Aqueduct: Ilikecandy, Flores Island go head to head in Friday feature

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Ilikecandy and Flores Island, both odds-on favorites when winning each of their last two starts, square off in Friday’s $69,000 second-level allowance feature for older fillies and mares at Aqueduct.

Ilikecandy, based in Maryland with trainer Graham Motion, backed up a 2 1/4-length maiden win at Laurel on Nov. 2 with a 9 1/4-length first-level allowance victory Dec. 4 where jockey Alex Cintron appeared statuesque in the saddle for most of the trip before using his stick twice in deep stretch.

“She won very easy last time, very comfortably, that was eye-catching,” said Motion, who trains Ilikecandy for Robert LaPenta.

This mile and 70-yard race will be Ilikecandy’s first start around two turns, but given her pedigree – she’s by Malibu Moon out of a Real Quiet mare – Motion believes “she should handle it. Seemed like a good progression for her.”

Cintron is named to ride Ilikecandy from post 4.

Flores Island, trained by Bill Mott for Antony Beck’s Gainesway Stable, lost her first seven starts including four consecutive second-place finishes. On Oct. 17, she won a one-turn mile maiden race at Belmont by 8 1/2 lengths before following that up with a 5 3/4-length first-level allowance score over a muddy Aqueduct main track. While both of those wins were around one turn, Flores Island did run well around two turns at Saratoga, including a runner-up finish to Wedding Toast, who has since gone on to win two stakes including the Grade 3 Comely.

“We always thought she was going to be a nice filly,” said Leana Willaford, the New York-based assistant to Mott. “She was a bit of a nervous type, but seems to have that more under control.”

Both Ilikecandy and Flores Island appear to do their best running close to the pace and could find themselves dueling with each other early on. Flores Island breaks from post 6 under apprentice Manuel Franco.

Other contenders in the field include Nuffsaid Nuffsaid, Mr Hall’s Opus, and The Best Option.

Nuffsaid Nuffsaid, trained by Michelle Nevin, had a three-race winning streak when beaten a nose by Mischief Maker in a spot similar to this Dec. 11. Mr Hall’s Opus, trained by Kelly Breen, finished a neck behind Nuffsaid Nuffsaid in that same race.

The Best Option is a six-time winner who is the only member of this eight-horse field entered for the optional claiming price of $50,000. Based in Chicago for most of her career, The Best Option was recently purchased by Gumpster Stable and transferred to trainer Bruce Levine.

◗ There were not enough entries to card Saturday’s $100,000 Ruthless Stakes. The six-furlong race for 3-year-old fillies will be brought back for Sunday. Saturday’s co-features are a pair of New York-bred allowance races.