Brown duo look strong in Memories of Silver

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – A nose separated stablemates Ingrassia and Fluffy Socks when the two finished first and second in last November’s $100,000 Chelsey Flower Stakes on closing day of the Belmont Park fall meet.

Sunday, Ingrassia and Fluffy Socks meet again as the pair of Chad Brown-trained 3-year-old fillies head the field for the $100,000 Memories of Silver Stakes going 1 1/16 miles on turf on closing day of the Aqueduct spring meet.

Fluffy Socks, a daughter of Slumber owned by Head of Plains Partners, was her own worst enemy in the Chelsey Flower, which was run over soft turf, when she drifted out in the stretch and Ingrassia rallied to her inside to just get up on the wire.

Fluffy Socks came back to win the Grade 3 Jimmy Durante Stakes at Del Mar, where she again drifted out. Fluffy Socks completed her 2-year-old season with three wins from five starts, including two stakes victories.

“She really, really developed into a real quality horse,” Brown said. “We rested her after a lengthy campaign, thought this would be a good spot for her. She has a good turn of foot.”

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Irad Ortiz Jr., who was scheduled to ride at Oaklawn on Saturday, is named to ride Fluffy Socks from the rail.

Ingrassia, a daughter of Medaglia d’Oro owned by Don Alberto Stable, went 2 for 3 at age 2 with both wins coming by a nose. Ingrassia’s lone defeat came in the Grade 2 Jessamine Stakes at Keeneland where she finished third behind Aunt Pearl, who came back to win the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.

Brown said he didn’t run Ingrassia in the Jimmy Durante last year because he didn’t think she could effectively cut back to a mile.“A mile and a sixteenth to a mile and a quarter is what she wants to do,” Brown said.

Brown said he opted to keep both fillies in New York rather than send one to Churchill Downs for the Edgewood Stakes because that is expected to be the next race for Aunt Pearl.

“I didn’t see any sense chasing her around for their first start of the year,” Brown said.

Jose Ortiz is named on Ingrassia from post 2.

Oyster Box, a daughter of Tapit trained by Graham Motion for Gainesway Stable, won her first two career starts before finishing third in the Grade 3 Florida Oaks at Tampa Bay Downs on March 6.

“She got shuffled back a little further than we wanted her to, through nobody’s fault,” Motion said. “She had a lot of ground to make up.”

Manny Franco will ride Oyster Box from post 5.

Sleek Lynx stretches out in distance after a fifth-place finish in the Melody of Colors, a five-furlong race at Gulfstream on March 20.

Bubbles On Ice makes her U.S. and 3-year-old debut. Trained by James Stack in Ireland, Bubbles On Ice makes her first start for Christophe Clement in this spot.

Frost Me and Bravo Regina complete the field.

The Memories of Silver goes as race 8 on the nine-race card. Following Sunday’s program, racing moves to Belmont Park beginning Thursday.