Candy Raid returns to scene of biggest victory in My Charmer
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Candy Raid returns to the scene of her signature victory when part of a full lineup of fillies and mares in the $125,000 My Charmer Stakes, the highlight of a rare Sunday card at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky.
Candy Raid was a 4 1/2-length winner of the Bourbonette Oaks at Turfway in April in what remains her only career attempt over a synthetic surface. She’ll be among a core of favorites that also will include Kate’s Kingdom, Lashara, and Burning Ambition. Manny Esquivel will be aboard Candy Raid from post 8 in the 34th My Charmer, which will be run at 1 1/16 miles over Tapeta.
Candy Raid, a 3-year-old Candy Ride filly, hasn’t gotten close to the winner’s circle in five attempts since getting an 83 Beyer Speed Figure in the Bourbonette, so “it’s obvious why we’re in the race,” said Keith Desormeaux, who trains and co-owns Candy Raid. “Her biggest and best win – in hand – was in the Bourbonette, so that’s why we’re going back. Hopefully, she reproduces that form.”
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Kate’s Kingdom (post 1, Jack Gilligan), a last-out winner of the Grade 3 Ontario Matron at Woodbine, will be making her first start in the name of trainer Will Walden after coming to peak form in Canada in recent months for Florida-based Armando De La Cerda. The 4-year-old Animal Kingdom filly clearly does her best work over synthetics, having earned a 92 Beyer in winning the Ontario Matron on Oct. 22 at Woodbine.
Lashara (post 2, Gerardo Corrales), trained by Mike Maker, will be making her synthetic debut after earning high Beyers of 85 and 86 when competing primarily over turf, most notably a two-back victory in a one-mile turf allowance at the Belmont at the Big A meet. Corrales, to no one’s surprise, already has taken full command atop the jockey standings at a holiday meet that began Nov. 30.
Burning Ambition (post 6, Chris Landeros) makes the third start of her form cycle for Brad Cox while also making her first synthetic start. The Uncle Mo filly was sharp in a pair of turf stakes this fall on this circuit, including a solid third-place finish as the pacesetter in the Fall Harvest to end Breeders’ Cup Saturday in the Keeneland twilight.
Besides the three favorites, a highly competitive field also includes Temper Time, Grand Ave Girl, and Champagne Lady as dangerous fringe players. In all, 14 are entered, but only as many as 12 can start, with Command Control and Queridinha Leca being the two also-eligibles.
“It looks like everybody had the same idea,” Desormeaux said. “There’s no turf in the Midwest anymore, including Fair Grounds, so maybe everybody is using this race as an experiment? I think the race is damn tough.”
As with all Turfway races, the purse includes bonuses restricted to registered Kentucky-breds. Of the 14, only the British-bred Lashara and the Indiana-bred Diamond Solitaire are ineligible for $45,000 in incentives.
Turfway normally runs Wednesdays through Saturdays, but because a country music concert featuring Sara Evans was booked for Saturday, management opted to vacate the date and run Sunday instead. First post is 12:45 p.m. Eastern, with the My Charmer going at 3:45 as the seventh of eight races.
After Sunday, Turfway resumes its regular four-day schedule through the end of the holiday meet, Dec. 31. The 2023 winter-spring meet also will start with a one-off Sunday card (Jan. 1).
◗ The Turfway tote board lit up Wednesday night when Liliesformillie won the fifth race at 32-1, followed closest by Miss Lizzy at 64-1 and Ladan at 56-1 in a maiden-special field of 12. Only one winning ticket was sold in both the trifecta ($32,075 for 50 cents) and superfecta ($23,753 for 10 cents) pools.
◗ Ed Meyer began filling in for regular race-caller Jimmy McNerney on Thursday night for an indefinite period after McNerney underwent surgery for pinched nerves in his upper spine earlier in the day.
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