’s doing everything we’ve asked her to do, but if it was up to me I don’t want to run. I don’t want to overdo it, I want to try to keep her fresh.”

Rodriguez has stated that he wants a fresh horse for the summer with the major goal being the Grade 1 Prioress at Belmont Park in July.

Agave Kiss, a New York-bred daughter of Lion Heart, has won all three of her starts, including the Ruthless Stakes against open company on Jan. 14. She has basically had six weeks between each of her starts. If she doesn’t run until the Cicada, she will have eight weeks between races.

Rodriguez said that Agave Kiss appears to have lost a little weight since the Ruthless, though he also notes that the filly appears to have grown.

“I think she’s grown up a little bit which is why it looks like she lost some weight,” Rodriguez said.

With or without Agave Kiss, a short field is expected for the Dearly Precious. Corderosa and Well Kept are considered definite. Awesome Flower, Evasive Cat, Exclusively Maria, Lisa T., and Singlet are possible.