Brandy's Girl challenges males in turf-sprint feature
After being narrowly defeated twice this winter by the red-hot Pretty Perfection, including a frustrating half-length setback in the Captiva Island Stakes earlier this month, Brandy’s Girl may find taking on males an easier proposition when she runs as one of the top choices in Sunday’s second-level optional $62,500 claiming feature at five furlongs on turf.
Brandy’s Girl, trained by Eddie Broome, ran a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 91 but was still second to Pretty Perfection, who registered her third straight victory in the Captiva Island. Brandy’s Girl rallied from several lengths off the lead that day after setting the pace and dropping a neck decision to her rival while coming off a layoff of nearly five months Jan. 4.
“I really wanted to run her in the same conditioned race as this one written for fillies earlier in the week, but it didn’t fill,” said Broome. “She needed her first start back, and then she couldn’t quite run down [Pretty Perfection] the last time, although we lost ground on the turn, and she cut the corner.
“She’s doing so well right now, I really need to run her even though I’d prefer not to go against the boys. But there’s not a whole lot of speed in this field, and if we can make the lead and Edgar [Prado] can get her to settle like he did last time, she should be tough.”
Broome also entered Posse Dreaming, but he came down with a respiratory infection after entries were drawn for the race and will be scratched.
Trainer Christophe Clement also entered a pair of talented turf-sprint specialists, the Grade 2-placed Summation Time and Big Rock. Summation Time was winless a year ago while splitting his time between allowance and stakes company. Big Rock won three times in 2016, including a pair of turf dashes last summer at Saratoga.
Grade 3 winner Passion for Action is the class of the field but has not started since finishing a wide-running and nonthreatening seventh in the Grade 3 Kennedy Road over Tapeta at Woodbine in November.