Charles Town: Free World enters Robert Hilton Memorial in fine form

Free World has made all five of his starts in Louisiana, but he should feel right at home racing around two tight turns in Saturday night’s $85,000 Robert Hilton Memorial Stakes for 3-year-olds.

That’s because the Tom Amoss-trained Free World barely had to do anything more than gallop to easily win both his races at Delta Downs, which, like Charles Town, is less than one mile in circumference. So, going two turns in the seven-furlong Hilton – one of five stakes on the undercard of a 13-race program topped by the $1.5 million Charles Town Classic – should be a familiar trip for Free World.

Most recently, Free World cruised to an eight-length victory going seven furlongs in a first-level allowance at Delta. Prior to that, he finished second at Fair Grounds to Ground Transport, a 3-year-old who returned to run fifth in the Louisiana Derby.

Amoss, who won last year’s $400,000 Red Legend Stakes for 3-year-olds at Charles Town with Sum of the Parts, has given the mount to Jose Lezcano, who will be riding Ron the Greek in the Classic.

A son of the Storm Cat stallion Stormy Atlantic who sold for a mere $45,000 as a 2-year-old, Free World figures to vie for favoritism in the Hilton with Ronson, a Kentucky-based gelding who has raced exclusively on Polytrack in his three-race career, and Penn National shipper Honour the Vow.

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Ronson, trained by Michael Stidham, has won 2 of 3 starts, with both victories coming by six lengths in sprints at Turfway Park. Honour the Vow has won two straight races at Charles Town by a combined eight lengths. In four starts locally, Honour the Vow has three wins and a second.

“He loves it down there,” Honour the Vow’s trainer, Flint Stites, said of Charles Town. “He’s probably bred for the turf. His mother was a fairly decent turf horse. But he likes it down there on that dirt. Maybe it’s the tighter turns.”

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Elsewhere on the undercard:

◗ The 8-year-old Immortal Eyes, who owns a 9-for-10 record at Charles Town and seven stakes victories, will be a heavy favorite to win the $50,000 Webb Snyder Charles Town Dash for the third time. He carries the high weight of 124 pounds against nine rivals in the 4 1/2-furlong sprint (race 10).

◗ Lucy’s Bob Boy, the winner of last fall’s $450,000 West Virginia Breeders’ Classic, is listed at 2-5 on the track’s morning line against five West Virginia-breds in the seven-furlong, $50,000 Confucius Say (race 4).

◗ Down Town Allen, who won four stakes in 2012, including the $225,000 West Virginia Cavada, will be a solid choice against eight West Virginia-bred females when she launches her 6-year-old campaign in the $50,000 Original Gold at seven furlongs (race 9).