Bluegrass Flag can make Bouwerie third win in row

ELMONT, N.Y. – Although Bluegrass Flag clearly will be the odds-on favorite to win Monday’s $125,000 Bouwerie Stakes at Belmont Park, trainer Tom Morley said he’s also going to have a look at the nominations for the Acorn Stakes, which closed Saturday, before making a final decision on the speedy 3-year-old filly’s next start.

But much to the chagrin of her 10 rivals in the seven-furlong Bouwerie, the more Morley spoke about his filly, the more likely it seemed that he’d opt for the more conservative route before trying Bluegrass Flag against Grade 1 competition later in the season.

The Bouwerie is one of two New York statebred sprint stakes for 3-year-olds on Monday’s holiday program, along with the $125,000 Mike Lee.

Bluegrass Flag has won her last two starts, the Cicada against open company and the Park Avenue over statebreds, each by six widening lengths under regular rider Kendrick Carmouche. And a repeat of either effort would more than likely put her back in the winner’s circle again in the Bouwerie.

“She’s come a long way this year, and she’s clearly very talented, but she’s still a leggy, light-framed filly, and we’ve been quite careful how we’ve managed her, so I’m leaning toward running her in the Bouwerie and taking the rest of the year from there,” said Morley, who trains Bluegrass Flag for the partnership of Thomas Albrecht and Vincent Fusaro. “We’ll look at the noms for the Acorn, although I feel my filly isn’t quite as mature as some of the other 3-year-old fillies around here and that maybe the time to step in against Grade 1 company would be down the road in a race like the Test, not the Acorn.”

Despite Bluegrass Flag having yet to race beyond 6 1/2 furlongs, Morley has no concerns about her stretching out to seven-eighths Monday.

“I actually think will see her at her best at a mile later in the year,” Morley said. “She definitely isn’t a two-turn filly, but one turn out of the chute, which we’re lucky to have a lot of in New York, will really be her game. So, going seven furlongs really holds no fear for me.”

Morley also expects to see his fleet filly on the lead again.

“With a clean break, I’d expect to see her on the front end,” Morley said confidently. “And if someone is running with her, they’re probably going too fast.”

Holiday Disguise, another lightly raced filly who continues to improve with every start, could give Bluegrass Flag her stiffest challenge coming off an impressive, 6 3/4-length entry-level allowance win against statebreds here three weeks ago for trainer Linda Rice.

Noble Freud will get a second chance against the favorite in the Bouwerie after having proved no match for Bluegrass Flag as the odds-on choice when the two met five weeks earlier the Park Avenue.

Mike Lee Stakes

Both Syndergaard and Bobby On Fleek will seek to rebound from uncharacteristically poor performances in Kentucky when returning against New York-breds and squaring off for the second time in the seven-furlong Mike Lee.

Syndergaard finished fifth as the 1-5 favorite following a very eventful trip while making his 3-year-old debut in the William Walker Stakes at Churchill Downs on April 29. Bobby On Fleek finished far back following a slow start in the Grade 3 Pat Day Mile on a wet track on the Kentucky Derby undercard one week later.

Syndergaard easily defeated Bobby On Fleek by 10 lengths over a muddy strip in the Funny Cide Stakes last summer at Saratoga as a steppingstone to his second-place finish in the Grade 1 Champagne.

“Everything that could go wrong did go wrong, beginning with the start,” trainer Todd Pletcher said of Syndergaard’s disappointing effort at Churchill Downs. “He hopped at the break, got shut off, and, more than anything, probably didn’t handle the track. With a race under his belt and the subsequent breezes, he should be okay and will hopefully get back in the right direction here.”

Bobby On Fleek was an easy statebred allowance winner while launching his 3-year-old campaign at Aqueduct on March 24 before his poor performance in the Pat Day Mile.

“The horse didn’t appear to handle the track at all in Kentucky. He’s a much better horse than that, so I’m just drawing a line through the race and hoping he gets a dry track on Monday,” trainer Chad Brown said.

Although Syndergaard and Bobby On Fleek are the most recognizable names in the Mike Lee, the 10-horse field also includes such key contenders as the recently stakes-placed T Loves a Fight and impressive statebred allowance winner Terry O Geri.