Casa Creed moves back to mile in Kelso
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SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Casa Creed is a superior turf sprinter who, at least at Saratoga, has been equally effective going a mile.
With the goal of a repeat victory in the Grade 1 Fourstardave Handicap at a mile here Aug. 12, Casa Creed will take on Grade 1 winner Annapolis and six others in Saturday’s Grade 3, $175,000 Kelso Stakes going one mile over Saratoga’s inner turf course.
This race was formerly known as the Forbidden Apple. The Kelso was a race run at one mile on dirt at Belmont Park in the fall. This year, that race will be run as the Forty Niner during the Belmont at Aqueduct meet.
In 2022, Casa Creed won his second straight Grade 1 Jaipur Stakes and then, coming off a two-month layoff, won the Fourstardave over the mare Regal Glory. As a 3-year-old, Casa Creed won the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame Stakes also at one mile at Saratoga.
“We know he gets a mile, it’s the end of him but he obviously can do it,” said Bill Mott, trainer of Casa Creed.
Casa Creed is 0 for 2 this year, getting beat a head in the 1351 Turf Sprint in Saudi Arabia in February and finishing third, beaten one length by Caravel, in the Jaipur at Belmont.
Mott would be concerned running Casa Creed over a turf course with give in the ground. There were showers in the forecast Thursday night and potentially Friday morning.
Luis Saez rides Casa Creed from post 8.
Annapolis beat Casa Creed in the Grade 1 Coolmore Turf Mile at Keeneland last fall. However, Casa Creed has never run well at Keeneland, so that may not be a great barometer of how the two stack up.
Annapolis finished 11th in the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Keeneland last November. In his lone star this year, Annapolis won the Opening Verse Stakes on May 4 at Churchill.
He was forced to miss last month’s Grade 3 Poker Stakes at Belmont after suffering an injury to the bottom of his right front foot, known as a shed frog. Trainer Todd Pletcher said he didn’t feel comfortable running Annapolis in the Poker with an aluminum pad on, so he decided to wait for this race.
“It’s healed well, he’s been training very forwardly for this,” Pletcher said.
Pletcher said he would prefer “firmish” ground for Annapolis. He is happy to see the plethora of speed in the field.
“Should be an honest pace in there, drawn towards the inside we can save some ground and work it out from there,” Pletcher said.
Irad Ortiz Jr. rides Annapolis from post 2.
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Big Everest, one of the speed horses, has won six of his last seven starts. He has won three listed stakes, and this will be his graded stakes debut.
“His biggest asset for me has always been he quickens on the turn,” trainer Christophe Clement said. “A lot of horses don’t. He seems to be doing that at the level at which we’ve been racing him. The stakes at Aqueduct and the stakes in New Jersey are not the same level as the stakes in Saratoga.”
Big Everest’s success has come since he’s been gelded and placed on the lead.
“He used to be very difficult and rank and since we gelded him and let him roll, he’s not rank and he’s behaving better and he’s racing better,” Clement said.
Joel Rosario rides Big Everest from post 5.
Filo Di Arianna, a Brazilian-bred trained by Mark Casse, nearly wired the field in the Poker, getting run down late by Emmanuel, who is skipping this race to await the Fourstardave. Filo Di Arriana figures to be on the pace as does Mid Day Image.
Anaconda finished a nose behind Big Everest in the one-mile Danger’s Hour at Aqueduct, but returned to win the seven-furlong Elusive Quality at Belmont. He was off slow when finishing fourth, beaten three-quarters of a length, in the Poker.
English Bee and Ice Chocolat complete the field on turf. Gun It is entered to run only if the race is transferred to the main track.
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