Budweiser Stakes headlines stakes-loaded card

Stakes season at Emerald Downs starts with a bang Sunday afternoon, with four $50,000, six-furlong sprints for various divisions highlighting a 10-race card. Whereas in years past Emerald spread its stakes throughout the meet, this year the track has consolidated them all on five dates, drawing mixed reactions on the backstretch.

“If they think they can have a big day and generate more gambling, I’m all for it,” trainer Blaine Wright said.

Tom Wenzel, however, feels differently.

“I’m not really fond of it, to be real honest,” said Wenzel, who had six wins at the meet to Wright’s 10 heading into Friday night’s races. “It works for [Longacres] Mile weekend kind of one time, but for me, it kind of takes away the individuality of each race. To be real honest, from a logistics standpoint for my barn, it kind of makes it a little tough. You’re jamming them all on the same day. I’m fortunate to have these kind of horses, but I’d prefer they be spread out.”

Sunday’s classiest affair is the $50,000 Budweiser Stakes for 3 and up. Wenzel’s 7-year-old gelding Slew’s Tiz Whiz should go off favored in the nine-horse field off a three-length victory in a key six-furlong allowance May 17 that earned him a Beyer Speed Figure of 91 – the highest of the meet thus far. In that race, he stalked a scorching pace set by Papa’s Golden Boy, who faded to second and is part of the Budweiser field. So is third-place finisher Executive Chef, a Wright trainee.

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“Papa’s one of these horses where, when he sets sail, is probably the fastest horse in the bunch, but there are some other horses in there who are pretty close to him,” observed Wenzel, who noted the abundance of early speed in the Budweiser. “How hard do you want to push early with multiple speed horses in the race?

“Slew, being a closer, will hopefully be the beneficiary of a solid pace. With Slew, you let him break how he breaks. He naturally wants to settle himself back, and once he approaches the quarter pole, it’s time to pedal.”

Wright’s Clovisconnection, 8 for 9 at the distance and 2 for 3 at Emerald, figures to be among Slew’s Tiz Whiz’s closest competitors. The speedster was second in last year’s Longacres Mile, where Slew’s Tiz Whiz finished third.

“He’s a sure-footed horse,” Wright said of Clovisconnection, who will have David Haldar aboard for the first time. “There are probably a couple others who are faster than he is in the first quarter. David’s a smart rider. He’s been aboard the horse in his workouts.”

Leading trainer Justin Evans has a pair of front-running geldings, Coastal Jazz and Listentothemusic, who have been working brilliantly and also should be in the mix, while 4-year-old Lonesome Boy, who has been racing at Parx, makes his first visit to Emerald since his juvenile campaign in fine form and should be attractively priced.

Hastings Stakes

The Budweiser’s sister race for fillies and mares, the nine-horse Hastings, features four contenders who look to be a cut above the rest: Attracted, trained by Wright; Aloha Breeze, trained by Wenzel; and the Evans trainees Fun Money and Shocking Grey.

Having spent his career racing on turf in Southern California, Shocking Grey will start for the first time on dirt and at Emerald, making him the wild card of the quartet. He, like Attracted, is a closer, while Fun Money is a stone front-runner and Aloha Breeze, 8 for 11 at Emerald, has typically preferred forward placement as well.

Two races back at Turf Paradise, Aloha Breeze won while rating a couple lengths behind two early leaders, passing them on the turn for home. When asked if Aloha Breeze, with regular rider Carlos Montalvo aboard, might again employ stalking tactics, Wenzel replied, “There’s always the possibility. You get in a stakes race and a lot of people will look at the [Daily Racing] Form and make some alternate plans as far as tactics. I usually have a clear picture of what I want to do, but there can always be adjustments, and I do leave some wiggle room for the riders.”

Auburn Stakes

In the Auburn Stakes for 3-year-old colts and geldings, Si That Tiger, a Wright trainee, owns a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 86, which is 14 points better than his closest rival, He’s Not Talking. Both horses earned their top figure in a 5 1/2-furlong sprint Si That Tiger won by 5 1/2 lengths over He’s Not Talking, with fellow Auburn entrants Tiz’s Harbor and Candy Caballo finishing third and fourth, respectively.

“Si That Tiger, you can read on paper, he’s in a little different class pace-wise and final figure-wise than the rest of us here, so it does kind of look like we’re all running for second and third,” said Wenzel, who trains Candy Caballo. “But it is a horse race. You hope there are some challengers for him early. My horse has tactical speed. I like him closing a little better, but I’m not going to discourage him from staying close. An upset would mean Si That Tiger not having his best race and a horse like mine having their very best race to win.”

Wright has another Auburn entrant, Goin’ South, whom he lost to a claim two races back but re-claimed the following race for different owners. Goin’ South prevailed in both of those races and has cause to move forward off those efforts.

“The same people that lost him in the claim box are the same people that own Si That Tiger,” Wright said. “They already had one stakes horse in the barn, so they said, ‘Be as aggressive as you want.’ He’s a horse that’s coming around. Horses get dangerous when they start to win. We figured we’d take a shot, and if it doesn’t work out, we’ll run him three weeks later in an allowance.”

Seattle Stakes

Frank Lucarelli’s Saleen G T is the clear class of the Seattle Stakes for 3-year-old fillies. The filly, by Barkley, is 3 for 4 in her career and exits a three-length win May 26 in which she tied her career-best Beyer of 64. That allowance win saw her beat four of her nine Seattle Stakes rivals.

If any horse can spring an upset, it’s Wenzel’s Maximum Sparkle, who finished just a neck back of Saleen G T at Turf Paradise in March and won a June 7 maiden race at Emerald by 4 1/2 lengths.

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