Dawn the Destroyer a threat in Interborough
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – A breathing issue prevented Dawn the Destroyer from reaching her full potential. If her last race was any indication, Dawn the Destroyer could win Friday’s $100,000 Interborough Stakes at Aqueduct.
Dawn the Destroyer enters the Interborough off a 4 1/4-length victory in a second-level allowance going 6 1/2 furlongs here on Nov. 29. That was her first start since April, when she finished seventh of 12 in a similar condition on turf at Keeneland.
In the interim, Dawn the Destroyer underwent a surgical procedure known as a tie-back, where cartilage is pulled to the side and stapled to keep it from interfering with a horse’s flow of air.
“Breathing was an issue for a little while,” trainer Kiaran McLaughlin said.
Dawn the Destroyer is a closer and there looks to be ample speed in the Interborough, a race that was originally scheduled for last Monday but was delayed when the New York Racing Association made an early decision to cancel that day’s card due to a forecast that called for extreme cold.
Yorkiepoo Princess, Sower, and Short Kakes all look to possess early speed.
Two other horses that may benefit from a lively pace are Miss Mimosa and Your Love.
Miss Mimosa is coming off a 3 3/4-length allowance win going a one-turn mile here on Dec. 29. Not among the original nominees, Miss Mimosa was supplemented to the race after it was delayed by five days, trainer Bill Mott said. Miss Mimosa has won races from six furlongs to 1 1/8 miles.
“It’s hard to figure out what she wants to do,” Mott said.
Your Love, trained by Chad Brown, is taking a drop in company after finishing fifth, 18 1/4 lengths behind Marley’s Freedom in the Grade 3 Go for Wand here on Dec. 1.
KEY CONTENDERS
Dawn the Destroyer, by Speightstown
Last 3 Beyers: 96-70-79
◗ Kathryn the Wise finished second to Dawn the Destroyer on Nov. 29, and came back to win the La Verdad Stakes by 10 3/4 lengths.
◗ With Javier Castellano in Florida, Junior Alvarado, the second-leading rider at this meet, takes the call.
Your Love, by Flatter
Last 3 Beyers: 72-91-90
◗ The last time she ran in a listed stakes like the Interborough, Your Love won the Shine Again Stakes by a length at Saratoga.
◗ She has finished ahead of both Yorkiepoo Princess and Dawn the Destroyer.
◗ Well drawn in post 8 and has leading rider Manny Franco in the saddle.
Yorkiepoo Princess, by Kantharos
Last 3 Beyers; 92-96-86
◗ Does her best running in the fall and winter as evidenced by her two stakes wins here last winter and a solid second to odds-on favorite Vertical Oak in the Garland of Roses on Dec. 8.
Sower, by Flatter
Last 3 Beyers: 74-90-91
◗ Came out of the Thirty Eight Go Go Stakes at Laurel – where she was disqualified from fourth to fifth – with a respiratory infection, according to trainer Linda Rice.
◗ Forever Liesl, with whom Sower interfered that day, came back win the Ladies Handicap here on Sunday.
