Churchill: Carina Mia, Airoforce finish meet with a flourish

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – As always, racing fans can hold onto some indelible memories from the final week of the fall meet as stables begin leaving Churchill Downs for the winter.

A flurry of notable events took place here during the last few days of action, including victories by Carina Mia and Airoforce in the twin 2-year-old stakes Saturday, the Grade 2 Golden Rod and the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club.

Carina Mia will join up with trainer Bill Mott at Payson Park in south Florida, about an hour north of where Airoforce will be assimilated into the Mark Casse stable at Palm Meadows.

Both horses prevailed in very demanding conditions. The track was a sea of slop Saturday, and both races were run under the lights after darkness fell amid a dank chill. Carina Mia led throughout, turning back the highly regarded Stageplay while confirming the potential she flashed in earning a 97 Beyer Speed Figure in a maiden victory last month at Keeneland. Airoforce settled nicely off a solid pace in the KJC, angling out to run down Mor Spirit. It was Airoforce’s first start on a dirt surface.

In between the two stakes, Conquest Big A romped in a first-level allowance mile, giving Casse two hopefuls toward the 2016 Kentucky Derby.

“It’s just an exciting time for us,” said Norm Casse, assistant to his father. “Anytime you have any type of big 2-year-old – even if they haven’t started – you hope that they would put you in a good position where you can at least map out a plan to get them to the Kentucky Derby. We know the reality and we’re still a long way away and they still have to continue to get better, but all indications show that they’re good horses and we have something to be excited about.”

The KJC and Golden Rod concluded a week of stakes in which Effinex, based in New York with Jimmy Jerkens, won the highlight of the 21-day meet, the Grade 1 Clark Handicap on Friday. Other stakes winners the final week were Ahh Chocolate in the Grade 2 Falls City, Heart to Heart in the Grade 3 River City, and Almasty in the Grade 3 Commonwealth Turf.