Bashford Manor part of potentially rich Single Six sequence

Churchill Downs is looking toward the future as it closes its spring-summer meet on Saturday night with the 115th running of the Grade 3, $100,000 Bashford Manor Stakes for 2-year-olds, in which locally based debut winners face a strong cast of invaders.

The Bashford Manor is chief among the three stakes on an 11-race Downs After Dark card that could feature a massive Single Six carryover pool.

The invaders are led by Recruiting Ready, who flirted with a long-established track record while winning his debut in smashing fashion at Pimlico in May. The colt rolled by 10 1/4 lengths while stopping the clock for 4 1/2 furlongs in 51.78 seconds, just 0.28 seconds off the mark of 51.50 established by Countess Diana on June 6, 1997. Countess Diana would go on to be a multiple Grade 1 winner and the champion 2-year-old filly of 1997.

Recruiting Ready earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 78, one of the top numbers in this field, for his debut.

“He’s got a lot of talent,” said trainer Horacio DePaz, who is seeking his first stakes win. “He’s a very talented horse.”

Edgar Prado, aboard Recruiting Ready for his debut, flies in to retain the mount, and the pair is comfortably drawn on the outside of the field of nine.

Also earning solid Beyers in their out-of-town debuts were Riv, trained by Larry Rivelli, and U S Officer, trained by Danny Pish. Riv earned the field’s top number, an 81, with a 4 1/2-length maiden win in June, albeit on the synthetic surface at Arlington Park. U S Officer, a three-length winner May 30 at Lone Star for a 71 Beyer, gets the services of meet-leading rider Corey Lanerie as he steps up in class.

The local contingent is led by Classic Empire and Tip Tap Tapizar, well-bred colts who were open-lengths debut winners at Churchill Downs for Mark Casse and Steve Asmussen, respectively.

The Bashford Manor, along with the $100,000 Debutante for 2-year-old fillies and the $67,000 Kelly’s Landing for older sprinters, could be part of a competitive Single Six sequence that covers the final six races of the card. All of those races have at least seven entrants, with two drawing oversubscribed fields.

The Single Six carryover was $676,761 into Thursday’s card, and with additional money wagered, it certainly could swell to seven figures for Saturday night’s mandatory payout if it is not taken down on Thursday or Friday. A single winning ticket is required to take down the pool, which has been building since May 13.

First post is 6 p.m. Eastern. Meanwhile, Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky., is conducting its opening-day card, with first post at 1:50 p.m. Eastern and the last race at 5:10 p.m. Several members of the local jockey colony have calls at both tracks.

Saturday’s forecast for Kentucky’s racetracks calls for partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid-80s, with no chance of rain as of Thursday morning, according to Weather.com.

Key contenders

Recruiting Ready, by Algorithms

Debut Beyer: 78

◗ From the first crop of Algorithms, this colt was a $110,000 purchase by Sagamore Farm at the 2015 Keeneland September yearling sale. He comes from the family of multiple Grade 1-winning sprinter Zensational and the versatile multiple graded stakes winner Departing.

Riv, by Iqbaal

Debut Beyer: 81

◗ Iqbaal, who stands privately in Florida, has been a solid 2-year-old sire with a limited sample of runners.

◗ The big question for Riv is how he will transfer form from synthetic to dirt; his dam did win several times on dirt.

Classic Empire, by Pioneerof the Nile

Debut Beyer: 55

◗ Almost all of the entrants in this field are stretching out from the ubiquitous 4 1/2-furlong debut maiden distance to six furlongs. By classic sire Pioneerof the Nile, Classic Empire, a half-brother to two stakes winners, ought to be one who relishes the added ground.

◗ He was a $475,000 Keeneland September yearling.

Tip Tap Tapizar, by Tapizar

Debut Beyer: 69

◗ Colt from the first crop of promising young stallion Tapizar won his debut in front-running fashion on June 11 by 3 1/4 lengths and should be pace company for Recruiting Ready.

◗ Asmussen is seeking his fifth Bashford Manor win, which would equal D. Wayne Lukas’s record for the race.