Dalika's history sheds doubt on chances to win Tom Benson Memorial

One day, Dalika might put together consecutive winning performances. Would you want to bet on it being Saturday?

Dalika, bred in Germany and campaigned there before being imported to America, won her second, fifth, 11th, 14th, 16th, and 18th starts. She never has repeated wins and comes into Saturday’s $150,000 Tom Benson Memorial Stakes having won her most recent race. Uh-oh.

Why Dalika would be this model of inconsistency remains uncertain. Her trainer, Al Stall, has said on multiple occasions that the mare doesn’t provide obvious clues; maybe she’s sitting on go, maybe she’s about to say, “No.” Trends, of course, were made to be broken, and it could be perilous ignoring Dalika in multi-race wagers strictly based on her on-off pattern since fully she’s capable of winning the Benson, a 1 1/16-mile grass race.

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There are other places to turn, with new players in the Fair Grounds older-female turf-route division. Dalika might not even have won the Albert Stall Memorial last month had Joy Epifora found the room she needed when she needed it. Joy Epifora, an Argentine import trained by Argentine import Ignacio Correas, started her American career last June with an encouraging second behind capable Lady Kate in a Churchill Downs allowance rained off turf and onto dirt. Her next four starts were, frankly, disappointing. Back on grass last month in the Stall Memorial, she appeared to be launching a winning inside run at the three-sixteenths pole, only to run up on the rump of tiring pacesetter His Glory, while Miguel Mena on Dalika kept Joy Epifora trapped, nowhere to run. Joy Epifora, seen galloping in draw reins last weekend, appears be training energetically and could be live at a fair price.

During summer 2019 at Saratoga, Catch a Bid beat Dalika by a narrow margin, and she still could be Dalika’s equal. Catch a Bid returned from a long layoff making her first start for trainer Joe Sharp, and she finished fourth Jan. 31 in the Jersey Lily at Sam Houston.

“Her race was a lot better than it looks on paper, and she wasn’t quite ready,” said Sharp, forecasting improvement.

Brad Cox entered two: Dominga, who ships in from Palm Meadows to make her first start since August, and Dream-alildreamofu, who has been working fast with some top Cox runners but could prefer dirt to turf. Temple City Terror, who came with a late rush inside and between horses to finish second in the Stall Memorial, and Pass the Plate, who was third there with a clean outside trip, also passed the entry box. From Florida, Christophe Clement sends Logic and Reason, who would need improvement to make a major dent, while Winning Envelope stretches back out from turf sprints.

Costa Rising Stakes

There’s no doubt No Parole is the fastest dirt horse in the $75,000 Costa Rising Stakes for Louisiana-bred older horses. The Costa Rising is a 5 1/2-furlong grass sprint, and No Parole never has tried turf, but the short-sprint trip suits him, he has won all four of his starts against Louisiana-bred competition, and on pedigree, he should like the move to grass.

No Parole’s sire, Violence, is a decent turf influence and his dam, Plus One, raced effectively in turf sprints. His full brother Violent Ways returned from a long layoff earlier this month at Fair Grounds and ran the race of his life at 7-1 in his turf debut.

Luis Saez, aboard for No Parole’s victory last summer in the Grade 1 Woody Stephens, has the mount Saturday. No Parole breaks from post 2, and if he gets away well should head straight to the front and never look back.

Monte Man won the 2020 Costa Rising but at age 8 has lost something from his peak. For a hint of value underneath the favorite, consider Yankee Seven, Future Ruler, and A Song for Arch.

Crescent City Oaks

She’s being kept to a path of lesser resistance for now, but if Australasia keeps coming forward it might be hard to keep her out of open stakes competition.

A Louisiana-bred filly with French connections (noted bloodstock agent Hubert Guy is listed as a part-owner), Australasia romped in her career debut last November at Fair Grounds and cruised to a pair of easy Louisiana-bred stakes scores at Delta Downs. She handled a two-turn mile over the Delta bullring oval, which has a one-furlong homestretch, and will be heavily favored to conquer a true route of ground at Fair Grounds in the $100,000 Crescent City Oaks.

Australasia faces five foes in the one-mile and 70-yard Crescent City Oaks, carded as race 1 owing to the short field and overwhelming favorite. Trained by Brad Cox, Australasia brought $130,000 at a 2-year-old auction of 2020, the third highest price ever paid for a daughter or son of the Empire Maker stallion Sky Kingdom. The filly is of modest size and has a lot of speed, and deep-rooted skeptics might try to beat her on the grounds she won’t stay this trip. But the filly has utterly dominated her races, and her most recent work came in company with Fair Grounds Oaks favorite Travel Column. It’s difficult to see her losing.

In a more typical Crescent City Oaks, Eileen Alexandra and Big Time would be perfectly plausible win candidates; this year, they might be running for second.

Crescent City Derby

Who Took the Money will take plenty of betting in the $100,000 Crescent City Derby, but a lot of that action will be based on a race that took place on March 6, and bettors might think twice about taking a short price on a twice-started horse vulnerable to regression.

By Street Boss, Who Took the Money scored a sharp debut sprint win Feb. 5 and successfully stretched to two turns in a first-level allowance race earlier this month. It’s possible he ran too fast for his own good so close to this race. Bret Calhoun trains Who Took the Money and has a second entrant in Highland Creek, who appears to be developing decently and should have a chance at a better price. Wise Verdict and Unanimously also are worth a look, and those playing multi-race wagers could consider spreading wide and hoping for a bomb in this 1 1/16-mile Louisiana-bred dirt route.