Atone tries to end win drought

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Though he hasn’t won this year, Atone has still banked $354,625 in 2022, which is just $40,000 less than his six rivals combined in Thursday’s featured third-level/optional $80,000 claiming feature at Aqueduct.

In this spot, Atone is returning to the site of his last victory, nearly one year ago when he took a second-level/optional $80,000 claimer by 2 1/2 lengths. That race was at a mile, Thursday he will stretch out to 1 1/8 miles over the outer turf course.

Following Atone’s victory in the Aqueduct allowance, he went to Gulfstream Park where he finished second in the Grade 2 Fort Lauderdale Stakes and then ran fourth, beaten just 1 3/4 lengths by Colonel Liam in the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Turf in January. Both of those races were run at 1 1/8 miles.

The last time Atone ran in this condition, he finished third, a head behind Emaraaty, who came out of the Aug. 22 allowance at Saratoga to win the Grade 3 Bernard Baruch at Saratoga.

Atone came out of that allowance to run second in the Grade 3 Mint Million at Kentucky Downs before finishing sixth in the Coolmore Turf Mile on Oct. 8

Thursday’s race does not have a lot of confirmed pace to it and Atone, trained by Mike Maker, could be forward under jockey Kendrick Carmouche.

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Atone is coupled in the wagering with the Maker-trained, Three Diamonds Farm-owned Glynn County. This 5-year-old son of Kitten’s Joy won at Aqueduct back in 2020 and is dropping in company out of a seventh-place finish in the Kentucky Downs Turf Cup on Sept. 10.

Value Engineering finished behind Glynn County when these two were third and fifth, respectively, in this condition going 1 1/8 miles at Saratoga on Sept. 1.

Value Engineering is trained by Chad Brown, as is Lonesome Fugitive who drops back into allowance company after a sixth-place finish in the Grade 3 Knickerbocker at Aqueduct on Oct. 9.

Cold Hard Cash, Tide of the Sea, and Dreams of Tomorrow complete the field on turf. Unbridled Bomber is entered for the main-track only, but there is no rain in the forecast.

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