Dancing Buck gets more ground in rematch with Thin White Duke
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Dancing Buck came out on the wrong end of a photo with Thin White Duke in the Lucky Coin Stakes at Saratoga. Trainer Michelle Nevin is hoping a change of venue, a little added distance, and perhaps some give in the ground can help Dancing Buck turn the tables in Saturday’s Grade 3, $200,000 Belmont Turf Sprint at Aqueduct.
This six-furlong race came up with a strong, well-matched field of 12 for the turf plus one horse – Greeley and Ben – entered in case the race is transferred to the dirt.
Rain is forecast for Saturday, so it’s probable the race is run over a less-than-firm outer turf course. Dancing Buck is 2 for 3 at Aqueduct, with a second and a win over good ground.
Dancing Buck, ridden by Manny Franco, looked like a winner of the Lucky Coin, run at 5 1/2 furlongs, before Thin White Duke, under John Velazquez, nailed him on the wire.
“It was a tough beat,” said Nevin, who trains Dancing Buck for J and N Stables and Diamond M Stable. “I thought he ran great. I thought Manny gave him an excellent ride. We got beat by a nice horse that really seemed to love Saratoga.”
Dancing Buck has shown three different running styles in his last starts, so Franco should have options when he breaks from post 10 on Saturday.
Thin White Duke ran three terrific races going 5 1/2 furlongs at Saratoga, including a neck loss when third to Golden Pal in the Grade 3 Troy Stakes followed by his win in the Lucky Coin. He is 1 for 1 at Aqueduct, though that win came in a two-turn race against statebreds in April.
“He’s in good form and obviously what he wants to do is be a turf sprinter,” said David Donk, trainer of Thin White Duke who will break from post 7 under Jose Ortiz.
Donk also sends out Yes and Yes, who was fifth in the Troy and then elevated to second from third after a disqualification in the Da Hoss Stakes at Colonial Downs.
“He was really far back early over a course that was really quick,” said Donk, who noted that Yes and Yes would probably be more effective if this race were actually run at Belmont.
Dylan Davis rides Yes and Yes from post 5.
Noble Emotion finished fifth behind Dancing Buck in a second-level allowance at Saratoga and then came back four weeks later to clear that condition. Trainer Horacio De Paz said he liked the fact Nobel Emotion came from just off the pace that day.
“If he can continue to run like that, he could definitely move forward,” De Paz said.
Arzak is the 4-1 morning-line favorite, though he is only 1 for 9 on turf. He is 4 for 6 on synthetic.
Scuttlebuzz is 4 for 4 over Aqueduct’s turf. His form is dirtied up by a ninth-place finish in the Grade 3 Forbidden Apple Stakes going a mile and a sixth-place finish in an off-the-turf race at Parx Racing in August. His two open-company allowance wins last fall at Aqueduct put him squarely in the mix here for Rudy Rodriguez.
Fauci and Voodoo Zip, third and fourth, respectively, in the Lucky Coin, and Chewing Gum are all in with a chance in this spot. Nothing Better, Seven Scents, and Value Proposition complete the field.
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