Aqueduct: Honorable Dillon begins new campaign in Wednesday allowance

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – After a promising start, Honorable Dillon’s 3-year-old season got derailed in the summer. Wednesday, the Grade 2 winner will try to get a jump on his 4-year-old campaign when he returns from a six-month layoff in a $76,000 third-level allowance race at Aqueduct.

A field of five was entered – three of whom are being offered for the optional claiming tag of $100,000 – in the seven-furlong race, which goes as the third on a nine-race card. The race will not be part of the pick six, which has a $22,089 carryover after not being hit on Sunday.

Honorable Dillon, a son of Tapit trained by Eddie Kenneally, won the Grade 2 Hutcheson Stakes at Gulfstream in February. After the obligatory stretch-out attempt – he was beaten 19 lengths in the Tampa Bay Derby – Honorable Dillon returned to sprinting and he sandwiched an allowance win in between two six-length defeats in graded stakes.

Honorable Dillon was training in early July before Kenneally was forced to stop on him.

“He had some minor issues going on,” Kenneally said. “We decided we needed to give him a little break during the summer and just take it easy with him. He’s come back really well.”

Honorable Dillon shows 10 works since Oct. 1, including a half-mile move in 50.17 seconds Sunday over the Belmont training track.

“The horse is moving really, really well right now and training very, very well,” Kenneally said. “I think he’s a horse that runs well off a layoff. I expect him to show up.”

Honorable Dillon, who does his best running from off the pace, will break from the rail under Cornelio Velasquez. There does appear to be ample pace with Johannesburg Smile, Spa City Fever, and Farhaan in the field.

Mike Repole and trainer Todd Pletcher claimed Johannesburg Smile 11 months ago for $100,000, but this one has not worked out quite as well their claim of Caixa Eletronica. After running second in the Grade 3 Toboggan, Johannesburg Smile was seventh in the Tom Fool on March 2 and third in the Compelling Word 19 days later before going on the shelf. He returns in for the $100,000 claiming tag.

“Seems like he’s doing well,” Pletcher said. “Hopefully this will gear him up for a big campaign.”

Farhaan made a smashing North American debut winning a second-level allowance race on turf at Saratoga in August. After Farhaan finished last in the Grade 3 Bowling Green at Belmont in September, trainer Kiaran McLaughlin transferred him to dirt. Farhaan got burned up in a speed duel in an overnight stakes, then stumbled at the start and finished fourth in a spot similar to this on Nov. 8.

Spa City Fever, a 7-year-old gelding trained by David Jacobson, won a one-mile race like this on Thanksgiving Day when offered for $62,500, and is wheeled right back.

Regulus, away since winning back-to-back allowance races for trainer Eoin Harty at Golden Gate in the winter, makes his first start since March, first for Gary Contessa, and first in New York.