Aqueduct: Maiden winners line up for Smiling and Dancin

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – If Mother Nature permits, Sunday’s $100,000 Smiling and Dancin Stakes scheduled for Aqueduct’s turf course shapes up as an interesting race for 2-year-old colts and geldings.

A field of nine maiden winners was entered for the one-mile race provided it remains on the turf. Two more were entered should the race be run on the main track. Morning showers forced three of Friday’s four scheduled turf races to be run on dirt and temperatures for Sunday are expected to be in the low 30s making turf racing an uncertainty.

If on turf, trainer Chad Brown sends out a pair of interesting debut winners who will run as separate betting interests. Request, a son of Dynaformer, overcame a wide trip to win his debut at Belmont on Sept. 21 by a neck over Great Minds, who has since come back with two decent, albeit losing, efforts. Mr Speaker, the third-place finisher from that race did come back to win and is entered in this spot.
“He did have a wide trip. He was very impressive,” Brown said of Request. “He didn’t really have the best of it. I thought he ran really well, trained good since.”

Request, a $400,000 yearling purchase at Keeneland September in 2012, will be coupled with Racetrack Romance, also owned by Pompa but trained by Pat Reynolds. Racetrack Romance was claimed for $50,000 out of a winning debut at Saratoga. They ran him in the Grade 2 With Anticipation on Aug. 29 at Saratoga where he finished last.

Innovation Economy, also a son of Dynaformer, surprised Brown and the betting public when he won at first asking on closing day at Belmont, rallying from 10th in a 12-horse field to win by nearly three lengths at odds of 20-1.

“He surprised us a little bit; we thought he had some talent but he trained like a horse that might need a race,” Brown said. “It took him a little while to learn everything we taught him but on race day he got it all together right away, which was very nice to see.”

Jose Lezcano will ride Innovation Economy from post 6.

Mr Speaker, who finished third behind Request at Belmont on Sept. 21, came back three weeks later to win a maiden race going 1 1/16 miles when left unchallenged on the lead. Breaking from the rail under Joel Rosario, Mr Speaker, trained by Shug McGaughey, could once again loom as the main speed.

If weather conditions force the race to the dirt at a mile, Master Lightning becomes the one to beat. A solid maiden winner when forwardly placed in his second start, Master Lightning finished ninth, beaten 13 lengths in the Grade 2 Nashua.

“It was a pretty crowded race. He got between horses, shuffled back and didn’t get a great shot,” said Todd Pletcher, who trains Master Lightning. “I think he’s a horse that likes to be involved early.”
Captain Toews, entered in a division of Saturday’s New York Stallion Stakes, was also entered for main-track only in this spot.