Smith high on Kentuckian heading into Los Alamitos Derby
Watch out for Kentuckian. That is the mind-set of Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith in advance of Saturday’s $350,000 Los Alamitos Derby.
Steve AndersenJul 02, 2015
Watch out for Kentuckian. That is the mind-set of Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith in advance of Saturday’s $350,000 Los Alamitos Derby.
For nearly 12 months, Lady Eli has proven to be the best turf filly of her generation, winning all five of her starts, including last year’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf. Saturday, in the Grade 1 Belmont Oaks Invitational, Lady Eli will have to be every bit as good as she’s been – and perhaps a touch better.
Trainer David Fawkes said he was never tempted to turn Sheer Drama back to six furlongs for Sunday’s Grade 2 Princess Rooney at Gulfstream Park. Instead, he’ll stretch his Grade 2 winner out to 1 1/4 miles for the Grade 1 Delaware Handicap on July 18.
Westminister Road and Susie Bee, first and third in an overnight handicap for 3-year-old fillies on June 13 at Gulfstream Park, will meet again under similar conditions going 7 1/2 furlongs on turf in Saturday’s main event.
Plate Trial Stakes winner Danish Dynaformer has been made the 3-1 morning-line favorite and will start from post 7 in a field of 14 Canadian-bred 3-year-olds for the 156th running of the $1 million Queen’s Plate on Sunday at Woodbine.
Private Zone loves Belmont Park, the seven furlongs of the $400,000 Sprint Championship at Belmont Park on Saturday suit him well, and he won’t be facing Honor Code or Tonalist. Things are looking good.
Aside from starts in the Kentucky Derby and Haskell, Wildcat Red has been among the favorites in just about every other race he’s competed in during his career. But the multiple graded stakes winner will be considered among the outsiders when he returns from a near six-month layoff in Sunday’s Grade 2 Smile Sprint Handicap.
The first graded stakes of the season at Parx Racing, the $200,000 Dr. James Penny Memorial Handicap, has drawn New York-based Grade 1 winner Coffee Clique form the barn of red-hot trainer Brian Lynch.
Kitten’s Dumplings, seeking to regain the form that made her a Grade 1 winner in October 2013, gets major class relief as the favorite in Saturday’s Ellis Park Turf for fillies and mares.
Some short fields and even shorter prices populate some of the Louisiana Legends Night program Saturday night at Evangeline Downs, but there are also some deep races that should provide plenty of handicapping challenges.